Podcasts about Design

It's Clever's 10th anniversary! We're celebrating by honoring and revisiting some of the amazing stories we've collected over the years. Our guests have continued to make meaningful contributions to the world since we had our initial conversations, be sure to subscribe to our Substack to catch up on some of their recent news!Ep 89: Google's Head of Hardware Design, Ivy Ross, learned from her industrial designer father how to see the world for how it's made, and for the possibilities of how it could be remade. Early professional success as a jewelry designer taught her that life is not about ego hits, it's about the journey. Fueled by curiosity, she's traveled through the corporate world as a way to keep learning. She approaches work like conducting an orchestra - drawing out the best in individuals to create beautiful music as a team. Images and more from Ivy Ross on our website!Clever is hosted & produced by Amy Devers, with editing by Mark Zurawinski, production assistance from Ilana Nevins and Anouchka Stephan, and music by El Ten Eleven.SUBSCRIBE - listen to Clever on any podcast app!SIGN UP - for our Substack for news, bonus content, new episode alertsVISIT - cleverpodcast.com for transcripts, images, and 200+ more episodesSAY HI! - on Instagram & LinkedIn @cleverpodcast @amydevers Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week on Catalyst, Tammy is joined by Beth Howen, President of State, Local Government and Education (SLED) at NTT DATA, who helps government agencies and school systems modernize the technology touching everyday life. Beth traces her path from becoming a state CIO in Indiana at 28 through leadership roles at Capgemini, TELUS International, Atos, and the City of Indianapolis. So how did she do so much at such a young age? Beth credits it to a willingness to work outside rigid processes when they don't serve the outcome. She and Tammy dig into how AI risks compounding government's legacy-system problems if agencies automate broken workflows instead of modernizing first, and the promise of AI-powered care reaching rural and underserved communities.Please note that the views expressed may not necessarily be those of NTT DATALinks: Beth Howen Learn more about Launch by NTT DATASee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

On this episode of Dynamo Faithful, the lads review the World Cup, chat about the roster news, preview the matches vs DC & Austin, and think about future World Cup formats.Be sure to follow us on Instagram and Twitter @Dynamo_Faithful and let us know what you think! We appreciate any feedback on how to improve the pod going forward, and please consider rating and reviewing us on your favorite podcast platform!Appearing on this episode are Chris Sinski, Krystopher Scroggins, Jake Berry, & Kyle McGuire.Produced & Edited by Ian Gregory-GraffSocial Media & Design by Zacj BellotMusic from Pixabay:Intro/Outro Song: Indie Folk (King Around Here) by Alex Grohl

THE (MAGAZINE) DOCTOR IS IN — Megan Schertler wants to help you make magazines. Yes, you … and you … and you too. But she also wants to ensure that once you make a magazine, you make another one. And then one after that. She wants to make sure that you know it's not easy to create a magazine or to run one or to publish a second one or to sustain a magazine or media brand or to run a business. Megan is big on print. She's one of those extremely rare people who's held down numerous magazine jobs while never working on the digital side of things. Yes, really. People like her exist. So she knows more than many her age that print is more engaging, produces more loyalty, and creates a deeper and more meaningful connection with the message on the page than any other medium. And so with her partners, Megan now helms In Real Life Media to help would-be magazine makers sure, but also some of the world's largest brands navigate the realities of the magazine world. Because while we all love print here, it's hard, it's expensive, and it is, quite frankly, a pain in the ass. But it also results in something glorious, and Megan travels the world speaking at conferences and to people like me to spread the word.. — This episode is made possible by our friends at Freeport Press. A production of Magazeum LLC ©2021–2025

Building a profitable design business isn't just about attracting more clients. At some point, it becomes about deciding which ones deserve a place in the business you're creating. That shift is much harder than most people expect because it forces you to stop measuring success by how many opportunities come your way and start measuring it by how your work actually feels every day.Over the past twenty years as a designer and eleven years running my agency, I've gone from designing for anyone who would hire me to becoming incredibly selective about the founders I work with. That journey has changed my approach to branding, niching, client relationships, and what I believe a successful creative business should actually look like. If you've been wondering whether it's time to niche down, raise your standards, or build a business that feels more aligned with the life you want, this conversation might resonate more than you expect.Links to Connect:Media & speaking: ⁠⁠⁠https://kadysandel.com⁠⁠⁠My skincare branding studio: ⁠⁠⁠https://aventivestudio.com⁠⁠⁠For designers: ⁠⁠⁠https://aventiveacademy.com/profit⁠⁠⁠Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/kadysandel/⁠

Don't fear losing your job to AI—fear losing it to someone who knows how to use AI better than you. It's time to stop treating AI as a tool and start treating it as your default way of working.Human by Design, AI by Default: Rewriting the Way We Work #110What does it actually look like to rebuild a global, legacy brand with years of technical debt into a completely AI-native business from the ground up? As it turns out, it isn't just a technological challenge—it is fundamentally an HR and communications mountain to climb.This week, Gary and George are doubly thrilled to welcome back Groupon's Chief People Officer, Nick Walker (marking his record third appearance on the show!), alongside Groupon's VP of Comms, Engagement, and Inclusion, Emma Coleman. Together, they take us behind the scenes of Groupon's massive cultural and structural transformation under their AI-savvy CEO, Dushan.From reshaping employee mindsets and restructuring traditional departments into lean "speedboats" to managing the psychological fear of redundancy, Nick and Emma share the unfiltered reality of rewriting the way we work. They discuss why AI adoption is actually a massive transfer of power from legacy systems back to human beings, and how human judgment remains the ultimate corporate superpower.Key takeaways from this episode:Speeding Fines vs. Parking Tickets: To build an AI-native culture, leaders must encourage risk-taking. Groupon welcomes "speeding fines" (mistakes made while pushing boundaries and moving fast) but has zero tolerance for "parking tickets" (complacency or refusing to try).Ditch the "Hand-Off Tax": Legacy organizations slow down because of continuous hand-offs between bloated, siloed teams. By structuring operations around "speedboats"—lean teams of 2 to 3 people running a complete workflow—you eliminate the friction and move exponentially faster.Close the Execution Gap, Not the Judgment Gap: AI is incredibly efficient at closing the execution gap (handling processes and grunt work). However, humans still own the judgment gap. Your ability to understand context, see around corners, and apply emotional intelligence is irreplaceable.Prompt Engineering is a Non-Negotiable Skill: Good inputs yield rich outputs. Investing time in mastering prompt engineering (sometimes spending up to an hour crafting a single prompt) is a major career differentiator that prevents "sloppy AI work."Send us Fan MailLinks & references: https://www.thecompanydoctor.com/Gary Gamp: https://www.linkedin.com/in/garygampGeorge Clode: https://www.linkedin.com/in/georgeclodeGary's new book, Career Catalyst - available online now: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Career-Catalyst-Secret-Skills-School-ebook/dp/B0DFYVG6XY/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

Live recording of the fortnightly podcast Design Systems WTF (back for season two!), where Luke Murphy and Michelle Chin attempt to combat all the amazing wtf in design systems. In each episode, they answer a single question around design system troubles with a Q&A from the live audience.Governance seems to be one of those fancy words that gets thrown around a lot by design system people - but what level of governance is actually worthwhile, and how much of it is theater? Michelle and Luke will dive into governance, what level is good enough, and what bits they think you should scrap.Show notesBrad Frost's governance flowchart — the component approval flow Michelle borrowed and adapted: A Design System Governance Process. Also available as a Figma community file, and his lighter-touch follow-up: Master design system governance with this one weird trickNathan Curtis on governance and contribution — his writing on contribution models referenced in the episode: Contributions to Design Systems and Team Models for Scaling a Design SystemManaging Chaos: Digital Governance by Design by Lisa Welchman — Michelle's book recommendation for adding process in a way that isn't "gross", with a historical look at how web governance emerged: Rosenfeld MediaOrg Design for Design Orgs by Peter Merholz & Kristin Skinner — Luke's companion-piece recommendation on ritual and process for design teams, transferable to design systems: petermerholz.com / O'ReillyBig Vape: The Rise and Fall of Juul — the Netflix documentary on Juul and "how not to do a startup": Netflix

False Idols: How Diversion is Destroying Democracy (Vernon Press, 2024) examines how modern forms of diversion shape civic life and weaken democratic responsibility. Drawing on the ancient Roman idea of “bread and circuses,” Kurt Warner explores how contemporary society is saturated with distractions that keep citizens focused on what is immediate, pleasurable, profitable, or spectacular, rather than on what is politically and socially meaningful. The conversation introduces listeners to the book's central concern: how celebrity culture, consumerism, economic pressures, sports, politics, art, music, literature, the internet, social media, and video games can become “false idols.” These forces do not merely entertain us; they influence how we think, what we value, and how we understand our responsibilities to one another. A key point of discussion is the book's comparison between ancient Rome and the contemporary United States. Warner uses “bread and circuses” to consider how societies become complacent when citizens are absorbed by basic needs and entertainment while civic duty fades into the background. The episode also explores the book's opening narrative, which follows an ordinary man, Chris, through a day filled with advertising, media, branding, and social pressure. This scene illustrates one of the book's central arguments: distraction is often woven into everyday life before people have noticed its influence. Warner's background in psychotherapy adds an important dimension to the discussion. 'False Idols' connects personal awareness with civic awareness, asking how people can recognize the forces directing their attention and reclaim the ability to think critically. Ultimately, this episode invites listeners to reflect on the relationship between attention and democracy. 'False Idols' asks what it would mean to wake up from the collective daze of distraction and choose more meaningful forms of civic, ethical, and social engagement. Key Themes and Context: “Bread and circuses” in the modern world - One of the book's central ideas is that Juvenal's famous phrase “bread and circuses” remains relevant today. Warner uses it to examine how entertainment, consumption, and everyday distraction can draw citizens away from civic responsibility. The many forms of diversion- The book considers a wide range of modern distractions, including celebrity worship, money, sports, politics, art, music, literature, the internet, social media, and video games. Together, these examples show how distraction can operate across culture, politics, economics, and everyday life. Democracy and civic duty - At the heart of the book is a concern with democracy. Warner argues that distraction becomes dangerous when it weakens civic engagement and allows people to avoid the difficult work of political and ethical responsibility. Critical thinking as resistance - The later chapters of 'False Idols' focus on critical thinking as a way of resisting manipulation and recovering agency. The book invites readers to examine not only what they consume, but also how their attention, values, and judgments are shaped. The psychological dimension of distraction - Warner's background in psychotherapy informs the book's attention to emotion, avoidance, and self-awareness. Distraction is presented not only as a social or political problem, but also as something that affects how individuals relate to themselves and others. Vernon Press – Bridging Scholarly Ideas and Global Readership Vernon Press stands out as a bilingual independent publisher of scholarly books in the humanities and social sciences. Their mission is crucial — to provide a home for ideas of international importance and to embrace scholarship from underrepresented voices and perspectives. Through its diverse catalog, Vernon Press engages with global readers, contributing to academic and public discourse. Dessy Vassileva, the Marketing & Design expert at Vernon Press, brings a 360º multidisciplinary approach to her work at Vernon Press. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There's someone at your work who's getting away with things they should never get away with. The manipulation. The credit-taking. The quiet dismantling of people who deserved better. You've seen behind the mask that everyone else seems to find so charming, and every fiber of your being wants to expose it.In this series finale, here's the case for why you shouldn't.Not because they don't deserve it. But because the exposure conversation you've rehearsed will almost certainly cost you more than it costs them. This episode decodes the "shoot the messenger" trap that Harvard researchers documented, the crucial difference between reporting facts and exposing character, and why matching a political operator's game makes you indistinguishable from them.Then we complete the CALM framework with its final step, Move, and what deliberate action actually looks like when everything in you wants to react. Including the difference between fleeing a toxic workplace and leaving one on your own terms, with your reputation and your peace intact.Because character compounds quietly, without maintenance, over years. And when the reorganization comes, or leadership changes, or the mask finally slips, it's character that holds. Every single time.The watched moments build your image. The unwatched moments build your character. This episode is about making sure yours is telling the story you want told.In this episode:The exposure trap, and why telling the truth can make you the problemReporting facts vs. exposing character (and why one works and one backfires)Why character always surfaces, and political skill never lastsThe CALM Move step: deliberate, not dramaticFleeing vs. leaving, and why walking away whole is never losingThe reputation you build when nobody's watchingNot sure what's really getting in the way of your career? Take the free CALM Workplace Clarity Assessment: [quiz link]This is the finale of the four-part July series, Reputation by Design, Not Default. Catch up on Episodes 301 to 303 wherever you listen. Your reputation is talking. Are you listening?

Allie responds to the "pastor for queer ministry" at Trinity Lutheran Church (ELCA), who claims no one is going to hell for being gay, denies that hell is a real place, calls Christianity the "religion of bigotry," and declares "queer is God's design." She examines what Jesus actually taught about hell and eternal punishment, what the Bible says about homosexuality, and why God's design for marriage and sexuality has never changed. Also, Allie answers viewer questions of reading other religious texts, nursing throughout the night, and a female pastor at a Christian preschool. Do you have a question for Allie? Leave a voicemail at 844-755-5252. Share the Arrows 2026 is on October 10 in Dallas, Texas! Tickets are on sale now at: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://sharethearrows.com⁠⁠⁠ Share the Arrows is sponsored by: A'del Natural Cosmetics: AdelNaturalCosmetics.com Range Leather: RangeLeather.com/ALLIE We Heart Nutrition: WeHeartNutrition.com Buy Allie's book "Toxic Empathy: How Progressives Exploit Christian Compassion": ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.toxicempathy.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ – Time Codes 0:00 Introduction 9:45 Claim #1 Queer People Cannot Be Judged 17:28 Claim #2 Hell is Not a Real Place 25:50 Claim #3 Queer is God's Design 33:00 What Do Christians Believe About Hell? 36:46 Allie Gives Advice – Today's Sponsors: Cozy Earth | Discover how care in every detail transforms simple routines into real comfort. Head to cozyearth.com and use my code RELATABLE for up to 20% off. And if you get a post-purchase survey, be sure to mention you heard about Cozy Earth right here. A'del | Visit AdelNaturalCosmetics.com and enter promo code ALLIE for 25% off your first-time purchase. We Heart Nutrition | Check out We Heart Nutrition at ⁠⁠⁠WeHeartNutrition.com⁠⁠⁠ and use the code ALLIE for 20% off. Good Ranchers | If you go to ⁠⁠⁠GoodRanchers.com⁠⁠⁠ and subscribe to any box of 100% American meat, you'll save up to $500 a year! Plus, if you use code ALLIE, you'll get an additional $25 off your first order. Fellowship Home Loans | Start with a free consultation at FellowshipHomeLoans.com/Allie and receive a $500 credit at closing. Episodes You May Like: Ep 1284 | What the Hell? The Truth About Kirk Cameron's Views on Eternal Punishment https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ep-1284-what-the-hell-the-truth-about-kirk-camerons/id1359249098?i=1000744180777 Ep 859 | Why You Can't Be a Gay Christian | Guest: Dr. Christopher Yuan https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ep-859-why-you-cant-be-a-gay-christian-guest-dr/id1359249098?i=1000625169321 --- ► Buy Allie's book, "You're Not Enough (& That's Okay): Escaping the Toxic Culture of Self-Love": https://alliebethstuckey.com/book ► Subscribe to the podcast: iTunes: https://apple.co/2UVssnP Spotify: https://spoti.fi/2FwkXxj ► Connect with Allie on Social Media: https://twitter.com/conservmillen https://www.instagram.com/alliebstuckey/ https://facebook.com/allieBlazeTV/ ► Relatable merchandise – use promo code 'ALLIE10' for a discount: https://shop.blazemedia.com/collections/allie-stuckey

What does it mean to be a man in today’s culture? Pastor and author Seth Troutt presents a case for authentic masculinity. He believes being a man is rooted in living according to God’s design, both in virtue and in role. If that’s true, what are the counterfeits men need to leave behind? Don’t miss a challenging conversation for men and women on Chris Fabry Live. Featured resource:Authentic Masculinity: Leaving Behind the Counterfeits for God’s Design by Seth TrouttWebsite: Celebrating 100 Years of Moody Radio July thank you gift:This is Moody Radio: 100 Years of Proclaiming the Gospel by Kevin Mungons and Phil Shappard Chris Fabry Live is listener-supported. To support the program, click here.Become a Back Fence Partner: https://moodyradio.org/donateto/chrisfabrylive/partnersSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Design and marketing are often treated as separate disciplines, but after sitting down with Kimberly McNatt, it's clear they're deeply connected.In this episode of The Real Build Show, I had the opportunity to talk with Kimberly, Director of Business Development at Clive Daniel Home, about how thoughtful design, strategic marketing, and strong relationships all work together to shape exceptional projects and successful businesses. Drawing from her extensive background in branding, sales, and design, Kimberly shares insights on creating experiences that resonate long before a project is complete.We also discuss the value of collaboration, the psychology behind great design, and why the best brands are built with intention, not just through what they create, but how they communicate it.Whether you're in construction, design, real estate, or business, I think you'll walk away with a fresh perspective on the intersection of creativity, strategy, and growth.

Korey sits down with Bryan Walters, a Senior Associate at Daniel Rogers Landscape Architecture, to discuss Bryan's career journey from being a chef to becoming a landscape architect and his perspective on how landscape architects and arborists can better work together. For more on Bryan and Daniel Rogers Landscape Architecture you can visit their website at WWW.DRLA.DESIGN. If you enjoyed the podcast please rate, review, subscribe and tell a fellow tree lover! Send your questions or topics you would like us to discuss to ⁠info@discoveringforestrypodcast.com⁠.Be sure to follow us on all your favorite social media platforms!Twitter/X: @DisForestryPodInstagram: @discovering_forestryFacebook: Discovering ForestryYouTube: @discoveringforestry6905LinkedIn: Discovering Forestry PodcastMusic credit:⁠ Cool Tools Music Video - "Timber"⁠   ⁠Muzaproduction “Sport Rock Logo 1”⁠Hosted by: Joe Aiken & Korey LofyProduced by: Nico Manganiello

If you've researched whole life insurance for Infinite Banking, you've probably seen whole life insurance dividend rates advertised. 5.76%. 6.5%. And you've probably wondered: is higher better, and how do I compare policies using this number? Here's the answer, stated plainly: a higher dividend rate does not mean a better policy. Chasing it, without understanding the bigger picture, leads people to make poor decisions about which policy to choose. That instinct to find one comparable number isn't foolish. But the dividend rate is one of the most misunderstood figures in whole life insurance, and treating it as the answer skips past everything that actually determines how a policy performs. https://youtu.be/JSVn8bnHy1g This isn't an argument that dividends don't matter. They do, and you want them. It's an argument that the rate by itself is one data point in a much bigger picture, and using it as your primary basis for comparison will mislead you. Time to peel back the layers and look at what's really going on underneath that number. The core ideas:Base Premium Versus Paid-Up AdditionsParticipating Versus Non-ParticipatingDirect Recognition Versus Non-Direct RecognitionDoes a higher dividend rate mean a better whole life insurance policy?What does a whole life insurance dividend rate actually tell you?Are whole life insurance dividends guaranteed?Are whole life insurance dividends taxable?Why doesn't a 6% dividend rate mean my cash value grows 6%?What is a participating whole life insurance policy?How should I actually compare whole life insurance companies? The core ideas: A 6% dividend rate does not mean your cash value grows 6% that year There's no industry standard for how dividends are calculated or reported, so comparing rates across companies isn't apples-to-apples Policy design (how much goes to base premium versus paid-up additions) affects dividend crediting more than the rate itself A 10 to 15-year dividend history tells you more than this year's number Direct recognition versus non-direct recognition makes illustrated comparisons unreliable The real comparison criteria: financial strength, dividend history, company friendliness toward policy loans, and your own funding behavior What a Whole Life Insurance Dividend Actually Is A stock dividend is a board of directors deciding to distribute company profit per share. A whole life insurance dividend from a mutual company is classified as a return of premium instead, which is also why it isn't taxable. Mutual companies price policies conservatively, especially around mortality cost, the biggest expense they can't fully control. When actual experience comes in better than projected, the surplus gets returned to policyholders as a dividend. The "they're just giving your money back" objection misses something. If you paid a million in cumulative premiums over forty years and end up with two million in cash value, that's growth that was conservatively deferred, not a refund. In some years, the dividend paid can exceed that year's entire premium. For a fuller breakdown of how dividends are calculated, taxed, and what your options are for using them, we have a dedicated dividends article worth reading, along with a closer look at what dividends are and aren't. The rest of this piece focuses specifically on the rate itself and why it's so often misread. Why a 6% Dividend Rate Doesn't Mean Your Cash Value Grows 6% Here's the single most damaging misconception in this conversation. Social media commentary loves the math of "6% dividend minus your loan rate equals your spread." That math is wrong, because the declared rate and your actual crediting aren't the same thing. The declared rate is largely a gross figure applied across the whole pool of policyholders. What reaches your individual contract is net of mortality costs and other expenses, and depends heavily on your age and where you sit in the life of the policy. You can think of it this way: the cash value is chasing the death benefit. Actuarially, a policy's cash value has to rise enough to equal the death benefit by around age 121. A 70-year-old has far less time left to compound toward that than a 10-year-old, so their cash value has to climb proportionally more, even under the exact same declared rate. That's also why two people holding the same company's policy, with the same declared rate, see different increases in their own cash value. The rate is an input into a calculation, not the outcome of one. Erase "dividend rate equals my growth rate" from how you think about this. The better question is: what's actually driving my policy's performance? The Two Sides of Your Illustration: Guaranteed and Non-Guaranteed Every whole life policy grows through two combined mechanisms: guaranteed interest and non-guaranteed dividends. An illustration shows both sides separately. The guaranteed side shows zero dividends, the contractual minimum the company is obligated to deliver regardless of performance.  The non-guaranteed side shows what happens if today's declared dividend rate continues unchanged every year, reinvested into paid-up additions. That's a big assumption stacked on another. A projection showing a large cash value at age 92 isn't a prediction; it's what today's number would produce if nothing about it ever changed, which it will. Dividend rates move in line with the company's actual performance over time. The number on page one of an illustration is a snapshot, not a forecast. There's a meaningful upside, though. Once a dividend is actually declared and paid, it locks in. It becomes part of the guaranteed side of your contract and is never removed, even if future rates decline. This is exactly why comparing two illustrations on dividend rate alone falls apart. Two different companies can show the identical declared rate and still project completely different cash values twenty or thirty years out, because the rate gets applied differently depending on contract design, your age, and the specific year. The rate isn't the variable that explains the gap. Design is. Why Policy Design Drives Performance More Than the Dividend Rate This is the part that surprises most people, and it's worth slowing down for. Base Premium Versus Paid-Up Additions Dividend crediting isn't applied evenly across every dollar in your policy. The base policy receives a noticeably larger proportion of dividend crediting than paid-up additions, or PUAs, do, and there's a clear mechanical reason why. The company knows your base premium will be funded for the life of the contract, one way or another. Because of that certainty, they spread the base policy's mortality cost across the entire contract term and attach a proportionally larger death benefit to it.  A bigger death benefit means more cash value has to "chase" it, which translates into a bigger dividend on that portion of the policy. PUAs work differently. They're optional, purchased year by year, priced at one-year-renewable-term cost in the year you buy them. A PUA purchased at 40 buys substantially more death benefit than the same dollar amount purchased at 60, sometimes around 10 times the premium early on, versus closer to 1.5 times later in the contract. Less death benefit to chase means a smaller dividend. Some carriers make this visible. Lafayette Life, mentioned here only as an illustrative example, breaks out the base-versus-PUA dividend split on annual statements. Early in a policy, around 90% of the total dividend commonly flows to the base. The practical takeaway: if dividend capture is what you're optimizing for, the proportion of base premium in your policy design predicts performance far better than the headline rate ever will. One caution, though. It's not as simple as "always maximize base." Higher PUA funding lowers a policy's overall mortality cost too, which also lifts crediting elsewhere. Design involves real trade-offs, not a single lever to max out. And beyond design entirely, the biggest variable left is you. How consistently you fund the policy and how you use it over decades shapes performance more than any number on an illustration. What Actually Drives Whole Life Insurance Dividend Rates The real engine behind a dividend rate is company performance: actual mortality experience and expenses compared against what the company projected. Beat the projections, and there's more surplus to return. That's why a ten to fifteen-year look-back at a company's dividend history tells you more than this year's headline figure. A company whose dividends trended steadily or upward through real downturns is showing fiscal discipline likely to continue. A company judged on a single year's number gives you very little to go on. Recent history offers a case study here. The COVID years were a real-world blip: some carriers had loosened underwriting standards to bring in more premium volume, leaving them exposed to higher mortality costs when conditions shifted. Others held tight, conservative underwriting the whole way through.  That frustrates some applicants in the short term, but it lets those companies forecast their future dividend capacity with far more confidence. The next time two companies are separated by a tenth of a percentage point this year, recognize that comparison for what it is: short-range thinking applied to a long-range product. Participating Policies and the Recognition Question Two structural distinctions decide whether dividends exist at all for a given policy, and whether comparing rates across companies even makes sense in the first place. Participating Versus Non-Participating Only participating policies are eligible for dividends. The company's charter spells out that policyholders share in profits. A non-participating policy still carries guaranteed interest,...

Featured playlist: The Church (That Meets in My Home) — https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5Yobt1jZDd9Zzn8Ufa-BNciyYv04Cl6mMy books:Exalted: Putting Jesus in His Place — https://www.amazon.com/Exalted-Putting-Jesus-His-Place/dp/0985118709/ref=tmm_pap_title_0God's Design for Marriage (Married Edition) — https://www.amazon.com/Gods-Design-Marriage-Married-Amazing/dp/0998786306/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1493422125&sr=1-4&keywords=god%27s+design+for+marriageGod's Design for Marriage (Pre-married Edition) — https://www.amazon.com/Gods-Design-Marriage-What-Before/dp/0985118725/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_topSupport us - become a CTC Partner: https://crosstocrown.org/partners/crosstocrown.org@DougGoodin

Have you ever wondered how jewellery collections come together? Where do the ideas come from? How do they develop into cohesive designs? And how do you create work that people instantly recognise as yours? In this episode of the Jewellers Academy Podcast, Anna Campbell is joined by jewellery designer, maker and Jewellers Academy mentor Elin Horgan to explore the creative process behind designing a jewellery collection. Elin shares how she finds inspiration in architecture, why she gathers ideas long before she starts designing, and how she transforms simple geometric shapes into timeless jewellery collections. She also takes us behind the scenes of using CAD and casting, planning a professional brand photoshoot, refreshing her visual identity and building a recognisable style that has evolved over years in business. If you're just beginning to design your own jewellery or you're looking to create a more cohesive collection, this conversation is full of practical advice and inspiration. In this episode, you'll discover: How to gather inspiration without forcing creativity Developing a cohesive jewellery collection from one central idea Designing with production and manufacturing in mind When outsourcing can strengthen your jewellery business The value of professional photography when launching a collection How branding evolves as your jewellery business grows Why your signature style develops naturally over time   About Elin Horgan Elin Horgan is a jewellery designer and maker based in Bristol. Inspired by the geometry of architecture, she creates understated contemporary jewellery in recycled silver and gold using traditional silversmithing techniques alongside wax carving, CAD and casting. Elin is also a Jewellers Academy mentor and tutor on the Diploma in Wax Jewellery. Find Elin: Website: https://www.elinhorgan.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elinhorgan Discover more jewellery making courses, workshops and the Jewellers Academy community at: https://www.jewellersacademy.com

Lunes 20 de Julio de 2026 Ya esta disponible MEDELLIN TECHNO PODCAST 329 Presentado por DERAOUT Invitado: SCRAUT SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/scraut Info Deraout: www.deraout.com _____ Design: www.boldbravestudio.com __ #medellintechnopodcast #medellin #techno #podcast #djset #deraout #Scraut #orientetechno

Carol Ross Barney, FAIA, HASLA, the distinguished 2023 American Institute of Architects Gold Medal recipient, is a visionary architect, urbanist, mentor, and educator, and has relentlessly advocated that excellent design is a right, not a privilege. Through her unwavering dedication to crafting public buildings and spaces that elevate our daily lives, she has produced distinctive structures and places that have become cultural icons.We talk about: - Building an award-winning portfolio of civic and public projects by treating great design as a basic responsibility, not an added luxury.- Why every community deserves thoughtful, high-quality spaces.- The diverse group of stakeholders behind every successful public project- from community members and elected officials to engineers and clients- and how, as an architect, Carol approached transformative projects like the Oklahoma City Federal Building and the Chicago Riverwalk.- Firm ownership, building high-performing teams, and why Carol believes architects are strongest when they embrace the role of the generalist.- The ways in which teaching at IIT and building relationships with a group of mentors shaped Carols' career and design philosophies.>>>Connect with Carol:Website: https://www.r-barc.com/>>>Thank you to our sponsor:The American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) is a not-for-profit technical institute for structural steel. The Architecture Center is an initiative of AISC, and was created for architects by architects. It provides resources to help architects save time and money, reduce risk, and achieve their project goals.Website: www.aisc.org/architecture-centerLinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/american-institute-of-steel-constructionInstagram: www.instagram.com/aisc>>>Connect with Architectette:- Website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ www.architectette.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (Learn more)- Instagram:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ @architectette⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (See more)- Newsletter:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ www.architectette.com/newsletter⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (Behind the Scenes Content)- LinkedIn: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Architectette Podcast⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Page and/or⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Caitlin Brady⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠>>>Music by⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ AlexGrohl⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ from ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Pixabay⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

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Send us Fan MailNobody sets out to build a broken system. Every tool your organization is running was the right call the day it was purchased. Someone fought for the budget, ran the validation, and trained the team. And they were right.But the work still doesn't flow.In this episode of Lean by Design, Oscar Gonzalez and Lawrence Wong explore what happens in the space between your systems — the gap that isn't empty, but filled with people. Analysts, coordinators, and scientists spending their afternoons exporting files, reformatting data, and re-keying numbers into a slide deck for a Thursday meeting. People who have quietly become the integration layer their organization never designed.The conversation unpacks what it really costs when tools don't talk to each other: the data that gets lost in translation, the rework that never shows up on a budget line, and the growing frustration of teams who can't get a straight answer to the most basic question — what's the right data?Oscar and Lawrence dig into why this happens — from procurement systems that don't connect to maintenance platforms, to IT contracts that outlast their usefulness, to the reality that as organizations grow, nobody stops to ask whether the tech stack still makes sense. Research shows that 86% of IT leaders say unintegrated tools are adding more complexity than value, and teams are burning nearly 30% of their technical time hand-building integrations that should never have been manual in the first place.This episode is not about which tools to buy or whether to build versus integrate. It's about recognizing that the space between your systems is not a technical problem — it's an ownership problem. And until someone decides to own the gap, people will keep filling it. Episode sound familiar? Reach out for a 30 min situation read so that we can look at your situation together. https://sigmalabconsulting.com/callLearn more about us by visiting:  https://sigmalabconsulting.com/Order Predictably Broken Now! https://books2read.com/predictablybrokenCheck out video episodes: https://www.youtube.com/@LeanByDesignPodcastWant our thoughts on a specific topic? Looking to sponsor this podcast to continue to generate content? Or maybe you have an idea and want to be on our show. Fill out our Interest Form and share your thoughts.

For anyone who's been putting off their branding because they've told themselves they need more money first, I get why you'd think that. But it's genuinely one of the more expensive beliefs you can hold in business. This podcast kicks off a three part series on building a brand on a budget, and today I'm tackling the myth head on. Because a strong brand isn't actually about how much you spend, it's about knowing what to prioritise and what can wait a while. I'm walking through the four things your brand genuinely needs (spoiler, your logo is only one of them), the two things you can happily skip for now, and the hidden cost of not sorting your branding out at all. Free Canva Masterclass: Design Tools to $100k

Widow's Bay: Crafting Worlds with Emmy Nominees Steve Arnold & Jennifer Engel In this behind‑the‑scenes deep dive, Tony sits down over Zoom with Steve Arnold, Emmy‑nominated Production Designer, and Jennifer Engel, Emmy‑nominated Set Decorator for Widow's Bay. Together, they unpack the creative engineering behind one of television's most atmospheric series — from designing entire environments across multiple soundstages to sourcing the unusual, character‑defining props that give the show its eerie, lived‑in texture. They also share candid reflections on receiving Emmy nominations, what recognition means at this stage in their careers, and how the collaborative spirit of Widow's Bay shaped every frame. SAVE 17% ON PLUS  

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Thankfully… walk into almost any contemporary office and you are likely to find a few strategically positioned plants, a moss wall in reception or perhaps another biophilic feature intended to soften an otherwise corporate environment. Over the past decade, introducing greenery into workplaces has become almost synonymous with employee wellbeing. Yet according to workplace and environmental psychologist Dr Craig Knight, if organisations believe that adding a few plants alone will transform productivity, they have misunderstood the research. Craig's work at the University of Exeter, challenged one of the most enduring assumptions in workplace design, namely that the most productive offices are those that are minimalist and stripped back to their essentials. These highly controlled environments were long thought to minimise distraction and maximise concentration. His research demonstrated precisely the opposite. Employees working in enriched environments containing plants, artwork and opportunities for personalisation consistently performed better than those working in lean, standardised offices. “Wellbeing improved, stress reduced and productivity increased by as much as 15%.” Although plants became the headline of many reports about the research, Craig is keen to put them into context. They are not magical objects capable of transforming a workplace by themselves. Rather, they are one of the simplest and most affordable ways of enriching an environment. This is important for designers, facilities managers and employers to remember. Environmental enrichment can take many forms, including artwork, light, texture and even scent. Plants have proved particularly effective because they are relatively inexpensive, flexible and easy to introduce into existing buildings. Unlike a major refurbishment, they can transform a space almost immediately. The psychology behind their success is equally compelling. Rather than distracting employees from their work, enriched environments provide opportunities for brief moments of cognitive recovery. Looking away from a screen towards a plant or another visually engaging feature gives the brain the chance to reset before returning to the task at hand. These small interruptions help sustain attention rather than diminish it. As Craig puts it, people are happier and more productive when their surroundings offer something meaningful to engage with. Yet as our conversation developed, it became clear that the plants themselves were not the most significant finding from decades of workplace research.The real story is choice. People perform better when they have some control over the environment in which they work. The ability to personalise a desk, influence the layout of a workspace or decide where plants should be positioned may appear insignificant, but psychologically these decisions communicate something much larger. They demonstrate trust. One of the most interesting examples he describes comes from a company in Paris that invited staff to shape their own working environment. Employees created artwork, rearranged spaces, introduced planting and developed breakout areas that reflected their own personalities. There was no substantial design budget. Instead, the organisation trusted its employees to create an environment that suited the way they worked. Productivity increased, but equally important was the sense of ownership people developed towards the workplace. It became somewhere they wanted to be rather than somewhere they were required to attend. This idea of ownership runs through much of his research. Organisations often invest heavily in beautifully designed offices only to prevent employees from moving furniture, repositioning plants or displaying personal objects. In doing so, they unintentionally undermine many of the psychological benefits the design was intended to create. Craig argues that even the best designers cannot predict what will make every individual feel comfortable. A workplace should not simply reflect a corporate identity; it should also allow the identities of the people working there to emerge. "The more you can realise your own identity in your space," he says, "the better that space is."This presents an interesting challenge for architects and interior designers. Design excellence has often been measured by visual consistency and aesthetic control. Yet workplace psychology suggests that highly curated environments are not always the most successful places to work. The role of design may be less about creating a finished solution and more about creating a framework within which people can adapt spaces to suit their own needs. That philosophy extends well beyond office furniture or planting schemes. Craig is equally critical of workplace cultures that attempt to monitor every aspect of employee behaviour. Surveillance software, keystroke monitoring and rigid management structures all communicate a lack of trust, and his research consistently shows that these approaches reduce engagement rather than improve it. Organisations frequently speak about wellbeing while simultaneously removing autonomy from their workforce. The contradiction is difficult to ignore. For those working in Biophilic Design, there is another interesting lesson. The discussion around nature in buildings often focuses on the physiological benefits of plants, daylight or natural materials. Craig does not dismiss those benefits, but he repeatedly brings the conversation back to the social environment. Plants become valuable not simply because they are living organisms, but because they represent care, enrichment and, when employees are involved in choosing and looking after them, shared ownership. It is no coincidence that people often name the plants they care for in the workplace. They become part of the social fabric of an office, small but tangible reminders that the environment is alive and that someone has invested in it. Even preserved planting, increasingly common where living plants are impractical, reflects a desire to introduce texture, colour and references to nature into spaces that might otherwise feel sterile.As organisations continue to rethink hybrid working and the purpose of the office, Knight believes there is an opportunity to move beyond designing attractive workplaces only. The challenge is to create environments where people feel respected, trusted and able to contribute to the spaces they inhabit. His advice to designers:"People first. Design second." It is a principle that sits comfortably alongside Biophilic Design. Creating healthier workplaces has never been solely about filling buildings with plants. It is about designing environments that support human flourishing. Plants remain one of the most effective tools available, but they are most powerful when they become part of a wider culture that values participation, autonomy and wellbeing. In the end, the greenest workplace is not necessarily the one with the most planting. It is the one where people genuinely feel that they belong. To follow or contact Dr Craig Kight visit his Linkedin profile: linkedin.com/in/craigknightidrhttps://www.identityrealization.com His now-famous paper, The Relative Benefits of Green Versus Lean Office Space: Three Field Experiments, co-authored alongside Nieuwenhuis, M., Postmes, T., and Haslam, S., found that introducing plants into office environments could improve workplace productivity by up to 15%. Nieuwenhuis, Marlon & Knight, Craig & Postmes, Tom & Haslam, S.. (2014). The Relative Benefits of Green Versus Lean Office Space: Three Field Experiments. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied. 20. 199-214. 10.1037/xap0000024. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/264395358_The_Relative_Benefits_of_Green_Versus_Lean_Office_Space_Three_Field_Experiments Have you got a copy of the Journal? You can now subscribe as a member of the Journal of Biophilic Design or purchase a gorgeous coffee table reference copy or PDF download of the Journal journalofbiophilicdesign.com or Amazon and Kindle. Credits: with thanks to George Harvey Audio Production for the calming biophilic soundscape that backs all of our podcasts. Listen to our podcast on Audible, Amazon Music, Spotify, iTunes, YouTube and all the RSS feeds.https://www.facebook.com/journalofbiophilicdesign/https://www.linkedin.com/company/journalofbiophilicdesign/https://www.instagram.com/journalofbiophilicdesignIf you like this,please subscribe!

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In dieser Folge ist die Nachhaltigkeitsexpertin und Professorin Marte Henschel zu Gast. Sie berichtet von ihrem Weg zwischen Unternehmertum, Lehre und Forschung sowie ihren Erfahrungen mit nachhaltigen Geschäftsmodellen in der Modebranche. Dabei spricht sie über die Bedeutung transparenter Lieferketten, neuer Formen der Zusammenarbeit und systemischen Denkens. Im Gespräch wird thematisiert, dass Design über die Gestaltung einzelner Produkte hinausgehen und ganze Wertschöpfungssysteme beeinflussen kann. Außerdem erläutert Marte Henschel ihre Sicht auf neue Ansätze im Design und dessen mögliche Rolle bei gesellschaftlichen Transformationsprozessen.

Zusammen mit seiner Frau Martha Strobel kuratierte Jacob Strobel, Professor für Holzgestaltung, Westsächsische Hochschule Zwickau, Fakultät Angewandte Kunst Schneeberg, die Ausstellung „Der ungesehene Designklassiker“ im Industriemuseums Chemnitz. Sogar ein Film mit dem nüchternen Titel „Stuhl EW 1192“ entstand rund um das beliebte Sitzmöbel und wurde begleitend zur Ausstellung gezeigt. Die Geschichte dahinter: Dem Möbeldesigner Jacob Strobel, in Würzburg geboren und einst Student in Schneeberg, fiel im Laufe der Jahre immer wieder ein bestimmter Küchenstuhl in die Hände, der ihn faszinierte Minimalistische Form, erinnernd an skandinavisches Design, hoher Sitzkomfort. Er stand in nahezu jeder Küche im Osten Deutschlands, doch keiner wußte woher er kam, wer ihn entworfen hatte. Nach vielen Jahren als Designer und Produktmanager in Österreich, auf internationalen Möbelmessen präsent und mit eigenen preisgekrönten Stuhlentwürfen versehen, kehrte Jacob Strobel 2015 als Professor für Holzgestaltung an die Fakultät Angewandte Kunst nach Schneeberg zurück und stieß erneut auf den Küchenstuhl EW 1192, der ihm noch immer außerordentlich gefiel. Er begann zu forschen und bat „Freie Presse“ - Leser um Mithilfe. Sein Email-Fach quoll in kürzester Zeit über, viele rührende Erzählungen kamen zutage. Im Stuhlmuseum im sächsischen Rabenau fanden sich zudem Unterlagen die bezeugten, daß der Vierbeiner aus dem Entwurfsbüro Waldheim stammt. Von 1954 bis 1989 wurden dort Sitz- und Polstermöbel für die industrielle Fertigung entworfen. Prägender Kopf war der Formgestalter Horst Heyder, einer der bedeutendsten Möbel-Designer der DDR. Ihm und seinem Kollektiv wird der Entwurf des am meisten gekauften und genutzten Küchenstuhls von einst zugeschrieben und der nun eine Renaissance erfährt. Jacob Strobel hatte selbst einst eine Vision von einem Stuhl: Ein Lounge-Chair ohne Polster, der flexibel sein sollte, einen Komfort besitzen, den man nicht sehen, aber spüren sollte. Der Stuhl „lux“ wurde der Abschluß seiner Diplom-Arbeit und Beginn seines Berufseinstiegs. In Würzburg wurde Jacob Strobel 1978 geboren. Von 1999 bis 2002 absolvierte er eine Ausbildung zum Schreiner/ Tischler bei seinem Onkel in der Schreinerei Strobel. Von 2002 bis 2007 nahm er ein Studium der Holzgestaltung an der Westsächsische Hochschule Zwickau, Fakultät Angewandte Kunst Schneeberg auf. 2004 studierte er ein Jahr an der Gray`s School Of Art in Aberdeen an der schottischen Nordseeküste 3D Design und nahm anschließend eine Assistenz im Studio Christian Haas auf. Von 2007 bis 2008 war Jacob Strobel Designer und Produktmanager von TEAM 7 in Österreich und von 2008 bis 2015 dort Head of Design. Anschließend und bis heute ist er freischaffender Möbeldesigner. Er erhielt jeweils mehrfach den Red Dot Design Award, den Designerpreis der Bundesrepublik nominee, den German Design Award nominee und den Interior Innovation Award. Moderation Ellen SchwedaRedaktion: Angelika Zapf

Elizabeth Stone is the Chief Product and Technology Officer (CPTO) at Netflix, where she oversees Engineering, Product, and Design. Since her first appearance on the podcast two years ago—which remained my second-most-popular episode for more than a year—she has expanded her role to lead product, in addition to engineering. Before Netflix, Elizabeth was VP of Science at Lyft, Chief Operating Officer at Nuna, an economist at Analysis Group, and a trader at Merrill Lynch.In our in-depth conversation, we discuss:1. Why “systems thinking” is now the most important skill she looks for2. How to manage the flood of AI-generated output without losing quality or signal3. How Netflix thinks about AI fluency as a universal expectation rather than a level-specific skill4. What “excellence as an operating system” means—Brought to you by:WorkOS—Make your app enterprise-ready, with SSO, SCIM, RBAC, and more: https://workos.com/lennyMercury—Radically different banking, now with Command: https://mercury.com/command?utm_source=lennys&utm_medium=sponsored_newsletter&utm_campaign=26q3_brand_campaign—Episode transcript: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/netflix-cpto-on-ai-and-the-future—Archive of all Lenny's Podcast transcripts: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/yxi4s2w998p1gvtpu4193/AMdNPR8AOw0lMklwtnC0TrQ?rlkey=j06x0nipoti519e0xgm23zsn9&st=ahz0fj11&dl=0—Where to find Elizabeth Stone:• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elizabeth-stone-608a754—Where to find Lenny:• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/—In this episode, we cover:(00:00) Introduction(02:25) AI and role confusion: the storming phase before the forming phase(07:36) How roles have changed in the past two and a half years(11:55) Will functions survive? The case for craft specialism(13:26) What Netflix is hiring more of—and less of(17:22) Why systems thinking is the rising skill across every function(20:20) Is the design process dead?(22:08) Skills trending down(28:33) AI fluency and Netflix's career ladder overlay(31:00) AI use cases beyond coding(35:12) Netflix's AI history(38:36) Excellence as an operating system(41:11) The pillars of the excellence OS(46:41) The keeper's test—and why it's mostly a positive conversation(50:21) Attracting top talent in the age of frontier AI labs(52:54) Junior talent, craft mastery, and the mentorship question(56:25) Where engineering goes in 5 to 10 years(59:45) The future of entertainment: beyond film and TV(1:02:18) AI in Hollywood: Netflix's creator-enablement position(1:06:15) Lightning round and final thoughts—Referenced:• How Netflix builds a culture of excellence | Elizabeth Stone (CTO): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/how-netflix-builds-a-culture-of-excellence• Brian Chesky's new playbook: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/brian-cheskys-contrarian-approach• The design process is dead. Here's what's replacing it. | Jenny Wen (head of design at Claude): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/the-design-process-is-dead• Claude Code: https://www.anthropic.com/product/claude-code• Claude Cowork: https://www.anthropic.com/product/claude-cowork• Netflix's “Keeper Test” and Why You Need It | Lorne Rubis: https://www.highlights.lornerubis.com/2015/08/the-netflix-keeper-test-and-the-courage-to-take-it• Innovation for Filmmaking, By Filmmakers: Why InterPositive Is Joining Netflix: https://about.netflix.com/en/news/why-interpositive-is-joining-netflix• InterPositive: https://weareinterpositive.com• Netflix Prize: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Netflix_Prize• Quarterback on Netflix: https://www.netflix.com/title/81482895• The Bill Simmons Podcast on Netflix: https://www.netflix.com/title/82186214• Spencer Pratt on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/spencerpratt• Salman Rushdie's Substack: https://salmanrushdie.substack.com• Remarkably Bright Creatures on Netflix: https://www.netflix.com/title/81911351• Eight Sleep: https://www.eightsleep.com• Tour de France: https://www.letour.fr/en—Recommended books:• Thinking in Systems: https://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Systems-Donella-H-Meadows/dp/1603580557• Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster: https://www.amazon.com/Into-Thin-Air-Personal-Disaster/dp/0385494785• Liar's Poker: https://www.amazon.com/Liars-Poker-Norton-Paperback-Michael/dp/039333869X—Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com.—Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed. To hear more, visit www.lennysnewsletter.com

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ABOUT TYLER BATES: American composer, musician and producer best known for his work on film scores such as “Deadpool 2”, “Guardians of the Galaxy”, and the “John Wick” franchise among others. His range has made him a leading force in cinematic sound design. TV series' credits include “Californication”, “The Punisher”, and many more, plus collaborations with iconic artists such as Marilyn Manson, Evanescence, Jerry Cantrell, Mastodon, Bush, and In This Moment. With a career spanning over three decades, he has significantly influenced the sound of contemporary cinema and modern media. ABOUT THE PODCAST:  Candid discussions with and about those behind the scenes in the music business including industry veterans representing the segments of: Musician, Design & Live ABOUT THE HOSTS: All three Music Buzzz Podcast hosts (Dane Clark, Hugh Syme and Andy Wilson) have spent their careers working with the biggest names in entertainment and have been, and still are, a fly on the wall. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Book Club Podcast: What lesser-known treasures do Yarn Barn fiber artists love to share? Susan and Melissa share some of their favorites in weaving, spinning, and knitting. Liz Gipson drops by to talk about one of her books that Susan and Melissa adore. Book-loving crafters generally have a few special titles tucked on the shelf between the major must-have references: a self-published monograph, a slim paperback, or an in-depth look at an esoteric technique. In this episode, Susan Bateman and Melissa Parsons return with more hidden gems from the shelves at Yarn Barn of Kansas. Special guest Liz Gipson also joined us to talk about her own book on choosing yarn. Multishaft Weaving Weaving Designs by Bertha Gray Hayes: Miniature Overshot Patterns by Norma Smayda, Gretchen White, Jody Brown, and Katharine Schelleng This delightful collection of overshot patterns are refreshingly short-repeat and often asymmetrical, a playful and inspiring way to experiment with a traditional structure. Melissa's so enthusiastic about the book that she loves to introduce it to any weaver. Krokbragd: How to Design & Weave by Debbie Greenlaw Friendly and accessible, this introduction to the colorful Scandinavian weft-faced structure covers both rigid-heddle and multishaft looms. The book includes several projects, including an irresistibly cute farm sampler. Krokbragd: Contemporary Weaving with Colour by Angie Parker A more technical take on krokbragd, this is aimed at weavers who already have some experience under their belt, with a more contemporary design sensibility and beautiful photography throughout. M's + O's: A Contemporary Look at a Traditional Weave Structure on 4-shafts by Suzi Ballenger This brand-new 70-page monograph invites weavers to take a fresh look at an underexplored structure. Ballenger's examples and designs show M's and O's with contemporary style and unexpected laciness. Although M's and O's isn't generally Melissa's favorite structure, this book inspires her to take another look. Inkle & Tablet Weaving In Celebration of Plain Weave by Annie MacHale With a color theory explanation specifically for inkle weaving and information on designing beautiful bands, this spiral-bound color study is a must for bandweavers even before you get to the 200 pattern charts. Melissa and Susan especially love MacHale's asymmetrical designs. Please Weave a Message by Linda Hendrickson An entire book of graphed-out alphabets for tablet weaving, using as few as 24 to 52 cards, perfect for weaving a name or message into a keepsake band—especially good for handwoven gifts! Rigid Heddle Textures and Patterns for the Rigid Heddle Loom by Betty Davenport Decades ahead of its time and now in its eleventh printing, this book walks rigid-heddle weavers through pickup, deflected weft, and other structures well beyond plain weave. A Weaver's Guide to Yarn by Liz Gipson Teacher Liz Gipson gathered her thoughts on yarns into a practical framework for choosing your materials by need rather than guesswork, including a fiber checklist and a helpful “decoding yarn information” section. Written especially for rigid-heddle weavers, this is a book Melissa would hand to every beginning weaver. A special guest this episode, Liz joined the conversation to talk about how reader questions and teaching experience helped her write the book that weavers need. Finishing Finishes in the Ethnic Tradition by Suzanne Baizerman and Karen Searle Rescued from out of print, this illustrated guide goes far past the overhand knot, gathering fringe, wrapped-edge, and embellishment techniques from weaving traditions worldwide. Knitting Barbara Walker's Treasury Series (A Treasury of Knitting Patterns, A Second Treasury of Knitting Patterns, Charted Knitting Designs: A Third Treasury, and A Fourth Treasury of Knitting Patterns) Full of ideas to design and customize plain knitting projects, Barbara Walker's iconoc treasuries give knitters permission to create. These four hefty stitch dictionaries include hundreds of charted designs you can drop into a project of your choosing. The Knitter's Handy Book of Patterns by Ann Budd Written to pair perfectly with a stitch dictionary, this book turns "I love this yarn but have no pattern for it" into a finished sweater, sock, or hat. Ann Budd offers designs for gauges from 3 to 7 stitches per inch and child to adult sizes. Reversible Knitting by Cecelia Campochiaro A stitch dictionary where every pattern looks as good from the back as the front! This collection of motifs is ideal for scarves, blankets, and anything meant to be seen from both sides. The Wonder of Wool: A Knitter's Guide to Pure Breed Sheep by Justine Lee and Jess Morency Dramatic black-and-white sheep portraits pair with breed-by-breed spinning and knitting notes in this exploration of British heritage wools. The book also includes full patterns built around specific wools. Spinning A Spinner's Dozen: 14 Darn Useful Tools by Stephenie Gaustad A charming hand-illustrated case for the spinning tools worth hunting down in antique stores, this is Stephenie Gaustad's fun and gentle nudge to explore the old spinning ways and discover how the right tool buys you more time for the parts of spinning you actually love. Listen to the Wool: A Why-to Guide for Joyful Spinning by Josefin Waltin Less a technical manual than an invitation to slow down, this book encourages readers to embrace your mistakes as markers on your craft journey. It might make you a better spinner—even if you don't change your yarn after reading. Listen to our chat and tell us: What are your favorite craft books that more people should know about? This episode is brought to you by: Learning how to weave but need the right shuttle? Hooked on knitting and in search of a lofty yarn? Yarn Barn of Kansas has been your partner in fiber since 1971. Whether you are around the corner from the Yarn Barn of Kansas, or around the country, they are truly your “local yarn store” with an experienced staff to answer all your fiber questions. Visit yarnbarn-ks.com to shop, learn, and explore.

Creation Magazine Roundup: This week Fred Williams and Ryan Williams dive into the latest issue of Creation Magazine, highlighting remarkable discoveries from biology, engineering, microbiology, paleontology, and animal behavior that continue to point to purposeful design rather than blind evolution.   Nature's Engineering: Learn how scientists copied the microscopic structure of mother-of-pearl to create dramatically stronger concrete, why penguins intentionally take longer routes to conserve energy, and how principles found throughout creation continue to inspire modern engineering.   Evolution's Growing Challenges: From antibiotic resistance discovered in isolated cave bacteria long before modern antibiotics, to dinosaur collagen inspiring a "T. rex handbag," a Chinese skull that doesn't fit evolutionary timelines, and the wonderfully unique platypus, this episode explores discoveries that create increasing problems for evolutionary explanations.   Interesting Fact of the Week: How many flowers must honeybees visit to produce just one liter of honey? The answer reveals another astonishing example of God's incredible design in creation.   In The Beginning Now Shipping! The 9th edition of Walt Brown's groundbreaking book In the Beginning, explaining Earth's geology, the solar system, and the evidence for biblical history.   Sponsor a Show! Visit the RSR Store to sponsor a Real Science Radio broadcast and help bring biblical science to a wider audience.   New from Real Science Radio: Check out our newest books, Jesus, Light & Design and The List of Not-So-Old Things, now available from the RSR Store.  

Creation Magazine Roundup: This week Fred Williams and Ryan Williams dive into the latest issue of Creation Magazine, highlighting remarkable discoveries from biology, engineering, microbiology, paleontology, and animal behavior that continue to point to purposeful design rather than blind evolution.   Nature's Engineering: Learn how scientists copied the microscopic structure of mother-of-pearl to create dramatically stronger concrete, why penguins intentionally take longer routes to conserve energy, and how principles found throughout creation continue to inspire modern engineering.   Evolution's Growing Challenges: From antibiotic resistance discovered in isolated cave bacteria long before modern antibiotics, to dinosaur collagen inspiring a "T. rex handbag," a Chinese skull that doesn't fit evolutionary timelines, and the wonderfully unique platypus, this episode explores discoveries that create increasing problems for evolutionary explanations.   Interesting Fact of the Week: How many flowers must honeybees visit to produce just one liter of honey? The answer reveals another astonishing example of God's incredible design in creation.   In The Beginning Now Shipping! The 9th edition of Walt Brown's groundbreaking book In the Beginning, explaining Earth's geology, the solar system, and the evidence for biblical history.   Sponsor a Show! Visit the RSR Store to sponsor a Real Science Radio broadcast and help bring biblical science to a wider audience.   New from Real Science Radio: Check out our newest books, Jesus, Light & Design and The List of Not-So-Old Things, now available from the RSR Store.  

Vorneweg ein versöhnliches Wort an alle Kartographie-LiebhaberInnen: Es ist wunderschön, dass ihr Maßstäben, Höhenstufen, Flussbetten und Topographie-Legenden so viel abgewinnen könnt! Für die meisten Menschen aber ist Kartographie eben doch vor allem eins: ganz schön trocken. Umso erstaunlicher, dass es dem Hamburger Indie-Team Pipapo Games gelungen ist, aus diesem Thema ein erfolgreiches Cozy Game zu machen. Map Map heißt ihr Spiel und lässt uns Fantasie-Inseln metergenau vermessen. In Gestalt eines abenteuerlustigen Mädchens verorten wir antike Ruinen, uralte Eichenbäume und viele andere Landschaftsmaker auf unserer zunächst noch blanken Karte. Punkte gibt's für möglichst genaue Vermessungen, der Schwierigkeitsgrad wird schnell fordernder. Lukas Hort ist Teil des Indie-Teams und war unter anderem für das Design der Inseln verantwortlich, die SpielerInnen kartographieren müssen. Im Gespräch mit Dom Schott erklärt der Hamburger, wie er sich den Erfolg von Map Map erklärt, wie das junge Team die fordernde Entwicklung anging und warum ausgerechnet ein Greifhakensimulator eine überraschend wichtige Rolle in dieser Erfolgsgeschichte spielt.

The crimes move north, and a new name emerges: the East Area Rapist. Paul Holes explains how the offender's behavior changed after Visalia, how early attacks in the Sacramento area unfolded, and how investigators struggled to understand whether they were dealing with a new offender or just someone who had evolved. As the crime spree expands, Paul begins to unpack one of the most disturbing facts of the case: Joseph DeAngelo was a police officer. Want to hear the entire series right now? Join Super Duper Fam at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠smalltowndicks.com/superfam⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ for access to the full ad-free binge feed, and use promo code GSK for your first month free. What is Chasing the Golden State Killer with Paul Holes? This is a 10-part limited series from Small Town Dicks, Paul Holes tells the full story of his 24-year pursuit of the Golden State Killer. Across ten episodes, Paul joins Yeardley, Dan, and Dave for a firsthand account of one of the most significant cold case investigations in American history. From the early crimes of the Visalia Ransacker to the East Area Rapist attacks, the Southern California homicides, and the DNA breakthrough that finally identified Joseph DeAngelo, Paul walks listeners through the evidence, the setbacks, the mistakes, and the personal toll of doggedly pursuing a case for decades. This is a rare, firsthand account of the work, the weight, and the persistence behind a case that forever changed the way crimes are investigated.  Small Town Dicks Presents: Chasing the Golden State Killer with Paul Holes is an Audio 99 production. Written by Paul Holes and featuring Detective Dan, Detective Dave, and Yeardley Smith. Produced by Jessica Halstead and Monika Scott. Executive produced by Ben Cornwell and Yeardley Smith. Edited by Katie McMurran and Soren Begin, with additional editing by Cristina Bracamontes. Sound supervision by Logan Heftel. Design and social media by Andrew Polk. Theme music composed by Logan Heftel. Photo courtesy of Anton Floquet | ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠antonfloquet.com⁠⁠⁠⁠ To support the making of this podcast, visit smalltowndicks.com/superfam and hit the “Join” button. Stream all episodes at smalltowndicks.com/goldenstatekiller. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Watch this heartwarming video of a sweet puppy leading the blind here --------Thank you for listening! Your support of Joni and Friends helps make this show possible. Joni and Friends envisions a world where every person with a disability finds hope, dignity, and their place in the body of Christ. Become part of the global movement today at www.joniandfriends.org. Find more encouragement on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and YouTube.

Matt Risinger takes a balanced, evidence-based look at spray foam insulation, separating common misconceptions from practical building science. He compares open-cell and closed-cell spray foam, explains where each performs best, and discusses topics including air sealing, vapor control, indoor air quality, installation risks, and long-term durability. Matt also explores how spray foam compares with fiberglass, mineral wool, and other insulation options, while outlining situations where hybrid insulation assemblies make more sense. Rather than promoting or dismissing spray foam, he focuses on proper installation, climate-specific design, and choosing the right insulation strategy for high-performance homes. This episode is presented without a sponsor to provide an unbiased discussion. Watch full episodes of Matt on Facebook, Instagram and Build Show Network. https://www.facebook.com/buildshownetworkhttps://www.instagram.com/risingerbuild/https://buildshownetwork.com/go/mattrisinger Don't miss a single episode of Build Show content. Sign up for our newsletter.

Court is in session — Friday belongs to Raider Nation. Your calls, videos, and comments on Wednesday's wide receiver room verdict, and the testimony gets good: the X debate over whether Brock Bowers and Ashton Jeanty can carry the offense without proven receivers, the case that the thin WR room is by design with a top-10 pick coming, a look at the Raiders' brutal opening stretch, and John from Oroville's argument that Aidan O'Connell has quietly been the best QB of the offseason. Plus why Gully backs John Spytek's slow-and-steady rebuild — and a preview of next week's linebacker corps verdict. Be part of Friday's show: call 702-900-7869 or send a video to mail@silverandblacktoday.com. Follow @SNBToday | @LVGully. Silver & Black Today — Las Vegas Raiders analysis. Verdicts, not takes. Chapters 0:00 — Cold open 3:01 — Court Is in Session: Welcome to Raider Nation Court 6:00 — How to Get on the Show + This Week's WR Room Response 9:06 — First Witness: Terrick from Texas (video) on the O-Line & the Rebuild 13:56 — Mendoza Stan's Testimony: Can Bowers & Jeanty Carry It? The 49ers Comp 20:49 — Next Witness: Psychedelic Raider — Thin WR Room by Design, Top-10 Pick Coming? 22:19 — The Brutal 2026 Schedule: Seven Weeks of Trouble Before the Bye 24:19 — Caller John from Oroville: Don't Rush Mendoza — and AOC's Quiet Rise 29:59 — Aaron Davis on X: "You're Getting Roasted for Stating the Truth" 32:02 — The Ruling: Trust Spytek's Rebuild, but the WR Room Still Has to Prove It 36:06 — Court Adjourned: Next Week's Linebacker Verdict + How to Call In Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

https://youtu.be/RI_6ZvdjVuE Matt Andersen, CEO of Westlake Securities, LLC, is driven by a mission to create value that changes lives by helping business owners follow the 4 Steps to Creating Equity Value, intentionally grow their companies, maximize enterprise value, and achieve successful liquidity events. Through strategic planning, disciplined execution, and a purpose-driven approach, Matt has helped companies achieve significant growth while empowering entrepreneurs to build businesses that create lasting financial and personal impact. We explore Matt Andersen’s Reverse Engineer Your Outcomes Framework — Define Your Financial Goal and Timeframe, Design a First 100-Day Plan, Build an Annual Plan, and Adjust and Reset Quarterly. Matt explains why business owners should reverse-engineer their desired financial outcome before creating a growth strategy, how a focused 100-day plan builds early momentum and accountability, and why quarterly adjustments keep organizations on track toward long-term goals. He also discusses how thought leadership, educational content, internship programs, and AI-powered client experiences have fueled Westlake Securities’ growth while helping entrepreneurs achieve private equity-like results without giving up ownership of their businesses. — 4 Steps to Creating Equity Value with Matt Andersen  Good day. Steve Preda here with the Management Blueprint Podcast, and my guest today is Matt Andersen, the CEO of Westlake Securities, LLC, the number one lower middle-market investment bank in Central Texas, focused on advising companies seeking to intentionally grow or obtain liquidity. He’s also the author of Intentional Growth, as you can see behind him on the screen. Matt, welcome to the show.  Hey, Steve. Thanks so much for having me. I’m super excited to be joining you on today’s show.  Yeah. I love the title of the book and the cover. This is exactly what you want to do with companies, right? You intentionally want to grow them, and then you want to grow their value and create great exits, which I’m sure you have a lot to tell us about. Yeah, that’s exactly right. Our business model… Taking a quick step back, I’m CEO of Westlake Securities, as you mentioned, a lower middle-market investment bank. A lot of the companies we work with, we’re really helping them grow. That’s about half our business. The other half of our business is folks who, once they’ve grown and achieved a certain position or value in the organization and have gotten to a certain point in their career, might want to start thinking about liquidity, or maybe an ultimate exit plan for liquidity—not just for their financial tie-up in the business, but also for their time. So that’s the other half of what we do. We help people think through that next step.  Yeah, because you need both, right? If you have a lot of money but no time to enjoy it, that’s not really good. If you have a lot of time but no money, that’s not good either. So you need both.  That’s right. So yeah, the business fits really, really well. For a lot of our folks, we’re with them on very long-term journeys. In some instances, it’s been six, seven, eight, nine, even 10 years for them to grow the organization to a value that’s truly exciting for them, and then help them think about how best to monetize that once the organization has hit a goal based on size and time. Okay. That’s fascinating. So let me take a step back and ask you: what is your personal why, and how are you manifesting it in this business?  Yeah, that’s a great question. I think about it this way. A lot of companies have mission and vision statements. We actually do something a little different. We have a purpose statement. That purpose statement is: We create value that changes lives.Share on X At this point in my career, if you define careers as you would maybe a sporting event, I’m probably in the third quarter of my career.  One of the things that gets me excited every day is a transaction, for instance, that we had about two weeks ago. There were about eight people who had a truly life-changing experience in a positive way. That’s really neat. In addition to those eight people, there was a group of four people who became shareholders for the first time in this organization. It was really neat. Those sorts of conversations are really fun to have. So creating value that changes lives is really important. We tend to think about that holistically too. For our team, we've been fairly blessed with growth.Share on X  Then, if you think about the full cycle back to the community, we typically pick one charitable organization each year, and we try to make an impactful donation to that one charitable organization. So I think, from client to team to community, that holistic vision is what gets me skipping into work every day.  Yeah. I mean, if you can change your clients’ lives and you change your team members’ lives for the better, that’s very powerful. That’s very empowering. Yeah. And then to see that roll through the community is even… Yeah, it’s pretty neat. It’s pretty neat to see.  So that’s the third leg of the stool: the clients, the team, and your community.  That’s right. You’re really embedded in there. My question is, how do you do that? Do you have a framework for changing these lives? Obviously, you wrote a book, so maybe it’s the spine of the book that you might share with us, or maybe another framework. This podcast is all about frameworks.  So what is a three- to five-step process, or maybe three or four ways to look at something, that informs you or your clients? Or it can be anything that helps you streamline things in your business and make things simpler, which our listeners might benefit from and interpret in their own way.  Yeah. I’m a big framework fan, which is part of the reason I was excited to join the podcast, because I think about things that way. Especially if you figure out what works over time, the goal is to replicate that. Just like a manufacturing facility figures out how to make everything from a microchip to a pair of shoes, and they keep doing the same thing repetitively, I think frameworks in business, if they’re given enough flexibility, can be hugely powerful.  I’ve written two books. Completing the Deal is my first book. “Intentional Growth” is my second book. Intentional Growth is really about organizational growth, and the book is full of great frameworks.Share on X But if I were to share the one I believe is the most impactful—and it’s also fairly simple—it would be this: Reverse-engineer your desired outcome upfront.  So often, businesses we come into contact with know they want to grow. They know they want to achieve certain things. But oftentimes, they haven’t done a great job of defining two things: The timeframe they want to do it in, and the level of achievement they want to get to. One of the things we tend to see in business is that people will make a budget, for instance. They’re going to pull in a sales backlog and a CRM report. A customer did X last year, so we’ll just add 4%, and they’ll do Y this year.  We’ll hire a couple of people. That can be a way to budget. But I think the better way to approach budgeting is, once you’ve reverse-engineered the course, to say, “Over the next five years, we’re going to get from here to here.” Then really think about that as a stair-step process, almost like the path behind me. If we need to go from here to here, year over year, how do we actually grab that growth out of the marketplace? How do we make sure that we’re on the right path?  One of the things we spend a lot of time on with companies we're helping grow is this reverse engineering.Share on X It’s a great framework. There’s a lot about it in the book. A couple of really important takeaways, probably the most important one I can share is the timeframe. What we’ve found is that three to seven years is the best timeframe. Anything less than three years starts to feel like there’s not enough time to actually see the seeds you’ve planted bear fruit. Anything longer than seven years…  Well, Steve, seven years is just a long time. It’s hard to predict cycles and things of that nature. By default, absent another driving force, we tend to think in five-year increments. Kind of split the difference. Five years. The other framework we really focus on is picking a financial destination that’s truly impactful. A lot of times, when people think about the stress of business growth, part of the reason it’s stressful instead of exciting is because they’re worried about growing 8% to 10%, or maybe 12%. That’s good growth. It’s nice.  But it’s not exciting. To me, that feels more like a burden than excitement. If you went into your business planning thinking, “Over the next five years, we’re really going to 3X the size of the business, 4X the size of the business, maybe even 5X the size of the business…” Then, in order to achieve that, we need to hit Y growth over the next 12 months.  That really reshapes what might otherwise be a stressful scenario based on anecdotes into something much more exciting and engaging. Those are the two main frameworks: Time and a financial outcome that would truly be exciting. That’s the premise the book starts with, and it’s something we use all the time, every day.  So that’s interesting. If I were to translate it into a three- to five-step framework or process, what’s step number one? Is it defining the financial destination, or is it the timeframe?  So, number one, those two things are probably going to go together. Timeframe and financial outcome. From a framework perspective, first we’re going to set that destination. Then we’re going to move into the other pieces. Step two is likely going to be creating a 100-day plan. Why do we want a 100-day plan?  Because we want to make sure tomorrow is going to be different from today. Again, it’s one of those things where a 30-day plan is too short, and a six-month plan is too long. A 100-day plan is a way to jump-start a growth plan, and we really want to see a few things from it. One is some early wins, because we’re all wired that way. The more we win, the more we want to play the game, right? Yeah. So you do want to have some early wins.  You want to have some visibility. Organizationally, we plan to communicate the goals and objectives of our destination and outcome, what our 100-day plan is, and then accountability. Accountability to outcomes. Those are the three main things we want to see from that 100-day plan, even though there are a lot of details. Step three would be a one-year plan because we really want to say, “Okay, we’ve got this timeframe. We’ve got this destination we want to get to. We’ve got a 100-day plan to jump-start it.  Now we have a one-year check-in.” From that one-year point, in addition to things like KPIs or Rocks—or whatever an organization uses to manage accountability to outcomes—we want to reset the sails every quarter to six months going forward. But the 100-day and one-year plans are really important to making sure we’re off to a good start on our journey to get where we want to be in five years.  Love it. So that’s interesting. It’s more of a bottom-up approach. Some people preach a top-down approach. You do have a top as well because you have a financial destination three to seven years out. That’s fascinating. You also follow the private equity idea of a 100-day plan, so it aligns with that approach too. One of the things I like to talk about with clients is, how can we create private equity without private equity? How can we get private equity results without having to give up a chunk of the pie? So that is fascinating.  Yeah. And that’s a big part of it. Anyone who’s looking for that message is really going to gravitate to this book. What I do tell people is, you don’t have to sell to grow, but you do have to plan. This is a great framework for doing that, based on 27 years of personal experience and 23 years of firm experience. I’ve personally helped 40 companies achieve seven-, eight-, and nine-figure growth in enterprise value, and we’ve closed $5.7 billion in transactions. All of that feeds into this book, which I think people can use to find a better path—and a proven guide—toward growth without having to give up control.  Yeah. I love it. So tell me, Matt, what drives growth in your business at Westlake Securities?  I think there’s a few things that have been helpful to our growth. Number one, we’ve been fortunate to be in markets that are robust. So we do have a bit of a perfect storm going on right now. There’s a lot of capital available. There are a lot of tools available. And we’ve got an aging demographic of business owners. All of those things are creating this perfect storm of either growth or liquidity.  These conversations are happening more now than they ever have in the last 27 years of my career. It’s unbelievable. These conversations went from things people talked about maybe once a year to, for some organizations, getting outreach every week from somebody who wants to talk to them about a growth investment or buying their business. These topics are coming up more and more, and I think in a much more impactful way.  So number one, there are a lot of favorable market dynamics. Number two, we have the history and track record that’s helpful when a business owner is asking, “Can this company really help me grow?” or “Can this company really help me sell?” We’ve got a great track record for that. That track record is built on, number three, our team.  A lot of our people have spent time with Fortune 1000 companies. They’ve worked for major banking organizations, run brands for Fortune 1000 companies, worked in private equity, or worked for other investment banks. So they bring tremendous experience. And then, last, is our process. Part of the reason for creating the two books is to be very transparent about what our processes are and to lead our advisory work by example.Share on X  We want to be transparent in how we think about helping companies either grow or obtain liquidity. I think those four legs of the stool are the reason we’ve been able to grow so much over the last few years.  You say the market is good because of the Silver Tsunami, as some people call it. Yeah. It’s kind of a cliché. And also the abundance of capital. Private equity has a lot of money to spend, as do strategic buyers. So I get that part. I also understand that you have great assets inside the company—your track record, your team, your processes, all of that. Then what happens? Do those people just find you, or do you actually have to intentionally do something to drive the growth?  Well, that’s well said. Just like we preach, we have to practice. Some of the ways we’ve been able to attract companies to our organization are through our digital presence. If you check us out on LinkedIn, we post a lot of great content there. We provide a lot of data. We do a quarterly deep dive by industry on where transactions have been. We share growth tips very openly. We provide downloadable resources.  The books have been helpful. The books have led to speaking opportunities. I speak internationally on the topics of capital raising, growth, and M&A. Lastly, joining awesome podcasts like yours has become one of our 2026 initiatives, and it’s been a lot of fun. It’s been amazing to see the response. Inevitably, somebody emails and says, “Hey, I saw your conversation with Steve. I thought it was pretty cool. Here’s something about my business.  How can you help, or what do you think?” For everyone, we’ve got something. For our ideal client, we obviously have our core services. For folks who are a little smaller, we’ve got a whole suite of workshops that range in cost and time commitment. Then, all the way down to a $17 or $25 book, which we feel is within everyone’s reach.  Part of this—and I’m sure you’re wired the same way—is just a pure passion for helping others find their own form of success. Whether it’s a $17 book, a multimillion-dollar capital raise, or a $300 million sale of a business, everywhere in between, we can provide someone with some element of value if they’re interested in engaging with us in a conversation. So that’s been helpful too.  Yeah, I love it. It’s very smart. You basically have a long-term view and a long funnel. You can connect with people at any stage of where they are and then support them through increasingly intensive ways.  Can I share with you the funniest one that I ever saw coming? Of course. We’ve always been big believers in giving back through university talks and internship programs. That’s been going on for some time, and it really took the next step in 2020 when all the internships were shut down. We were one of the early firms to launch a virtual internship program.  Now we’ve had over 1,000 interns go through our various internship programs, completing them from five different continents. Now those people have graduated. Several of them have been out of school for many years and are building their own careers. It’s been amazing to see that an experience they had when they were 19, 20, or 21 is now paying dividends five to ten years later. That’s one I never saw coming. We always did it as a way to give back. But it's been interesting to see it become a long-term brand-building exercise and a positive way of giving back to the community that has honestly created more opportunities than I ever would have thought.Share on X That’s amazing. So you created all these ambassadors, then, that I think will bring you clients.  You know, that wasn’t probably the intention when we started. But we’ve had people come back and tell us, “Hey, that internship changed the course of my career.” We’ve had parents whose kids got their first job out of school after doing an internship with us say, “Hey, I can’t guarantee you’re going to get the project, but I at least want to offer you the opportunity to participate because I appreciate what you did for my son or daughter during that internship.” So that’s been really cool. Again, it’s this kind of karma, give-back mindset.  Yeah, I love it. That is very valuable. These days, internships are really challenging to come by, so they can be a really valuable building block for young people. So let me switch gears here and ask you another question. What’s one thing that you’re trying to figure out in your business right now?  That’s a great question. We’re laser-focused on a couple of things. I would say one that a lot of businesses are going to share in common is AI and implementing what I’m calling the light side of AI. I feel like there are really three views of AI in the marketplace. One is a group of people who are still asking, “What does AI stand for?” We’ll put them off to the side for a second. Then there’s the light side and the dark side conversation going on.  The dark side is more about automation leading to job elimination. The light side is really about how we elevate the customer experience or the client experience. How do we elevate what our people are doing and delivering every day? That’s really the area we’re focused on. We have a strategy inside our company as it relates to AI, but the simplest way I can describe it is that we're going to be customer-centric—client-centric—in what we do with AI.Share on X  We want to create the best experience for those who engage with us by using better technology to do it. That’s really a major focus for us in 2026. The other focus is making sure that Intentional Growth gets off to a great start. It’s available for pre-order right now. It’s debut week for pre-orders. It hit number one in four categories. It officially launches in October. The book, speaking, workshops—the whole growth initiative—is really important for our firm, but also for the people we come into contact with.  Who wouldn’t want to grow their business and increase its value by $5 million, $10 million, or $50 million over a reasonable period of time? I think most people who decided to go down the entrepreneurial path did so with the hope of creating abundance. The only way to create that abundance for themselves, their customers, their employees, their vendors, and all their key stakeholders is to grow the organization. So AI and Intentional Growth are our two main business challenges and opportunities for the year.  Yeah. That’s great. And hitting number one in four Amazon categories on pre-order, that is actually very rare. So you must be doing something right there. Either you have an amazing PR machine, or the book is just very, very good. Well, I’m hoping it’s the latter—that the book is going to be that good. I do think the first book created a nice foundation. There are thousands of copies in print. It got a lot of great feedback on Amazon. It’s been used by universities, industry groups, and others. So I think there’s a nice nucleus of potential readers for book number two.  I’m really excited because Intentional Growth is going to be much more interactive than the first book. It’s going to include downloadable forms and AI-powered interactive tools at the end of each chapter, so readers can take what they’ve learned in that chapter and immediately translate it into practical tools for their business.  My hope is that it gets into the hands of any business owner or organizational leader—from someone at an early-stage company to someone running part of a large publicly traded company. If they have a real desire to grow and are looking for a better path to do it, my hope is this book ultimately finds its way into their hands. Yeah, definitely. So if people would like to connect with you, obviously they can go to Amazon and buy Intentional Growth by Matt Andersen.  Yeah.  Definitely do that. And where else can they find you?  There are a few places. Book-wise, Amazon first, then all the major retailers—Barnes & Noble, Porchlight, and others. Both books are available now, and Intentional Growth will ship in October. I would encourage people to find us first and foremost on LinkedIn. I do a lot of personal posts there. We also host events. Westlake Securities has a strong presence on LinkedIn as well. Again, we share a lot of events, free content, and free data.  We spend six figures a year purchasing proprietary data and organizing it in a way that’s useful for business owners to understand trends, valuations, what’s happening in the capital markets, the cost of debt, how much equity was invested in private companies last quarter and last year. There’s a lot of great free information available through those two resources. I also do quite a bit of speaking. If you’d like to attend a talk, I speak internationally on capital raising, growth, and M&A.  That’s amazing. So definitely check it out. Check out Matt’s LinkedIn, especially the quarterly market reports. Those are going to be very interesting. I’m sure you’re using your six-figure database to produce some great charts. So check that out. Buy Intentional Growth, and see how it can help your business. I love your framework—the reverse-engineering idea. You really have to know where you want to get to, how much time you have, and then figure out what it takes to get there.  What’s going to be that above-10% exciting growth rate that’s going to 3X or 5X your business? So thank you, Matt, for coming and sharing your wisdom. And if you’re listening out there, make sure you follow us on LinkedIn, subscribe on YouTube and Apple Podcasts, and leave us a review, because every week I bring you an exciting entrepreneur who’s growing their business. So thanks for coming, Matt, and thanks for listening. Thank you, Steve. I appreciate you having me. To everyone listening out there, best of luck until we interact next. Let’s grow. Important Links: Matt's LinkedIn Matt's  website

Featured playlist: The Church (That Meets in My Home) — https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5Yobt1jZDd9Zzn8Ufa-BNciyYv04Cl6mMy books:Exalted: Putting Jesus in His Place — https://www.amazon.com/Exalted-Putting-Jesus-His-Place/dp/0985118709/ref=tmm_pap_title_0God's Design for Marriage (Married Edition) — https://www.amazon.com/Gods-Design-Marriage-Married-Amazing/dp/0998786306/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1493422125&sr=1-4&keywords=god%27s+design+for+marriageGod's Design for Marriage (Pre-married Edition) — https://www.amazon.com/Gods-Design-Marriage-What-Before/dp/0985118725/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_topSupport us - become a CTC Partner: https://crosstocrown.org/partners/crosstocrown.org@DougGoodin

The age of AI is upon us and is already changing the way we conduct our lives. What is the optimal division of tasks between humans and machines? On this episode of Mind Matters News, host Robert J. Marks welcomes psychologist Dr. Joe McDonald to the podcast to explore the relationship between cognitive psychology and artificial intelligence (AI). Dr. McDonald is an expert in cognitive psychology and human factors research. He is the CEO and Principal at Jumpseat Research, a firm that applies cognitive science principles to improve technology design and user experiences. Dr. McDonald has over 15 years of experience in this field, holds a PhD in Human Factors from Georgia Tech, and is passionate about empowering people through technology. Source

The conversation delves into the rarely discussed topic of masturbation in the context of Christianity, exploring its implications on marriage and relationships. It emphasizes the impact of self-gratification on individuals and the importance of surrendering this primal aspect to God, leading to transformation and growth.TakeawaysMasturbation and its implications in the context of ChristianityThe impact of self-gratification on marriage and relationshipsChapters00:00 The Start of the Conversation03:42 The Bible and Masturbation07:50 The Sin of Self-Gratification11:41 The Impact on Marriage13:41 Chronic Use and Its Effects16:26 God's Design for Intimacy17:20 The Transformation and Challenge

If you want to access our extra innings conversation, become a member of the TITR community here Request a free copy of Heroic Faith here: Andrew Bunt is the Content Director at Living Out, a UK based ministry that equips the church in matters related to sexuality and gender from biblical perspective. (living out.org). Andrew is a pastor, speaker, and author who's written several books including his latest book: Getting God's Perspective: A Short Christian Introduction to Worldviews, Sexuality & Gender. In this conversation, we discuss questions about the Christian sexual ethic—is it beautiful or oppressive and harmful? Why a Christian worldview is essential for understanding the Christian sexuality ethic. How a Christian view of freedom and progress are important for understanding sexuality. And then, in our "extra innings" portion of this conversation, we discuss, once again, whether Christians should “identify” as gay (and what the term “identity” even means).Time Stamps00:00:00 Introduction00:02:12 The Beauty of Christian Sexuality & God's Design 00:06:33 Why the Secular Story About Sexuality Falls Short 00:14:17 Talking with Young People About LGBTQ Friends & Biblical Boundaries 00:22:58 Living with Unmet Sexual Desires and Spiritual Growth 00:27:15 Singleness, Loneliness, and the Community Jesus Envisioned 00:34:30 The Importance of Deep Friendship and Belonging in the Church 00:45:00 Why Worldview Matters for Conversations About Sexuality & Gender 00:55:00 A Christian Worldview of Progress and Living Faithfully in a Changing Culture See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Benjamin and Chance talk about their latest experiences with iOS 27 and Siri AI, with Apple releasing the public betas this week so anyone in the whole world can give the new software a go. The company also sued OpenAI this week in a high-profile case over alleged trade secrets theft. And, as is tradition, the Apple Store Back to School offer underwhelms. And in Happy Hour Plus, Mayo gets a new work laptop which complicates his future Mac buying decisions. Subscribe at 9to5mac.com/join. Sponsored by Shopify: All you need is the idea. Shopify handles the rest. Start your free trial at shopify.com/happyhour. Sponsored by Quince: Refresh your wardrobe with Quince. Visit quince.com/happyhour for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns. Sponsored by Framer: The only free design tool that brings your ideas to the web. Visit framer.com/happyhour for 30% off a Framer Pro annual plan. Sponsored by Square: Get up to $200 off Square hardware when you sign up at square.com/go/happyhour.

Host Dennis Scully and BOH executive editor Fred Nicolaus discuss the biggest news in the design world, including a major housing bill, Kips Bay's big move and why GEO is the new SEO. Later, British interior designer Tiffany Duggan of Studio Duggan joins the show. This episode is sponsored by Joon LoloiLINKSStudio DugganBusiness of Home

Some of the Apostle Paul's letters in the Bible can be defensive, sarcastic, and even mean. New Testament scholar Scot McKnight says his nasty tone may stem from deep pain. But Paul's trauma wasn't caused by the persecution of nonbelievers but by fellow Christians. He offers Skye an illuminating look into what the apostle can teach us about church trauma today. Mike Erre joins the podcast crew to discuss the declining support for Israel among American Christians, the weird work of VR missionaries, a theory about aliveness that challenges introverts, and a robot that responds when nature calls.   Holy Post Plus: Ad-Free Version of this Episode: http://holypost.substack.com/p/729-church-trauma-and-the-apostle   0:00 - Show Starts 0:40 - Kaitlyn Was Summoned Away 3:04 -  Sponsor - Rocket Money - Find and cancel your old subscriptions with Rocket Money at https://www.rocketmoney.com/HOLYPOST   4:08- Sponsor - BetterHelp - This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. Give online therapy a try at https://www.betterhelp.com/HOLYPOST and get 10% off your first month! 5:17 - Self-Driving Toilets! 11:54 - VR Missionaries 20:21 - Sponsor - Feeding America - Your support puts healthy food within reach, fueling the future for kids and their families. Give now at https://FeedingAmerica.org/SummerHunger 20:54 - Sponsor - PolicyGenius - Secure your family's tomorrow so you have peace of mind today. Go to https://www.policygenius.com/HOLYPOST to find the right life insurance for you 22:00 - Sponsor - Access Forge - Go to https://www.accessible.faith/ to unlock the first two Belonging by Design lessons and use promo code HOLYPOST to get $200 off the full program   23:04 - Americans Less Supportive of Israel   28:56 - Prosperity Gospel and Israel   36:10 - Aliveness and Where to Find it   50:19 - Interview   52:30 - Damaged Leaders   1:03:25 - Paul and Trauma   1:15:44 - Prescriptive vs Descriptive   1:27:54 - End Credits   Links Mentioned in News Segment: Aliveness: https://benbyfax.substack.com/p/aliveness   Christian Support for Israel Plummets: https://religionnews.com/2026/07/09/new-polls-show-plummeting-support-among-faith-groups-for-israeli-government-netanyahu/   Other Resources: Traumatized Church: What Paul's Relationship with the Corinthian Church Teaches Us About Helping Those Who are Hurting by Scot McKnight: https://amzn.to/4pltGYx Holy Post website: https://www.holypost.com/   Holy Post Plus: www.holypost.com/plus   Holy Post Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/holypost   Holy Post Merch Store: https://www.holypost.com/shop   The Holy Post is supported by our listeners. We may earn affiliate commissions through links listed here. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.