Podcasts about FedEx

Jay Berkowitz, Founder and CEO of Ten Golden Rules, helps law firms implement the Law Firm Success Formula to attract qualified prospects, convert more opportunities, and build five-star operations. Driven by a strong desire to win, Jay applies his competitive nature to helping clients rank higher, sign more cases, earn stronger reviews, and generate valuable referrals. In this conversation, Jay introduces The AI Visibility Optimization Framework—Collect Prospect FAQs, Publish Answers Regularly, Become an Expert on Reddit & Quora, and Blog on Customer-Generated Topics. He explains how businesses can identify real customer questions from sales calls, intake conversations, and AI-generated transcripts, then answer them through videos, blogs, FAQs, and social content. Jay also discusses optimizing websites and Google Business Profiles, responding quickly and empathetically to inquiries, and delivering five-star service that generates reviews and referrals. He shares how referrals, conference speaking, webinars, podcasts, and high-value content drive agency growth and how EOS helped him develop leaders as the company expanded. — Implement the Law Firm Success Formula with Jay Berkowitz  Good day. Steve Preda here with the Management Blueprint, and my guest today is Jay Berkowitz, the Founder and CEO of Ten Golden Rules, a two-time Inc. 5000 digital marketing agency that helps law firms generate more qualified leads and clients. Jay, welcome to the show.  Thank you so much. Great to be here, Steve.  So we already talked a little bit about it, but I was really curious about why you focus on law firms. There are so many marketing agencies out there, but I’ve never seen anyone that focused on such a narrow niche. And then I’m going to link it to my favorite question. So what is your personal Why, and how are you manifesting it in your Ten Golden Rules agency? And maybe there’s a connection to law firms as well?  Well, I’ll start with my personal Why, and my personal Why is I really like to win. And I’ve done the StrengthsFinder and different psychology tests, and I’m in the top—whatever—one or five percentile of people who are competitive. And so I was competitive in sports, but I really want to do well in business, and I want my clients to do well. Like, I really, really hate it if my client’s not right at the top of Google and if my client’s not growing in more new cases signed every month.  So that seems to be a really great fit for the business I’m in, which is helping clients with growth strategies, part of which is the marketing piece, getting new traffic to their website. Part of it is conversion, so we do a lot of work with our clients on getting a higher percentage of the folks who do show up to call, to click, to fill out a form. And then we work with their intake teams on converting those opportunities. And the final piece we work with them is really running a five-star operation—meaning that they’re getting more five-star Google reviews and getting more referrals from past clients and referral partners. So we do a lot of work in those three pieces of the business to help law firms grow, and I really want them to win because when they win, I win. Selfishly.  No, I love it. I love it. So are you like an outsourced marketing department and marketing-sales department for these law firms? How do you see yourselves? What is the role that you fulfill?  Yeah, I mean, we are a consulting agency. So first and foremost, we’re going to help them strategically figure out where to focus. And we have a fully functioning digital marketing agency, so we do websites and SEO and Local Services Ads and pay-per-click and social media and video and lots of AI. And then as a part of our consulting practice, we help with intake consulting that I mentioned before and five-star operations. And a big part of that is just finding the right partners because we’ll do high-level intake coaching and point out if they’re not answering the phone, if they’re not putting the right people on the phone, and then we’ll connect them with one of the top intake coaches in the legal industry.  If their back end is a little rough and needs some help, there’s a number of partners. Like, for example, there’s a really great software called Case Status we recommend to all of our clients. And imagine Case Status is an app. So, like, when we all order an Uber or order food, we get updates. “Hey, your driver’s been selected. Your driver will be here in 10 minutes. Your driver’s waiting outside. Do you want to have a conversation with your driver? What temperature do you want?”  And so there’s a great app called Case Status, which can manage the case in an app format that consumers are really used to. “Hey, we got your MRI booked, and here’s the location, and here’s the time. Don’t forget your MRI is tomorrow at 8:00 A.M. Here’s the location. If you can’t make the MRI, click here. Hey, we got your MRI. We forwarded it to the next surgeon,” in a case of a car accident. So using that software helps our firms get five-star Google ratings and lots more referrals, and that’s just one small piece of the pie.  So within the niche of law firms, is this even a narrower niche of injury law firms that you work with?  Yeah, it’s funny because when, as a business person, you go from working on 200 SIC codes and you pick one, “I’m only going to work with lawyers,” everybody always asks, like, “Which niche within the niche are you?” But by the nature of our business, 50% or 60% is personal injury, just because those guys are really invested in marketing. They spend a lot of time and money on it, and we’ve built a little reputation.  But we also have estate firms and family lawyers, criminal attorneys, sex abuse lawyers, securities attorneys. So I always say 50% is personal injury and 50% is everybody else who deals with consumers. Because for the most part, the B2B lawyers, they’re not going to spend a lot on marketing. But we have done some beautiful websites for them.  Very interesting. I have kind of a tangential question, but you may be able to help me answer it because I’m obviously wondering about it. I always see these billboards with the injury law firms promoting themselves, and I get if someone gets in a car accident and there’s a billboard above them, then it’s going to be an obvious thing for them to call, but it probably doesn’t happen that often. So how are these billboards so good for lawyers, or is it just a myth and they’re just wasting their money on it?  No. I think the math is pretty compelling, and the average personal injury firm will make between $10,000 and $20,000 on average on cases. Then there will be one or two or three, what they call whales, every year. So a terrible incident where, like, a FedEx truck or a commercial vehicle hits a family and there’s serious injuries or death involved, and it’s a multimillion-dollar case.  So the lawyers make a third of all the revenue that comes in on those cases, and they do a lot of work and they have a lot of expenses too. But when there’s millions of dollars at stake for just one case, these guys can afford the TV advertising, the billboard advertising, and the digital marketing that they do with us.  So it’s not just a billboard. Yeah. Billboard is just a visible one. It’s basically the general idea that they do a lot of advertising because being top of mind is important.  Yeah, for sure. And if, God forbid, someone you knew had an accident, you’d start noticing that every second ad on TV is also personal injury.  Yeah. Yeah. That’s true. That’s true. So let’s talk about frameworks because that’s what this podcast is about. Business blueprints or concepts that you have developed, you observed, something that helps you make sense or streamline the ideas that you deal with in your business. Anything that comes to mind, something that can be explained in three to five steps?  Yes. Well, I touched on it a little bit a minute ago, and we call it our Law Firm Success Formula. And the first part is attract, the second part is convert, and the third part is five-star operations. But I’ll spend a couple more minutes on it. So the attract piece is, first and foremost, you’ve got to have your website dialed in. You have to have a contemporary website. If your website’s more than five years old, it just sends a subtle, even subconscious message to folks that you’re not current, and the design times change over time.  And also, Google’s functionality is going to change, or the functionality of your website, as it’s friendly to Google, particularly your mobile website, if it’s five years old, is not going to be the current best practice. And Google’s going to come and test your mobile website, and they’re going to send negative ratings back to the algorithm, and you’re going to show up less in the searches. Equally important is your Google Business Profile. And that’s your Google Maps address. And that has to be up-to-date and optimized and constantly updated with new content and blogs and videos and information and photos from your location because I always say that you don’t own your Google Maps, you lease it from Google, but it’s a second and very powerful web presence that a firm can have.  So we do a lot of work on the websites, on the Google Maps, and there’s a whole SEO protocol around local SEO that surrounds the Google Maps listing and how you’re listed on your website and how you’re linked to by local businesses and the Chamber of Commerce and business associations and bar associations. And then the next piece is getting your message out there and optimizing for the AI. And so the AI today that’s important in my part of the business is the SEO AI, or a lot of us are calling it AEO, answer engine optimization. So a lot of the work we’re doing with our clients is answering questions on video, and those videos go on YouTube, and then we also use the video on a blog on the website.  And you can use those videos throughout the internet, Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter. Very importantly, add a video to your Google Maps every week. So we generally shoot a series of at least a dozen videos with the client every quarter and have them answer questions. Because again, when you’re asking questions of Google or ChatGPT or Claude, “Who’s the best car accident attorney if I was hit in an Uber?” So we literally answer that question, and the attorney will say, “One of the things I’m getting asked all the time now is, who’s the best car accident attorney if I’m hit in an Uber? Do I need a car accident attorney?” And they’ll go on to answer that question, but literally, we put the question in the video.  The question goes on their blog, goes on their website, goes on their Facebook, their Twitter. So it’s a very effective strategy to target the AEO, or the answer engine optimization. And by the way, there’s a couple other pieces that are very important to come up in the AI. So number one is answering questions. Number two is becoming an expert, so getting written up in journals and your bar association, your Chamber of Commerce, whatever industry you’re in, getting on Wikipedias and things like that, and answering questions on Reddit and Quora, which are the answer engine websites. And then the final piece is some technical stuff you can do on your website, as simple as adding frequently asked questions. Most people only have five FAQs on their website. You should have 50 or 100 today in this world of answer engine optimization.  So the first piece in our formula is attracting traffic to the website and getting the brand right. And then the second piece is conversion. And I mentioned things like answering the phone. Super critical today that you answer the phone. And I know that sounds obvious, but Google’s actually tracking how long it takes you to answer the phone when someone clicks off a Google ad or a Google Maps listing. And if it takes more than 15 seconds and three rings, Google’s going to, again, downgrade you for future listings. And it’s not nefarious. There’s nothing negative. It’s just like when people use Google, Google wants them to have a successful experience.  Yeah.  So if they’re looking for a car accident lawyer or a shoe repair or a pizza, if you don’t answer the phone quickly, the next time, they’re going to put you down a little bit lower in the listings. So conversion is a multifaceted program that we help our clients with: answering the phone, answering the phone with empathy, answering the phone with a professional who can handle the call, not somebody who’s a busy trial attorney or a busy paralegal, and they don’t even want to take calls. So you really need a professional who’s trained to convert those opportunities.  And then we’ve also built some software to optimize any missed calls, and we even have a software when people fill out a form on the website, it immediately sends a text to the intake team so you can call them back. Because we’ve all had that experience where you fill out the form on the website, and you wait five minutes, 10 minutes, an hour, a day. Well, by then, you forgot whose form you filled out, and you filled out a couple other forms on other law firms’ websites or other marketing agencies’ or consultants’ websites, right? So very important that we have the software that immediately texts the form information to the intake team.  They can call the person right back. And then the final piece, I talked about five-star operations, and we have several programs to help our clients get more Google reviews and get more referrals from their existing clients and their referral partners. And one of the subtle things that a lot of people don’t do, and this is the easiest, most cost-effective marketing piece, is just sending out a monthly newsletter.  I mean, every business and every law firm and every marketing agency has to have a monthly newsletter. It’s very inexpensive. You can use Mailchimp or Constant Contact and send out some valuable information, some of your community activities, if you’re speaking at the Chamber of Commerce or your bar association, or I’m speaking at an industry conference. And every time I send out a newsletter, I get two or three calls. “Oh, Jay, I was meaning to call you. We want to redo our website.” Or, “Jay, would you be on my podcast?” Thank you for that, Steve. And just being top of mind increases your business opportunities, those referrals. So there’s a number of those programs that we do to help our clients get more five-star Google reviews and more high-value referrals.  That’s fantastic. You’re really very systematic about it. I mean, this is a huge framework, so I don’t know if we can promote it. It’s not going to be easy to promote all parts of it. But I really like the AEO optimization element: answering questions, becoming an expert on Wikipedia, Reddit, Quora, and the FAQs. Is there anything else there in this AEO optimization that may be important?  Well, the first part about answering questions, I can give you a couple clues there. One of the areas to get questions is to monitor the questions you take on a regular basis. And we use an AI called Fathom that records all my phone calls. And it creates a transcript, and I asked another AI, like a Claude or one of the AIs, to read all 200 most recent sales calls and transcribe all of the questions that I answered more than once. And there were several questions that I answered 20, 30 times and several that I answered two, three, four times.  It came up with 269 questions that I get asked on a regular basis on my sales calls, and now we’re systematically answering those questions on videos and blogs and content on our website because we know those are the questions that we get asked on a frequent basis by people who are interested in our products and services. So if you can find the true questions that you’re asked, I often joke that Margaret, the receptionist, you should give her a little clipboard beside her desk, and every question that comes in through the intake department, you want her to write it down and then hand that off to your marketing department and write a blog post.  Because literally, the questions that people are asking about car accidents or divorces or consulting services or marketing blueprints, those are the questions that people are asking Google, ChatGPT, and Claude. So if you proactively collect and answer the questions, that’s very powerful. And then in the expertise area, things you can do like getting in Wikipedia's, which is hard to get. You really have to be a known public figure today to get approved for a Wikipedia. But Grok has its own Grokipedia, and there’s several other pedias out there. Just making sure that you’re properly listed in all of your industry association listings and your local business associations.  When you just take a look at who’s linking to your competitors, you’re going to find a list of 200 websites that link to and list your competitors, and you can get listed in all those places, in most of those places, because there’s multiple chambers of commerce and business associations and bar associations in every region. And that’s true for every business, not just for lawyers. And then the final piece about the five-star operations, the simplest insight there is if you want lots of five-star reviews, you have to run a five-star business. You have to think of yourself like a five-star hotel.  And when you show up at The Ritz or The Four Seasons, which I’m lucky enough to do a couple times a year because I go to lawyer conferences, and those guys don’t fool around. Even as you pull up, they’re like, “Oh, welcome, Mr. Berkowitz.” I’m like, “How do they know that?” Probably because I told them what type of car I was coming in. Or they’ll ask you, “Are you staying here?” And your name is Mr. Berkowitz. And then as soon as the person hands your bags off and they take you to reception, you’re Mr. Berkowitz for the rest of your stay. They know who you are.  They recognize the staff are trained to give you that high level of service. And then when you go over to the concierge, there’s someone whose whole job is to make your visit great and get you fantastic dinner reservations and nurture your whole relationship, get you theater tickets or concert tickets. So if you think of your business as a five-star operation from the first time they call to every conversation, they should know Mr. Berkowitz. They should be able to pull up your file. They should know what the status of your business relationship is or your legal case.  And in fact, we recommend the software I talked about earlier, so they’re proactively sending you updates on your case. You don’t even have to call in. And the number one bar complaint is, “My lawyer doesn’t answer the phone and doesn’t give me updates on the status of my case.” And I think that’s true for every business. So if you’re proactively sending out updates and information to your clients, they’re proactively happy as opposed to reactively trying to chase you down.  Basically, you cannot fake being a good business. You have to be a good business. But it’s good to be reminded of what it takes to be a five-star service-oriented.  Yeah, you’re right. Yeah. Five years ago, you could fake it. Today, you can’t fake it. The Google reviews are omnipresent, and I think in 70 or 80% of businesses. I saw a data point the other day, people look at Google reviews before they work with a company.  Yeah. That is true. That is true. Well, thanks for reminding me. So what drives growth in your marketing agency business?  I think there’s three big chunks of business opportunities for us. The first one, and the best one for everybody, is always referrals. And so I do a lot of hard work to nurture my referral base. As a matter of fact, I’ve even created my own sort of networking group, if you will, of other people who call on the same types of businesses that I do. And I make sure that I reach out to them and have a quick Zoom call. I met with two of them this morning on just a half-hour Zoom call, finding out what’s up in their life, what type of referrals they’re looking for, and asking how I can give, and giving as many referrals as I get.  So building those relationships, we call it know, like, and trust in networking. And constantly building those relationships and then spending time with them at the industry conferences to really put a focus that I think I made a mistake and I ignored that up until the last four or five years. And now I spend more time at a conference on the trade show floor with the other vendors as I do trying to meet the attorneys, because if you build a relationship with a vendor who has 200 clients, you can get 200 referrals. If you build a relationship with a one-off prospect, you can get one.  Maybe he’ll refer you to someone he does business with. But really building those relationships, those referral relationships, has been fruitful for me. And then the second piece is those trade shows. And there’s an expression we use in my mastermind, which is, “Stage time is money time.” And if you can become an expert and develop a book and a presentation and get featured at your industry conference, that’s the best way to attend those conferences. And if you haven’t spoken on stage at your industry conference, I highly recommend it.  There’s about 10 benefits that you don’t even know about, that people reach out to you beforehand, even before the conference, to book you on their podcast or book a meeting with you or introduce you to someone. At the conference itself, there’s often a green room, which is a private area where you can do some business, where the other speakers are, and often the media is also in the green room. So you’ve got access to some of the most influential influencers at the conference itself. And then obviously, after you’re on stage, everyone wants to be your best friend if you do a good job, if your presentation is high value.  Yeah.  So that’s one of the best conference hacks. And then we try and do everything to optimize having a booth and having a presence at the conference or whatever we’re doing there. We often host a party or a dinner as well. And a lot of times, we do that with our vendor friends that I talked about earlier. And it really gives you a chance to stand out at the conference itself.  And then the third piece is marketing. We’ve been very fortunate and successful. We started a webinar series six years ago, and every month for six years, without fail, we’ve done a webinar. SEO for lawyers, pay-per-click for lawyers, social media for lawyers, video for lawyers, and then branching out into things like EOS, the Entrepreneurial Operating System. We do an annual business planning webinar. And thankfully, about two years ago, February, one of those videos took off on YouTube.  Something in the algorithm, it just loved it, and people were watching a long time on this video, and they were watching other videos after they watched this video. And I used to be so proud because I had 2,000 or 3,000 people who watched my webinars, and this one started going to 20,000, 30,000. Today, I believe it’s been viewed 95,000 times. It’s called the Top 10 Hottest Technology Tips for Attorneys, and that one seemed to pull the whole channel with it. So now, on a regular basis, we’ll get 50,000 or 60,000 views each month, and our overall channel’s up to 1,300,000 or 1,400,000 views on YouTube.  So creating high-value content has been a great sort of foundation for us, and then we’ll also market that in several different ways. We send emails: “Hey, please come to our monthly live-streaming event. We’ve got a great panel. We’re going to teach you all about the latest technologies in AI for lawyers.” And then those panel partners will promote the event as well. And then we send the emails in advance to the webinar. We post on our LinkedIn, my personal LinkedIn, company Facebook, Jay’s Facebook, Twitter, company Twitter.  And then after, “Hey, a lot of people said they missed the webinar. They couldn’t get the link to work. Here’s a replay of the webinar.” And then we take snippets from the webinar and put it in our social media. So that and a weekly podcast has been very, very powerful inbound marketing and thought leadership marketing for the firm.  Love it. That’s really cool. You’ve got some good processes, and thanks for sharing. This is interesting, the 10 technology tips. And it’s got a good title for sure, and I’m sure that it’s a good niche as well, and well done doing this. So no business is perfect, of course. What is something that you’re actively trying to figure out in your business?  Well, I’ve been spectacularly unsuccessful at hiring salespeople. And a number of my friends in my mastermind say the best day of their life is when they hire a salesperson who can sell better than them. We have a great sales process, and we have a great sales team, but I haven’t yet found the person who’s a little bit more effective in nurturing and closing the sales. So I definitely have some work to do still in building a sales team.  Yeah. I mean, you’re two times Inc. 5000, so you must be growing fast. And in fact, I saw that you doubled the number of employees in the last couple of years. How do you make sure that the leadership is growing with the number of employees? How are you growing your leaders?  Well, Steve, thank you, because that’s one of my favorite topics. And we’re big proponents of EOS, the Entrepreneurial Operating System, and the book Traction. And by the way, my hot tip to anyone who’s hearing this and is a business owner: don’t read the book Traction first. Read this book, Get a Grip. Because Get a Grip tells you the story of Traction, but it’s told as a story. And if you’re the founder, what EOS calls a visionary, Traction’s more like an operations manual, and that’s for your COO, your chief operating officer. So read Get a Grip, and then we got started three or four years ago self-implementing EOS.  Yeah.  And two and a half years ago, we hired an implementer and did a full-scale EOS, Entrepreneurial Operating System, integration into our business. And that was when we were around 10 or 12 people. And when you’re a small business, five, six, seven employees, all of them can report to the CEO, and we had very hands-on training. And as the business grew and we got to 10 or 12, that’s where you’re supposed to develop leadership specialties.  And obviously, 12 people can’t report to you, and you’re getting busier in sales and marketing and speaking and flying all over the place. So as we built this EOS leadership team, it’s been a real fantastic awakening for me because now there’s people who are very, very competent at what they do. They’re leading each of our departments, and I don’t have to sit in all the seats anymore. I found people who are better than me, smarter than me at what they do to lead each of those teams.  That’s pretty cool. That’s pretty cool. So if someone is running a law firm out there and listening to all that advice and they’d like to learn more, where should they go and where can they connect with you?  Well, the easiest thing is to go to tengoldenrules.com, or I’m Jay Berkowitz on most of the social media because when a new social media comes out, I always grab the name Jay Berkowitz. And probably much to the chagrin of a couple guys who are probably more important than me, Professor Jay Berkowitz and Chiropractor Jay Berkowitz. And if you guys are hearing this, I’m sorry, Dr. Jay Berkowitz, but I’ve got the Twitter and the Facebook and the LinkedIn handle.  Yeah. That’s pretty cool. Actually, I was wondering because this podcast has been running for six years, and I had the recollection that I had a Jay Berkowitz on this show four or five years ago, and I had to make sure that it wasn’t you. So it’s funny that you mentioned this. Yeah. That’s awesome. So this is pretty impressive, not just as a law firm or a law firm owner, but anyone.  I mean, these ideas that, Jay, you shared with us—how to attract people on your website, how to leverage AI and become an expert and create those FAQs and harvest them from your sales conversations, and then how you build a five-star operation so that you actually retain those clients and get them to refer and give you testimonials—that’s very, very valuable stuff. So I recommend all of you to look into implementing some of this stuff or reach out to Jay at one of the Jay Berkowitz handles or on the Ten Golden Rules website.  So, Jay, thank you for coming and sharing your ideas and experiences and frameworks, particularly frameworks. And if you enjoyed listening, then stay tuned because every week I bring a couple of amazing entrepreneurs to this show. So thanks, Jay, for coming, and thank you for listening.  You’re welcome, Steve. Thanks for having me.  Thank you. Important Links: Jay's LinkedIn Jay's website

Nate Sokolić started and sold companies in college, spent three years in executive search at Russell Reynolds, then led the firm's AI strategy, where he brought Findem in and rolled it out globally. He now works at Findem, helping HR leaders and talent teams adopt AI. Shane Driggers has spent close to 30 years in human resources, starting in Bay Area startups during the dot-com boom and most recently serving as Chief Talent Officer at T-Mobile. He now advises growth-stage companies.Most companies are already using AI. Employees report that they feel more productive, and budgets for tools and tokens keep climbing. Yet very few leaders can point to the result in product innovation or revenue. Nate and Shane argue that the problem is rarely the technology. Companies are adding AI on top of workflows and org structures that were designed for a different era, and they are letting the tools set the strategy instead of starting with the problem they want to solve.In this episode, Jessica sits down with both of them to talk about what it takes to make AI deliver measurable outcomes, why the people function has one of the biggest opportunities in the business right now, and how recruiting is changing from searching keyword profiles to getting verified, finished work back from AI agents.In this conversation, Jessica, Nate and Shane discuss topics such as:◼️ Why "tech wags the tail of strategy" and how that derails AI programs◼️ Why employees feel more productive while the business sees no gain◼️ How to redesign work from a blank page instead of rebuilding the past◼️ Why AI is creating a new wave of tech debt inside large companies◼️ How to decide which work should be human-led and which should be AI-led◼️ Why HR leaders must be human thinkers, business thinkers and systems thinkers at once◼️ How the CHRO role quietly became the company's chief AI strategist◼️ Why the best AI adoption starts small, proves ROI, then expands year by year◼️ How recruiters can search for real experience, like a CFO who has taken a company public◼️ Why shifting from SaaS tools to AI agents changes how companies buy and use software◼️ How Findem Studio produces market maps, succession plans and talent inflow/outflow reports◼️ Why every AI output needs to show its work before a leader can trust it◼️ Why transparency is the most valuable currency a leader has in an anxious workplaceThis episode is sponsored by Findem. Findem is the AI infrastructure for people decisions. Its People Intelligence platform turns fragmented people data into context teams and AI can reason over, and act on. The 3D People Graph connects billions of data points across individuals, companies, and time. Expert labeling translates that data into consistent, evidence-backed signals about experience, capabilities, and relationships, with explainability behind every insight so teams can act with confidence. Findem's agents and enterprise applications run on this foundation, and partners can build on this infrastructure and bring the same intelligence into their own products. Findem is trusted by FedEx, Intuit, Nutanix, and Emirates.Learn more about Findem: https://www.findem.ai/platformTruth Works is hosted by Jessica Neal, bringing honest conversations with the leaders shaping the future of work.

Scott Martin sees freight and logistics stocks like FedEx (FDX), UPS (UPS), C.H. Robinson (CHRW), and J.B. Hunt (JBHT) navigating rising diesel prices and a maturing economic cycle. He prefers UPS over FedEx on valuation but expects a decent holiday shopping season driven by higher income spenders. Tom White then outlines a neutral to bullish short put vertical options trade on FedEx.======== Schwab Network ========Empowering every investor and trader, every market day.Options involve risks and are not suitable for all investors. Before trading, read the Options Disclosure Document. http://bit.ly/2v9tH6DSubscribe to the Market Minute newsletter - https://schwabnetwork.com/subscribeDownload the iOS app - https://apps.apple.com/us/app/schwab-network/id1460719185Download the Amazon Fire Tv App - https://www.amazon.com/TD-Ameritrade-Network/dp/B07KRD76C7Watch on Sling - https://watch.sling.com/1/asset/191928615bd8d47686f94682aefaa007/watchWatch on Vizio - https://www.vizio.com/en/watchfreeplus-exploreWatch on DistroTV - https://www.distro.tv/live/schwab-network/Follow us on X – https://twitter.com/schwabnetworkFollow us on Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/schwabnetworkFollow us on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/schwab-network/About Schwab Network - https://schwabnetwork.com/about

Comprehensive coverage of the day's news with a focus on war and peace; social, environmental and economic justice. UN official criticizes Israel's West Bank settlement actions, Israeli peace activists blast ethnic cleansing and weaponization of pain; Oakland activists call on FedEx to end military cargo shipments from Oakland airport to Israel, saying it supports genocide; Trump announces new Iowa steel plant to be largest in US, hoping to boost Iowa GOP in midterm elections; New rules on public benefits could now count against migrants applying for permanent residency; Concord activists protest ICE actions at Home Depot, day laborers say they're workers not criminals; Fresno Bee reporters hit by layoffs, similar to other McClatchy-owned newspapers across country; September 28 is International Day for Universal Access to Information. The UN says in a world overflowing with information and disinformation, access alone is not enough, and what matters is whether people can rely on what they find. The post Israeli peace activists blast ethnic cleansing and weaponization of pain; Oakland activists call on FedEx to end military cargo shipments from Oakland airport to Israel – September 28, 2026 appeared first on KPFA.

Affordable Properties with Big Cash Flow Potential. Memphis is the hidden goldmine investors can't ignore.This week Dean and Douglas discuss why Memphis, Tennessee is such an attractive real estate investment market. They highlight the city's affordable entry prices (often under $100,000), strong cash flow potential, and stable blue-collar workforce supported by major employers like FedEx and AutoZone.They also emphasize Memphis's strategic location as a major distribution hub. Investment strategies like BRRRR and turnkey properties are explored, and listeners are encouraged to visit http://DeanHarrisRealEstate.com for listings and resources.Have any questions? Shoot me an email: dean@crestcore.comHere's the link to our Buyer Profile: https://www.deanharrisrealestate.com/buyer-criteria-questionnaireDean Harris, VP of Sales at CrestCore RealtyDouglas Skipworth, Founder & Principal Broker at CrestCore RealtyPodcast production and design by Parasaur StudiosThis podcast is brought to you by:Griffin, Clift, Everton & Maschmeyer PLLC. https://www.gcemlaw.com/contact-us/CoreLend Financial https://www.corelendfinancial.com/contact_us.html CrestCore Property Managment https://www.crestcore.com/Triumph ConstructionRiver City Title Company

Des règlements de comptes malodorants et un fétichisme insoupçonné pour les canards en caoutchouc : l'équipe s'est surpassée avec un survol des nouvelles les plus loufoques de la semaine !Jaydee (Jesus) et ses collaborateurs reviennent sur des faits divers à peine croyables. De cette femme arrêtée à Miami pour avoir jeté un seau d'excréments sur sa voisine, jusqu'à l'interception au Texas d'un colis FedEx mouvant contenant 191 tortues vivantes, l'absurde n'a pas de limites.Sans oublier l'histoire insolite de cet intrus nocturne s'étant infiltré dans un spa uniquement pour jouer avec un petit canard jaune... Écoutez le segment complet dès maintenant pour rire un bon coup et découvrir comment courir la chance de remporter vos billets ! Hébergé par Acast. Visitez acast.com/privacy pour plus d'informations.

Why do some B2B companies constantly find themselves competing on price?Often, the problem isn't the product, the sales team or even the competition. It's positioning.In this episode of A Seat at The Table, host Jane Singer explains why positioning your company as a generalist or “one-stop shop” can make it harder to win high-value B2B deals — and why narrowing your focus can actually help you sell more and charge more.The key idea: B2B customers aren't really buying your product or service. They're paying you to solve a specific problem.And when that problem becomes urgent, they don't want a company that could probably help. They want the company that looks like the exact solution.Why Broad B2B Positioning Can Hurt SalesMany companies describe themselves as a “one-stop shop.”The logic seems reasonable: the more services you offer and the more types of customers you can serve, the more potential business you can win.But there's a problem.When your positioning tries to communicate everything you can do for everyone you can help, prospective customers may see you as another general provider rather than the expert in solving their particular problem.That becomes especially important for high-ticket B2B products and services with long sales cycles.The buyer isn't casually browsing. Usually something has happened inside the business that has turned a problem into a priority.They need a solution.And they need to decide who is most likely to solve it.Find the Trigger That Makes Customers BuyOne of the most useful questions a B2B marketer can ask is:What happened just before the customer decided to buy?There is often a trigger — a moment when the customer goes from being interested in solving a problem to deciding, We need to fix this now.Understanding that moment can help you sharpen your marketing and positioning.Instead of marketing every possible application for your product or every service your company provides, you can focus attention on the urgent problem that causes your ideal customer to take action.Why Generalists End Up Competing on PriceWhen buyers can't see a meaningful difference between several potential suppliers, price becomes an easy way to compare them.That's the price trap.Narrow positioning creates a different perception.Instead of being one of many companies that could potentially do the job, you position your business as a specialist in solving a specific problem.Your ideal customer should be able to make a simple connection:Your product or service = this problem goes away.The more clearly buyers make that connection, the less likely they are to see your company as interchangeable with competitors.Specialists Can Command a PremiumThink about the difference between a general doctor and a specialist.If you have a clearly identified medical problem, you don't simply want someone who understands medicine. You want someone who specializes in your particular problem.The same principle can apply to B2B purchasing.When a company faces an important, expensive or urgent problem, buyers want to feel that the supplier understands exactly what they're dealing with.Specific positioning communicates expertise.It also makes customers feel understood: These people get our problem.That perception can make it easier to differentiate your company and support premium pricing.But Won't Narrowing Our Focus Cost Us Customers?This is where many B2B companies get nervous.If you position yourself around one problem, aren't you turning away all the customers who need something else?Not necessarily.Your positioning doesn't have to describe everything your company is capable of doing. Its job is to give the market a clear reason to remember and choose you.Jane discusses examples such as FedEx, which built its positioning around overnight delivery, and DHL, which established a strong position around international delivery.Neither positioning meant those companies could do only one thing.It gave customers a clear reason to think of them.And once a customer trusts you to solve one problem, they may ask you to solve others.In This EpisodeJane discusses:• Why “we're a one-stop shop” can be weak B2B positioning• The difference between what you sell and the problem customers actually buy• How to identify the trigger that causes a B2B buyer to take action• Why broad positioning creates more perceived competition• How weak differentiation pushes companies into competing on price• Why specialists are often able to charge premium prices• How narrow positioning builds perceived expertise• Why targeting a specific problem doesn't necessarily mean turning away other business• How FedEx and DHL used focused positioning to differentiate themselves• Why your marketing shouldn't try to speak to everyoneThe Key TakeawayIf your marketing is trying to speak to everyone, it may be speaking to no one.Pick the one problem you solve better than anyone else — and make that the loudest thing you say.About A Seat at The TableA Seat at The Table, hosted by Jane Singer, features conversations and practical insights on B2B marketing, business strategy, entrepreneurship, sales and leadership.The goal is simple: examine what's working, what's not, and the strategies businesses can use to stand out, build stronger customer relationships and make better decisions.Discover more episodes at seat.fm.SEND US A MESSAGEMore resources for B2B marketers at our website at seat.fmVisit A Seat at The Table's website at https://seat.fm

In this episode, I sit down with Ken Adamo, Chief Strategy Officer at EASE Logistics, the Dublin, Ohio-based 3PL and 4PL known for its operator-first approach and proprietary AI platform AMMI. A two-time Supply & Demand Chain Executive Pro to Know with prior leadership roles as Chief of Analytics and General Manager of the shipper business at DAT Freight & Analytics and in pricing and decision science at FedEx, Ken brings a rare combination of market intelligence expertise and practical product-building experience. We explore what drew him from a major freight data company to a mid-sized brokerage, his mandate to advance AMMI Ship and the broader AMMI intelligence platform, and how EASE is using AI for pricing, visibility, and everyday workflow automation rather than chasing industry hype.The conversation moves from Ken's career path and the realities of translating data into usable tools to the current freight market, contract versus spot pricing discipline, and why 2026 looks like a table-setting year for operators who stay focused on execution. He shares how EASE applies metric-driven technology—automated check calls, predictive dispatch ranking, and rapid quoting—to real operational bottlenecks, particularly in regional and automotive freight, and offers a grounded view of where AI actually creates decision advantage for shippers and carriers. Listeners come away with a clear picture of Ken's strategy for turning EASE into a technology-enabled logistics company built on speed, visibility, and practical intelligence.This program is brought to you by DAT Freight & Analytics. Since 1978, DAT has helped truckers & brokers discover more available loads. Whether you're heading home or looking for your next adventure, DAT is building the most trusted marketplace in freight. New users of DAT can save 10% off for the first 12 months by following the link below. Built on the latest technology, DAT One gives you control over every aspect of moving freight, so that you can run your business with speed & efficiency.This program is also brought to you by our newest sponsor, GenLogs. GenLogs is setting a new standard of care for freight intelligence. Book your demo for GenLogs today at www.genlogs.io today!

Autobouwers hadden het eigenlijk al een beetje opgegeven met de elektrische auto. Maar door de hoge olieprijs schaffen Europeanen hem ineens tóch aan. Vorige maand stegen de verkopen in Duitsland met 75 procent, in Frankrijk zelfs met 100 procent. Deze aflevering hebben we het over die cijfers. Je hoort wat er achter zit, of die groei verder doorzet en of dit dan de redding is van de Duitse auto aandelen. Hebben we het ook over het grootste pensioenfonds van Nederland. Dat gaat nu meer beleggen buiten de beurs. Ze gaan namelijk meer investeren in startups en scale-ups. Gaat dat ten kosten van aandelen? We zoeken het uit. Ook hoor je meer over het staatsbezoek van Xi Jinping aan de Verenigde Staten. Nog voor de twee elkaar echt spraken, regelde Scott Bessent een verlenging van de wapenstilstand. Te gast: Hans Oudshoorn van Saxo BNR Beurs is een journalistiek onafhankelijke productie, mede mogelijk gemaakt door Saxo. Over de makers: Jelle Maasbach is presentator van BNR Beurs en freelance financieel journalist. Zijn favoriete aandeel om over te praten is Disney, maar daar lijkt hij de enige in te zijn. Sinds de eerste uitzending van BNR Beurs is 'ie er bij. Maxim van Mil is presentator van BNR Beurs en journalist bij BNR, waar hij zich focust op de financiële markten en ontwikkelingen in de tech-wereld. Je krijgt hem het meest enthousiast als hij kan praten over ASML, of oer-Hollandse bedrijven zoals Ahold of ABN Amro. Jorik Simonides is presentator van BNR Beurs, economieredacteur en verslaggever bij BNR. Hij wordt er vooral blij van als het een keer níet over AI gaat. Je hoort hem ook in de BNR-podcast Moerdijk: dorp van de rekening. Milou Brand is presentator van BNR Beurs, freelance podcastmaker en columnist bij het Financieele Dagblad. Jochem Visser is presentator van BNR Beurs, maakt Beursnerd XL en is redacteur bij de podcast Onder Curatoren. Vraag hem naar obscure zaken op financiële markten en hij vertelt je waarom het eigenlijk nóg leuker is dan je al dacht. Donner Bakker is presentator van BNR Beurs en economieredacteur bij BNR. Hij volgt macro-economische ontwikkelingen met bovengemiddelde interesse, net als de beursgenoteerde datingapps. Je hoort hem ook in de BNR-podcast All In The Game. Over de podcast: Met BNR Beurs ga je altijd voorbereid de nieuwe beursdag in. We praten je in een kleine 25 minuten bij over alle laatste ontwikkelingen op de handelsvloer. We blijven niet alleen bij de AEX of Wall Street, maar vertellen je ook waar nog meer kansen liggen. En we houden het niet bij de cijfers, maar zoeken ook iedere dag voor je naar duiding van scherpe gasten en experts. Of je nu een ervaren belegger bent of net begint met je eerste stappen op de beurs, de podcast biedt waardevolle inzichten voor je beleggingsstrategie. Door de focus op zowel de korte termijn als de lange termijn, helpt BNR Beurs luisteraars om de ruis van de markt te scheiden van de essentie.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Autobouwers hadden het eigenlijk al een beetje opgegeven met de elektrische auto. Maar door de hoge olieprijs schaffen Europeanen hem ineens tóch aan. Vorige maand stegen de verkopen in Duitsland met 75 procent, in Frankrijk zelfs met 100 procent. Deze aflevering hebben we het over die cijfers. Je hoort wat er achter zit, of die groei verder doorzet en of dit dan de redding is van de Duitse auto aandelen. Hebben we het ook over het grootste pensioenfonds van Nederland. Dat gaat nu meer beleggen buiten de beurs. Ze gaan namelijk meer investeren in startups en scale-ups. Gaat dat ten kosten van aandelen? We zoeken het uit. Ook hoor je meer over het staatsbezoek van Xi Jinping aan de Verenigde Staten. Nog voor de twee elkaar echt spraken, regelde Scott Bessent een verlenging van de wapenstilstand. Te gast: Hans Oudshoorn van Saxo BNR Beurs is een journalistiek onafhankelijke productie, mede mogelijk gemaakt door Saxo. Over de makers: Jelle Maasbach is presentator van BNR Beurs en freelance financieel journalist. Zijn favoriete aandeel om over te praten is Disney, maar daar lijkt hij de enige in te zijn. Sinds de eerste uitzending van BNR Beurs is 'ie er bij. Maxim van Mil is presentator van BNR Beurs en journalist bij BNR, waar hij zich focust op de financiële markten en ontwikkelingen in de tech-wereld. Je krijgt hem het meest enthousiast als hij kan praten over ASML, of oer-Hollandse bedrijven zoals Ahold of ABN Amro. Jorik Simonides is presentator van BNR Beurs, economieredacteur en verslaggever bij BNR. Hij wordt er vooral blij van als het een keer níet over AI gaat. Je hoort hem ook in de BNR-podcast Moerdijk: dorp van de rekening. Milou Brand is presentator van BNR Beurs, freelance podcastmaker en columnist bij het Financieele Dagblad. Jochem Visser is presentator van BNR Beurs, maakt Beursnerd XL en is redacteur bij de podcast Onder Curatoren. Vraag hem naar obscure zaken op financiële markten en hij vertelt je waarom het eigenlijk nóg leuker is dan je al dacht. Donner Bakker is presentator van BNR Beurs en economieredacteur bij BNR. Hij volgt macro-economische ontwikkelingen met bovengemiddelde interesse, net als de beursgenoteerde datingapps. Je hoort hem ook in de BNR-podcast All In The Game. Over de podcast: Met BNR Beurs ga je altijd voorbereid de nieuwe beursdag in. We praten je in een kleine 25 minuten bij over alle laatste ontwikkelingen op de handelsvloer. We blijven niet alleen bij de AEX of Wall Street, maar vertellen je ook waar nog meer kansen liggen. En we houden het niet bij de cijfers, maar zoeken ook iedere dag voor je naar duiding van scherpe gasten en experts. Of je nu een ervaren belegger bent of net begint met je eerste stappen op de beurs, de podcast biedt waardevolle inzichten voor je beleggingsstrategie. Door de focus op zowel de korte termijn als de lange termijn, helpt BNR Beurs luisteraars om de ruis van de markt te scheiden van de essentie.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

"At this point in time, all I want is what's left of my son and put him to rest."On 22 June 2019, skeletal remains were discovered behind an abandoned house on Pecan Drive, in southwest Atlanta, partially covered up by a deflated air mattress. Despite the advanced decomposition of the remains, authorities quickly linked them to a man who'd gone missing after a bizarre shooting incident days earlier, named Jeffrey Merriweather Jr. Despite identifying the remains, authorities at the Fulton County Medical Examiner's Office are unable to how, exactly, Merriweather had died. So they wrote a letter to a medical examiner in St. Louis, and arranged transit of the remains 500 miles northwest. On July 5th, a package containing at least some of Merriweather's remains were dropped off at a FedEx office, and the package made it at least as far as Austell, Georgia, before disappearing entirely...If you have any information about the 2019 shooting that you'd like to share, please contact:Crime Stoppers Atlanta: 404-577-TIPS (+14045778477)If you worked at the FedEx facility in Austell during this time or in the Fulton County Medical Examiner's Office, or you have any information about this story that you'd like to share, please reach out through the following methods:Email: micheal@unresolved.meVoicemail or Text: +18312003550Check out the podcast store at unresolved.dashery.comIf you would like to support this podcast, consider heading to https://www.patreon.com/unresolvedpod to become a Patron or ProducerBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/unresolved-a-true-crime-mystery-podcast--3266604/support.

Stacey Hanke is an international keynote speaker, CPAE Speaker Hall of Fame inductee, and one of the world's leading experts on executive presence, influence, and leadership communication. For more than two decades, she has worked with leaders at nearly 100 Fortune 500 companies — including Microsoft, Google, American Express, Coca-Cola, Boeing, and FedEx — equipping them with the skills to command a room, earn trust, and be consistently perceived as the respected, influential leaders they intend to be. Stacey's transformative, humor-filled presentations teach audiences to overcome modern communication hurdles with proven strategies that capture attention, authentically connect, and inspire people to take action. From high-stakes presentations to casual conversations, prepare to elevate your communication skills and executive presence, Monday to Monday®.  

Quinn and Isaac discuss “knowing a guy” at FedEx, tell a crude Mickey Mouse joke, talk about the Vikings-Packers rivalry… oh, and then they get to the topic. Which is neighbors, I think.

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(00:00) FedEx and UPS deliveries — can you sign for someone else's packages? PLUS, Hardy's obsession with cutting his grass twice as long, straight and tall, for his own pleasure.(22:48.72)(33:54.76) WHAT HAPPENED LAST NIGHT: The Rams hosted the Giants last night and won 28-6. Jaxson Dart left the game with a sprained MCL, and Skattebo is not a good running back — he's slow, small and weak. Malik Nabers also left with an injury but played through the pain in the second half. In Patriots news, Mike Onwenu broke his ankle, but Vrabel isn't saying one way or another about the extent of his injury.CONNECT WITH TOUCHER & HARDY: linktr.ee/ToucherandHardyFor the latest updates, visit the show page on 985thesportshub.com. Follow 98.5 The Sports Hub on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Watch the show every morning on YouTube, and subscribe to stay up-to-date with all the best moments from Boston's home for sports!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Skylar Hoak and Tom Jacobs provide their 2026 FedEx Open de France Picks & Bets. #OpendeFrance #FantasyGolf #EuropeanTour#DPWorldTour #PGATOUR Get 25% off the Rabbit Hole at https://betspertsgolf.com/mayo with code “MAYO” Use code “MAYO” at underdog for a deposit match up to $1000 Get a Deposit BONUS Coolbet: https://shorturl.at/CHfyW Subscribe, Rate and Review Apple: http://bit.ly/PMEiTunes Spotify: https://goo.gl/VboemH FOLLOW MAYO MEDIA NETWORK Newsletter: https://mayomedia.substack.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mayomedianetwork/ TIK TOK: https://www.tiktok.com/dNexover/mayo-media-network YOUTUBE: https://bit.ly/YTMMN Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On this week's Out of the Rough Podcast, Nate touches on this week's Presidents Cup and talks all things FedEx Open de France of the DP World Tour!Nate can be found on Twitter (X) @NateOoTR and Jake can be found @JakeOoTR.Be sure to follow Out of the Rough on all forms of social media. For more golf content, visit ⁠www.ootrough.com⁠!

Keith examines why renters made up nearly 80% of U.S. net household growth last year, and how housing supply explains the gap between rents falling 8% in Austin and rising 17% in San Francisco and Chicago.  Terry Kerr and Matthew Van Horn of Mid South Homebuyers join to discuss new-build rentals under $200K in Memphis, Little Rock, and North Texas, in-house property management, duplex deals, and financing incentives with rates bought down into the fives. Join Keith, Terry, and Matthew live for a properties event on September 30th. Sign up here: www.GetRichEducation.com/MidSouth The episode closes on the AI buildout reshaping Memphis, where xAI's Colossus, Anthropic, and Google are driving billions in investment and a share of the new tax revenue back into surrounding neighborhoods.  Episode Page: GetRichEducation.com/624 For access to properties or free help with a GRE Investment Coach, start here: GREmarketplace.com GRE Free Investment Coaching: GREinvestmentcoach.com Get mortgage loans for investment property: RidgeLendingGroup.com or call 855-74-RIDGE  or e-mail: info@RidgeLendingGroup.com Invest with Freedom Family Investments.  For predictable 10-12% quarterly returns, visit FreedomFamilyInvestments.com/GRE or text  FAMILY to 66866  Join Mid South Home Buyers' one-time, free live webinar featuring Keith Weinhold on September 30 at GetRichEducation.com/MidSouth to learn how Memphis' economic expansion could create new real estate investment opportunities, and have your questions answered in real time. Will you please leave a review for the show? I'd be grateful. Search "how to leave an Apple Podcasts review"  For advertising inquiries, visit: GetRichEducation.com/ad Best Financial Education: GetRichEducation.com Get our wealth-building newsletter free— GREletter.com  Our YouTube Channel: www.youtube.com/c/GetRichEducation Follow us on Instagram: @getricheducation Complete episode transcript:   Keith Weinhold  0:01   Welcome to GRE. I'm your host Keith Weinhold. U.S. rent growth is led by cities with AI investment and those with a lack of new housing supply. Then we're talking about new build properties for under 200k that cash flow and with mortgage rates that are bought down into the fives today on Get Rich Education. What if I told you that one of America's strongest cash flow real estate markets is also becoming the new brains and brawn behind AI? That city is Memphis, believe it or not. In September 30th, we're going to show you why the smart money is paying attention now, along with an investing opportunity you won't want to miss. Join me, Terry Kerr and Matthew Van Horn of Mid South Homebuyers, the largest turnkey company in Memphis with more than 6000 homes under management, for a free live webinar the likes of which I've never done before. We're going to look at what billions in new investment could mean for jobs, housing demand, neighborhood appreciation, and your portfolio. Everyone who attends live will also get exclusive access to the best deal terms Mid South has ever offered. Reserve your free seat at getricheducation.com/midsouth again, that september 30. Don't say we didn't tell you. Save your spot at getricheducation.com/mid south.   Speaker 1  1:33   You're listening to the show that has created more financial freedom than nearly any show in the world. This is Get Rich Education.   Keith Weinhold  1:49   Welcome to GRE from Davenport, Iowa, to Smethport, Pennsylvania, and across 188 nations worldwide. I'm Keith Weinhold. You're listening to Get Rich Education. Hey, near the end of today's episode, I'll announce where I'll be appearing live and inviting you to join me. But first, most real estate headlines that you see out there for quite a while now, they tend to focus on just how difficult buying a home has become amidst higher prices and mortgage rates-it's kind of an old story by now. But for investors, the other side of that story is what matters. When fewer people can buy homes, well, more people have to continue renting them. Only 6 million of America's 50 million renters can afford to buy the median home. In fact, so that means then that only 12 percent of America's renter households can afford the median home. That is just remarkable, and that's exactly why they have to keep renting, but you know what's more remarkable is the growth of this group of people itself. Last year, the U.S. added an estimated 898,000 renter households, but only 234,000 homeowner households. That's per the Census Bureau. All right. So then, renters accounted for nearly 80% of the nation's net household growth. Gosh, that is staggering. Well, let's look at the rent change and their factors in some of America's largest cities over the past three years, in Austin rents down 8% over the past three years, lowest anywhere. San Antonio minus 4% Denver minus 1% and then you got a couple cities, Phoenix and Dallas that are even no rent change the past three years because they've had some overbuilding. Raleigh, North Carolina, up 1% Nashville, Orlando, and Houston all with rents up 2% over the last three years. Still pretty modest. Jacksonville, Tampa, and Charlotte each up 3% Atlanta up 4% Miami also up 4% Los Angeles and Memphis both up 6% Seattle has had rent growth of 8% the past three years. Boston really with a lot of growth in tech jobs and not much new supply added. So Boston, Massachusetts, 10% rent growth. Philadelphia, 11% rent growth. New York City, famously not adding much supply. Rents are up 14% since 2023. San Francisco and Chicago leading the charge rents up 17% in both San Francisco and Chicago over the past three years. Now the biggest reason for the variability in rent change since this time it's largely the same reason for capital price change, for appreciation level, and that is the factor of supply. You know, remarkably, the eight cities that have built the least, they have the eight highest rent growth stories, and most of those are higher cost coastal markets that have high building regulation. I mean, sheesh. That's where approving new housing can take longer than choosing a speaker of the house, and that's how already expensive markets remained resilient.   Keith Weinhold  5:57   Namely, I'm talking about places like New York, Boston, Chicago, and San Francisco, and then you've got these pandemic-era magnets like Austin, Phoenix, Dallas, and Nashville. What these places did is they attracted residents and developers along with them, but yet they've all got really slow rent growth stories, like I just outlined. So what really happened here in these pandemic-era magnet places, again, Austin, Phoenix, Dallas, and Nashville, is that builders showed up like food trucks at a music carnival, and eventually the construction wave caught up with demand. Then you know we got to look at the Sun Belt. A lot of people talk about the Sun Belt like it's just one market or one place, and of course that's not true because I just told you about how Atlanta and Miami rents rose 4% the past three years. Well, a number of other places in the Sun Belt just stayed about even, but it's really the tech hubs like Boston and San Francisco, that are just surging, really soaring with rent growth amidst the AI boom, because they've really been the beneficiaries of that. So yes, apparently even the people building our robot replacements then need a place to live. The robots themselves don't pay rent yet. It's rarely been more apparent that real estate is local when there's this 25% Grand Canyon between Chicago and San Francisco's 17% rent growth, and then Austin's 8% loss. And again, I'm talking about that period just over the past three years. Now rent declines-that's something that really doesn't happen very often.   Keith Weinhold  7:48   They tend to be even more rare than a loss in overall home prices. But you know, rent declines-they can create buying opportunities. What happens is that softer rents-they pressure your current cash flows for sure, and that hurts, no doubt about it. But over the longer term, what that does is that discourages new construction, and then that sets the stage for tighter supply down the road. So that is really the rent growth story the past few years in the United States. We're going to discuss rents and prices some more, and then the excitement of the profound amount of new AI investment into a place where you might not be thinking about it in, and that is Memphis. Listen to what SpaceX, Anthropic, and Google are all in the process of doing there, and what that could do to rents. We'll talk to the premier provider of Memphis rental property, and they also place your tenant and they manage it for you, so that all you do is little more than collect the monthly rent check, and they also offer this in Little Rock, Arkansas, and more recently in North Texas, founded in 2002, Mid South Homebuyers they are one of America's original turnkey real estate providers, and you know they're quite possibly the oldest major provider that still operates today. We're going to talk to the man that actually sets the rents there, and in fact, Mid South is so renowned and respected that for a long time, if you wanted to own rental property from them, there was a waiting list that once reached 24 months, and frankly, in that scenario, investors would just kind of settle for the first property that became available-that doesn't happen anymore. There is no waiting list, and you actually have a choice now. Let's talk to this week's guests. Back on the show today, the Memphis-based team that has provided more. More income property to GRE listeners than anyone in history. They were first on the show with us almost 12 years ago on episode nine. It is Mid South Homebuyers founder Terry Kerr and director Matthew Vanhorn. It's a warm welcome back to the show.   Terry Kerr  10:18   Thank you so much, Keith. Always love being on your show, man.   Matthew Vanhorn  10:22   Yeah, so glad to be back, Keith.   Keith Weinhold  10:24   You know, I was talking with you earlier, and you had brought up something that struck me as interesting, and yet it could be true that when it comes to cash flow in real estate, we are living in the good old days. Now, nationally, cash flow has been challenged because purchase prices and mortgage rates are both up, and rents haven't quite kept up proportionally. But there, in the markets that you deal in, you can still get it with a small down payment because you do have a high ratio of rents in proportion to a low purchase price. Some of them still under 200k for a good rental single-family home, and incentives that get your mortgage rate into the fives. So tell us more about how we could be living in the good old days now.   Terry Kerr  11:09   Well, you know we're very fortunate to be working in some towns where the price to rent ratios are still super favorable comparatively. You know you mentioned that you can get into a house for under 200,000, we even have new construction houses that folks can get into for under 200,000. Yes, one of the other ways that we're able to make the deals pencil out and make it to where these are definitely the good old days is through a promotion that we've had going on for a bit called the Triple Five, where we buy the rate down into the fives and have a 5% management for five years. So these are definitely the good old days here at Mid South.   Matthew Vanhorn  11:51   One thing that you preach on your show, Keith, is about looking at history over hunches. Right, and when I look at the history, everyone. who comes to me now says, "Man, I wish I had bought 10 years ago. I've yet to hear anyone say, "Man, I wish I'd bought less 10 years ago. Never happens, you know. And 10 years ago, well, 10 years ago was 2016, and a lot of people say, "I wish I had bought more then, and the reality is, a lot of people were scared to buy then. You know, their times were uncertain then. We were unsure where things were headed then. Always, and maybe people looked at our prices back then as they started to hit $75,000 for a home, and thought, man, things are getting expensive. But my belief is truly, Keith, that 10 years from now, people will look back and say, man, I wish I had bought more 10 years ago. I mean, we're living at an incredible inflection point. I believe in history, you know, where we know that the world is changing with AI and with various factors that are happening. We're on very much the cutting edge of all of that. You know, I don't have a crystal ball, but I just believe that 10 years from now, people will say, "Man, you guys were so lucky to be able to invest in a time when AI was in its infancy, and like before prices had skyrocketed, like they are now in 2036. That's just my belief, Keith. Looking at history over hunches, there,   Keith Weinhold  13:31   I very well believe that could be true. The truth is, for you as an investor, when you buy a property, it's pretty likely you've paid more for that property than anyone has in history, and it's also pretty likely that when you sell that property down the road, you are going to sell it for more than anyone ever has in history. People always think that times are uncertain, and they're going to continue to feel that way because nobody can know the future, of course. And Terry, you talked about your incentives with the triple five. That's for someone that makes a small down payment where they can get their mortgage rate bought down into the fives. They get five years of property management at 5% and we're big fans of leverage here. However, if someone wants to pay all cash, you also have an incentive known as the Forever Five. Tell us about that.   Terry Kerr  14:26   Yeah, so the Forever Five for somebody who pays cash, they will get 5% property management forever because they are not getting the benefit of the interest rate buydown. So we want to treat our cash buyers fairly as well, and that's been very popular.   Keith Weinhold  14:43   And if you, as a cash buyer, participate in the Forever Five, and then you go on to refinance the property, maybe to pull cash out after you've closed, you still get those incentives for the duration of your ownership of the property.   Terry Kerr  14:56   Absolutely.   Keith Weinhold  14:58   Now, Matthew, interestingly. You talked about an inflection point. We'll get into that later. There is a clear inflection point with Memphis and with AI. But before we do that, why don't you talk about your core business and some of the markets that you serve and what the drivers are there?   Matthew Vanhorn  15:18   Yeah. Right now, when you invest in Memphis, you are investing in stability. We still have great cash-flowing assets in Memphis for as low as $100,000. We have great cash-flowing assets in Little Rock for as low as $120,000, and even Texas, we have assets there for as low as 215,000, which I don't expect you to see those kind of prices in the future. I think we're at a very lucky point where you can get into Texas for as low as 215. We're still seeing strong cash flow in our markets, especially with our triple five promotion. I mean, we've looked and listen. We realize it's harder to find cash flow than it used to be. That is true, and that is why we've rolled out this triple five promotion, where it really helps these deals pencil for our investors. It gives you five years of reduced property management. It gives you 30 years of a fantastic fixed rate on your interest, and my belief is that your rents will continue to grow faster than your expenses. So that five years from now, even if there is a property management adjustment in year six, which that would adjust to the normal rate of 10% or for investors who have more than six homes with us to 8% I believe that you're going to be in a much better place six years down the road because of the factors we know that rents increase, your resident pays down the mortgage, and I believe that this happens at a rate that's faster than your expenses grow.   Keith Weinhold  17:02   Talk to us about what you're doing as far as new build versus resale properties, because so many providers today are finding that they're doing more volume of new build than they are of resale properties, and this is really a good, important, fundamental thing that people like you are doing because amidst the national housing shortage, there's an even greater shortage of those entry-level properties. So now that you've been doing new build for a little while, tell us about that and what kind of effects that makes. How good that is for the investor. How much longer tenants are being retained for a longer duration in the new build property versus resale, and just more about that new build versus resale.   Terry Kerr  17:46   Sure, man. So we got into doing new construction, you know, out of necessity, and also because our investors were asking for it, our renters were asking for it, and so also we couldn't find as many rehabs, and you can't force a good deal to come onto the market to find for rehab. And so we went on a absolute tear for dirt. So within the last 12 months, we picked up over 400 vacant lots, and so we kind of have the dirt stacked up for the next while, and we're doing that in both Little Rock and in Memphis. And so, what we've seen on the leasing and on the acquisitions for our investor side is that our residents absolutely love it. We could ask more in rent than we're getting for these new construction properties, but we're tempering ourselves because we know that what makes a property cash flow for the long term is lease renewals for the residents. So in Memphis, as an example, our average rent for a brand new three-bedroom, two-bath, 1400 square foot house is 1450. And Matthew, what's the price point on that? Is it like 198,000 bucks? Is that it? That's right. And so they're just flying off the shelves from a rental standpoint. And like I said, we could get more in rent and still sell them at that 198 or maybe more. But we're wanting to make sure that we're leaving enough meat on the bone all the way around the horn, and to your question, Keith, about additional length of resident stay, we haven't been doing new construction long enough to really have good data points on that. But if the interest in the new construction product by our residents is an indicator of length of resident stay, it's going to be longer than our rehabs.   Matthew Vanhorn  19:42   Yeah, and another thing that I think that's interesting is that we are often building these new construction homes in the same neighborhoods where we have done our newly renovated homes, and so that continues to bring up the value of our renovated properties. Which I think is a beautiful thing that not all investors have connected the dots on yet with what we're doing in these neighborhoods. I think it's a beautiful thing because some residents are going to prefer that four-two new construction, like Terry mentioned, and other residents are going to prefer to pay a little bit less and get that three-one ranch-style home that we love so much here at Mid South,   Keith Weinhold  20:24   and you, the listener, you might be wondering about really properties, including new build income properties for under 200k. But I can attest to you that I have walked inside these properties myself with Mid South home buyers, several of them, so we're not just talking about the glossy brochure version of how a property looks. This is real with the low purchase prices in Memphis due to them being the transportation hub of the nation and an awful lot of other reasons. But the whole thing that makes this stick together for you, the investor is the property management, and you you never hear anyone rave about their property manager, seemingly. But with your management and making this hands-free for the investor, I have got to say I don't think I have ever heard one complaint about you guys's property management. So tell us about that. When someone gets sort of enamored with owning in one of your markets, Memphis, Little Rock, or with what you're doing in Texas, tell us about that handoff to the property manager and how important it is to have that in-house management. Because if there ends up being some construction or rehab problem, you know the manager isn't pointing fingers at somebody else because the renovation and the management is all done in house.   Terry Kerr  21:46   Yeah, absolutely. It's super important to have it all in one house, so no one's pointing fingers at someone else. And really, Keith, it all boils down to value. It's the biggest piece, and just how I mentioned a few minutes ago about how we could get more in rent for the properties than we do, but we know that the properties need to continue to stay occupied, and reducing turnover is the main thing that's going to make an asset perform. And so that's kind of the foundation of where we start as a turnkey outfit, and then it's just treating our residents, treating them with the respect that they deserve, answering the phone when the you know heating element goes out on a water heater and getting it fixed quick, and so delivering value from a rent to property ratio, if you will, and then also just giving really good customer service to the resident because if you do that, the property is going to perform.   Matthew Vanhorn  22:42   I was blessed to work on the management side of the business for 14 years before jumping into the sales seat. So I know firsthand, you know how important it is to make this work for the resident. So it's not like the residents have interests and the investors have interests that are misaligned. We have to make this work for the resident to make it work for the investors. And like Terry's saying, when we provide ultimate value to the resident, our investors thrive. And so, at its core, it's it's some very basic things that we do here, Keith. That I think make all the difference. And it's just spending the time is one of the biggest thing. It's literally just answering the phone when residents call. It's just the basics that I think we do so well. And to spend that time and to answer the phone, you have to have an actual staff, you know. And here, just down the street at our central office, you can walk right in, right up to Gabby's desk, and she can help you with any of your concerns if you're a resident. And I think that's becoming so rare today, Keith, to see that level of service on the property management side. So many property managers want to do just the bare minimum, and they're really just looking to extract value and to just move on. We, the most of the people who work here, Keith, we have, I think, about 120 employees, and a lot of them aren't necessarily thinking about sort of the sales side like I do. They're simply thinking about the mission they have for taking care of the residents of Memphis and Little Rock and Dallas, and that's really all they think about, and that's why this is successful.   Keith Weinhold  24:23   I was laughing earlier. I just find it funny how you put that. Like the bar is so low for property management that oh my gosh, this manager picked up the phone on the first try. I can't believe it. Like that's how low the bar is for property management, and your management there has been superb. We're going to talk more, including how Memphis could be on the precipice of being both the brains and brawn behind AI, including why data centers can be good for communities. More on that when we come back. You're listening to Get Rich Education. Our guests are Terry Kerr and Matthew Van Horn. Of Mid South Homebuyers, I'm your host Keith Weinhold.   Keith Weinhold  25:03   What if you got your mortgage loans the same place I get mine? 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What I like is that their team walks you through how it all works, so you can decide if it aligns with your portfolio and income goals. Every investment carries risk, and nothing is guaranteed. But with a track record of consistent, on-time investor payouts, they built real credibility. Go to freedomfamilyinvestments.com to book a clarity call, or text family to 66866. That's family to 66866.    Naresh Vissa  26:36   This is GRE Real Estate Investment Coach Naresh Vissa. Listen to Get Rich Education with Keith Weinhold, and don't quit your daydream.   Keith Weinhold  26:53   Welcome back to Get Rich Education. We're talking with founder Terry Kerr and director Matthew Van Horn of Mid South Homebuyers, the provider that's provided our listeners with more income property than anyone else in history for years. That popularity created a wait list that was often several months long. I'm pleased to tell you that there is no longer a wait list, so you, the investor, can get a deal done in a pretty short period of time. One reason for that, to Terry's point, is the fact that more new construction has been brought on since they weren't able to buy rehabs at the pace that they wanted to. Since we are in a housing shortage, how do you stop the shortage? You build new. One thing that you're building new are duplexes as well. So tell us more about the duplexes that you offer because sometimes that interests investors to buy one income property and have one loan with two doors.   Terry Kerr  27:53   Sure, absolutely. And you know, Keith, actually, we just bought a whole street of duplexes. We bought 18 duplexes, and talk about forced depreciation brought the whole street up, and it's actually located. We have other duplexes besides these, but it's actually located just three minutes from here on the Green Line. Really coveted place to live. You can just hop on the Green Line and ride your bike all you know all the way. Well, goodness, about 100 miles or more. Yeah, duplexes are rare here in Memphis, and we've been fortunate to stumble across a good chunk of them.   Matthew Vanhorn  28:30   Actually, in Memphis, there was a moratorium on building duplexes for over 40 years, and so that's part of why they're rare. Wow, is that you just weren't allowed to build them for a long time, so when we're able to come across them, it's a great thing because we know investors love them. And the fact that we're able to grab 18 right here in Midtown on the Green Line, right by our huge library, which is is an awesome place, we're really excited for those as well as the other duplexes. Like Terry said, we have others available, but be looking out for those Waynoka duplexes. Yes,   Keith Weinhold  29:04   amidst the housing shortage, I have seen many U.S. cities these past few years with zoning changes allowing duplexes to exist where only single-family residential properties could previously. Tell us more about the duplex rents and prices.   Matthew Vanhorn  29:21   Yes. So Waynoka duplexes, as an example, these are 2121, so a two one on each side of the duplex. They're compact, so I think they're about 700 square feet on each side. They are priced on the rent side at 925 a month per side, so 1850 in total rent, and so those are going to be selling for around the 220 mark.   Keith Weinhold  29:50   Okay, those are some really attractive numbers. They are ratios that work. There inside Mid South, you've done an awful lot. More to help grow your team and help better serve investors on the investor side. Now, you know, frankly, I really never look at how you're marketing yourselves to buy rehab properties over there on that side with what you're doing. But actually, sat down and had lunch in person with your marketing director a few months ago. You've got a new website now, and so much of that is the interface with the investor in the white glove service that you offer them in order to make it easy for investors. Tell us more about that.   Matthew Vanhorn  30:34   Yes, we're really proud of the new website that we've rolled out. It really is designed to make buying as easy as possible for investors, and not just buying easy, but to understand the process as well as you can, to understand and do your due diligence as well as possible from the website. And so, one thing that you'll notice is that with each property now, you can click a run profit projection is a button on each property, and it brings out a detailed pro forma. You can get downright nerdy in there. Adjust different inputs on different down payments, different interest rates, different loan products. You can toggle back and forth to see the cap rates on cash versus leveraged, and like I said, you can get downright nerdy with it, which is nice. It's something we did not have before. The pictures are really crisp on our new website now. We have available homes on our website, which is a fantastic thing for investors. Previously, with the waitlist system. We would show our website, and investors would go on there, and they would say, "Hey, there's nothing available. Right, and so that was the biggest problem. We have different markets, different products. Texas, as an example, it's going to be more high growth. Memphis is going to be more high cash flow, and so different investors have different parameters. We can actually match you to what you need now.   Keith Weinhold  32:02   You guys have such a good reputation, and also you've been offering turnkey rental properties longer than any other provider I know of in all of the United States. But because your reputation preceded you in the past, I think some people would stay on your wait list for a few months, and then as soon as one property came available, they would just take it, regardless of what it was, and they still tended to rave about your service. But today, you actually have some choice.   Terry Kerr  32:31   We do, we do. In addition to providing extra properties through new construction, we've also been fortunate to, you know, continue to develop our banking relationship. So we would not have been able to to do what we've done by ramping up volume if it weren't for our good lender partners. So, cheers to that!   Keith Weinhold  32:49   Right, and these banking relationships are what allow you to offer interest rates in the fives to investors. Well, Matthew mentioned it earlier that we really are on this tipping point, this likely pivot point where AI has really-you could have long called it the brawn behind a lot of what moves America-that being Memphis, being that transportation hub that you are-but it's also now positioned to be the brains of AI as well. I mean, perhaps the biggest infrastructure story in America is now happening there in Memphis, the most affordable major castle market in America, and I don't know that anyone has connected these dots. So it's an exciting time. Tell us about that.   Matthew Vanhorn  33:37   It is an exciting time, and I think you're right. I think investors at large have not connected those dots, like you said, Keith. Right now, if you've ever used Grok, if you've ever used Claude from Anthropic, it's being powered right here in Memphis, Tennessee. I don't know if everyone knows that of how much money that Google is pouring in to Memphis, how much Anthropic is pouring into Memphis? How much SpaceX is pouring into Memphis? It's really phenomenal. It's dramatically raised the amount of tax revenue that we've been able to generate, and that tax revenue benefits the city. And so we're already an advantaged market when it comes to investors, and this AI infrastructure I think poises us to be even stronger of a play, especially for those who get in sooner rather than later. While it's the good old days, Keith.   Keith Weinhold  34:36   We have seen what AI can do to a rental market. Now, I'm certainly not projecting this on Memphis, but San Francisco has seen two-bedroom rents up 26% year over year due to this influx of AI money that you're talking about.   Matthew Vanhorn  34:56   Absolutely, and we have been seeing rent growth in. In Memphis, and I think that's interesting because I've heard investors as I go to different conferences, and they say, "Yeah, rent in Memphis has been kind of flat. And what a lot of people tend to do is they look at reports that talk about what has happened over the past, let's say, two years. And so a lot of investors they want to invest when they get that report, and it says, "Hey, rents are up 26%. Well, once you get the report, it may not be the most optimal time. I'm blessed to be on the cutting edge of the knowledge here, you know, because I'm part of the property management company. In fact, I set the rents personally still on these homes, and so I see them ticking up, Keith. I'm not saying it's necessarily San Francisco style here, but I do see the rents ticking up here after a little bit of a period where it was a little bit flat in 24 and 25.   Keith Weinhold  35:57   Yes, we are talking to the man that sets the rents on this huge collection of properties that we have here. Memphis is now home to the world's largest AI supercomputer. That's XAI's Colossus, the biggest single-site AI facility on the planet. You touched on it. Anthropic is paying 1.25 billion a month to run Claude on it. Google just signed a deal worth up to $30 billion starting october 1 in one year. Therefore, XAI became the second largest taxpayer in the city after FedEx. And sometimes you might wonder, okay, but will that translate to that community, to that local neighborhood, well, the city has committed 25% of the property tax revenue from those sites to infrastructure in the surrounding neighborhood. So this is a multiplier effect that we're talking about in Memphis.   Matthew Vanhorn  36:54   That's it exactly. So the neighborhood where SpaceX has built these facilities, and so they built Colossus, which alone was the largest supercomputer in the world. Then they built Colossus Two, which was even larger than the first one. And by the way, they're prospecting a third facility. Guess the Colossus Three. So already the biggest. Then they built a second. They're about to build a third. And these are in the communities where we're already investing, Keith. So these are communities that are already great neighborhoods where we have great blue-collar working-class renters who love their homes from mid south, take great care of them, and now they're going to get the benefit of that 25% of a huge number in tax revenue going into improve the infrastructure in their community. So you're talking better streets, you're talking water treatment, you're talking money going into schools, which is super important. It even goes into just cleaning up the community, which is directly helpful to our property values here, and so I'm really excited that we're seeing this growth here in areas where we already were investing, Keith. So we were lucky enough to already be ahead of this even before we recognized this growth headed to Memphis.   Terry Kerr  38:19   And one of the nice things about that is, is we've already got hundreds of houses that we're managing in these neighborhoods, and so all this new growth is just benefiting the investors who've owned in these neighborhoods for many, many years.   Keith Weinhold  38:33   There is clearly some momentum here, and at worst, it provides some real ballast under the greater Memphis economy. Before I ask you two, if you have any last thoughts, I would like to cordially invite you, the listener, to an exclusive free virtual event with all three of us live. It is next Wednesday, the 30th. The event is called Memphis: The New Brains and Brawn Behind AI. Why the smart money is moving now. Sign up is open now and is complimentary at getricheducation.com/midsouth. So therefore, the webinar takes place the night before the new Google money starts flowing in to Memphis on October 1, and at the event you'll see actual properties, real cost flow numbers, and Mid South's best deal terms ever. Like we touched on earlier, with those rates in the fives and five years of property management at just a 5% rate, and these incentives are all available exclusively to live attendees. It ought to be really cool. Again, it is next Wednesday the 30th. Sign up at getricheducation.com/midsouth. Any last thoughts, fellas?   Matthew Vanhorn  39:52   We run regular tours here in Memphis. You can come visit us on site, and most people don't come. Visit us on site, but we love it when you do. So, if you are interested in seeing us firsthand, want to put your boots on the ground here, please sign up for a investor tour where we'll show you the facility here where we're sitting, show you the warehouse, we'll show you the process of renovations, we'll show you a junker home that we just bought, we'll show you one midway. We'll show you the final product. We'll show you renovated homes. We'll show you new construction, and give you a great grasp on what we're doing here at Mid South.   Keith Weinhold  40:30   That website is midsouthhomebuyers.com. Yes, I have done that tour with you guys. Yeah, it's interesting that you take us into the Junker home first, and that way we can see chronologically how you go through the process until we're in a newly renovated one near the end that's beautifully done. I still remember how much those hardwood floors shined in your product there. Yes, you, the listener, are cordially invited to join us September of 30th, a live event, all three of us. That is getresuceducation.com/midsouth fellas. It's been great having you back on the show.   Terry Kerr  41:07   Thanks so much. Thank you.   Keith Weinhold  41:14   Earlier in the show, I mentioned Memphis's 6% rent growth over the past three years. When you break it down per Zillow, that's just up 2% for Memphis multifamily, and it's up 9% for Memphis single-family rentals. Besides all the good stuff happening in Memphis, it has excited some people when they recently extrapolated their mega successful model out to the Dallas-Fort Worth metro and surroundings. For example, in Princeton, Texas, where they offer brand new construction, a two-bed, two-bath single-family home renting for 1675 a month and selling for under 200k. It's 192k. In fact, next week on the show, I will discuss what happens to real estate when stocks crash, and I'll talk about a lot more. But September 30th-that is the day of our event. It's also the day before substantially more AI investment dollars start pouring into Memphis, and the good old days could very well be investing here before that happens. Join the three of us for an inside look at why billions in new investment might be creating a pretty rare window in Memphis real estate. You're going to see actual properties, real cash flow numbers in Mid South's best deal terms ever, followed by a live Q and A, and it's available exclusively to attendees. Again, you can sign up at getricheducation.com/midsouth. Until next week, I'm your host Keith Weinhold. Don't quit your daydream. daydream.   Speaker 3  43:04   Nothing on this show should be considered specific, personal, or professional advice. Please consult an appropriate tax, legal, real estate, financial, or business professional for individualized advice. Opinions of guests are their own. Information is not guaranteed. All investment strategies have the potential for profit or loss. The host is operating on behalf of Get Rich Education LLC exclusively.    Keith Weinhold  43:32   The preceding program was brought to you by your home for wealth building, getricheducation.com  

The freight market is shifting, cargo theft is getting more sophisticated, diesel prices are under pressure, and artificial intelligence is raising new questions for freight brokers and carriers. On this episode of FreightWaves Today, we break down the biggest stories shaping trucking, logistics, supply chains and transportation. We're also heading to Green Bay this week, and Ben Schill, Chief Corporate Development Officer at Paper Transport, joins the show to discuss the company's long-running logistics partnership with the Green Bay Packers, including how Paper Transport moves the team's equipment for away games. He also discusses trucking market conditions, dedicated freight, acquisitions, fleet growth and the company's strategy for building density in Wisconsin. In this episode: • Cargo theft and freight fraud: Two men allegedly posed as FedEx drivers to steal more than $680,000 in electronics from a Delaware warehouse. We also discuss an unusual Memphis case involving a $110,000 chicken shipment allegedly being used to settle a drug debt. • AI and freight brokerage liability: What does the future of AI-driven carrier selection look like following the Supreme Court's decision involving broker liability? We examine whether human brokers could become more important as artificial intelligence takes on more decision-making. • Paper Transport & Green Bay Packers logistics: Ben Schill explains how Paper Transport handles the Packers' equipment, including game-day gear, backup equipment and logistics surrounding away games. • Trucking market conditions: Paper Transport discusses the current dedicated freight environment, inflation, rates, fuel costs and why the trucking market feels more stable than it did previously. • Site selection and supply chain investment: Companies are reconsidering where to build factories, distribution centers and data centers as they navigate energy availability, labor constraints, infrastructure, tariffs and geopolitical risk. • Autonomous yard trucks: We explore the growing adoption of autonomous yard automation, including autonomous yard trucks, remote supervision, yard-management technology and what it could mean for trucking operations.• Truckload market & tender rejections: The FreightWaves SONAR update examines truckload rejection rates, freight volumes, capacity and the potential impact of peak season on trucking rates. • Diesel prices and the global energy crisis: We examine how disruptions in Russia and the Middle East are affecting crude oil, refining capacity, diesel fuel and transportation costs — and what higher energy prices could mean for trucking and supply chains. Whether you're a truck driver, owner-operator, carrier, freight broker, shipper, logistics professional, investor or supply chain executive, FreightWaves Today delivers the news, data and analysis you need to understand the freight market. Subscribe to FreightWaves for daily coverage of trucking, freight, logistics, supply chains, transportation technology and the global economy. #FreightWaves #FreightWavesToday #Trucking #Freight #Logistics #SupplyChain #Transportation #Truckload #CargoTheft #FreightFraud #ArtificialIntelligence #AutonomousTrucks #Diesel #TruckingNews #FreightMarket ⁠Follow the FreightWaves Today Podcast⁠ ⁠Other FreightWaves Shows⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, we kick things off by examining the latest developments in broker liability law and how they're unexpectedly reshaping the role of technology in freight brokerage. Industry experts now argue that ⁠the Supreme Court's Montgomery decision will actually make human brokers more valuable⁠ rather than less, as firms face tough questions about whether AI-driven carrier selection will hold up under courtroom scrutiny following fatal crashes. This shift could force brokerages to invest heavily in human oversight and robust compliance systems instead of relying purely on automated platforms. Next, we explore a brazen cargo security breach that highlights the vulnerability of standard warehouse pickup procedures. Delaware State Police arrested a California man after ⁠two suspects posing as FedEx drivers stole a $680,000 electronics load⁠ from a New Castle, Delaware, facility using fake driver's licenses and forged shipping documents. Troopers recovered the entire shipment intact at a nearby parking area, underscoring how fraudsters can exploit routine documentation checks to make off with high-value freight. Finally, we head south to Central Texas, where ⁠Tesla is planning a massive 538,000-square-foot distribution center⁠ in Mustang Ridge with an estimated construction cost of $1.44 million. The sprawling facility will add critical distribution capacity near Tesla's Gigafactory Texas manufacturing complex and the extensive cross-border supplier network in Mexico, supporting the automaker's rapidly expanding production operations. ⁠Follow the FreightWaves Today Podcast⁠ ⁠Other FreightWaves Shows⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this video, I sit down with Jared Robin, the founder of revgenius, to unpack how he built a 100,000-plus member community by staying obsessively close to his market and betting on relationships over platforms.We cover:His messy road from FedEx sales rep to running a fashion magazine to launching revgenius during Covid, plus why he thinks audiences are now table stakes for real power.If you are trying to build a community, grow an audience, or run go-to-market the human way instead of blasting spam-filled outbound, this one's for you.Tune in and learn:How giving away real value at scale, doing things a little differently, and treating market feedback as a live loop can quietly compound into something way bigger than a transaction.-----------------------------------------------------

Episode Summary In this milestone 300th episode of the Solar Maverick Podcast, Benoy Thanjan is joined by longtime friend and co-host Nate Jovanelly, Founder and CEO of SunRaise Capital. Benoy and Nate reflect on how much the solar industry has changed since the podcast began and explore where the market is headed next. They discuss the evolution of residential solar, the growing importance of battery storage, changing financing models, rising electricity costs, policy uncertainty, and the continuing challenge of customer acquisition. They also examine the advantages regional solar companies may have over national providers, how shifting customer demographics could affect the market, and why solar plus storage represents one of the industry's greatest opportunities over the next decade. The episode concludes with lessons from entrepreneurship, reflections on navigating constant change, and a special Monday Motivation.   Biographies Benoy Thanjan Benoy Thanjan is the Founder and CEO of Reneu Energy, a solar development and consulting firm, and the host of the Solar Maverick Podcast. He also serves as a strategic advisor to multiple cleantech startups. Over his career, Benoy has developed more than 100 MWs of solar projects across the United States, advised on more than 1 GW of energy projects worldwide, helped launch some of the first residential solar tax equity funds at Tesla, and brokered approximately $50 million in renewable energy credit transactions. Before founding Reneu Energy, Benoy worked in Tesla's Project Finance Group as an environmental commodities trader, where he managed one of the company's largest environmental commodities portfolios. He originated renewable energy credit transactions and worked with senior leadership to develop monetization and hedging strategies supporting the company's expansion into East Coast markets. Benoy also served as Vice President at Vanguard Energy Partners, a solar and energy storage construction company, where he developed project finance solutions for commercial-scale solar portfolios. At Ridgewood Renewable Power, a private equity fund with approximately 125 MW of U.S. renewable energy assets, he evaluated investment opportunities, supported portfolio strategy, and played a key role in the sale of the firm's renewable energy portfolio. Earlier in his career, Benoy worked in Energy Structured Finance at Deloitte & Touche and in Financial Advisory Services at Ernst & Young. He also completed an internship on the trading floor at D. E. Shaw & Co., a global investment and technology development firm. Benoy holds an MBA in Finance from Rutgers University and a Bachelor of Science in Finance and Economics from the NYU Stern School of Business, where he was an Alumni Scholar. Nathan “Nate” Jovanelly Nathan Jovanelly is the Founder and CEO of SunRaise Capital, a technology and financial infrastructure platform supporting residential solar deployment. Before founding SunRaise Capital, Nate helped build IGS Solar and later launched its residential division. Under his leadership, the division grew to 150 MW and approximately $600 million in managed assets. Across his career, Nate has been involved in deploying more than $3 billion into residential, commercial, and utility-scale solar infrastructure. Nate has worked on solar projects for organizations including Amazon, FedEx, Unilever, and numerous nonprofit groups. He is also a licensed Professional Engineer with a background in chemical engineering and serves on the Board of SunVena Solar. Stay Connected: Benoy Thanjan Email: info@reneuenergy.com  LinkedIn: Benoy Thanjan Website: https://www.reneuenergy.com Website: https://www.solarmaverickpodcast.com/ Nathan Jovanelly LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/natejov/ SunRaise Capital: https://www.sunraisecapital.com/ Sponsor: DCE This episode of the Solar Maverick Podcast is brought to you by DCE. Since 2009, DCE has built a unique model in the solar industry by bringing design, racking, and construction together under one roof. DCE Design provides full-scope electrical design across multiple project types. DCE Solar manufactures fixed-tilt, tracker, carport, and rooftop racking systems for commercial and utility-scale projects. DCE Services handles installation. DCE Services was named the number-one commercial ground-mount installer by Solar Power World in 2025 and the number-one commercial rooftop installer in 2026. This gives customers one company and one point of accountability, from utility-scale projects with IPPs and developers to turnkey commercial and industrial projects. Learn more about DCE and its company story in SMP 288: Why Solar Racking Can Make or Break a Project, featuring DCE Founder and CEO Bill Taylor: https://podcasts.apple.com/nz/podcast/smp-288-why-solar-racking-can-make-or-break-a-project/id1441876259?i=1000774004477 You can also meet the DCE team at RE+ Las Vegas or visit: https://dcesolar.com/ Thank you to DCE for supporting the Solar Maverick Podcast. Reneu Energy Reneu Energy provides expert consulting across solar and storage project development, financing, energy strategy, and environmental commodities. The team helps clients originate, structure, and execute opportunities across community solar, commercial and industrial, utility-scale, and Renewable Energy Credit markets. To learn more, visit: https://www.reneuenergy.com/ You can also email the team at info@reneuenergy.com. Listen and Subscribe Subscribe to the Solar Maverick Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or your favorite podcast platform. If you enjoyed this episode, please leave a rating and review. It helps more people discover conversations with the leaders shaping the future of solar, storage, and the energy transition.  

A woman in Iowa gave birth at a FedEx facility...and she didn't even realize she was pregnant! What's your bizarre birth story?

In der heutigen Folge sprechen die Finanzjournalisten Daniel Eckert und Holger Zschäpitz über eine Gegenbewegung bei geschundenen KI-Aktien, ein Unternehmen, das sich ein Stück planbare Energiewende kauft und die Folgen der Fed-Entscheidung fürs Depot. Außerdem geht es um Siemens Energy, JPMorgan Chase, Hochtief, Infineon, Winbond Electronics, SUSS MicroTec, PVA TePla, Jenoptik, Siltronic, Elmos Semiconductor, Intel, Marvell Technology, Arm Holdings, Nvidia, Lumentum, CoreWeave, On semi, IBM, Chevron, Exxon Mobil, Devon Energy, ConocoPhillips, J.B. Hunt Transport Services, CSX, FedEx, Norfolk Southern, Union Pacific, Deutz, RWE, E.on, Goldman Sachs, BlackRock, Weekly World Equity Income ETF (WKN: A42H8G). Am 2. Oktober findet unser „Alles auf Aktien“-Summit in Berlin statt. Sichere dir jetzt dein Ticket, um Zugriff auf den Merch-Shop zu bekommen. Mit dem Code „AAAFRIENDS“ sparst du 50 Prozent aufs Ticket – aber nur unter folgendem Link: https://veranstaltung.businessinsider.de/event/financesummit26/summary?rp=c6dc55d6-6f4f-4fb4-b75f-3f3501d84859 Wir freuen uns an Feedback über aaa@welt.de. Noch mehr "Alles auf Aktien" findet Ihr bei WELTplus und Apple Podcasts – inklusive aller Artikel der Hosts. Hier bei WELT: https://www.welt.de/podcasts/alles-auf-aktien/plus247399208/Boersen-Podcast-AAA-Bonus-Folgen-Jede-Woche-noch-mehr-Antworten-auf-Eure-Boersen-Fragen.html. Hier könnt ihr den AAA-Newsletter abonnieren: https://www.welt.de/newsletter/article232797673/Alles-auf-Aktien-Der-taegliche-Boersen-Newsletter-fuer-WELTplus-Abonnenten.html Und – ganz neu: AAA gibt es jetzt auch auf Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alles_auf_aktien/ Disclaimer: Die im Podcast besprochenen Aktien und Fonds stellen keine spezifischen Kauf- oder Anlage-Empfehlungen dar. Die Moderatoren und der Verlag haften nicht für etwaige Verluste, die aufgrund der Umsetzung der Gedanken oder Ideen entstehen. Hörtipps: Für alle, die noch mehr wissen wollen: Holger Zschäpitz können Sie jede Woche im Finanz- und Wirtschaftspodcast "Deffner&Zschäpitz" hören. +++ Werbung +++ Du möchtest mehr über unsere Werbepartner erfahren? Hier findest du alle Infos & Rabatte! https://linktr.ee/alles_auf_aktien Anzeige: Eight Sleep: Der Pod 5 reguliert die Temperatur im Bett automatisch, trackt Schlaf- und Gesundheitswerte ohne Wearable und kann so zu besserem Schlaf beitragen. Mit dem Code ALLESAUFAKTIEN erhaltet ihr auf https://www.eightsleep.com/allesaufaktien bis zu 350 Euro Rabatt. Impressum: https://www.welt.de/services/article7893735/Impressum.html Datenschutz: https://www.welt.de/services/article157550705/Datenschutzerklaerung-WELT-DIGITAL.html

He sells vapes with no nicotine. Every ad platform, payment processor, and carrier treats him like Big Tobacco anyway.Conrad Kurth founded Cyclone Pods in 2018 after watching every friend he had get hooked on Juul. Eight years later the brand has grown every year with a 60 percent repeat customer rate, no paid ads, no Shopify Payments, and no USPS. This is what selling on hard mode actually looks like.What you'll learn:Why a product with no addictive ingredient still gets a 60% repeat rateWhere a new customer really comes from when Meta, Google, and TikTok won't run your adsWhy "alternative advertising" on age-restricted sites sent traffic that never convertedThe Sunday morning Shopify Payments shut off with no warning, and the standalone store he keeps ready for next timeHow UPS and FedEx agreed to ship after seeing lab data, and why USPS never willWhether publishing third-party lab results helps SEO (his honest answer: he can't prove it)Why Wisconsin only allows vapes from Philip Morris, Altria, and ReynoldsThe Focus Pouch story: caffeine plus lion's mane, reishi, and cordyceps, two years before caffeine pouches were a categoryVapes for dogs, the leaking device that got pulled, and what he'd tell his 2018 selfHis advice for anyone selling a restricted product: ignore the ad people, do the legwork yourselfGuest: Conrad Kurth, founder and CEO of Cyclone Pods, a nicotine-free vape and nootropic pouch brand based in Santa Monica, California. Former software engineer.Show Links:Cyclone Pods: https://cyclonepods.comEmail Conrad: conrad@cyclonepods.comSPONSORSSwym - Wishlists, Back in Stock alerts, & moregetswym.com/kurtCleverific - Smart order editing for Shopifycleverific.com/unofficialZipify - Build high-converting sales funnelszipify.com/KURTWORK WITH KURTApply for Shopify Helpethercycle.com/applySee Our Resultsethercycle.com/workFree Newsletterkurtelster.comThe Unofficial Shopify Podcast is hosted by Kurt Elster and explores the stories behind successful Shopify stores. Get actionable insights, practical strategies, and proven tactics from entrepreneurs who've built thriving ecommerce businesses.

Double Tap Double Tap - Ep 479 September 14, 2026 Presented by This episode of Double Tap is brought to you by: Foxtrot Mike (Code: WLSISLIFE) C&G Holsters (Code: WLSISLIFE) Medical Gear Outfitters (Code: WLSISLIFE) Night Fision (Code: WLSISLIFE) Rost Martin (Code: WLSISLIFE) Giveaways!! GAW   Text Dear WLS or Reviews +1 743 500 2171 Public   Show Titles   Dear WLS Question from Anonymous Coward from Georgia DBo90 from Georgia. Have been looking from Foxtrot Mike in 556 but can't seem to locate online. Is there a shortage of products.Thanks Question from Conner R from Montana Im getting a vz 61 build kit. I dont particularly want to spend $300 on the serialized part. How legal is it to have someone else print that part for me as I dont have a 3D printer. -Thanks Conner R Question from Anonymous Coward from Florida Started LLC a few years ago but haven't actually done anything with it. I rent a condo and the owners won't let me have kitchen FFL. Should I find cheapest commercial rental property to start or is there other factors i should consider? Yes notes! Yairemy is a funny Cunt. WINNER Question from J Law from Tennessee Let's talk about rifle lights! I haven't heard you talk about or endorse any specific light. What would you recommend for a home defense weapon? I won't be fighting any wars with it so it doesn't have to be EMP proof but reliable would be nice. Thanks fellas! J Law Question from Anonymous Coward from Hawaii Good evening dad's,I was going to ask if I could go to Savage's house for dinner but mom (Angel) said no because he's a pdf. So here's my other question, lately a few cougars have been bothering me while I'm working. What do you think the best pistol and caliber is to use on them? ChatGPT said that if you shoot full power loads that it'll work but there may be 18 years of fines involved. Anyways, they always seem to bother me in the middle of the day and when Im carrying heavy things. Some of the cougars are really big and some are skinny, idk if they think Im a snack or what… Anyways Im genuinely curious to know what to use on them. P.s. they also sent me noods so if you want to see them then txt me, xxx-xxx area code xxx Much love from your local FedEx guy Question from Anonymous Coward from Montana My calico kitty has been excessively licking his asshole. How many times does Nick need to wipe after a chili bowl? Thanks, and keep the cat facts coming.. I love listening to We Like Kitties Gun Industry News Shootingwire XTech ATG Enhanced AR15 Lower Parts Kit XTech Tactical has released the ATG (Advanced Tactical Gear) Enhanced AR15 Lower Parts Kit featuring upgraded components for improved durability and ergonomics. The kit includes an enhanced trigger group, ambidextrous safety selector, and other precision-machined parts designed as a direct drop-in upgrade for standard AR-15 lowers. The Gist: Available now through authorized XTech Tactical retailers and distributors Bottom Line: Includes enhanced trigger with improved pull, ambidextrous safety selector, billet aluminum magazine release, and other upgraded components for reliability and user control Thefirearmblog Wheelgun Wednesday: Rails – A New Era Dawns for Revolvers The article discusses the emergence of rail systems on revolvers, marking a shift in design that allows for modern accessories. It explores how this technology integrates with traditional wheelguns, potentially expanding their use in tactical and sporting applications. The Gist: The Gist (what specifically happened) Impact: Market Impact (who this affects) Bottom Line: The Bottom Line (why it matters) Thefirearmblog Shield Arms S20 20-Round Magazine for Glock 43X/48 Shield Arms has released the S20, a 20-round magazine compatible with Glock 43X and 48 pistols. The magazine features a steel construction with a polymer baseplate and is designed to provide higher capacity while maintaining a compact footprint for concealed carry or duty use. The Gist: Available now through Shield Arms dealers and website Bottom Line: 20-round capacity, steel body, polymer baseplate and follower, compatible with Glock 43X and 48, extended length for higher capacity Thefirearmblog Smith & Wesson Bodyguard 2.0 Factory-Fitted with Viridian RFX1 Smith & Wesson now offers the Bodyguard 2.0 micro-compact pistol from the factory with an integrated Viridian RFX1 red dot optic. The package provides a complete carry-ready system with the optic pre-installed and zeroed. The RFX1 is a compact, enclosed or open optic designed for micro-compacts with features including automatic brightness adjustment and shake awake. The Gist: Available now through standard firearm retailers Bottom Line: Smith & Wesson Bodyguard 2.0 chambered in 9mm with 10- or 12-round capacity options; Viridian RFX1 optic pre-mounted and zeroed at factory Thefirearmblog Vaelon Watchtower Defense Upcoming Flagship 9mm Pistol Watchtower Defense is preparing to launch its new flagship 9mm pistol under the Vaelon brand. The article details the upcoming handgun's design focus on performance, modularity, and quality manufacturing for the defensive and competition markets. Bottom Line: Flagship 9mm pistol with emphasis on defensive and competition use; specific mechanical features and materials not detailed in article Thefirearmblog UO Arms NT7 SBR UO Arms has released the NT7 SBR, marketed as a civilian-legal version inspired by the HK MP7. The firearm is a short-barreled rifle chambered in 4.6x30mm with a design that closely emulates the MP7's layout and ergonomics while complying with U.S. regulations. The Gist: Available now through UO Arms dealers and direct channels Bottom Line: 4.6x30mm caliber, SBR configuration, MP7-inspired design with civilian-legal features including fixed stock and overall length compliance Thefirearmblog ATF Loosens Rules for Suppressor Repairs and Caliber Changes The ATF has issued guidance that expands what constitutes permissible ‘repairs' on NFA-registered suppressors without requiring a new tax stamp or Form 4. This includes replacing or modifying parts to change the caliber, provided the overall length of the suppressor does not increase. The change reduces regulatory burden on both owners and manufacturers performing work on existing silencers. The Gist: The Gist: ATF updated policy to treat caliber changes and certain modifications as ‘repairs' on registered suppressors, no longer requiring new registration or tax payment as long as overall length is not increased. Impact: Market Impact: Affects NFA suppressor owners, gunsmiths, and manufacturers by simplifying maintenance, upgrades, and caliber conversions without additional ATF paperwork. Bottom Line: The Bottom Line: Reduces unnecessary regulatory hurdles for legal suppressor maintenance and modification while maintaining NFA oversight on length and core registration. Thefirearmblog SureFire XC3 1,000 Lumen Sub-Compact Weaponlight SureFire has released the XC3, a sub-compact weaponlight producing 1,000 lumens and 14,000 candela with a 200-meter throw. The light features a 1.83-inch length, weighs 2.4 oz with battery, and uses a single CR123A battery for 1.5 hours of runtime. It is designed for concealed-carry pistols with an integrated ambidextrous tailcap switch and Rail-Lock mounting system. The Gist: Available now through authorized SureFire dealers and retailers Bottom Line: 1,000 lumens / 14,000 candela, 1.83″ length, 2.4 oz with battery, CR123A (1.5 hr runtime), Rail-Lock mount, ambidextrous tailcap switch Thefirearmblog TRB Upgraded Vampir Pistol At Balkan Shield 2026, TRB (likely a Balkan or Serbian manufacturer) unveiled an upgraded version of its Vampir pistol. The update focuses on enhanced ergonomics, improved reliability, and modernized features while retaining the core compact semi-automatic design. Specific technical details such as caliber, capacity, and exact changes were highlighted in the presentation. Bottom Line: Key specs/features: Upgraded ergonomics, improved reliability components, modernized controls and sighting system on the Vampir platform Gun Owners of America Offers Free Suppressor with Life Membership GOA free suppressor with life membership. Supplementary Research: Gun Owners of America (GOA) is a nonprofit gun rights organization that lobbies against firearm restrictions at the federal level. The offer pairs a life membership with a free suppressor, a device regulated under the National Firearms Act that requires ATF registration, a $200 tax stamp, and background checks. Current industry trends show increased consumer interest in suppressors following the 2023-2024 easing of certain silencer purchase regulations in multiple states. Guns Retay RXP22 Budget Plinker The Retay RXP22 is a .22 LR semi-automatic pistol designed as an affordable plinker and trainer. It features a blowback-operated system, 4.75-inch barrel, 15-round magazine capacity, and polymer frame with accessory rail. The review highlights its value as a budget option with solid performance for training and recreational shooting. The Gist: Available now through retailers including Guns.com Bottom Line: Blowback-operated .22 LR semi-auto; 4.75″ barrel; 15-round magazine; polymer frame with rail; adjustable sights; weighs approx. 28 oz; priced for entry-level plinking and training use Before we let you go – Join Gun Owners of America We'd love if you supported the show, join Agency 171 at agency171.com. Lot's of prizes, rewards and kick ass swag. No matter how tough your battle is today,...

When's the last time you used AI to create something for your business and thought, "This sounds polished, but it doesn't really sound like me"?   AI can produce website copy, emails, content ideas, and even an entire website within seconds. This speed can feel exciting, especially when you're already stretched for time. Yet, moving faster doesn't automatically mean you're building something clear, differentiated, or designed to support your long-term business growth.   In this Mastering Excellence conversation, Nikki welcomes branding strategist Tiffany Neuman back to the Sales Maven Show to discuss why strategy needs to come before AI.   You learn how a strong brand foundation gives AI better direction, protects what makes your work distinctive, and creates a website and messaging ecosystem that evolves with your business instead of forcing you to start over every time something changes. The Transformation Before listening, you may find yourself: Asking AI to clarify your brand before you've defined your strategy. Receiving polished copy that sounds generic or similar to everyone else. Constantly changing your messaging because your foundation doesn't feel settled. Feeling overwhelmed by the time, cost, and decisions involved in rebuilding a website. Assuming a website built quickly is automatically built well. Wondering how to use AI without losing your voice or giving away your intellectual property. After listening, you learn how to: Put brand strategy and clear positioning ahead of AI execution. Create a central brand manual that guides your messaging, content, and website. Use AI as a trained brainstorming partner instead of handing it control of your brand. Protect your differentiation and reduce generic, copy-and-paste messaging. Build a website designed for conversion, authority, and long-term use. Create a foundation that allows your business to evolve without constantly reinventing itself. Key Takeaways In this episode, Nikki and Tiffany discuss: Why AI is only one piece of a larger branding and business strategy. How generic AI tools can create more confusion instead of greater clarity. Why your intellectual property, voice, and differentiation need to be defined before you begin generating copy. How Tiffany's Brand OS process combines strategy, trained AI support, website copy, and human expertise. Why a comprehensive brand manual becomes a useful business asset beyond the website. How AI-generated websites may create hidden problems with conversion, editing, code, and long-term maintenance. Why a strong foundation allows you to evolve without constantly questioning your direction. How both branding and selling become easier when you work from principles instead of relying only on scripts. Strategy First, AI Second AI can generate ideas, affirm your thinking, and produce content quickly.   The problem is that it doesn't automatically know whether an idea is strategically sound, distinct from your competitors, or aligned with the business you want to build.   As Tiffany explains, generic AI tools often tell you an idea is brilliant, suggest expanding it into something bigger, or draw from familiar language already circulating online.   This can leave business owners with more ideas but less clarity.   The better order is: Strategy first. AI second.   Your strategy defines who you serve, what you want to be known for, how your work is different, and what language reflects your brand.   AI can then support this strategy instead of attempting to create it for you. AI Is a Piece of the Puzzle, Not the Whole Process Tiffany shares that AI made it possible to bring a long-held vision for a more efficient branding and website process to life.   However, AI isn't the complete solution.   Her process combines more than 20 years of branding experience with: A defined strategic methodology Guided training and exercises Purpose-built AI brainstorming partners A comprehensive brand manual Conversion-focused website messaging Human review and refinement Professional website design and development   This distinction matters.   AI increases speed and access. The underlying methodology determines the quality of the result. The Brand OS Tiffany calls her process the Brand OS, or Brand Operating System.   The Brand OS creates an ecosystem for your brand and business rather than treating the website as an isolated project.   It supports newer entrepreneurs who need a clear foundation, as well as established entrepreneurs who are ready to refine, reposition, or elevate what they've already built.   The process begins by codifying the deeper elements of the brand before writing website copy.   This includes areas such as: The purpose and mission of the business The ideal client Positioning and differentiation Brand language and voice Core ideas and intellectual property The client experience Messaging that supports authority and sales   Once this foundation is clear, AI becomes far more useful because it has meaningful context to work from. Build a Brand Manual Before You Build More Content One of Nikki's biggest takeaways from going through Tiffany's process is the brand manual she created before beginning the website copy.   Clients sometimes call this document their brand Bible. Nikki refers to hers as her legacy document.   This document creates one central source for the business.   Instead of reinventing your messaging every time you write an email, create content, update a sales page, or begin a conversation with an AI tool, you have an established foundation to reference.   The brand manual can guide: Website copy Email marketing Podcast content Social media posts Sales messaging Partnerships Team members and contractors Future AI conversations   This reduces the feeling of floating from one idea to the next because the essential decisions about your brand already have a home. Use AI as a Buddy, Not the Decision-Maker Nikki describes the AI component of Tiffany's process as a buddy rather than something that writes everything for her.   This distinction protects the quality and integrity of the final work.   The AI partner supports the thinking process, generates possibilities, and speeds up execution. Nikki still evaluates the language, adjusts the phrasing, and makes sure the copy reflects how she genuinely communicates.   The result isn't simply AI-generated content.   It is Nikki's strategy, expertise, language, and judgment, supported by a tool trained to guide a specific process.   Even when an AI tool gets you 90 percent of the way there, the remaining human refinement often determines whether the content feels accurate, credible, and truly yours. Protect Your Differentiation One of the biggest risks of relying on generic AI is sameness.   AI tools learn from patterns. When many business owners ask similar questions without providing a clear brand foundation, they often receive similar language, program names, content structures, and positioning ideas.   What feels original in one private chat may already be showing up in hundreds of other businesses.   Tiffany emphasizes that differentiation is a core principle of effective branding.   Your perspective, process, frameworks, language, and intellectual property give people a reason to recognize and remember your work.   AI should support this differentiation, not smooth it away. Create a Business Brain You Control AI platforms and models continue to change.   A tool you prefer today may not be the one you use next year. Features change, model quality shifts, and your business may eventually require a different system.   Tiffany recommends creating what she calls a business brain in a separate, controlled place.   This allows you to preserve important information about your brand, messaging, processes, voice, and intellectual property instead of leaving everything scattered inside one platform.   Your business brain becomes portable.   You can bring this foundation into whichever tool or system best supports the work you're doing next. A Website Needs More Than Speed AI can now generate a website within seconds.   This capability is impressive, but speed doesn't answer the more important questions: Does the website position you as an authority? Does the messaging sound like you? Is the site designed to convert? Can you update it easily? Is the code sustainable? Does it support your long-term strategy? Are the legal and maintenance requirements addressed?   Tiffany explains that quickly generated websites can create messy back-end code, making even small changes difficult.   A site may look complete on the surface while creating future costs, limitations, and frustration behind the scenes.   The goal isn't merely to get a website online.   The goal is to create a useful business asset that supports credibility, sales, and growth. Build a System, Not Something Disposable Nikki and Tiffany compare the difference between building something durable and creating something that needs to be thrown away and replaced.   A website without a clear brand foundation may become outdated quickly because the messaging wasn't connected to a larger strategy.   A true brand system gives you something you can refine over time.   You may update language, adjust an offer, replace an image, or evolve your positioning. You aren't forced to begin again from scratch every time your business grows.   Tiffany connects this directly to the idea of a legacy brand.   Long-term success requires more than isolated tactics. It requires a system that continues producing clarity and consistency. Foundation Creates Flexibility A strong foundation doesn't prevent your business from evolving.   It makes evolution easier.   When the core of your brand is established, change becomes more intentional. You make smaller refinements over time instead of constantly questioning everything.   Nikki connects this to the way she teaches sales.   Scripts can give you a place to begin, but real conversations don't follow a perfect script. A buyer may say something unexpected, ask a new question, or take the conversation in another direction.   Your foundation allows you to respond with confidence.   In branding, sales, and business, principles create flexibility. You know what you're standing on, even when circumstances change. A Quote Worth Remembering "When the foundation is set, it's minimal changes over time rather than constantly trying to figure it out forever." Try This This Week Choose one piece of content you've recently created with AI.   This might be an email, website paragraph, social media post, offer description, or podcast summary.   Before editing the copy, ask: What strategy is this content supporting? Does this language sound like me? Could this same copy belong to several other people in my industry? What idea, framework, or perspective makes this distinctly mine? Is AI supporting a decision I've already made, or is it making the decision for me?   Then revise one section so it reflects your voice, your point of view, and the specific outcome you create for your clients. Who This Episode Is For This episode is especially valuable when you: Use AI in your marketing but want the results to sound more like you. Are considering a website refresh or complete rebuild. Feel unclear about your brand positioning or business messaging. Want to protect and organize your intellectual property. Are tired of constantly changing your language, offers, or direction. Want AI to save time without weakening the quality of your work. Are building authority and want your website to reflect the depth of your expertise. Need a stronger foundation before creating more content. Keep the Conversation Going Did today's conversation change the way you think about using AI in your brand and website?   Here are a few places to continue learning:   Learn more about Tiffany Neuman and Your Legacy Brand: https://yourlegacybrand.com/ Create a short and long professional bio with Tiffany's Authority Bio Agent: https://yourlegacybrand.com/bio/?rootabl=salesmaven&lid=1QFjAvBE Explore the Sales Maven Society: https://yoursalesmaven.com/sales-maven-society/ Discover more relationship-based selling strategies: https://yoursalesmaven.com Listen to more episodes of the Sales Maven Show: https://yoursalesmaven.com/sales-maven-podcast/ Timestamps 00:00 Why a strong foundation reduces constant reinvention 00:18 Welcome to the Mastering Excellence Series and meet Tiffany Neuman 01:39 Putting strategy first and AI second 02:03 Nikki's experience rebuilding her website through Tiffany's process 03:41 How Nikki and Tiffany met and the early vision for a legacy brand 05:54 Tiffany explains her reinvented branding and website process 06:39 Why AI is only one piece of the puzzle 07:32 Combining a proven branding methodology with AI support 08:52 Introducing the Brand OS 09:21 Nikki's experience joining the Brand OS beta 10:30 Building the brand foundation before writing website copy 11:12 The value of Nikki's in-depth brand manual 12:25 Why clients call the brand manual their brand Bible 13:05 Using the brand manual to guide future AI work 13:46 Turning the brand strategy into website copy 14:27 Why the copywriting process felt easier and faster than expected 15:03 Trained AI support versus generic AI-generated copy 15:49 Structuring website messaging for conversion 16:29 Creating a website that feels more like the business owner 17:41 The pitfalls of using generic AI for business strategy 18:39 Why your business brain needs to exist outside one AI platform 19:18 AI sameness and the importance of differentiation 20:19 Protecting your intellectual property when using AI 21:00 Training AI on your voice and brand foundation 21:59 Creating a portable business brain as platforms change 22:50 Why AI still misses important human nuance 24:29 When AI tries to make your core message bigger and less clear 25:56 Generic AI pitches and the problem with recycled formulas 27:06 Why original ideas and human language stand out 27:44 AI as a buddy, not a replacement for your judgment 28:40 Creating website copy in real time 29:08 Reducing the time and financial investment of a website build 29:40 Website maintenance and ongoing legal support 31:34 Authority positioning and what AI-built websites may be missing 32:24 The hidden back-end problems with instant AI websites 33:10 Why a proper system still matters 34:31 Verifying AI output and understanding what you can't see 35:15 Building a lasting asset instead of something disposable 36:20 Why business success requires a codified system 37:11 How a strong foundation allows your brand to evolve 37:26 The connection between brand strategy and sales skills 38:11 Staying tethered to your foundation when things change 38:49 The Little Something Extra with Tiffany 39:08 What brings Tiffany joy right now 39:50 Tiffany's adventurous side and Golden Gloves boxing 41:10 Introducing the Authority Bio Agent 42:28 Where to connect with Tiffany About Tiffany Neuman Tiffany Neuman is a visionary branding strategist who supports highly motivated women entrepreneurs in elevating their businesses.   After 15 years in the corporate world, working with brands including FedEx, Adidas, and Burt's Bees, she left to establish a revolutionary branding business that stays one step ahead of trends.   Tiffany now works with clients across the globe to support them in increasing sales and shining even brighter in their niches. She is a contributor for Entrepreneur and has been featured in Forbes multiple times as a branding expert.   Learn more at https://yourlegacybrand.com/. About Nikki Rausch Nikki Rausch guides consultants and service-based women entrepreneurs to close more of the sales conversations they're already having through natural, relationship-based strategies that feel calm, clear, and confident.   Whether you're still learning how to sell without feeling pushy or you're an experienced consultant ready to improve conversion, refine your messaging, and enroll more of the right clients, Nikki shows you how to strengthen each stage of the sales conversation.   Through private coaching, practical frameworks, and proven communication strategies, you learn how to explain your value, guide buyers toward a decision, and create more consistent revenue without pressure, fake tactics, or sacrificing your integrity.   Nikki's approach is designed for women who want sales that feel natural and results that feel inevitable.

As the holiday season is in full swing, many of us are turning to online shopping to get our loved ones the perfect gifts. But, as our caller Fran from North Andover can attest, the process isn't always as smooth as we'd like it to be. In this episode, our host chats with listeners about the frustrations of online shopping, from lost packages to confusing shipping options.Online shopping can be a convenient and often cost-effective way to get what we need, but it's not without its pitfalls. Our host and callers share their experiences with delayed deliveries, missing packages, and confusing communication from shipping companies. From the importance of being cautious with links in text messages to the perils of buying from social media ads, our host and callers dive into the ups and downs of online shopping.One of the biggest issues our callers face is the lack of communication from shipping companies. Fran shares her experience with a FedEx driver who "yeeted" her package onto her lawn, while another caller shares her frustration with the website Shop, which processes payments but has unresponsive customer service. Our host also discusses the importance of being aware of red flags, such as free shipping with no options for expedited shipping.If you're one of the many people who have experienced the stress and frustration of online shopping, you won't want to miss this episode. Our host and callers share their tips and tricks for navigating the world of online shopping, from being cautious with links in text messages to knowing when to trust a shipping company. Tune in to hear their stories and learn how to make your online shopping experience less stressful and more successful.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Rich reconnects with Timothy Hayden in Los Angeles for a wide-ranging morning conversation about work, discipline, freedom, gratitude, and what it actually means to improve yourself. Timothy shares what he's learning from his new job delivering for FedEx—from navigating unfamiliar streets and physically demanding days to discovering how quickly repetition can turn confusion into instinct. The experience has also pushed him to think more seriously about nutrition, exercise, recovery, and taking care of his body. The conversation moves into Timothy's life after incarceration and his desire to find the right balance between enjoying his freedom and remaining committed to the habits that helped shape his future. After nights at the beach, rock climbing, seeing friends, and simply experiencing life again, Timothy reflects on his need to recenter himself around reading, writing, learning, and building toward a larger mission. Rich and Timothy also explore the extraordinary comforts of modern life. Reading classic literature has made Rich increasingly conscious of how commonplace disease and premature death once were, while Timothy compares that history with experiences of cold showers and limited resources in prison. Together, they consider whether modern comfort has made us less resilient—and how much of everyday life we simply forget to appreciate. The episode closes with a spirited debate about David Goggins, physical endurance, excellence, and why we push ourselves in the first place. Is becoming stronger an end in itself, or should self-improvement ultimately enable us to contribute something greater to other people and society? From rock climbing one step at a time to pushing the limits of mind and body, this is a conversation about freedom, resilience, gratitude—and making sure personal growth has somewhere meaningful to go.  

Justin Black explains how he turned his website into an AI-ready authority that LLMs like ChatGPT and Claude actively recommend to high-end buyers and sellers. Justin breaks down his question-based content strategy, how he uses AI (especially Claude) to ideate, draft, and audit pages, and how he even built his entire site with AI instead of hiring a dev shop. Justin also shares his high-touch expired listing system – FedEx packets, AI-generated market snapshots, and positioning audits, and explains how these tactics have already produced multi‑million‑dollar listings directly from AI referrals. Check out Justin’s LinkedIn profile and follow him on Instagram. If you'd prefer to watch this interview, click here to view on YouTube! Justin Black can be reached at (719) 684 – 3329 and jblack@livsir.com. This episode is brought to you by RealGeeks and Courted.io.

What happens when the biggest battle isn't happening around you—it's happening inside your head? On this episode of Super U, Erik Qualman sits down with retired U.S. Navy Captain, engineer, leadership expert, author, and speaker Dr. Jenn Donahue. During her 27-year military career, Jenn built a bridge across the Euphrates during the Iraq War, commanded an 800-person battalion in Afghanistan, and survived an assassination plot. Yet she reveals that one of her toughest battles wasn't enemy fire—it was self-doubt. Jenn shares how a toxic boss nearly broke her confidence, why you shouldn't let your "head win," and how to recognize the inner voices that keep us stuck, including her "mean little voice" and "sneaky little bastard." She also explains why everyone needs a "battle buddy," how great leaders see the individual rather than just the organization, and why the best leaders focus on making their people better. This is a powerful conversation about resilience, leadership, self-awareness, trusting your team, and finding the courage to become who you're meant to be. Get your copy of Jenn Donahue's quote book here: https://www.daretorise.co/quotes Five-time #1 Bestselling Author and Motivational Speaker Erik Qualman has performed in over 60 countries and reached over 60 million people this past decade. He was voted the 2nd Most Likable Author in the World behind the Harry Potter series. Have Erik speak at your conference: eq@equalman.com Motivational Speaker | Erik Qualman has inspired audiences at FedEx, Chase, ADP, Huawei, Starbucks, Godiva, FBI, Google, and many more on Focus and Digital Leadership.

If your company ships UPS, you understand the effect UPS fuel surcharge has on shipping costs. The calculation is a percentage of the base rate and adds to the expense of each package. As a result, it covers additional fuel costs and keeps UPS profitable, even when fuel prices increase. Read More. Since 2006, Refund Retriever has helped businesses reduce FedEx and UPS shipping costs through comprehensive parcel invoice auditing and carrier contract optimization. We audit FedEx and UPS invoices for late-delivery refunds, billing errors, and overcharges while analyzing shipping data to uncover additional savings opportunities. Our parcel experts also help businesses negotiate better FedEx and UPS rates, maximize carrier discounts, reduce accessorial fees, and achieve best-in-class shipping pricing. Are you paying too much for FedEx or UPS shipping?

Note: This episode is a longer one. But well worth a listen. Stephan Bajaio believes that success takes time and effort, and he emphasizes this lesson through what he calls the "four Ps." Drawing on his experience, Stephan shares practical advice with business owners: when evaluating a web page, especially a services page, he encourages them to look beyond surface-level details. He questions whether important points about a service are truly given the attention they deserve, suggesting that if something merits a bullet point, it likely deserves a full paragraph to provide essential context and value. Through this approach, Stephan helps businesses move from shallow descriptions to a more meaningful, engaging presentation of their work, ensuring their key offerings are conveyed with clarity and depth. More About Stephan: Stephan Bajaio is a CEO, Co-Founder, and CMO with 20+ years in SEO and digital marketing. He's helped brands like FedEx, Comcast, and Siemens win in search. Stephan co-founded VibeLogic to help businesses navigate the collision of AI and organic search. He helps marketers stop chasing algorithms and start building strategies that actually last. Links https://www.vibelogic.com/ https://www.stephanbajaio.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephanbajaio/ Start of interview: [01:40] Other Key Moments [04:07] Early interest in computers [07:33] Importance of Detailed Descriptions [11:53] Decision fatigue and modern anxiety [15:03] Building trust through valuable insights [19:04] Addressing therapy stigma [21:34] Balancing work and family time [26:33] Sharing Entrepreneurial Challenges [29:07] Hands-off management strategy [30:23] Finding passionate team members If you're enjoying Entrepreneur's Enigma, please give me a review on the podcast directory of your choice. The show is on all of them and these reviews really help others find the show. iTunes: https://gmwd.us/itunes Podchaser: https://gmwd.us/podchaser TrueFans: https://gmwd.us/truefans Also, if you're getting value from the show and want to buy me a coffee, go to the show notes to get the link to get me a coffee to keep me awake, while I work on bringing you more great episodes to your ears. → https://ko-fi.com/entrepreneursenigma Support me on TrueFans.fm → https://gmwd.us/truefans. Support The Show & Get Merch: https://shop.entrepreneursenigma.com Follow Seth Online: Instagram: https://instagram.com/s3th.me LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sethmgoldstein/ Seth On Mastodon: https://indieweb.social/@phillycodehound The Marketing Junto Newsletter: https://MarketingJunto.com Host/Producer/Booker: Seth Goldstein of Goldstein Media LLCPodcast Network: Marketing Podcast NetworkAI Disclosure: The only thing that is AI generated is the intro voice guy and any long transcripts. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

LA Metro, the transit system that moves nearly 10 million people in Los Angeles, just appeared on a ransomware gang's extortion site. A dark-web service is selling 153 million scanned driver's licenses. And security researchers watched AI break into a company and steal the master keys in under 10 hours. Three stories, one uncomfortable pattern. *Cybercrime is now an industry, and speed is the whole game.* Bryan Hornung, Randy Bryan, and Reginald Andre break down this week's stories for executives, owners, and operators who can't follow every cyber headline but can't afford to be blindsided. First up: LA Metro. A fast-growing ransomware crew called The Gentlemen posted the country's second-busiest transit system to its leak site, claiming it stole internal data. Here's what most coverage skips: this is a claim on a leak site, not a confirmed breach. There's no ransom demand and no statement from the agency. Bryan explains how to read a scary headline without confusing an allegation for a fact. These crews choose targets based on how much disruption they can cause, and public infrastructure is squarely in their sights. If your business creates real-world chaos when it goes down, you fit the profile. Then Randy tackles the story that should worry every business that scans an ID. A service called Nexus appeared offering searchable access to more than 153 million driver's licenses from the US and Canada. Investigative reporter Brian Krebs traced the data to an identity-verification vendor called IDScan.net. The FBI's New Orleans office opened a case the same day, reportedly after finding IDs belonging to a US Defense Secretary and an FBI Assistant Director in the pile. The vendor runs 21 million ID checks a month for names like Hertz, Target, and FedEx, so a leak there becomes a problem for many other companies. If a business scanned your license, your photo and address may have passed through a vendor you never chose and can't see. Reginald closes with the story that connects everything. Palo Alto Networks' Unit 42 documented a real attack in which a person directed AI agents at a company and let them run the break-in. The agents mapped the network, raided passwords hidden in the company's own code, and grabbed the master credentials in under 10 hours. That work would take a human team about two weeks. One boring control stopped them cold: a basic protection on the code pipeline blocked the backdoor. The lesson for owners is blunt. The fundamentals still work, but your window to catch an attack is now hours, not days. In this episode, we discuss: • A ransomware gang claims LA Metro, and how to tell a claim from a confirmed breach • A dark-web service selling 153 million driver's licenses and the FBI probe into the vendor behind it • AI agents that breached a company and stole root access in under 10 hours • Why cybercrime now scales like a business, and why speed is the whole game • The internet-facing gear and hidden passwords attackers hit first • What to ask every vendor that touches your customers' data Security Squawk is a weekly podcast and live stream for business owners and executives. Support the show: buymeacoffee.com/securitysquawk Subscribe | Like | Share #SecuritySquawk #CyberSecurity #Ransomware #LAMetro #DataBreach #FBI #ArtificialIntelligence #VendorRisk #BusinessRisk #SMB #IdentityTheft #MSP Security Squawk

HAPPY LABOR DAY! The crew is finally back. Kaitlin has a miraculous experience with a FedEx delivery. Emily decides she's lactose intolerant. Scot doesn;t understand what cannolis are. Emily and Matt got to a concert and Matt meets a lifetime hero. Binkies? Pacifiers? Passies? Bee-tas? Matt has a run-in with a squirrel. Follow SWE on Instagram → @so.what.else  Follow Kaitlin on Instagram → @kaitlingraceelliott  https://www.kaitlinelliott.com/

This week on Rise of the Podcast, Jeremy, Kara, and Chris dive into Star Wars: Zero Company, and Jeremy tells the story of how one disgruntled FedEx driver somehow turned a routine delivery into a three-hour evacuation, detainment, and visit from the bomb squad. Plus, the crew talks terrible drivers, internet trolls, Tropic Thunder, and ends the night debating the perfect French fry seasoning. We also reminisce about our favorite Star Wars experiences, ramble on with stories of the good ol' days, nerd out about current and upcoming Star Wars shows, books, and games, and talk a little bit about life. Thank you so much for supporting our channel! We love interacting with all of you! We look forward to talking with you guys every week about Star Wars, gaming, 3D printing, pop culture, movies, and everything else! If you want to show your love, consider sending us an email, joining our Discord, or following us on Twitch! We'll see you again soon! ------------------------------------------------------------------- Twitch: http://www.twitch.tv/riseofthepodcast Discord Server Link: https://discord.gg/DcuBKXVxJs Email us: contact@RiseOfThePodcast.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/riseofthepodcast Web: http://www.riseofthepodcast.com Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/rotptweets Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/riseofthepodcast Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/RiseofthePodcast Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3qzOazE iTunes: https://apple.co/3wAfwcI Google Podcasts: https://bit.ly/RotPGoogle Thanks for watching! Rise of the Podcast Episode 371: A FedEx Delivery Shut Down a Military Base Produced and Edited by 8r0wn13 ©2026 All Rights Reserved #Podcast #DuluthMN #StarWars

What happened to Col. Marcellus H. Duffy's documents?While examining newly released National Archives audio and records from the U.S. Air Force's Roswell investigation, I uncovered a series of overlooked documents, omitted interview passages, and a mysterious 1994 FedEx package that raise new questions about one of the key figures behind the official Project Mogul explanation.In this historical documentary, we follow the paper trail from the 1947 Roswell incident through the Air Force's 1994–1997 investigations, including:• The Roswell Daily Record's famous "Flying Disc" headline• Project Mogul and Col. Marcellus H. Duffy's role• Newly released National Archives interview audio• Previously omitted portions of the Charles B. Moore interview• References to "Col. Duffy's letter"• Discussion of Duffy-related documents and FOIA• Emily Duffy's mysterious 1994 FedEx shipment to Lt. James McAndrew• The Roswell Report (1994)• The Roswell Report: Case Closed (1997)This documentary relies on primary-source documents, archival audio, and official U.S. Air Force records. Where the historical record establishes facts, they are presented as such. Where questions remain unanswered, they are identified as open historical questions.If you enjoy evidence-based investigations into Roswell, UFO history, UAP research, Project Mogul, government records, and newly discovered archival material, consider subscribing for more original investigations.

Peter Schiff on the fake jobs beat, Trump's trade ultimatum, yields at 2007 highs, a 162% tariff bill, and why the Fed is the last buyer.

Surviving September 11 took more than courage. It took preparation, trust, and the ability to manage fear. I share my experience escaping from the 78th floor of the World Trade Center with my guide dog, Roselle, and the lessons that shaped how I responded that morning. You'll hear how years of learning my surroundings, trusting my training, and understanding my role as a leader helped me stay focused during the evacuation. I also explore blindness, the limits society places on blind people, and the power of teamwork between a guide dog and handler. Most of all, this story is about focusing on what you can control, trusting the relationships you've built, and preparing yourself to act when fear shows up. Highlights: 00:10 – Why Michael is revisiting September 11, 25 years later. 11:45 – How Michael learned that blindness itself isn't the limitation. 32:50 – Why preparation inside the World Trade Center mattered when crisis hit. 36:40 – How staying calm helped Michael lead others toward safety. 44:46 – The lesson Michael heard while running from the collapsing tower. 51:59 – What Roselle taught Michael about fear, trust, and moving forward. About the Host: Michael Hingson is a New York Times best-selling author, international lecturer, and Chief Vision Officer for accessiBe. Michael, blind since birth, survived the 9/11 attacks with the help of his guide dog Roselle. This story is the subject of his best-selling book, Thunder Dog. Michael gives over 100 presentations around the world each year speaking to influential groups such as Exxon Mobile, AT&T, Federal Express, Scripps College, Rutgers University, Children's Hospital, and the American Red Cross just to name a few. He is Ambassador for the National Braille Literacy Campaign for the National Federation of the Blind and also serves as Ambassador for the American Humane Association's 2012 Hero Dog Awards. https://michaelhingson.com https://www.facebook.com/michael.hingson.author.speaker/ https://twitter.com/mhingson https://www.youtube.com/user/mhingson https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelhingson/ Thanks for listening! Thanks so much for listening to our podcast! If you enjoyed this episode and think that others could benefit from listening, please share it using the social media buttons on this page. Do you have some feedback or questions about this episode? Leave a comment in the section below! Subscribe to the podcast If you would like to get automatic updates of new podcast episodes, you can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or Stitcher. You can subscribe in your favorite podcast app. You can also support our podcast through our tip jar https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/unstoppable-mindset . Transcript: Michael Hingson  00:04 Hi everyone, and welcome to another episode of Unstoppable Mindset. I am your host, Mike Hingson, and today we're doing something a little bit different. This is Friday, september 4, 20/26, and this is the first of four episodes commemorating all of the events that happened in and around September 11, 2001. As many of you know, I was in the World Trade Center working for a company. I had opened an office for them on the 78th floor of Tower One of the World Trade Center, and on September 11th, I was in my office because we were going to be doing some special sales training for people, and I was there getting prepared to do all of that when the terrorists attacked the towers, and then later the Pentagon. And as you may know, a fourth aircraft was crashed in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, because people on the aircraft took it over from the terrorists or tried to anyway, so one of the things that we thought would be helpful would be for me to give you again a taste of what I actually went through and what occurred on September 11, 2001, when we started this podcast back in August of 2021, I played a speech that talked about some of what happened to me in the World Trade Center. But today we're going to do a different speech. In April of 2024, I was invited to be a speaker at the Marshfield, Missouri Cherry Blossom Festival. Now that festival is a yearly event celebrating and commemorating different events in American history. In 2024, I was invited to come and speak and talk about my experience at the World Trade Center and to help put some of that into context. I thought it would be very relevant for all of you if we played that speech for you, so that you would again get a taste of what occurred with me, why I was able to survive and escape, and a little bit about the lessons that we should learn about not only September 11th, but frankly, from my perspective, being the fact that I have been blind since I was born in 1950, I want you to learn a little bit more about blindness. So we're going to present to you now my speech delivered in April on April 27, 2024, at the Marshfield, Missouri Cherry Blossom Festival. I hope that you'll enjoy it. I hope that it will teach you some things, and don't forget that we have other episodes coming up. We have another episode occurring on the eighth of September where I'm going to be interviewed by Michelle Abraham from Amplify You. Amplify You is the company that I work with to get these podcasts out twice a week, and Michelle has her own podcast, and she's going to interview me to talk about lessons we've learned, to talk a little bit about what happened on September 11th. But we won't give anything away for what's going to happen later in this series of episodes. On September 11th, I will be talking with Bob Ellis. Bob was at the Pentagon on September 11th and literally just walked out the door just before the aircraft hit the Pentagon. We're going to talk about that and again, hopefully, put some of things in perspective for you. Then on the 15th of September, I'm going to come back on episode 475 of our podcast, and talk a little bit more in detail about the lessons that I've learned, and talk about things that I hope people will take away and remember from september 11. I know many of you weren't even born when the World Trade Center terrorist attacks occurred, and so this episode 472, especially, I hope will give you a little bit better sense of what occurred, and from my perspective, why things occurred the way they did, and and how we proceed. So I hope you'll enjoy this episode. Hope that you'll enjoy what it brings, and we will definitely be moving forward to talk about some other things later on. Speaker 1  04:24 There are moments in American history that changed the national conscience. Yesterday, we heard about the assassination of President Kennedy. Some of you might be old enough to remember the attack of Pearl Harbor, and for most recently in American history, of course, the terrorist attacks September 11th. Today, you're going to hear a riveting account, a a heroic story of a man whose story I believe will really pull at your heartstrings. And to moderate that panel today, or that interview, to do is conduct our interview. Today is Mary Acher, who's no stranger to this stage, good friend, presidential historian, and a great interviewer. If you'll put your hands together for Miss Mary, Speaker 2  05:11 I just am so honored to met Michael Hinkson and Alamo. You know by what you see that he came down on the 78th floor of the North Tower with his guide dog Brosel, but I have a friend named Doug Weed who always told me, "You don't brag on yourself; you get somebody else to brag on you. And I want to brag on Michael before we start this. Before I ask him to tell this story, Michael was a premature baby, and at the time when he was born, they put the babies in pre in a the premature babies in a incubator sealed with 100% oxygen, and the doctors didn't know that then, but it blinded the children, and Michael was blinded at birth. So Michael was very fortunate that he had parents that refused to allow him to even think about being disabled. They mainstreamed him before mainstreaming was even known, and they taught him to ride a bicycle. They let him drive a car, and later in his life, he actually piloted an airplane. Is that amazing? He loved mathematics. He loved physics. He was taught geometry. He solved math problems in his head. He's got a master's degree in physics and another-not a master's, but a regular in in teaching. So that is why he is such an amazing man. He's never ever let this what enough people call a disability stop him at all? As a matter of fact, he has been such an amazing gift to the unsighted community in in the Braille and things that technology that blind people can utilize to be online and be all kinds of of things that they wouldn't ever have been allowed to do even 50 years ago. So anyway, I'm just so honored to have met you, Michael. It's just been amazing. I'm going to take him to Lambert's tomorrow. He says I have to catch the rolls, or somebody else will catch them and they'll eat them and he won't get it. I promised him I'd catch the rolls. All right, my dear Michael, would you start telling us about that horrendous day? I am Michael Hingson  08:00 going to not do what I said I was gonna do. I'm gonna stand up, and I'm gonna be very interested to go to Lambert's to see what they do with me, since normally they would throw the rolls, as I understand it. And I'm gonna point out that doesn't really work. So now, what are you gonna do? Because if they all fall on the floor and the dog gets them, and the dog gets sick, you guys are in trouble. So I'll be interested to see exactly what happens. No, I'm sure it will work out. Mary, thank you for those those kind words. I'd like to start by defining a couple things to help us in all of this. Mary is absolutely right about what my parents did in their position, the doctors told my parents when it was discovered I was blind at about four months of age that I should be sent to a home because no blind child could ever grow up to amount to anything or contribute to society. If you think that's bad, it was worse in other parts of the world where, when children were born who were blind, were just drowned in a bucket of water. So, in a sense, it wasn't as bad. Not every child who was born premature and put in an incubator did go blind, and it's unfortunate, in a sense, that at the time that I was born. Dr. Arnold Papps at the Wilmer Eye Institute at Johns Hopkins University had discovered that, in fact, oxygen could cause blindness, and even a few minutes a day of a non-oxygen environment would drop the incidence of blindness down to zero. But medical science didn't believe him because they said, "Well, too much oxygen can't be a problem. And what Dr. Arnold Pats essentially really proved is that too much of anything can be a problem. So it is it is an issue. I finally actually some time ago got to meet Dr. Pats. Before he passed, it was it was fascinating to talk with him about that. The condition at the time when I was born was called retroenterial fibroplasia. If you want to know how to spell that, I wrote a book called Thunderdog: The Story of a Blind Man, His Guide Dog, and the Triumph of Trust at Ground Zero, which we plan to have here, but the publisher messed up, so it wasn't. But you can go buy Thunderdog anywhere, and you can learn how to spell retrolateral fibroplegia. It is now called retinopathyoprematurity. I guess that's a little easier to spell. I don't know still why they changed the name, but they did. So fine, I don't care. I am blind. I don't care. Blindness isn't the problem. I've learned from my parents and growing up and being alive now for yep 74 years, blindness isn't the problem. The problem is our perception of blindness, what we believe blind people can and can't do, as opposed to what they truly can and can't do. If you want to really see a story or something about a blind person driving a car, there is a website www.blinddriverchallenge.org. Blinddriverchallenge.org. The president of the National Federation of the Blind in October of 2001 challenged private industry and universities to create a vehicle that a blind person could drive, not an autonomous vehicle, but truly a vehicle that would transmit to the blind person the information necessary for them to drive the vehicle. What you will see at blinddriverchallenge.org is a video of a gentleman named Mark Riccobono. Too many marks. Mark Riccobono driving a vehicle independently without any assistance around the Daytona Speedway, right before the 2011 Rolex 24 race, he will go through an obstacle course. He will pass boxes that are being thrown out of a van to try to block his way. He will pass the van and a number of things like that. The reality is, what is driving? It's all about you having the information necessary for you to control your vehicle, and as far as I'm concerned, given what Mark Riccobono did, and given the reality that the information is available to us, given the way most sighted drivers drive, I'll take me any day, especially where I live in Victorville. My gosh! But the the reality is, blindness isn't the problem. I grew up believing that I went to public school. I went to college. Michael Hingson  12:26 I did get a master's degree in physics. As I love to tell people, I'm as good as Doc Brown from Back to the Future in building reactors and nuclear bombs. The only difference between me and Doc Brown is I won't go steal fissionable material from some source that might come after me later. So you know, I think I was a little smarter than Doc Brown, but the fact is, again, it's not the problem. I was also the program director of the campus radio station for a while, and I worked at the campus radio station KUCI 89.9 on your FM dial for seven years. I did a show playing old radio shows every Sunday night from six to nine. Didn't even know what 60 minutes was. I heard about it, and one day finally somebody from the show or from the the Orange County Jail called and said, "We really got a situation. We want you to know about it here at the jail. People who heard about you, they've heard about 60 minutes, and on Sunday nights we have to divide the jail in half. Half of the people go up to a television room to watch 60 Minutes, and the other half, which is the bigger half, want to hear your show playing old radio shows on Sunday nights. So you know we must be doing something right. That even at the jail, they liked us. I went to work in 1976 for the National Federation of the Blind. It's the largest organization of blind consumers in the country. I was offered a position because I was in in the science world, one of the few at the time in that world. And the president of the federation, Dr. Jernigan, told me in late 74, early 75, we got a situation. There's a guy named Ray Kurzweil. You may have heard of Ray. He's a futurist. He's an inventor. He's invented the singularity. I'm not totally sure I agree with everything that Ray says. You know, Ray once said the only problem with God is we haven't invented it yet. I don't agree with that. And the other part about it is Ray says that we're really going to all become part of the world when chips are created that will allow us to directly interact with computers. Well, we'll see. I don't want to chip in my brain yet. But Ray at that time had developed a piece of technology that would actually look at a printed page. It actually had to build it up line by line, so it wasn't like snapping a picture. But it would learn to recognize all the characters on that page, no matter what their type styles or print styles were, and it would read it out loud, called the Kurzweil Reading Machine for the Blind. Just like with blindness and retro-entral fibroblasia, the government didn't believe he could do it because nobody else had been able to do it, and so they wouldn't help fund it. He came to the federation, and the federation said, "Tell you what we're going to do." Ray, I'm not sure they said it quite that way, but tell you what we're going to do, Ray. We're going to send somebody up there with a bunch of material, and if your machine reads what we bring up, not what you want to read, if it reads what we bring up, then we're going to help you get funding. And Ray, I'm sure again it wasn't quite the way he said it, but he said, "Bring it on. They did. It did, and a relationship began that exists to this day-a machine that literally would read print out loud. And Ray wanted the first application of omnivore optical character recognition to be a machine that would read print out loud for blind people. We created a project where we purchased several machines, and then for 18 months, from 1976, in October through June of 1978, I lived in suitcases or out of suitcases in hotels, traveling around the country where we put machines at places like the New York Public Library, the Iowa Commission for the Blind, the San Francisco Public Library, and some other agencies for the blind around the country. Michael Hingson  15:59 The idea being that we wanted blind people to come and use the machine, read whatever they wanted to read, and then give us information about what needed to go into a final production model of the machine. I wrote training curriculum. I wrote the the technical manuals for teaching people how to use the machine. I taught people to use it. I observed people using it. Sometimes grabbed my old soldering gun and fix things that broke on the machines. These were $50,000, 400 pound machines. They weren't little things like an app on an iPhone today, right? So anyway, we finally wrote the final recommendations, and then Ray said, "I want to hire you to come and do the same sort of thing within the company. So I went to work for Ray, moved to Cambridge, Massachusetts. Actually, I learned I moved to Winthrop, Massachusetts, learned how to go from Winthrop to Cambridge every day, and we began a relationship. And I worked at Kurzweil Computer Products, in and that started in again October of 1978. In May of 1978, I was called into the office of the VP of Marketing, and Andrew Parson said, "We're laying you off. What? We're laying you off. Why? Oh, it's not that you're doing a bad job or anything, but unfortunately, like a lot of engineering startup companies, we've hired too many people who aren't revenue producers, and we have to have more revenue producers. And so, as important as your job is, it's not as important as making money for the company. So we have to lay you off. Then he paused and he said, "Unless you'll go into sales. Now, I'm a science guy. However, I thought about it for a micro nanosecond, and I said, "Sure, I'll go into sales. As I love to tell people, I decided I would lower my standards and go from science to sales, and did. I said I don't know anything about sales. He said we'll send you to a Dale Carnegie sales course and all that. Well, I started selling, but not the reading machine for the blind. Instead, I sold a new product they had called the Kurzweil Data Entry Machine, and unlike the reading machine for the blind that sold for $50,000, if you want one, we might be able to find one of the old machines for you for 49 995. Instead, I sold a new product called the Kurzweil Data Entry Machine, which was only $125,000. I guess they had confidence in my ability, and I was very grateful for it. The real reason that I didn't want to refuse the sales position is I knew that at that time, and it's still somewhat today, the unemployment rate among employable blind people is close to 70. That is seven 0% It's not because we can't do the work; it's because people think we won't be able to do the work and don't give us the opportunity. So the bottom line is, I lowered my standards and went from science to sales, and did that for a while. And then in 1981, while Xerox was considering and actually working toward buying the product, I was asked by Ray and the VP of Sales to move back to California, where I was from, to help integrate Kurzweil into the Xerox West Coast environment, including their research center called Palo Alto Area Research Center Park, and I did. And my thanks for that was that after the the whole sale was consummated and Xerox completely took over. I was the last salesperson in June of 1984 to receive a FedEx letter saying thank you for your service, but we don't want you anymore. Goodbye, because all Xerox wanted was the technology. They didn't want the people. Now I was confronted with the situation. How am I going to find a job? What am I going to do? 70% unemployment. and I went out and I wrote lots of cover letters, sent out lots of resumes, and I even got a headhunter who called me and said, "Love your resume. We're going to have you interview with this company up in San Jose, California. We'll send you a ticket. They sent me the ticket the night before the flight. The guy called. Back and he says, "You know, I was just looking at your resume again. I see you do a lot of things with blind people. Michael Hingson  20:04 Is there somebody in your family who's blind? You notice that? And I said, "Yeah, I'm blind. You're blind? Well, I'm going to have to call them. They're not going to want to talk to you. I said, "Nothing has changed. My resume is still the same, but you're blind. It's all changed. No, it hasn't. There were no laws to stand on. The reservation was canceled, and I didn't do the interview. Their loss. If Speaker 3  20:30 you enjoy Unstoppable Mindset and would like to help us continue bringing these conversations to you each week, we've created a way for you to support the show. Your contribution helps us cover production costs and continue sharing stories, insights, and ideas that inspire people to live with purpose and possibility. If supporting the podcast feels right for you, you'll find the link in the show notes. Thank you for being part of the Unstoppable Mindset Community. Michael Hingson  21:02 Eventually, not finding a job, I started my own company selling computer-aided design systems to architects. A blind guy selling CAD systems? Why the heck not? I didn't need to work the machine. What I needed to know was how to work the machine, so I could describe it to architects, and I could sit them down in front of a machine and talk with them and talk them through it. We also hired people to demo CAD systems, and I did that for four years. And then I went back into the workforce. And when I went back into the workforce, my wife and I were talking one day, and she said, "You know, I got this great job I just discovered in the newspaper. It's selling high-end, new, revolutionary, hot, pluggable disc technology. It's perfect for you. You should apply. And I said to my wife Karen, who I had married in 1982. By the way, Karen also had a disability. She was in a wheelchair her whole life. She reads. I push. Worked out well. I said, so do I say in my cover letter I'm blind or not? Because typically, if you say you're blind, same thing will happen with the headhunter. You won't even get a call back if you don't say you're blind. You might get a callback, but then they're going to have all their defenses go up when you show up for the interview. And she said, "You're an idiot. Wives can do that, gentlemen, and it's fine. You're an idiot. Why? What's the most important thing you always said to every salesperson you ever hired, well, I wasn't quite sure which things she was thinking of. I had several things that I always said to salespeople I hired. She said, "You always told every salesperson you ever hired turn here's the operative word perceived liabilities into assets. You ever watch those little cartoons in the newspapers and all that, where the light bulb goes on over your head. Well, that's what happened, and I went and I wrote a cover letter to send with this resume to this company. And here are the last two paragraphs of the letter. The most important thing you need to know about me is that I am blind. As a blind person, I have had to sell all my life just to be able to function and survive. I've had to sell to take my guide dog on airplanes. I didn't tell them that we had to sue one airline because they violated their own policy because they wouldn't let me go on an airplane with my guide dog. I've had to sell to convince people to let me buy a house, move into apartments, sometimes take my guide dog into grocery stores, and do anything else because I was blind, I've always had to sell. So, second paragraph: When you're hiring someone for this job, do you want to hire somebody who comes in and works for eight or 10 hours a day, and then just goes home because the job is over, or do you want to truly hire somebody who understands sales for the science and art that it is, and who sells 24 hours a day as a way of life. Sent off the letter. Waited for two weeks, wondering if I'd get a call or an email. Well, no, not an email, not back then. But in late June 19 or May 1989, I got a call. This is Doug Cooper, head of marketing for Articon. We love your letter. Would you come for an interview? And I said sure. Next day we were down there. I was hired and started on july 2, 1989. Love to start on the second of July, or actually the third of July, because then I got the next day off. It was great. So I went to work for them, and we moved from where we were living in Mission Viejo down to Vista, California. The company was in Carlsbad. I began selling to the East Coast, selling our technologies and other technologies, Sun Microsystems products, and so on. And then in 1996, the owner of the company asked me to move to New York for them because we were selling to Wall Street. Michael Hingson  24:37 Wall Street was always good at getting and demanding and getting what they demanded, and they always said, "If you are a manufacturer and you're selling products to us, we want a representative, not an agent, but we want the company in Wall Street Arena to be able to to hold responsible and deal with. So we moved to New York. And I went to work on the 23rd floor of Tower Two of the World Trade Center, and was there for about a year, and then was recruited away by another company, and it wasn't hard because Articon did not figure out how to support a branch operation. So I was recruited away, and then in 1999 I was recruited away by Quantum Corporation, and now we're getting to what Mary asked about. But I needed to give you the background. Hope it was okay. So in 1999, I was hired to open an office for Quantum Corporation on well in New York City. Quantum was a company that made products called tape libraries. They were big boxes that consisted of tape drives and lots of tape cartridges, and you would attach them to computer networks, and then you would use software like one called Veritas, which is still used today. And what you would do is you would back up all of your data over the network into these tape libraries, onto tape cartridges, and then you would take the tape cartridges out and store them off-site. Now I gotta stop and be spiteful because in New Jersey they love to say that they stored them in a town called Mountainside Under a Mountain. You ever see a mountain in northern New Jersey? I came from California where we had mountains that were eight, 910, 1000 feet tall. They didn't even have decent hills, but they still called it a mountain. That was fine, whatever. They still were able to store the tapes in safe places. But the point is that all the data was backed up off-site, which is what they needed to do. We opened the actual office on august 1, 2000. I hired a staff, and we had a staff that came in and and sold, and we also worked with resellers. And in August of 2001, our main distributor Ingram Micro said, "You know, we got a lot of resellers who are selling your products, but they don't really know how to do it. Can we hold some seminars to teach our your reseller partners, our customers, the resellers, how to sell your product? I said, "You bet. We worked it out with the folks at Quantum. David Frank, who was in charge of pricing and distribution, said he wanted to come back to be a part of the seminars, and we set up doing the seminars. The idea was that we would teach them. I would be their main point of contact since I worked and lived there. David would be the person that I or they would contact without with any pricing issues, but I would be the technical point of contact contact. Master's degree in physics helps, and so we set up the seminars. And wouldn't you know it, we set them up to be held on september 11, 2001. The evening before, or the morning of September 11th, about 12:30, Roselle, my guide dog at the time, woke me up. She was very nervous and fidgety. I knew what it was like when she was fidgety. It was usually because it was a thunderstorm. She didn't like thunder, and we went down to my office. And of course, a thunderstorm did happen, and the storm literally came right over our house. I've never been in an environment where bombs went off around me, but I got to say that in this case, the thunder claps were, as I said, literally right over us, and it had to be like what a bomb sounds like going off. Anyway, it went on till about two, and then we went back up and got a couple more hours of sleep, three more hours of sleep. I got up. We went in and got to the office at about 7:40 in the morning on September 11th. As I came to the door, somebody came up with a cart. It turns out it was a guy from the Port Authority cafeteria. Michael Hingson  28:33 We were going to be providing breakfast and snacks for the first and second seminarians. We had seminars going all day, so we went in. I showed him where I wanted to set up everything in the conference room. I went in, got my laptop computer out of my backpack briefcase. I got my PowerPoint projector, and I went into the conference room and set everything up because I was going to be doing a PowerPoint show that day to give people all the information they needed about the ATLP 3000, the ATLP 1000, and so on. Yes, blind people can do PowerPoint, folks. It's not magic. You sighted bigots. So I had a script, and my wife and I had created the script, and I'd used it many times. The script was in Braille. I knew what was on every slide. We put a couple of things in addition on the script. We put all the wording from the slides on the script, and we also put on the script descriptions of the pictures, as well as where the picture would show up on the screen. So I would, for example, when we showed this to other customers around the city, I'd blow their minds because I would be doing the presentation. My sales guys loved it when I went out and did PowerPoint presentations because I could just point over my shoulder. On the left side of your screen, you'll see the ATLP 3000 with 16 cartridge, 16 drives, 326. Cartridges, and you see the label that says Prism Technology. We could hook five of them together. On the right side of your screen, you'll see the ATLP 1000, which was a single unit with 30 cartridges and one tape drive. And people would come up to me afterwards, and they say, "You know, we're ticked at you. I go, "Why? Well, first of all, your presentation was not boring, which usually they are. But second of all, you never turned and looked at the screen. You kept looking at us, even though you were pointing right to where everything was with your laser pointer. We didn't dare fall asleep. We forgot you were blind. And my response was, "You don't get it. My dog was down here taking notes. If you'd fallen asleep, we would have got you anyway. But that was what it was about. My responsibility was to be the leader of that office, and I had to do what anyone else would do. One of the main things that I did was spend hours, days walking around the World Trade Center, learning what the kiosks were in the shopping mall on the first floor, learning where different offices were, consulting with the Port Authority police and the fire prevention people learning what to do in case of an emergency because sometimes I might be in the office all by my little self. There would be nobody else around. I didn't want my staff in the office. I wanted them out selling and working and supporting customers. Not being in the office, of course, they did usually come in at least once a week. And and so I learned never watched The Sopranos, but I got to tell you, I learned more about the Sopranos from all the Italian Americans on my staff who talked about the Sopranos constantly. Bada bing, bada boom, and I learned a whole lot about Tony Soprano without ever watching the show. But the point is that I needed to know all that stuff. I needed to know where the restaurants were. Customers come into the office. Oh, you want to go out to lunch? What kind of food do you want? There's a great deli downstairs called Fine and Shapiro. Let me take you there. How would it have looked if I didn't know how to do that, and I had to say to someone, "You're going to have to let me take your arm and lead me there because I don't know how to get there, and two hours later we're supposed to be negotiating multi-million dollar contracts? No, I needed to know it. I didn't have the luxury, and I don't regard it as a luxury. I regard it as a disability of reading signs. I needed to know all of that stuff. What I didn't realize is that was creating a mindset in me, which I'll talk about in a moment. Michael Hingson  32:15 Anyway, got all the laptop projectors and everything set up. The only thing I knew I didn't know how to do extremely well is to get it exactly aimed right, but about 8o'clock, David Frank came in and I said, "Say, David, this is all set up, but let's aim the projector just exactly where you want it on the screen. And we did have to turn it just a little bit, but not too much. But anyway, at 845, I was in my office and David was with me. We were creating a final list of all the people who were going to be attending the seminars, because the Port Authority police, the security people, needed to know who was coming. There were two ways you could get into the building: either we faxed on letterhead a list of people who were coming on any given day, and then the people coming in would show their photo IDs, and it would be verified against the list. And if they were allowed in, then they would be given a badge that they would put over their neck, and they would carry that, and they could scan barcode and go into the appropriate elevator to come onto our floor, or they'd have to call us every time somebody came in. And I didn't want a lot of phone calls coming in, so we were faxing the list. I was reaching for Letterhead to fax to to print the list on Letterhead when suddenly I heard and felt kind of a muffled thump and a vibration. And then literally, if you any blind people in the room, well, I'll do it anyway. I'm holding up my hand, and what happened was that literally, as I'm now tipping my hand toward you, the building began to tip. We probably moved about 20 feet. The building kept tipping and tipping. David and I said together, "What's going on? I don't know. What's going on? What do you think? Was it an explosion? I said. David said, "Didn't sound like it. Is it an earthquake? David was from New York, and now he's living in California. He didn't know about earthquakes. I said, "No, the building wasn't shaking around. It was going in one direction. And finally, and I went over and I stood in the doorway between my office and the the outside lobby of our our offices, and I stood there. Roselle was asleep under my desk. David was just on the other side of my desk, holding it near our windows, looking out over Manhattan, the south side of Manhattan. And finally, David and I both said goodbye to each other because we thought we had moved so far that the building was going to take a 78 floor plunge to the street. And then the building slowed down, and it stopped, and it moved back. As soon as it got vertical, I started walking back into the office. I met Roselle coming around from under my desk. I took her leash. I said "heel, which meant to come around behind me to sit and lie down, which is what I would normally have Alamo do, but he's comfortable, so we'll just leave him there. Roselle sat down, and about that time. The building dropped straight down about six feet. Why did it drop down? Because tall buildings like that literally are springs. They're made to flex in windstorms and other things like that. An Empire, an airplane hit the Empire State Building in the 1940s because it got lost in a fog bank. Tall buildings are flexible. They have expansion joints, and when the building was hit, the expansion joints took up all of the the things that were going on. And then when the building got straight again, the expansion joints dropped back down to their normal configuration. I knew that because I had talked to people about stuff like that. I'd forgotten it until later, but I knew it. What I hadn't realized is that what was happening when I was learning so much stuff was that a mindset was being developed in me that said, "You know what to do in an emergency. And as soon as the building dropped, David turned and looked out the window and started shouting, "Oh my God, Mike! There's fire and smoke over us! There were millions of pieces of burning paper falling outside the windows. Michael Hingson  35:59 We got to get out of here right now! Slow down, David. No, we got to get out of here. The building's on fire. I could hear things rushing and brushing outside our windows, and now I knew what they were. David told me millions of pieces of burning paper, right? And I didn't smell any smoke. Roselle wasn't doing anything to indicate any concern, and David kept saying, "We got to get out of here. The building's on fire. And I kept saying, "Slow down. Our guests began to scream. We had like five or six who were in our conference room. Early arrivals. They started coming out, but then they heard me say, "Slow down, stop, David. Just wait. And they waited to see what was going to happen. And finally, David used the big line: "You don't understand. You can't see Speaker 4  36:37 it. The Michael Hingson  36:38 problem wasn't what I wasn't seeing, the problem was what David wasn't seeing-a dog sitting next to me, wagging her tail, yawning, going, "Who the heck woke me up? I was comfy, not giving any indication of fear. And I eventually got David to focus, and I said, "David, get our guests to the stairs. Don't let them take the elevators, because I knew if there's fire, especially because if there's fire, the elevators could become fire traps. The fire could get into the elevator shafts, which it did, and anybody in the cars would be burned. David left with our guests, got them to the stairs. Meanwhile, I called Karen and told her that there had been an explosion or something. We had no clue. There was no way to know. I love it. Reporters, even today, and other people say, "Well, of course you didn't know you couldn't see it. Excuse me, you numbskulls. The last time I checked, Superman and X-ray vision were fiction, and the airplane hit 18 floors above us on the other side of the building. No one knew. All the way down the stairs, we didn't know because no one saw it. No one knew. Anyway, I called and told Karen she wanted to know more. I said, "I don't know anything else. I've got to go because we're not staying here. We knew instantly that we had to leave, but we got our guests out. Then David came back. We swept the offices one last time. Went to the stairs and we started down. If I knew it was the last time I was going to be in the building, I would have taken a couple of things that I didn't take. Like I had a really neat talking scientific calculator that I couldn't replace. And if I had known that I wasn't coming back, I would have taken it. It would have been a little heavier, but I would have taken it anyway. We started down the stairs. There were other people, of course, on the stairs. We got down about four floors, and I was smelling an odor. I couldn't quite figure it out, and suddenly I realized I'm smelling the fumes from burning jet fuel. I traveled 100,000 miles a year for my company. I knew what the odor of jet fuel was like. I knew the kerosene smell, but it took a while to associate it with the World Trade Center because no one would have ever thought you would have smelled it there. When I realized what it was, I observed to the other people around me on the stairs, "I'm smelling the fumes from burning jet fuel. And they said, "Yeah, you're right. That's what it is. We must have been hit by an airplane. You understand? Nobody knew. We must have been hit because of what we're smelling, so we all accepted that that was what was going on, but we had no clue. We continued down the stairs, about 10 floors down. At one point, a woman stopped right behind me, and she said, "I can't go on. I can't breathe. We're not going to make it out. And I stopped and turned around and said, "Sure, we are. Come on, this is my guide dog Roselle. He's guiding me, and and she'll encourage you. Roselle gave her kisses, and this lady gave Roselle a few pets, and so on. And other people surrounded her, and we had a group hug, and the lady was able to keep going. A few burn victims passed us on the stairs as we went down. At about the 50th floor, David, who had gotten a little quiet. Suddenly said, "Mike, we're going to die. We're not going to make it out of here. Now you heard that I have a teaching credential. What you don't know, and teachers won't generally acknowledge it, but I'm going to tell you anyway. There's a secret class we take called Voice 101: How to Yell at Students. Didn't know that, did you? And anyway, as soon as David. Said Mike, "We're going to die. We're not going to make it out of here. I just said as sharply and with a snap into my voice that I could, "Stop it, David! If Rosella and I can go down these stairs, so can you. And David told me later that that brought him out of his funk. Michael Hingson  40:12 What he then said is, "I got to keep my mind off this. I want to walk a floor below you and shout up to you what I see on the stairs. Is that okay? And I said, sure. Did I really need him to do that? No. Did it matter? No, but it did to David. However, what I came to realize over time was, David doing that was one of the most important things that I experienced on that day. So I'm going down the stairs. I get to floor 49. David, I'm on the 48th floor. All's clear here, Mike. Going on down. I get to 48 floor, 47. We keep going down. Finally, I get to the 45th floor, David. I'm on the 44th floor. This is where the Port Authority cafeteria is. Not stopping. So David was obviously doing better, and he kept going down. Why do I say what I did about David and doing that? Because David became a focal point for anyone within the sound of his voice who could hear him say, "43rd floor, all's clear, everything is good. He had to have helped 1000s of people stay focused and not panic going down the stairs, and I think that was so cool that he did that all the way down 42nd floor, all good. We kept going down the stairs. We met firefighters on the 30th floor. They wanted to escort me down, and I finally convinced them that I was capable of going down without them. And I did it by playing the sight card. I said, "Look, my friend David is here. He can see we're good, and the firefighters let us go. I didn't want them to escort me. First of all, they don't know how to work with a blind guy and do sighted guide. But second of all, I didn't want to break up their team because I knew that each of those people were carrying the equipment that they had to use to fight the fire. You couldn't store it somewhere. Where would you store it? Oh, the 34th floor. And what happens if a fire broke out on the 33rd floor, you couldn't get to it. You had to carry the equipment, so we kept going down the stairs. Finally, got to the first floor. David got there, and I was at floor two. And he said, "Hey, there are water sprinklers running. You're going to have to run through a waterfall or a down torrent of water to get out of the stairwell. Why was there all that water? Because it wanted to keep fire either in or out of the stairs, if fire was around. David ran through. Then I got to the bottom. Roselle stood there, and I picked up her harness and said, "Rosel, forward, hop up, which is a command to speed up. We went through this torrential downpour. It was a waterfall, and we came out the other side, soaking. David was there, and there were voices. Hey, don't go outside! No, no, don't go that way. Go this way. A PA system, a guy on a bullhorn. No, no, no! Don't go outside. Don't go to the outside. Go this way. What we didn't know is, if they had let people go out, they might have been right below where people were jumping. And so that was one of the reasons they didn't want anyone out. They wanted people to go through the complex and get out at the far side, as far away from where everything was occurring that they could. This guy comes up to us and he goes, "I'm with the FBI. I'll get you where you need to go. And of course, I'm sitting there with my warped sense of humor, going, "I'm sorry, I only talked to McGarrett, and I didn't do it. I'm innocent. I just thought that I didn't say any of it out loud. Anyway, he got us through out to the outside of Tower One. We passed now the empty Ben and Jerry's ice cream kiosk that was there. Darn didn't get a chance for a scoop. Kept going. Finally, went up an escalator and got outside into the sunshine outside of Tower. Well, of the whole complex, as far away from the towers as we could be, we got outside. Michael Hingson  43:44 We were told to leave the area, but David looked around and he said, "Mike, I see fire in Tower Two. And I said, "What are you talking about? There's fire in Tower Two, really? What's that all about? We didn't feel a thing going down. We were in our own little cocoon, our own little cave. We had no clue. Anyway, we were told to leave, so we went to Broadway. We walked across the plaza to Broadway, turn left, going now north on Broadway. There was a building on my left. Broadway was on my right. We crossed several streets, crossed Fulton Street, finally got to Vetsy Street. David said, "I want to stop because I can see the fire in Tower Two really clearly from here, I want to take some pictures, and I said, "Great, I'll try to call my wife. I got out my phone. David was taking pictures, which I have today. I tried to call Karen. I couldn't get through. Later, of course, we learned that people were saying goodbye to loved ones, and that was why the circuits were busy. I had just put my phone away, and a police officer, and while David was putting his camera away, and a police officer yelled out of here! It's coming down now. We heard this rumble that became this deafening roar. I describe it as kind of a combination of a freight train and a waterfall. You could hear glass breaking and tinkling, and metal crashing down, and then this white noise sound as Tower Two, 100 yards away from. Pancake down. Everyone turned and ran. David ran. He was gone. I literally lifted Roselle by the harness, turned her 180 degrees, and started running back the way we came. And the first thing I remember saying in my mind was, "God, I cannot believe that you got us out of a building just to have it fall on us. And as soon as I thought that, I heard in my head as clearly as you hear me now, a voice that said, "Don't worry about what you can't control. Focus on running with Roselle, and the rest will take care of itself. Who is God? Absolutely no question. Don't worry about what you can't control. Focus on running with Roselle, and the rest will take care of itself. And so I also had this incredible sense of peace and calm that came over me. That said, you're okay if you work together. We kept running. We got back to Fulton Street, turned right on Fulton Street, and ran about 25 yards. And suddenly we caught up to David, who had apparently gone the same way. And David suddenly realized that he had left us behind and he was going to come back, but we caught up to him first, and he apologized. I said, "David, don't worry about it. Let's just keep going. The building's coming down, you know. And we both just started to run with Roselle, and suddenly we were engulfed in all the dirt and debris and the dust cloud from Tower Two. It was so thick that David said he couldn't see his hand six inches in front of his face, and all I can tell you is that every breath I took, I felt dirt and debris and junk going down my throat into my stomach, and we knew we had to get out of that. So I started telling Roselle, "Go right, right. There was a building on our right side, and I wanted her to find the nearest opening if she could even hear me, see my hand signals, or whatever. And I was also listening for openings. Yes, I can hear when I pass an opening, and I and I can tell it's there and deal with it accordingly. Like during a time when you're running away from a collapsing building, run into it. Suddenly, I heard an opening on the right, and Roselle must have known what I wanted. She must have been able to see my hand signals or something because she turned right, she took one step, she stopped, and she would not move. Come on, Roselle, keep going. She wouldn't move. Come on, Roselle. Nope, wouldn't do it. And I realized, focus on running with Roselle, and the rest will take care of itself. So I stuck out a foot. Michael Hingson  47:13 I trailed a hand along a wall, and realized that we were at the top of a flight of stairs. Roselle had done exactly what she was supposed to do, and I knew what I was supposed to do if I wanted to get her to move. But before I did that, I gave her a big hug, good girl, and then I said, "Roselle, forward! That's the command. And we went down the stairs into an arcade area that was the entrance to the Fulton Street subway station. There were a few other people down there. Then a guy came up from the subway system and saw about eight or nine of us there. He introduced himself as Lou, an employee of the subway system, and he took us down to an employee locker room where we could sit down and and kind of hack and cough and get the dust out of our lungs. There was a water fountain and there were fans. We were there about 10 minutes. Then a police officer came, and he said, "You got to get out of here right now. The air's clear up above. You can't stay here. And so we followed him. Of course, he probably had already been told that Tower One was going to collapse. the The officials knew that each building was going to collapse probably about a half hour before it actually did. At least that was their presumption, and that's what I've been told. Anyway, we followed him back up the stairs, through the arcade, up the last two flights of stairs. We got outside. David looked around and he goes, "Oh my God, Mike, there's no Tower Two anymore. And I said, "What do you see? And he said, "All I see are pillars of smoke, hundreds of feet tall. We stood there for a moment, and then we just turned, and we kept walking. Now west on Fulton Street, we walked about 10 minutes, and we were in this little plaza area when we heard that freight train waterfall sound again, and we knew it must be our tower collapsing. We saw a little retaining wall David did, and we got behind it and ducked down, and we waited until everything stopped, and then we stood back up. And David looked around and he said, "Oh my God, Mike, there's no World Trade Center anymore. And I said, "What do you see? And he said, "I just see fingers of fire and flame, hundreds of feet tall. We see, I see pillars of smoke. It's gone. Are you sure? Yeah, it's gone. It's not there. We stood there a moment, then I tried to call my wife Karen again. That was kind of my first thought. I need to tell her we're okay. This time I did get through because clearly the circuits were were free. And after some tears on both sides of the phone, she is the one who told us how two aircraft had deliberately been hijacked and crashed into the towers, one into the Pentagon, and a fourth at that time was still missing over Pennsylvania. Who would have thought? We spent the rest of that day getting up toward Midtown Manhattan, and eventually I got to Penn Station, learned that the trains were running, and went back. Out to New Jersey, David wanted to go back up to be with his sister, who he who he was staying with. She lived on the Upper East Side, so I got on trains and I went back over toward New Jersey. I called Karen and told her what was going on, and a friend of ours, a friend that Karen had known since high school out in California, Tom Painter, was also living in New Jersey, he had come down to be with her, not even knowing at the time whether I was in the World Trade Center or working from home that day or whatever. But he drove her to the station in our accessible van, and as I came off the train, I heard the van show up. I went downstairs, climbed and went up the ramp into the van, and got to hug Karen about 7o'clock that night, for the first time since leaving home, we got home. Tom drove us home. We all went inside. I was going to take Roselle outside because she hadn't been out since like five that morning. Michael Hingson  50:53 Well, I take that back about six that morning, and I took her harness off. But before I could do anything else, she was off like a shot. She went to her toy box, found her favorite tug bone, and started playing tug of war with my retired guide dog Linny. Why? Because it was over for her. And I talked to the guide dog people later, and I said, "Will any of this affect her? And they said, "Was she threatened? Did anything hit her or injure her in any way, and I said no. They said then no. It was over for her because dogs don't do what if. It was over. It was done. She was fine. Lesson to be learned. Lesson you will learn more about if you buy our new book, Live Like a Guide Dog: True Stories from a Blind Man and His Guide his dogs about being brave, overcoming adversity, and walking in faith. That that book is available for pre-order, and I've been signing bookmarks all day. I still even have a few with me. But the point is, you can pre-order it, and and it's about something that I learned later. I thought about during the pandemic. I've talked a lot about escaping and not being afraid because I developed a mindset that said you know what to do, but what I've not done is to teach others how they can learn to recognize that fear is not something that needs to blind or overwhelm you. You can use fear as a very powerful tool to guide you and steer you in the right direction if you know how to control it, and live like a guide dog is all about that. So I hope that you'll all get that when it comes out in August. But again, you can pre-order it now if you go to michaelhinkston.com. There's a link there where you can go to a web page to get information and to go to a link where you can pre-order it. And like I said, I have some bookmarked with a QR code on it, and and I'm and I yes I am plugging the book, but I'm also saying, look, folks, the bottom line is we operate in so many ways with misconceptions about things. I've talked about blindness. Anybody could have been in the World Trade Center, and and a lot of people were. The reality is, though, if you learn what to do and how to prepare for situations in general, when it becomes something specific, you'll know what to do. People have asked a number of times, "Well, wasn't your guide dog trained to operate in an emergency like the World Trade Center? How are we going to do that? No, the dog isn't trained to do that. The guide dog's job is not to lead. Guide dogs do not lead blind people. Guide dogs' jobs are to make sure that we walk safe. It's my job to know where to go and how to get there to give the dog direction. The dog depends and relies on me to give it direction. The dog's job, as I said, is to make sure we walk safely. It's a team effort. We each have a job to do, and we develop a trusting relationship when we learn to trust each other and respect the job the other member of the team is doing, which is what it's all about. Which is what happens on any team, trust is all around us. Trust is under attack in so many ways from our politicians, and in so many ways. But the reality is, trust is all around us. I think we all trust that the roof isn't going to fall in on the church. I think that we trust that the PA system is going to continue to work, and so on. Trust is all around us. The difference between dogs and people is that dogs, while they do love unconditionally, do not trust unconditionally. But dogs are open to trust unless some incredibly traumatic thing has happened to them where they lose that ability. But dogs are open to trust, dogs want humans to give them direction to establish rules, and all too often with our pets and so on, we don't do that. We don't really develop the relationship that we should and can with them. Michael Hingson  54:54 If we would, we would have so much stronger bond and relationships with them. It would be. Amazing for for all of us, but the bottom line is that's the relationship that I get with each guide dog. That's the relationship I have with Alamo. He trusts that I am going to feed him before too awfully long. He trusts that you guys are going to buy books, so he'll have kibbles for me to feed him. Just saying, but but seriously, the the trust has to be earned with a dog or with people or whatever, and if you find that you you discover you can't trust someone, don't wish them ill will, forgive them and move on. So you don't trust them, but you know what you have, and you go off and make new friends and learn other trusting relationships that you can develop. Focus on running with Roselle; the rest will take care of itself. The reality is, we worry so much about so many things. We are always doing what if we create most of the fears that we face in our lives, and we Don't need to do that. If we would focus on just the things that we have some control over and leave the rest alone, well, we might want to be aware of them, but we don't have to worry about them. We don't have control over them. Trust and deal with the things that you have to deal with, and let the rest take care of itself. And that was what I learned on September 11th, listening to the voice of God, absolutely, and that is something that I pass on to all of you, and I think that's the most important thing that I can leave you with. Hi again, everyone. This is Mike Hingson. I hope that you found that speech to be helpful and relevant and interesting. I hope that you learn some things from it. From a personal standpoint, I hope that you learn that blindness isn't really the big problem that I face. The challenge that I face really comes from the fact that people who have eyesight tend to believe that blind people are not capable of doing much because they can't see. Wrong thing to believe. I'm not going to spend a lot of time on that because we did it during the speech, but I just wanted to thank you for being here today, for listening and watching this episode. I hope that you will also tune in for our episode on Tuesday, where I'm in conversation with Michelle Abraham on next Friday, the 11th of September, that you will tune in to hear the conversation with Bob Ellis, and then episode 475, which will occur on the 15th of September, where we will talk about lessons to be learned and and give you some things to hopefully take away that maybe you haven't thought about. Thanks very much for being here with us. I really very much appreciate all of your support. If any of you have any questions or want to reach out to me, you are welcome to do so. Please feel free to email me at speaker@michaelhinkson.com. That's s p e a k e r at m i c h a e l h i n g s o n.com speaker@michaelhingson.com hope to hear from you and as you gather I do speak I continue to speak publicly I've been a keynote speaker since September 11 if anybody knows of anyone that needs a keynote speaker or you can use us in events that you have please reach out to me at speaker@michaelhingson.com let's talk about it. Let's see how we can help. I'm always looking for ways to inspire, but also to teach and help. And I'd like to be part of your world in that regard. Thanks again for being here. Thanks for listening, and come back next time for another episode of Unstoppable Mindset.

Mike Staver is a Speaker, founder of The Staver Group, and an executive coach with years of work with clients include the Mayo Clinic, Allstate, FedEx and various real estate groups. Mike holds degrees in business administration and counseling psychology. His books Leadership Isn't for Cowards, gave leaders a framework for making the difficult calls their roles require. His latest book, Navigating Crazy, is about how to live and work sanely, in an insane world.   0.00:    Intro and Mike's background 3.00:    Impact of "The Road Less Travelled" by M Scott Peck 12.00:  Money, Happiness and Values 22.00:  Asset Inflation and the rising cost of living 27.00:  Impact on AI business 35.00:  The importance of Freedom and not being in a prison of "shoulds" 41.00:  How to be a good Leader 47.00:  Why it sucks to be "Resilient" 52.00:  How to overcome "Burnout" 54.00:  Importance of being authentic to yourself Mike's Website: https://mikestaver.com/finishing-ideas/ Mike's Latest Book: "Navigating Crazy: How to Live and Work Sanely in an Insane World"   Until next time, love and good vibes.   Podcast Website: https://enterthelionheart.com/ Check out the latest episode here: Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/enter-the-lionheart/id1554904704   Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4tD7VvMUvnOgChoNYShbcI

Episode 237 gets started with a recap of our PBA Golf Tournament event, our growing disdain for FedEx, and somehow a debate over the “Lake America” controversy before we light up the EGM Escudos and head completely off the rails.Patrol Gone Wild features a suspect who pulls something out of his pants in the back of a patrol car that absolutely nobody saw coming, an 85-year-old running an underground cigar operation out of a nursing home, and a UK man with an incredibly questionable plan to smuggle drugs into prison.Then Caleb's News closes things out with new cigar release announcements from Emilio Cigars and Martello, plus a look at the latest whiskey release from Angel's Envy.https://linktr.ee/downtoherfpodcastSupport the show

The statistical truth of an overnight success is eight to twelve years. In this episode of Content Amplified, Bill Harper, founder of BrandBossHQ and a 35-year veteran of helping businesses stand apart, breaks down why brands like Dollar Shave Club and Liquid Death only look like they exploded out of nowhere. Bill's core argument: people don't buy the best products, they buy the products they like the best, and no consumer owns a micrometer to test whose razor blade is actually sharper. He walks through his "hole to the goal" framework, where the brand is the ladder that gets a specific group of people out of one specific pain point: a Raleigh plumber who wins on "we're on time or you don't pay a dime," Volvo owning safety, and FedEx building an empire on "absolutely, positively overnight" back when it was a pure B2B play. He also explains why B2B buyers don't stop being emotional consumers just because they put on a tie. If you've ever been told to compete on having the best product, this episode will change how you pick your story.About BillBill Harper is the founder of BrandBossHQ, where he helps businesses figure out the story they have to tell in order to scale, a philosophy he sums up as "no story, no glory." Classically trained in visual communications, he fell in love early in his career with the external side of business: getting the buyer as excited as the person selling. This year marks 35 years of that work. Bill also shares free brand-building advice through more than 2,500 videos on TikTok.Show NotesConnect with Bill on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandbosshq/Bill on TikTok: @BrandBossHQ (2,500+ free brand-building videos)Work with Bill: brandbosshq.comText us what you think about this episode!

In part two of this special edition of Talking Dateline, NBC News' Ellison Barber, host of the Netflix podcast “Allegedly," sits down with Josh Mankiewicz at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, for CrimeCon 2026. Josh tells Ellison what it's like interviewing families who have gone through the unimaginable and how some have turned their pain into purpose. He also talks about a common thread of stalking in some of his recent episodes, and how the legal system could help protect victims before it's too late. Plus, he takes questions from the audience. Have a question for Talking Dateline? Send us a DM @DatelineNBC or leave a voicemail at (212) 413-5252. Your question could be featured in an upcoming episode. Links to Dateline episodes mentioned in this session: “Haunting” about the murders of Tom Hunter and Shirlee Sherman: https://swap.fm/l/dl_haunting “Complicated” about the murders of Tori Vienneau and her 10-month-old baby, Dean: https://swap.fm/l/dl_complicated Josh catches up with Tori's mother, Danya Heroz, on “After the Verdict, available to Dateline Premium subscribers: https://dateline.supportingcast.fm/listen/dateline-nbc-premium/after-the-verdict-complicated “Breaking Point” about the murder of FedEx mom, Morgan Fox: https://swap.fm/l/dl_breakingpoint “The Phantom” about the murder of Kristil Krug: https://swap.fm/l/dl_thephantom Kristil's cousin, former prosecutor Rebecca Ivanoff, talks about stalking, coercive control, and the fight for safety: https://www.nbcnews.com/dateline/video/former-prosecutor-rebecca-ivanoff-on-stalking-coercive-control-and-the-fight-for-safety-248448581562 Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Do patients see your med spa as truly different, or just another option to compare on price? In this episode, I break down the commodity med spa problem and why personalized care, patient education, and customized treatments aren't enough to create differentiation. I share how copying competitors, relying on discounts, and building a menu around one-off services can make your practice easier to price shop. Tune in to learn how to create a unique position, proprietary offers, and a category-of-one experience that makes your med spa stand out for something more than price.HIGHLIGHTSThe signs your med spa has become a commodity.Why “personalized care” isn't real differentiation.How copying competitors makes you easier to price shop.The problem with building your menu around one-off services.Why competing on price requires a completely different business model.How a proprietary menu helps you become a category of one.What Drybar and FedEx can teach you about positioning.RESOURCES + LINKSBuild a signature package with Ask Heather AI - https://heatherterveen.com/build/Create your own signature menu using Ask Heather AI - watch how HERE!Turn every consult into a 10K sale with Heather AI! Learn more about The Med Spa Advantage HEREFOLLOWHeather: @heatherterveenWebsite: heatherterveen.com

(1) 901 Day, Memphis FB, Huff next move? LSU/Clemson, injunction, Les Smith (2) History of Tiger FB Songs from J&J, Memphis Tigers go national, new stadium

Smylie and Charlie are back to break down Scottie Scheffler's win at the Tour Championship — his second FedEx Cup, his third title of the year, and the moment he passed Tiger Woods for the all-time PGA Tour money record. They dig into the stats, his Jack Nicklaus comparison, and his pointed press-conference comments on East Lake's pin positions and setup.Plus: the full breakdown of Brian Rolapp's 2028 PGA Tour overhaul — the Championship Series schedule taking shape around GO by Raymond James and 14 sponsors chasing the final four spots, the new two-week match play finale format, Rory McIlroy's 15-event rule likely going away, LIV players' return conditions, whether East Lake stays in the Tour Championship rotation, and the wishlist of historic clubs (Olympic Club, Baltusrol, Cypress Point) that could host a reimagined postseason.Lastly, SK and Charlie dive into the Presidents Cup discussion as we look ahead to Medinah.Before all that: Charlie makes his first-ever albatross on Saturday — and discovers a fan who shares his name made one on the very same day.Don't forget to like, comment, subscribe, and follow us on socials @thesmylieshow!Chapters0:00 Intro & toasting the 2026 PGA Tour season's end2:05 Charlie's albatross and the "other Charlie Hume"6:15 Ryan Gerard's murky tour status6:37 Scottie's FedEx Cup playoff run10:39 Scottie's loose press-room mood & the Brandel Chamblee shoutout12:36 Scottie's 2026 season in review: near-misses & the Nicklaus comparison16:24 By the numbers: strokes gained, scoring records & passing Tiger on the money list18:21 The two stats behind the leap: proximity and putts made from 25+ feet23:53 Scottie's East Lake pin-position rant, in his own words26:14 Course architecture debate: this year's setup vs. old East Lake31:34 Should East Lake stay in the Tour Championship rotation?35:13 Brian Rolapp's leadership style & the state of the 2028 overhaul38:19 Championship Series update: GO by Raymond James and the chase for the final 4 events40:21 Scarcity by design: how the new model out-leverages LIV on star power42:29 Board meetings, FedEx's sponsorship future & criteria for the last 4 spots43:27 LIV return conditions, Rory's 15-event rule going away & a fall "world tour"47:43 Inside the new 2-week match play finale format49:59 The "no winner after week one" problem & the TV coverage challenge52:29 Group of death, tournament luck, and the case for match play54:19 Separating the season-long trophy from the finale spectacle57:19 Venue wishlist: Olympic Club, Baltusrol & golf's most exclusive clubs59:29 Smaller crowds, bigger engagement — the Cypress Point/Walker Cup comparison1:01:56 "What is amateur golf in 2026?" — why the top clubs are still cautious1:11:40 Presidents Cup discussion#golf #pgatour #scottiescheffler #tourchampionship #golfrecap #golfhighlights #smylieshow 

On today's MJ Morning Show:Fester eating during show... Hard-boiled eggsMorons in the newsThief stories: Fedex employee, mail carrierHemorrhoids and sleep "Grand Theft Auto" leakGen Z's are most suspicious of others peopleUber Eats 4am delivery of a can of Coke. We took lots of calls.Text from listener about a local Dolly Parton encounterUncomfortable birthday celebration cake at a restaurantWoman peels her onion's bad layers to cost less at the registerCaller loves "Tires"Call to Michelle in NYList: Have you done these?DUI in car at the pickup lineFollow-up: Royal Band plays Dolly Parton songWhat's Aug-tober?Walmart customer says he shouldn't have to pay for cough medicine because he's sickToilet paper prices expected to surge?Meta settlementBodycam audio of Jed York arrestDelta Pilot radios in for emergency landing because he's sickChris Hansen still hasn't seen movie "Primetime"See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this episode of the Super U Podcast, Erik Qualman sits down with legendary sports agent, entrepreneur, and best-selling author Leigh Steinberg. Often credited as the real-life inspiration for the Oscar-winning film Jerry Maguire, Leigh has spent decades helping some of the world's greatest athletes turn talent into enduring brands, careers, and legacies. Leigh shares lessons from representing more than 300 professional athletes and coaches across football, basketball, baseball, hockey, boxing, and golf. With an unprecedented eight number-one overall NFL Draft picks and 62 total first-round picks, his career is defined by record-setting contracts, bold negotiations, and a relentless belief in the power of preparation, relationships, and vision. The conversation explores what it takes to build a personal brand, negotiate with confidence, and turn success into meaningful impact. Leigh also discusses securing more than $4 billion for his clients and directing over $750 million to charitable causes around the world, offering a powerful perspective on how achievement can be used to create opportunities far beyond the individual. Whether you're an athlete, entrepreneur, leader, parent, or simply someone looking to maximize your potential, this episode offers an inspiring look at what it means to build a legacy and use success to make a difference. Learn More About MDEnvoy: From speaking at conferences to publishing research to weighing in on public health conversations, many physicians put in hard work to be visible beyond the doctor's office. Yet most lack the resources to turn that visibility into brand deals, paid speaking engagements, or long-term career positioning outside traditional medicine. Why should doctors, much like athletes or influencers, be thinking about monetizing their professional brand, and what does it look like when they can capitalize on their visibility?   Through MDEnvoy, co-founders Leigh Steinberg and Dr. Michael Suk aim to help today's physicians enter into long-lasting and mutually successful relationships with their employers and provide other strategic support, including relocation planning, wealth management, intellectual property protection, branding, and more. https://mdenvoy.com/ Connect on Instagram Connect on LinkedIn Connect on Facebook Connect on X Follow on YouTube Five-time #1 Bestselling Author and Motivational Speaker Erik Qualman has performed in over 60 countries and reached over 60 million people this past decade. He was voted the 2nd Most Likable Author in the World behind the Harry Potter series. Have Erik speak at your conference: eq@equalman.com Motivational Speaker | Erik Qualman has inspired audiences at FedEx, Chase, ADP, Huawei, Starbucks, Godiva, FBI, Google, and many more on Focus and Digital Leadership.  

Are you confused by your FedEx retro pay deposit? Learn why your payout looks lower than expected and how to manage the funds effectively.This video provides clarity for FedEx employees who have recently received payments from the five-year contract dispute. If you are wondering why the net amount in your bank account does not match your calculations, you need to understand the role of mandatory tax withholding. This breakdown explains exactly why those deductions occur and clarifies that they are standard government requirements outside of company control.While the tax withholding on your FedEx retro pay is non-negotiable, you do have full control over your financial planning moving forward. This video outlines practical steps to handle your retroactive pay taxes so you can make informed decisions with the remaining balance. Whether you are planning to save or pay down debt, understanding how you use this lump-sum from the FedEx contract dispute settlement is the first step toward better financial management.YOU'RE A FEDEX PILOT? GO HERE https://fedexpilotretropay.com/JOIN OUR FREE SKOOL COMMUNITY - https://www.skool.com/ibc-community-7282VISIT OUR WEBSITE FOR MORE RESOURCES - https://thewealthwarehousepodcast.com/AND - https://cospark.us/Chapters00:00 Intro02:10 The Power of Paying Yourself First02:56 Understanding the Survivor Benefit Plan05:08 Risks and Alternatives to Survivor Benefits07:01 Using Whole Life Insurance for Wealth and Security11:53 Market Volatility and the Buffer of Whole Life Insurance17:09 Creating a Non-Market Correlated Asset19:57 Leaving a Tax-Free Legacy22:06 Three Easy Ways to Get Started32:48 Advanced Strategies and Wrap-Upkey topics-Retirement lump sum strategies-Survivor benefit plan risks and alternatives-Using whole life insurance as a financial tool-Market diversification and volatility buffer-Tax-free legacy creationMusic licensed through Soundstripe. Code: ZFXBMJSIAGIPK6UY, LVMN7BQMUNVAMKNQ, LHZU7TAPOTBENINGDISCLAIMER: Licensed Authorized Infinite Banking Practitioners. Educational purposes only. Schedule consultation for personalized advice

DopeyCon Tickets: https://buytickets.at/thedopeyfoundation/2216905 Get Discounts and Good Stuff on PAtreon: www.patreon.com/dopeypodcast Summary Interventionist, social worker, author and longtime Dopey favorite Joe Schrank returns to record with Dave in person for the first time since the early days with Chris. Joe explains why he believes the traditional rehab industry often confuses compliance with actual healing—and why recovery should be measured by improvement, reduced harm and staying alive, not only perfect abstinence. Dave and Joe dig into Brad Pitt's decision to drink moderately after years of sobriety, whether alcoholics can ever successfully return to controlled drinking, and why celebrities speaking publicly about recovery matters. They also discuss kratom and 7-OH addiction, medication-assisted treatment, cannabis in recovery, mental health care and the danger of treating relapse as a moral failure. Joe shares memories of employing Chris, how he responded to Chris's relapses and the shame Chris carried afterward. Plus: a drug-addled FedEx driver steals a customer's mailbox, Dave's painfully awkward encounter with Seth Rogen, Joe's upcoming book and screenplay, DopeyCon, Andy Cohen, baseball and the possible return of Rehab Confidential. ALL THAT AND MORE!   Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.