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In Episode 102 of the Digital Velocity Podcast, Erik Martinez and Pat Barry have a candid conversation about one of the most common challenges businesses face with AI today: buying too many tools without a clear strategy. As AI capabilities explode, teams are overwhelmed by choices, and often mistake experimentation for progress. Pat and Erik dig into why many organizations start with the question, "what tools do we need to buy?" instead of first defining the business problems they're trying to solve. As Pat explains, "Most clients that come to me start with what tools do we need to buy? My reaction is, let's see what you already have, because you might be able to accomplish a lot with what you've already got." The discussion reframes AI adoption around workflows, outcomes, and discipline—rather than novelty. Listeners will learn: • Why unchecked experimentation often leads to tool sprawl and wasted budget • How to evaluate AI tools based on real business use cases and ROI • Why existing platforms like Google Workspace and Microsoft often cover most needs • How to balance team-level experimentation with organizational governance • What questions leaders should ask before approving a new AI subscription Throughout the episode, Erik emphasizes the importance of starting with the workflow, noting, "You've got to work on the use case. Which means you also need to understand the workflows, where it's going to be used." Together, they explore how most teams can handle the majority of their needs with core LLMs like ChatGPT, Gemini, or Claude—and when specialized tools actually make sense. For marketers, operators, agency owners, and direct-to-consumer leaders, this episode offers a grounded framework for navigating the AI tool explosion without losing focus. The takeaway is clear: AI should make work more efficient and strategic—not more chaotic. Before buying the next shiny tool, make sure it ladders up to a real business goal.

In this episode of The Reformed Brotherhood, Tony and Jesse continue their deep dive into the Parable of the Prodigal Son by examining the often-overlooked character of the elder brother. While the younger son's rebellion is obvious, the elder brother's self-righteous moralism represents a more subtle—and perhaps more dangerous—form of lostness. Through careful exegesis of Luke 15:25-32, the hosts explore how religious performance, resentment of grace, and merit-based thinking can keep us far from the Father's heart even while we remain close to the Father's house. This conversation challenges listeners to examine their own hearts for traces of elder brother theology and calls us to celebrate the scandalous grace that restores sinners to sonship. Key Takeaways Two ways to be lost: The parable presents both flagrant rebellion (the younger son) and respectable self-righteousness (the elder son) as forms of spiritual lostness that require God's grace. The elder brother's geographic and spiritual position: Though physically near the house and faithful in service, the elder brother was spiritually distant from the father's heart, unable to celebrate grace extended to others. Moralism as a subtle distance: Self-righteous religion can be more deceptive than open rebellion because it appears virtuous while actually rejecting the father's character and values. The father pursues both sons: God's gracious pursuit extends not only to the openly rebellious but also to the self-righteous, demonstrating that election and grace are sovereign gifts, not earned rewards. The unresolved ending: The parable intentionally leaves the elder brother's response unstated, creating narrative tension that challenges the original audience (Pharisees and scribes) and modern readers to examine their own response to grace. Adoption as the frame of obedience: True Christian obedience flows from sonship and inheritance ("all that I have is yours"), not from a wage-earning, transactional relationship with God. Resentment reveals our theology: When we find ourselves unable to celebrate the restoration of repentant sinners, we expose our own need for repentance—not from scandal, but from envy and pride. Key Concepts The Elder Brother's Subtle Lostness The genius of Jesus' parable is that it exposes a form of lostness that religious people rarely recognize in themselves. The elder brother never left home, never squandered his inheritance, and never violated explicit commands. Yet his response to his brother's restoration reveals a heart fundamentally opposed to the father's character. His complaint—"I have served you all these years and never disobeyed your command"—demonstrates that he viewed his relationship with the father transactionally, as an employer-employee arrangement rather than a father-son bond. This is the essence of legalism: performing religious duties while remaining distant from God's heart. The tragedy is that the elder brother stood within reach of everything the father had to offer yet experienced none of the joy, fellowship, or security of sonship. This form of lostness is particularly dangerous because it wears the mask of righteousness and often goes undetected until grace is extended to someone we deem less deserving. The Father's Gracious Pursuit of the Self-Righteous Just as the father ran to meet the returning younger son, he also went out to plead with the elder brother to come into the feast. This detail is theologically significant: God pursues both the openly rebellious and the self-righteous with the same gracious initiative. The father's response to the elder brother's complaint is not harsh correction but tender invitation: "Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours." This reveals that the problem was never scarcity or the father's favoritism—the elder brother had always possessed full access to the father's resources and affection. The barrier was entirely on the son's side: his inability to receive sonship as a gift rather than a wage. This mirrors the historical situation of the Pharisees and scribes who grumbled at Jesus for receiving sinners. They stood adjacent to the kingdom, surrounded by the promises and covenant blessings of God, yet remained outside because they could not accept grace as the principle of God's dealing with humanity. The invitation still stood, but it required them to abandon their merit-based system and enter the feast as recipients of unearned favor. The Unresolved Ending and Its Challenge to Us Luke deliberately leaves the parable unfinished—we never learn whether the elder brother eventually joined the celebration. This narrative technique places the reader in the position of the elder brother, forcing us to answer for ourselves: will we enter the feast or remain outside in bitter resentment? For the original audience of Pharisees and scribes, this unresolved ending was a direct challenge to their response to Jesus' ministry. Would they continue to grumble at God's grace toward tax collectors and sinners, or would they recognize their own need and join the celebration? For contemporary readers, the question remains equally pressing. When we hear of a notorious sinner coming to faith, do we genuinely rejoice, or do we scrutinize their repentance with suspicion? When churches extend membership to those with broken pasts, do we celebrate restoration or quietly question whether they deserve a place at the table? The parable's open ending is not a literary flaw but a pastoral strategy: it refuses to let us remain passive observers and demands that we examine whether we harbor elder brother theology in our own hearts. Memorable Quotes The father's household is a place where grace produces joy, not just merely relief. The elder brother hears the joy before he sees it. That's often how resentment works, isn't it? We're alerted to the happiness of others and somehow there's this visceral response of wanting to be resentful toward that joy, toward that unmerited favor. — Jesse Schwamb There is a way to be near the house, church adjacent, religiously active, yet to be really far from the father's heart. The elder brother is not portrayed as an atheist, but as a moralist. And moralism can be a more subtle distance than open rebellion. — Jesse Schwamb God doesn't keep sinners from repenting. The reprobate are not prohibited or prevented by God from coming to faith. They're being kept out by their own stubborn refusal to come in. That's where this punchline hits so hard. — Tony Arsenal Full Transcript [00:00:44] Jesse Schwamb: Welcome to episode 477 of The Reformed Brotherhood. I'm Jesse.  [00:00:51] Tony Arsenal: And I'm Tony. And this is the podcast with ears to hear. Hey brother.  [00:00:55] Jesse Schwamb: Hey brother.  [00:00:56] Parables and God's Word [00:00:56] Jesse Schwamb: Speaking of ears to hear, it struck me that this whole thing we've been doing all this parable talk is really after the manner of God's words. And one of the things I've really grown to appreciate is how God speaks to the condition of those whom he addresses. He considers our ability, our capacity as his hearers to process what he's saying, and that leads into these amazing parables that we've been talking about. He doesn't speak as he is able to speak. So to speak, but I didn't mean that to happen. But as we were able to hear, and that means he spoke in these lovely parables so that we might better understand him. And today we're gonna get into some of the drama of the best, like the crown jewel as we've been saying, of maybe all the parables. The Parable of the Lost Son. We spoke a little bit about it in the last episode. Definitely want to hit that up because it's setting you up for this one, which is the definitive episode. But now we're gonna talk about this first, this younger lost son. Get into some of all of these like juicy details about what takes place, and really, again, see if we can find the heart of God. Spoiler. We can and we'll,  [00:02:04] Tony Arsenal: yeah,  [00:02:04] Affirmations and Denials [00:02:04] Jesse Schwamb: but before we do both of those things, it's of course always time at this moment to do a little affirming with or denying against. Of course, if you haven't heard us before, that's where we take a moment to say, is there something that we think is undervalued that we wanna bring forward that we'd recommend or think is awesome? Or conversely, is there something that's overvalued that's just, we're over it. The vibe is done. We're gonna deny against that. So I say to you, as I often do, Tony, are you affirming with or deny against?  [00:02:31] Tony's Nerdy Hobby: Dungeons and Dragons [00:02:31] Tony Arsenal: I'm affirming tonight. Um, I don't know how much the audience realizes of a giant ridiculous nerd I am, but we're about to go to entirely new giant nerd depths. [00:02:43] Jesse Schwamb: All right. I  [00:02:43] Tony Arsenal: think,  [00:02:44] Jesse Schwamb: let's hear it.  [00:02:44] Tony Arsenal: So, um, I was a huge fan of Stranger Things. Some, there's some issues with the show, and I understand why some people might not, um, might not feel great about watching it. You know, I think it falls within Christian liberty. But one of the main themes of the show, this is not a spoiler, you learn about this in episode one, is the whole game. The whole show frames itself around Dungeons and Dragons, right? It's kind of like a storytelling device within the show that the kids play, Dungeons and Dragons, and everything that happens in the Dungeons and Dragons game that they're playing, sort of like, um, foreshadows what's actually gonna happen in the show. Which funny if, you know Dungeons and Dragons lore, you kind of learn the entire plot of the story like ahead of time. Um, but so I, stranger Things just finished up and I've kind of been like itching to get into Dungeons and Dragons. I used to play a little bit of tabletop when I was in high school, in early college and um, I just really like the idea of sort of this collaborative storytelling game. Um, whether it's Dungeon Dragons or one of the other systems, um, Dungeons and Dragons is the most popular. It's the most well published. It's the most well established and it's probably the easiest to find a group to play with. Although it is very hard to find a group to play with, especially, uh, kind of out in the middle of nowhere where I live. So this is where the ultra super nerdy part comes in.  [00:04:02] Jesse Schwamb: Alright, here we  [00:04:03] Tony Arsenal: go. I have been painstakingly over the last week teaching Google Gemini. To be a dungeon master for me. So I've been playing Dungeons and Dragons more or less by myself with, uh, with Google Gemini, and I'm just having a lot of fun with it. Um, you can get a free copy of the rules online if you, I think it's DND, the letter NDND beyond.com. They have a full suite of like tools to create your character. Access to a basic set of the core rules. Um, you can spend a lot of money on Dungeons and Dragons, uh, and if you want to like really get into it, the books are basically textbooks. Like you're buying $300 or 300 page, $300, 300 page textbooks, um, that are not all that differently costs than like college textbooks. You'll buy a 300 page Dungeon master guide that's like $50 if you want a paper copy. So, but you can get into it for free. You can get the free rolls online, you can use their dungeon, the d and d Beyond app and do all your dice rolls for free. Um, you, you can get a free dice roller online if you don't want to do their, their app. Um, but it's just a lot of fun. I've just been having a lot of fun and I found that the, I mean. When you play a couple sessions with it, you see that the, the um, the A IDM that I've created, like it follows the same story beats 'cause it's only got so much to work with in its language model. Um, but I'm finding ways to sort of like break it out of that model by forcing it to refer to certain websites that are like Dungeons and Dragons lore websites and things like build your, build your campaign from this repository of Dungeons and Dragons stuff. So. I think you could do this with just about any sort of narrative storytelling game like this, whether you're playing a different system or d and d Pathfinders. I mean, there's all sorts of different versions of it, but it's just been a lot of fun to see, see it going. I'm trying to get a group together. 'cause I think I would, I would probably rather play Dungeons and Dragons with people, um, and rather do it in person. But it's hard to do up here. It's hard to get a, get a group going. So that's my super nerdy affirmation. I'm not just affirming Dungeons and Dragons, which would already be super nerdy. I'm affirming playing it by myself on my phone, on the bus with Google Gemini, AI acting like I'm not. Just this weird antisocial lunatic. So I'm having a lot of fun with it.  [00:06:20] Jesse Schwamb: So there are so many levels of inception there. Yeah. Like the inception and everything you just said. I love it.  [00:06:27] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Well, what I'm learning is, um, you can give an, and, and this is something I didn't realize, what ai, I guess I probably should have, you know, it's not like an infinite thing. Um, you can give an AI instructions and if your chat gets long enough, it actually isn't referring back to the very beginning of the chat most of the time. Right. There's a, there's like a win context window of about 30 responses. So like if you tell the AI, don't roll the dice for me, like, let me roll dices that are related to my actions, eventually it will forget that. So part of what I've been doing is basically building, I'm using Google Gemini when the AI does something I don't want it to do, I say, you just did something I don't want it to do. Gimme a diagnostic report of why you did that. It will explain to me why it did what it did. Right. Why it didn't observe the rules. And then I'm feeding that into another. Prompt that is helping me generate better prompts that it refers back to. So it's kind of this weird iterative, um, yeah, I, I don't, I'm like, I maybe I'm gonna create the singularity. I'm not sure. Maybe this is gonna be possible. We should sit over the edge. It's gonna, it's gonna learn how to cast magic spells and it's gonna fire bolt us in the face or something like that. Right. But, uh, again, high risk. I, I, for one, welcome our AO AI dungeon masters. So check it out. You should try it. If you could do this with chat GPT, you could do it with any ai. Um, it, it, it is going to get a little, I have the benefit because I have a Google Workspace account. I have access to Google Pro or the Gemini Pro, which is a better model for this kind of thing. But you could do this with, with chat GPT or something like that. And it's gonna be more or less the same experience, I think. But I'm having a, I'm having a ton of fun with it. Um. Again, I, I, there's something about just this, Dungeons and Dragons at its core is a, it's like a, an exercise in joint storytelling, which is really fascinating and interesting to me. Um, and that's what most tabletop RPGs are like. I suppose you get into something like War Hammer and it's a little bit more like a board. It's a mixture of that plus a board game. But Dungeons and Dragons, the DM is creating the, I mean, not the entire world, but is creating the narrative. And then you as a player are an actor within that narrative. And then there's a certain element of chance that dice rolls play. But for the most part, um, you're driving the story along. You're telling the story together. So it's, it's pretty interesting. I've also been watching live recordings of Dungeons and Dragon Sessions on YouTube. Oh,  [00:08:50] Jesse Schwamb: wow.  [00:08:51] Tony Arsenal: Like, there's a, there's a channel called Critical Role. Like these sessions are like three and a half hours long. So, wow. I just kinda have 'em on in the background when I'm, when I'm, uh, working or if I'm, you know, doing something else. Um, but it's really interesting stuff. It's, it's pretty cool. I think it's fun. I'm a super nerd. I'm, I'm no shame in that. Um, I'm just really enjoying it.  [00:09:09] Jesse Schwamb: Listen, nerdery is great. That's like part of the zeitgeist now. Listen to culture. It's cool to be a nerd. I don't know much about d and d. I've heard a lot about this idea of this community that forms around. Yeah. The story, correct me if I'm wrong, can't these things go on for like years, decades?  [00:09:25] Tony Arsenal: Oh yeah, yeah. Like, you can do there. There, some of this has made its way into the official rule books, but basically you could do what's called a one shot, which is like a self-contained story. Usually a single session, you know, like you get a Dungeon master, game master, whichever you wanna call the person. Three to four, maybe five characters, player characters. And one session is usually about two hours long. So it's not like you sit down for 20 minutes, 30 minutes at a time and play this right. And you could do a one shot, which is a story that's designed to, to live all within that two hour session. Um, some people will do it where there isn't really any planned like, outcome of the story. The, the DM just kind of makes up things to do as they go. And then you can have campaigns, which is like, sometimes it's like a series of one shots, but more, it is more like a long term serialized period, you know, serialized campaign where you're doing many, um, many, many kinds of, uh, things all in one driving to like a big epic goal or battle at the end, right? Um, some groups stay together for a really long time and they might do multiple campaigns, so there's a lot to it. Game's been going on for like 50, 60, 70 years, something like that. I don't remember exactly when it started, but  [00:10:41] Jesse Schwamb: yeah.  [00:10:41] Tony Arsenal: Um, it's an old game. It's kinda like the doctor who of of poor games and it's like the original tabletop role playing game, I think. [00:10:47] Jesse Schwamb: Right. Yeah, that makes sense. Again, there's something really appealing to me about not just that cooperative storytelling, but cooperative gameplay. Everybody's kind of in it together for the most part. Yeah. Those conquest, as I understand them, are joint in nature. You build solidarity, but if you're meeting with people and having fun together and telling stories and interacting with one another, there's a lot of good that comes out of that stuff there. A lot of lovely common grace in those kind of building, those long-term interactions, relationships, entertainment built on being together and having good, clean, fun together.  [00:11:17] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Well, and it's, you know, it's, um. It's an interesting exercise. It's it, in some ways it's very much like improv. Like you, you think of like an improv comedy like show I've been to somewhere. Like, you know, you go to the show and it's an improv troupe, but they're like calling people from the crowd up and asking them for like different scenarios they might do. It's kind of like that in that like the GM can plan a whole, can plan a whole thing. But if I as a player character, um. And I've done this to the virtual one just to see what it does, and it's done some interesting things. One of the campaigns I was playing, I had rescued a merchant from some giant spiders and I was helping, like, I was helping like navigate them through the woods to the next town. And we kept on getting attacked and just outta nowhere. I was like, what if I sort of act as though I'm suspicious of this merchant now because why are we getting attacked all the time? And so I, I typed in sort of like a little. A mini role play of me accusing this guy. And it was something like, Randall, we get, we're getting attacked a lot for a simple merchant, Randall merchant. What happens if I cast a tech magic? What am I gonna find? And he's like, I don't know what I'm gonna find. I know I don't know anything. And then I cast a tech magic and it shifted. I mean, I don't know where the campaign was gonna go before that, but it shifted the whole thing now where the person who gave him the package he was carrying had betrayed him. It was, so that happens in real life too in these games, real life in these games. That happens in real, in-person sessions too, where a player or a group of players may just decide instead of talking to the contact person that is supposed to give them the clue to find the dungeon they're supposed to go to, instead they ambush them and murder them in gold blood. And now the, the dungeon master has to figure out, how do I get them back to this dungeon when this is the only person that was supposed to know where it is? So it, it does end up really stretching your thinking skills and sort of your improvisational skills. There's an element of, um, you know, like chance with the dice, um, I guess like the dice falls in the lot, but the lot is in the handle. Or like, obviously that's all ordained as well too, but there is this element of chance where even the DM doesn't get to determine everything. Um, if, if I say I want to, I want to try to sneak into this room, but I'm a giant barbarian who has, you know, is wearing like chain mail, there's still a chance I could do it, but the dice roll determines that. It's not like the, the GM just says you can't do that. Um, so it's, it's a, I, I like it. I'm, I'm really looking forward to trying to, getting into it. It is hard to start a group and to get going and, um, there's a part of me that's a little bit. Gun shy of maybe like getting too invested with a group of non-Christians for something like this. 'cause it can get a little weird sometimes. But I think that, I think that'll work out. It'll be fun. I know there's actually some people in our telegram chat. Bing, bing, bing segue. There we go. There's some people in our telegram chat actually, that we're already planning to do a campaign. Um, so we might even do like a virtual reform brotherhood, Dungeons and Dragons group. So that might be a new sub channel in the telegram at some point.  [00:14:13] Jesse Schwamb: There you go. You could jump right in. Go to t.me back slash reform brotherhood.  [00:14:18] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Jesse, what are you affirming since I just spent the last 15 minutes gushing about my nerdy hobby?  [00:14:23] Jesse Schwamb: Uh, no, that was great. Can I, can I just say two things? One is, so you're basically saying it's a bit like, like a troll shows up and everybody's like, yes. And yeah. So I love that idea. Second thing, which is follow up question, very brief. What kind of merchant was Randall.  [00:14:39] Tony Arsenal: Uh, he was a spice trader actually.  [00:14:42] Jesse Schwamb: Yeah. I don't trust that.  [00:14:43] Tony Arsenal: And, and silk, silk and spices.  [00:14:45] Jesse Schwamb: Yeah. That's double, that's too strict.  [00:14:47] Tony Arsenal: He was actually good guy in the, in the story that developed out of this campaign. He actually became part of my family and like, like, like got adopted into the family because he lost everything on his own. Randy we're  [00:15:00] Jesse Schwamb: talking about Randy.  [00:15:01] Tony Arsenal: Randy Randall with one L. Yeah. The AI was very specific about  that.  [00:15:05] Jesse Schwamb: There's, there's nothing about this guy I trust. I, is this still ongoing? Because I think he's just trying to make his way deeper in,  [00:15:11] Tony Arsenal: uh, no, no. It, I'll, I'll wait for next week to tell you how much, even more nerdy this thing gets. But there's a whole thing that ha there was a whole thing out of this That's a tease. Tease. There was a, there was a horse and the horse died and there was lots of tears and there was a wedding and a baby. It was, it's all sorts of stuff going on in this campaign. [00:15:27] Jesse Schwamb: Yeah. And I'm sure. Randy was somewhere near that horse when it happened. Right?  [00:15:32] Tony Arsenal: It was his horse.  [00:15:33] Jesse Schwamb: Yeah, exactly. That's  [00:15:35] Tony Arsenal: exactly, he didn't, he didn't kill the horse. He had no power to knock down the bridge The horse was standing on.  [00:15:40] Jesse Schwamb: Listen, next week, I'm pretty sure that's what we're gonna learn is that it was all him. [00:15:45] Tony Arsenal: Alright, Jesse, save us from this. Save us from this, please. Uh,  [00:15:49] Jesse Schwamb: no.  What  [00:15:50] Tony Arsenal: you affirming, this is  [00:15:50] Jesse Schwamb: great.  [00:15:50] Jesse's Affirmation: Church Community [00:15:50] Jesse Schwamb: It's possible that there is a crossover between yours and mine if we consider. That the church is like playing a d and d game in the dungeon Masters Christ, and the campaigns, the gospel. So I was thinking maybe is it possible, uh, maybe this is just the, the theology of the cross, but that sometimes, like you need the denial to get to the affirmation. Have we talked about that kind of truth? Yeah,  [00:16:14] Tony Arsenal: yeah,  [00:16:15] Jesse Schwamb: for sure. So here's a little bit of that. I'll be very, very brief and I'm using this not as like just one thing that happened today, but what I know is for sure happening all over the world. And I mean that very literally, not just figuratively when it comes to the body of Christ, the local church. So it snowed here overnight. This was, this is the Lord's Day. We're hanging out in the Lord's Day, which is always a beautiful day to talk about God. And overnight it snowed. The snow stopped relatively late in the morning around the time that everybody would be saying, Hey, it's time to go and worship the Lord. So for those in my area, I got up, we did the whole clearing off the Kai thing. I went to church and I was there a little bit early for a practice for music. And when I pulled in, there weren't many there yet, but the whole parking lot unplowed. So there's like three inches of snow, unplowed parking lot. So I guess the denial is like the plow people decided like, not this time I, I don't think so. They understood they were contracted with the church, but my understanding is that when one of the deacons called, they were like, Ooh, yeah, we're like 35 minutes away right now, so that's gonna be a problem. So when I pulled in, here's what I was. Like surprise to find, but in a totally unexpected way, even though I understand what a surprise is. And that is that, uh, that first the elders and the deacons, everybody was just decided we're going to shovel an entire parking lot. And at some point big, I was a little bit early there, but at some point then this massive text change just started with everybody, which was, Hey, when you come to church, bring your shovel. And I, I will tell you like when I got out of the car. I was so like somebody was immediately running to clear a path with me. One of those like snow pushers, you know what I mean? Yeah. Like one, those beastly kind of like blade things.  [00:17:57] Tony Arsenal: Those things are, those things are the best.  [00:17:59] Jesse Schwamb: Yeah. You just run. And so you have never met a group of people that was more happy to shovel an entire large asphalt area, which normally shouldn't even be required. And. It just struck me, even in hindsight now thinking about it, it was this lovely confluence of people serving each other and serving God. It was as if they got up that morning and said, do you know what would be the best thing in the world for me to do is to shovel. And so everybody was coming out. Everybody was shoveling it. It was to protect everyone and to allow one into elaborate, one access. It was just incredible. And so I started this because the affirmation is, I know this happens in, in all of our churches, every God fearing God, loving God serving church, something like this is happening, I think on almost every Lord's day or maybe every day of the week in various capacities. And I just think this is God's people coming together because everybody, I think when we sat down for the message was exhausted, but. But there was so much joy in doing this. I think what you normally would find to be a mundane and annoying task, and the fact that it wasn't just, it was redeemed as if like we, we found a greater purpose in it. But that's, everyone saw this as a way to love each other and to love God, and it became unexpected worship in the parking lot. That's really what it was, and it was fantastic. I really almost hope that we just get rid of the plow company and just do it this way from now on. Yeah, so I'm affirming, recognize people, recognize brothers and sisters that your, your church is doing this stuff all the time and, and be a part of it. Jump in with the kinda stuff because I love how it brings forward the gospel.  [00:19:35] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. That's a great story. It's a great, uh, a great example of the body of Christ being, what the body of Christ is and just pulling together to get it done. Um, which, you know, we do on a spiritual level, I think, more often than a physical level these days. Right, right. But, um, that's great. I'm sitting here going three inches of snow. I would've just pulled into the lot and then pulled out of the lot. But New Hampshire, it hits different in New Hampshire. Like we all d have snow tires and four wheel drive.  [00:20:02] Jesse Schwamb: It's, it's enough snow where it was like pretty wet and heavy that it, if, you know, you pack that stuff down, it gets slick. You can't see the people, like you can't have your elderly people just flying in, coming in hot and then trying to get outta the vehicle, like making their way into church.  [00:20:14] Tony Arsenal: Yeah.  [00:20:15] Jesse Schwamb: So there was, there was a lot more of that. But I think again, you would, one of the options would've been like, Hey, why don't we shovel out some sp spaces for the, for those who need it, for, you know, those who need to have access in a way that's a little bit less encumbered. Oh, no, no. These people are like, I see your challenge and I am going to shovel the entire parking lots.  [00:20:35] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. It used to happen once in a while, uh, at the last church, uh, at, um, your dad's church. We would, where the plow would just not come on a Sunday morning or, or more often than not. Um, you know, what happens a lot of times is the plows don't want to come more than once. Right. If they don't have to. Or sometimes they won't come if they think it's gonna melt because they don't want to deal with, uh, with like customers who are mad that you plowed and that it all melts. But either way, once in a while. The plow wouldn't come or it wouldn't come in time. And what we would do is instead of trying to shovel an entire driveway thing, we would just went, the first couple people who would get there, the young guys in the church, there was only a couple of us, but the younger guys in the church would just, we would just be making trips, helping people into the, yeah. Helping people into the building. So, um, it was a pretty, you know, it was a small church, so it was like six trips and we'd have everybody in, but um, we just kind of, that was the way we pulled together. Um, yeah, that's a great, it's a great story. I love, I love stuff like that. Yeah, me too. Whether it's, whether it's, you know, plowing a, a parking lot with shovels instead of a plow, or it's just watching, um, watching the tables and the chairs from the fellowship, you know, all just like disappear because everybody's just, uh, picks up after themselves and cleans and stuff. That's, that's like the most concrete example of the body of Christ doing what the body of Christ does. Um, it's always nice, you know, we always hear jokes about like, who can carry the most, the most chairs,  [00:22:04] Jesse Schwamb: most  [00:22:04] Tony Arsenal: chairs. Uh, I think it's true. Like a lot of times I think like I could do like seven or eight sometimes. [00:22:10] Jesse Schwamb: Uh, you, that's, so, one more thing I wanna say. I, I wanted to tell you this privately, Tony, 'cause it just cracked me up 'cause I, you'll appreciate this. But now I'm realizing I think the brothers and sisters who listened to us talk for any length of time and in the context of this conversation, but the church will appreciate this too. On my way out, I, I happened because I was there early and the snow was crazy. I parked way further out, way on the edge of the lot to just allow for greater access because of all the shoveling that was happening. And by the way, I really hope there were a ton of visitors this morning because they were like, wow, this, this church is wild. They love to shovel their own lot and they're the happiest people doing it. Some sweaty person just ushered me in while they were casting snow. Like,  [00:22:47] Tony Arsenal: is this some new version of snake handling? You shovel your own lot and your impervious to back injuries.  [00:22:53] Jesse Schwamb: Uh. So I was walking out and as I walked past, uh, there was a, uh, two young gentlemen who were congregating by this very large lifted pickup truck, which I don't have much experience with, but it looked super cool and it was started, it was warming up, and they were just like casually, like in the way that only like people with large beards wearing flannel and Carhartt kind of do, like casually leaning against the truck, talking in a way that you're like, wow, these guys are rugged. And they sound, they're super cool, and they're probably like in their twenties. And all I hear as I pass by is one guy going, yeah, well, I mean that's, I was, I said to them too, but I said, listen, I'd rather go to a church with God-fearing women than anywhere else.  [00:23:36] Tony Arsenal: Nice.  [00:23:37] Jesse Schwamb: I was just like, yep. On the prowl and I love it. And they're not wrong. This is the place to be.  [00:23:42] Tony Arsenal: It is.  [00:23:43] Jesse Schwamb: Yeah. This is the place to be. Yeah. So all kinds of, all kinds of good things I think going on in that in the house of the Lord and where wherever you're at, I would say be happy and be joyful and look for those things and participate in, like you said, whether it's physical or not, but as soon as you said like the, our young men, our youth somehow have this competition of when we need to like pack up the sanctuary. How many chairs can I take at one time? Yeah. It's like the classic and it just happens. Nobody says like, okay, everybody line up. We're about to embark on the competition now. Like the strong man usher competition. It's just like, it just happens and  [00:24:17] Tony Arsenal: it's  [00:24:17] Jesse Schwamb: incredible.  [00:24:18] Tony Arsenal: I mean, peacocks fan out their tail feathers. Young Christian guys fan out. All of the table chairs, chairs they can carry. It's uh, it's a real phenomena. So I feel like if you watch after a men's gathering, everybody is like carrying one chair at a time because they don't wanna hurt their backs and their arms. Oh, that's  [00:24:36] Jesse Schwamb: true. That's  [00:24:37] Tony Arsenal: what I do. Yeah. But it's when the women are around, that's when you see guys carrying like 19 chairs. Yeah. Putting themselves in the hospital.  [00:24:42] Jesse Schwamb: That's what I, listen, it comes for all of us. Like I, you know, I'm certainly not young anymore by almost any definition, but even when I'm in the mix, I'm like, oh, I see you guys. You wanna play this game? Mm-hmm. Let's do this. And then, you know, I'm stacking chairs until I hurt myself. So it's great. That's, that is what we do for each other. It's  [00:25:01] Tony Arsenal: just, I hurt my neck getting outta bed the other day. So it happens. It's real.  [00:25:05] Jesse Schwamb: The struggle. Yeah, the struggle is real.  [00:25:07] The Parable of the Lost Son [00:25:07] Jesse Schwamb: Speaking of struggle, speaking of family issues, speaking of all kinds of drama, let's get into Luke 15 and let me read just, I would say the first part of this parable, which as we've agreed to talk about, if we can even get this far, it's just the younger son. [00:25:24] Tony Arsenal: Yeah.  [00:25:25] Jesse Schwamb: And again, don't worry, we're gonna get to all of it, but let me read beginning in, uh, verse 11 here. This is Luke chapter 15. Come follow along as you will accept if you're operating heavy machinery. And Jesus said, A man had two sons and the younger of them said to his father, father, give me the share of the estate that falls to me. So he divided his wealth between them. And not many days later, the younger son gathered everything together and went on a journey into a distant country. And there he squandered his estate living recklessly. Now, when he had spent everything, a severe famine occurred in that country and it began to be impoverished. So he went and hired himself to one of the citizens of that country, and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. So he went and as he was desiring to be fed with the pods that the swine were eating because no one was giving anything to him. But when he came to himself, he said, how many of my father's men have more than enough bread, but I am dying here with hunger. I'll rise up and go to my father, and I'll say to him, father, I have sinned against heaven and before you, I'm no longer worthy to be called your son. Make me as one of your hired men. So he rose up, came to his father, but while he was still a long way off. His father saw him and felt compassion and ran and embraced him. And the son said to him, father, I've sinned against heaven and before you, I'm no longer worthy to be called your son. But the father said to his slaves, quickly, bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet and bring the fat in calf and slaughter it and let us celebrate. For the son of mine was dead and has come to life again. He was lost and he has been found and they began to celebrate.  [00:27:09] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. This is such a, um, such a, I don't know, like pivotal seminal parable in the Ministry of Christ. Um, it's one of those parables and we, we mentioned this briefly last week that even most. It, it hasn't passed out of the cultural zeitgeist yet. A lot of biblical teaching has, I mean, a lot, I think a lot of things that used to be common knowledge where, where you could make a reference to something in the Bible and people would just get it. Um, even if they weren't Christian or weren't believers, they would still know what you were talking about. There's a lot of things in the Bible that have passed out of that cultural memory. The, the parable of the prodigal son, lost son, however you wanna phrase it, um, that's not one of them. Right. So I think it's really important for us, um, and especially since it is such a beautiful picture of the gospel and it has so many different theological touch points, it's really incumbent on us to spend time thinking about this because I would be willing to bet that if you weave. Elements of this parable into your conversations with nonbelievers that you are praying for and, and, you know, witnessing to and sharing the gospel with, if you weave this in there, you're gonna help like plant some seeds that when it comes time to try to harvest, are gonna pay dividends. Right. So I think it's a really, it's a really great thing that we're gonna be able to spend, you know, a couple weeks really just digging into this. [00:28:40] Jesse Schwamb: Yeah, and to define the beginning, maybe from the end, just slightly here, I like what you said about this cultural acknowledgement of this. I think one of the correctives we can provide, which is clear in the story, is in the general cultural sense. We speak of this prodigal as something that just returns comes back, was lost, but now is found. And often maybe there is this component of, in the familial relationship, it's as if they've been restored. Here we're gonna of course find that this coming to one senses is in fact the work of God. That there is, again, a little bit of denial that has to bring forward the affirmation here that is the return. And so again, from the beginning here, we're just talking about the younger son. We have more than youthful ambition.  [00:29:19] The Essence of Idolatry and Sin [00:29:19] Jesse Schwamb: This heart of, give me the stuff now, like so many have said before, is really to say. Give me the gifts and not you, which is, I think, a common fault of all Christians. We think, for instance of heaven, and we think of all the blessings that come with it, but not necessarily of the joy of just being with our savior, being with Christ. And I think there's something here right from the beginning, there's a little bit of this betrayal in showing idolatry, the ugliness of treating God's gifts as if there's something owed. And then this idea that of course. He receives these things and imme more or less immediately sometime after he goes and takes these things and squanderers them. And sin and idolatry, I think tends to accelerate in this way. The distance from the father becomes distance from wisdom. We are pulled away from that, which is good. The father here being in his presence and being under his care and his wisdom and in his fear of influence and concern, desiring then to say, I don't want you just give me the gifts that you allegedly owe me. And then you see how quickly like sin does everything you, we always say like, sin always costs more than you want to pay. And it always takes you further than you want to go. And that's exactly what we see here. Like encapsulated in an actual story of relationship and distance.  [00:30:33] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. And I, you know, I think, um. It's interesting to me.  [00:30:39] The Greek Words for Property [00:30:39] Tony Arsenal: You know, I, I, I'm a big fan of saying you don't need to study Greek to understand your Bible, but I'm also a big fan of saying understanding a little bit of Greek is really helpful. And one of the things that I think is really intriguing, and I haven't quite parsed out exactly what I think this means, but the word property in this parable, it actually is two different Greek words that is translated as property, at least in the ESV. And neither one of them really fit. What our normal understanding of property would be. And there are Greek words that refer to like all of your material possessions, but it says, father, give me the share of property. And he uses the word usia, which those of us who have heard anything about the trinity, which is all of us, um, know that that word means something about existence. It's the core essence of a person. So it says, father, give me the share of usia that is coming to me. And then it says, and he divided his bias, his, his life between them. Then it says, not many days later, the younger son gathered all that he had took a journey into the far country. There he squandered his usia again. So this, this parable, Christ is not using the ordinary words to refer to material, uh, material accumulation and property like. I think probably, you know, Christ isn't like randomly using these words. So there probably is an element that these were somehow figuratively used of one's life possessions. But the fact that he's using them in these particular ways, I think is significant. [00:32:10] The Prodigal Son's Misconception [00:32:10] Tony Arsenal: And so the, the, the younger son here, and I don't even like calling this the prodigal sun parable because the word prodigal doesn't like the equivalent word in Greek doesn't appear in this passage. And prodigal doesn't mean like the lost in returned, like prodigal is a word that means like the one who spends lavishly, right? So we call him the prodigal son because he went and he squandered all of his stuff and he spent all of his money. So it doesn't even really describe the main feature or the main point of why this, this parable is here. It's just sort of like a random adjective that gets attached to it. But all of that aside, um. This parable starts off not just about wasting our property, like wasting our things, but it's a parable that even within the very embedded language of the parable itself is talking about squandering our very life, our very essence, our very existence is squandered and wasted as we depart from the Father. Right? And this is so like, um, it's almost so on the head, on the on the nose that it's almost a little like, really Jesus. Like this is, this is so like, slap you in the face kind of stuff. This is right outta like Romans, uh, Romans one, like they did not give thanks to God. They did not show gratitude to God or acknowledge him as God. This is what's happening in this parable. The son doesn't go to his father and say, father, I love you. I'm so happy to stay with you. I'm so happy to be here. He, he basically says like. Give me your very life essence, and I'm gonna go, I'm gonna go spend it on prostitutes. I'm gonna go waste your life, father, I'm gonna waste your life, your existence, your bias. I'm gonna go take that and I'm gonna squander it on reckless living. And I guess we don't know for sure. He, it doesn't say he spends it on prostitutes. That's something his brother says later and assumes he did. So I, I don't know that we do that. But either way, I'm gonna take what's yours, your very life, your very essence. And also that my life, my essence, the gift you've given me as my father, you've given me my life. In addition now to your life or a portion of your life. And I'm gonna go squander that on reckless living, right? Like, how much of a picture of sin is that, that we, we take what we've been given by God, our very life, our very essence, we owe him everything, and we squander that on sinful, reckless living. That that's just a slap in the face in the best way right out of the gate here.  [00:34:28] Jesse Schwamb: Yes, that, that's a great point because it's, it would be one thing to rebel over disobedience, another thing to use the very life essence that you've been given for destructive, self-destructive purposes. And then to use that very energy, which is not yours to begin with, but has been imbued in yours, external, all of these things. And then to use that very thing as the force of your rebellion. So it's double insult all the way around. I'm with you in the use of Greek there. Thank you. Locus Bio software. Not a sponsor of the podcast, but could be. And I think that's why sometimes in translations you get the word like a state because it's like the closest thing we can have to understanding that it's property earned through someone's life more or less. Yeah. And then is passed down, but as representative, not just of like, here's like 20 bucks of cash, but something that I spent all of me trying to earn and. And to your point, also emphasizing in the same way that this son felt it was owed him. So it's like really bad all around and I think we would really be doing ourselves a disservice if we didn't think that there's like a little bit of Paul washer saying in this, like I'm talking about you though. So like just be like, look at how disrespectful the sun is. Yeah. Haven't we all done this? To God and bringing up the idea of prodigal being, so that, that is like the amazing juxtaposition, isn't it? Like Prodigal is, is spent recklessly, parsimonious would be like to, to save recklessly, so to speak. And then you have the love the father demonstrates coming against all of that in the same way with like a totally different kind of force. So.  [00:36:02] The Famine and Realization [00:36:02] Jesse Schwamb: What I find interesting, and I think this is like set up in exactly what you said, is that when you get to verse 14 and this famine comes, it's showing us, I think that like providence exposes what Sin conceals.  [00:36:16] Tony Arsenal: Yeah.  [00:36:16] Jesse Schwamb: And want arrives. Not just because like the money ran out, but because again, like these idols, what he's replaced the father with, they don't satisfy. And repentance then often begins when God shows the emptiness of light apart life apart from him. That's like the affirmation being born out of the denial. And so I think that this also is evolving for us, this idea that God is going to use hardship, not as mere punishment, but as mercy that wakes us up and that the son here is being woken up, but not, of course, it's not as if he goes into the land, like you said, starts to spend, is like, whoa, hold on a second. This seems like a bad idea. It's not until all of that sin ever, like the worship of false things collapses under its own weight before it, which is like the precursor of the antecedent, I think, to this grand repentance or this waking up.  [00:37:05] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. And you know, I also think it's, um.  [00:37:08] The Depths of Desperation [00:37:08] Tony Arsenal: A feature of this that I haven't reflected on too deeply, but is, is worth thinking about is the famine that's described here only occurs in this far country that he's in. [00:37:17] Jesse Schwamb: Yeah.  [00:37:17] Tony Arsenal: Right. So even that's right. And this is like a multitude of foolish decisions. This is compounding foolish decisions that don't, don't make any sense. Like they don't really actually make any sense. Um. There's not a logic to this, this lost son's decision making. He takes the property. Okay. I guess maybe like you could be anxious to get your inheritance, but then like he takes it to a far country. Like there's no reason for him to do that. If at any point through this sort of insane process he had stopped short, he would not have been in the situation he was in. Yes. And that, I love that phrase, that providence, you know, reveals, I don't know exactly how you said it, but like providence reveals what our sin can bring to us. Like he first see sins against his father by sort of like demanding, demanding his inheritance early. Then he takes it and he leaves his country for no reason. He goes to this far country, then he spends everything and then the famine arises. Right? And the famine arises in this other country.  [00:38:13] Jesse Schwamb: Right.  [00:38:13] Tony Arsenal: And that's, I think that is still again, like a picture of sin. Like we. We don't just, we don't just take what the father has and, and like spend it like that would be bad enough if we weren't grateful for what we have and what we've been given, and we just waste it. But on top of that, now we also have taken ourselves to a far country. Like we've gone away from the good, the good land of the Lord, as those who are not regenerate. We've gone away from the, the Lord into this far country. And it's not until we start to have this famine that we recognize what we've done. And again, this is, this is where I think we get a picture. There's so many theological, like points in this parable particular that it almost feels a little bit like a, like a. Parable that's intended to teach some systematic theology about for sure, the oral salus, which I think there's probably a lot of like biblical theology people that are ready to just crawl through the screen and strangle me for saying that. But this is such a glorious picture of, of regeneration too. [00:39:16] The Journey Back to the Father [00:39:16] Tony Arsenal: Like he comes to himself, there's nothing, there's nothing in the story that's like, oh, and the servant that he was, the other servant he was talking to mentioned that the famine, like there's nothing here that should prompt him to want to go back to his home, to think that his father could or would do anything about it, except that he comes to himself. He just comes to the realization that his father is a good man and is wise and has resources, and has takes care of his, of his servants on top of how he takes care of his sons. That is a picture of regeneration. There's no, yeah. Logical, like I'm thinking my way into it, he just one day realizes how much, how many of my father's servants have more than enough bread. Right. But I'm perishing here in this, this foolish other country with nothing. Right. I can't even, and the, the pods that the pigs ate, we can even, we can get into the pods a little bit here, but like. He wants to eat the pods. The pods that he's giving the pigs are not something that's even edible to humans. He's that destitute, that he's willing to eat these pods that are like, this is the leftover stuff that you throw to the pigs because no, no, nobody and nothing else can actually eat it. And that's the state he's in at the very bottom, in the very end of himself where he realizes my father is good and he loves me, and even if I can never be his son again, surely he'll take care of me. I mentioned it last week, like he wasn't going back thinking that this was gonna be a failing proposition. He went back because he knew or he, he was confident that his father was going to be able to take care of him and would accept him back. Right. Otherwise, what would be the point of going back? It wasn't like a, it wasn't like a, um, a mission he expected to fail at. He expected there to be a positive outcome or he wouldn't have done it. Like, it wouldn't make any sense to try that if there wasn't the hope of some sort of realistic option.  [00:41:09] Jesse Schwamb: And I think his confidence in that option, as you were saying, is in this way where he's constructed a transaction. Yeah. That he's gonna go back and say, if you'll just take me out as a slave, I know you have slaves, I will work for you. Right. Therefore, I feel confident that you'll accept me under those terms because I'll humble myself. And why would you not want to remunerate? Me for the work that I put forward. So you're right, like it's, it's strange that he basically comes to this, I think, sense that slavery exists in his life and who would he rather be the slave of,  [00:41:38] Tony Arsenal: right? [00:41:39] Jesse Schwamb: Yeah. And so he says, listen, I'm gonna come to the father and give him this offer. And I'm very confident that given that offer and his behavior, what I know about how he treats his other slaves, that he will hire me back because there's work to do. And therefore, as a result of the work I put forward, he will take care of me. How much of like contemporary theology is being preached in that very way right now?  [00:41:58] Tony Arsenal: Yeah.  [00:41:59] Jesse Schwamb: And that's really like why the minimum wages of sin is all of this stuff. It's death. It's the consequences that we're speaking about here. By the way, the idea about famine is really interesting. I hadn't thought about that. It is interesting, again, that sin casts him out into this foreign place where the famine occurs. And that famine is the beginning of his realization of the true destruction, really how far he's devolved and degraded in his person and in his relationships and in his current states. And then of course, the Bible is replete with references and God moving through famine. And whereas in Genesis, we have a local famine, essentially casting Joseph brothers into a foreign land to be freed and to be saved.  [00:42:39] Tony Arsenal: Right.  [00:42:40] Jesse Schwamb: We have the exact opposite, which is really kind of interesting. Yeah. So we probably should talk about, you know, verse 15 and the, and the pig stuff. I mean, I think the obvious statement here is that. It would be scandalous, like a Jewish hero would certainly feel the shame of the pigs. They represent UNC cleanliness and social humiliation. I'm interested again, in, in this idea, like you've started us on that the freedom that this younger brother sought for becomes slavery. It's kind of bondage of the wills style. Yeah. Stuff. There's like an, an attentiveness in the story to the degrading reversal in his condition. And it is interesting that we get there finally, like the bottom of the pit maybe, or the barrel is like you said, the pods, which it's a bit like looking at Tide pods and being like, these are delicious. I wish I could just eat these. So I, I think your point isn't lost. Like it's not just that like he looked at something gross and was so his stomach was grumbling so much that he might find something in there that he would find palatable. It, it's more than that. It's like this is just total nonsense. It, this is Romans one. [00:43:45] Tony Arsenal: Yeah. Yeah. And these pods, like, these aren't, um, you know, I guess I, I don't know exactly what these are. I'm sure somebody has done all of the historical linguistic studies, but the Greek word is related to the, the word for keratin. So like the, the same, the same root word. And we have to be careful not to define a Greek word based on how we use it. That's a reverse etymology fallacy. Like dunamis doesn't mean dynamite, it's the other direction. But the Greek word is used in other places, in Greek literature to describe like the horns of rhinoc, like,  [00:44:21] Jesse Schwamb: right,  [00:44:21] Tony Arsenal: this, these aren't like. These aren't pea pods. I've heard this described like these are like little vegetable pods. No, this is like they're throwing pieces of bone to the pigs.  [00:44:31] Jesse Schwamb: Yeah.  [00:44:31] Tony Arsenal: And the pigs, the pigs can manage it. And this is what this also like, reinforces how destitute and how deep the famine is. Like this isn't as though, like this is the normal food you give to pigs. Like usually you feed pigs, like you feed pigs, like the extra scraps from your table and like other kinds of like agricultural waste. These are, these are like chunks of bony keratin that are being fed to the pigs. So that's how terrible the famine is that not even the pigs are able to get food.  [00:45:00] Jesse Schwamb: Right?  [00:45:00] Tony Arsenal: They're given things that are basically inedible, but the pigs can manage it. And this, this kid is so hungry, he's so destitute that he says, man, I wish I could chew on those bony, those bony pods that I'm feeding them because that's how hungry and starved I am. You get the picture that this, um. This lost son is actually probably not just metaphorically on the brink of death, but he's in real risk of starvation, real risk of death that he, he can't even steal. He can't even steal from the pigs what they're eating, right? Like he can't even, he can't even glean off of what the pigs are eating just to stay alive. He, he's literally in a position where he has no hope of actually rescuing himself. The only thing that he can do, and this is the realization he has, the only thing he can do is throw himself back on the mercy of his father.  [00:45:50] Jesse Schwamb: That's  [00:45:50] Tony Arsenal: right. And, and hope, again, I think hope with confidence, but hope that his father will show mercy on him and his, his conception. I wanna be careful in this parable not to, I, I think there's something to what you're getting at or kinda what you're hinting at, that like his conception of mercy is. Not the full picture of the gospel. Yes. His conception of mercy is that he's going to be able to go and work and be rewarded for his laborers in a way that he can survive. And the gospel is so much broader and so much bigger than that. But at the same time, I think it's, it's actually also a confident hope, a faith-filled hope that his father's mercy is going to rescue him, is going to save him. So it is this picture of what we do. And, and I think, I think sometimes, um, I want to be careful how we say this 'cause I don't wanna, I don't want to get a bunch of angry emails and letters, but I think sometimes we, um, we make salvation too much of a theology test. And there's probably people that are like, Tony, did you really just say that? I think there are people who trust in the Lord Jesus thinking that that means something akin to what. This lost son thinks  [00:47:03] Jesse Schwamb: Right.  [00:47:03] Tony Arsenal: Exactly. They trust. They trust that Jesus is merciful and, and I'm not necessarily thinking of Roman Catholics. I'm not thinking of Roman Catholic theology for sure. I do think there are a fair number of Roman Catholic individuals that fall into this category where they trust Jesus to save them. Right. They just don't fully understand exactly what Jesus means, what that means for them to be saved. They think that Christ is a savior who will provide a way for them to be saved by His grace that requires them to contribute something to it. Arminians fall into that category. Right. I actually think, and I, I think there's gonna be if, if there's, if the one Lutheran who listens to our show hears this is gonna be mad, but I actually think Lutheran theology kind of falls into this in a sort of negative fashion in that you have to not resist grace in order to be saved. So I think. That is something we should grapple with is that there are people who fit into that category, but this is still a faith-filled, hope-filled confidence in the mercy of the father in this parable that he's even willing to make the journey back. Right? This isn't like right, he walks from his house down the street or from the other side of town. He's wandering back from a far country. He, he went into a far country. He has to come back from a far country. And yes, the father greets him from afar and sees him from afar. But we're not talking about like from a far country. Like he sees him coming down the road, it, he has to travel to him, and this is a picture of. The hope and the faith that we have to have to return to God, to throw ourselves on the mercy of Christ, trusting that he has our best interest in mind, that he has died for us, and that it is for us. Right? There's the, the knowledge of what Christ has done, and then there's the ascent to the truth of it. And then the final part of faith is the confidence or the, the faith in trust in the fact that, that is for me as well, right? This, this is a picture of that right here. I, I don't know why we thought we were gonna get through the whole thing in one week, Jesse. We're gonna spend at least two weeks on this lost son, or at least part of the second week here. But he, this is, this is also like a picture of faith. This is why I say this as like a systematic theology lesson on soteriology all packed into here. Because not only do we have, like what is repentance and or what does regeneration look like? It's coming to himself. What does repentance look like? Yes. Turning from your sins and coming back. What is, what is the orde solis? Well, there's a whole, there's a whole thing in here. What is the definition of faith? Well, he knows that his father is good. That he has more than enough food for his servants. He, uh, is willing to acknowledge the truth of that, and he's willing to trust in that, in that he's willing to walk back from a far country in order to lay claim to that or to try to lay claim to it. That's a picture of faith right there, just in all three parts. Right. It's, it's really quite amazing how, how in depth this parable goes on this stuff,  [00:49:54] Jesse Schwamb: right? Yeah. It's wild to note that as he comes to himself, he's still working. Yeah, in that far off country. So this shows again that sin is this cruel master. He hits the bottom, he wants the animal food, but he's still unfed. And this is all the while again, he has some kind of arrangement where he is trying to work his way out of that and he sees the desperation. And so I'm with you, you know, before coming to Christ, A person really, I think must come to themselves and that really is like to say they need to have a sober self-knowledge under God, right? Yeah. Which is, as we said before, like all this talk about, well Jesus is the answer. We better be sure what the question is. And that question is who am I before God? And this is why, of course, you have to have the law and gospel, or you have to have the the bad news before you can have the good news. And really, there's all of this bad news that's delivered here and this repentance, like you've been saying, it's not just mere regret, we know this. It's a turning, it's a reorientation back to the father. He says, I will arise and go to my father. So yeah, also it demonstrates to me. When we do come to ourselves when there's a sober self-knowledge under God, there is a true working out of salvation that necessarily requires and results in some kind of action, right? And that is the mortification of sin that is moving toward God again, under his power and direction of the Holy Spirit. But still there is some kind of movement on our part. And so that I think is what leads then in verse 19, as you're saying, the son and I do love this 'cause I think this goes right back to like the true hope that he has, even though it might be slightly corrupted or slightly wa

(Presented by Material Security: We protect your company's most valuable materials -- the emails, files, and accounts that live in your Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 cloud offices.) Three Buddy Problem - Episode 83: Poland's CERT documents a rare, explicit wiper attack on civilians in a NATO country, including detailed attribution of a Russian government op targeting the electric grid in the heart of winter. We examine why this crosses a long-avoided threshold, why attribution suddenly matters again, and what it says about pre-positioned access, vendor insecurity, and the shrinking gap between cyber operations and acts of war. Plus, another Fortinet fiasco, a new batch of Ivanti zero-days under attack, an emergency patch from Microsoft and the return of the mysterious KasperSekrets account. Cast: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade, Ryan Naraine and Costin Raiu.

Rhian Stephenson is a nutritionist, naturopath and founder of ARTAH, the practitioner-led supplement brand built around a core belief: performance starts with your health.In this episode, Rhian shares the realities of building a company in the wellness space, how to stay healthy while navigating the pressures of entrepreneurship & why understanding your physiology is one of the most powerful business tools you have.We cover: Think of yourself as your business's most important assetYour performance will affect the whole teamYour health is vital: try keeping a one-month food/energy logKnow that protein is fuelUnderstand your needs and proactively manage your mind/food/exercisePrioritise and be disciplined about doing what you can in these areasTry having a mentor, like a sports coach, to help you keep improvingBeing self-employed is both the hardest the most rewarding way of workingFibre (we should all be having 30 gm a day) affects mood, energy and immune systemsFemale founders have to accept they are cyclical, and that ageing affects oestrogen levelsIf in any doubt have your hormone levels checkedMagnesium aids good sleepTry to speak to other foundersKnow that constant comparison via social media is simply destructive - try breaks from itRhian has seen first-hand, both in clinical practice and as a founder herself, how many people push themselves to the point of burnout while building businesses. Her mission with ARTAH is not only to create targeted, science-backed supplements but also to empower people, especially entrepreneurs, to protect their minds and bodies as they grow their careers.FF&M enables you to own your own PR & produces podcasts.Recorded, edited & published by Juliet Fallowfield, 2024 MD & Founder of PR & Communications consultancy for startups Fallow, Field & Mason.  Email us at hello@fallowfieldmason.com or DM us on instagram @fallowfieldmason. FF&M recommends: LastPass the password-keeping site that syncs between devices.Google Workspace is brilliant for small businessesBuzzsprout podcast 'how to' & hosting directoryCanva has proved invaluable for creating all the social media assets and audio bites.MUSIC CREDIT Funk Game Loop by Kevin MacLeod.  Link &  LicenceText us your questions for future founders. Plus we'd love to get your feedback, text in via Fan MailSupport the show

Eine gute Nachricht landet selten im Flutlicht – sie findet ihren Wert im Fokus. Erik Pfannmöller, Gründer der Culture Code Foundation, zeigt, warum effiziente Messenger-Kommunikation Haltung und Klarheit verlangt. Zwischen fragmentierten Nachrichten, chaotischen Kanälen und stummen Emojis steht die Frage: Wann wird digitale Zusammenarbeit zu echter Teamkultur und wann erschöpft sie? Ein Plädoyer für Struktur, Wertschätzung und den Mut, aus dem Strom auszusteigen. Du erfährst... ...wie Erik Pfannmöller effiziente Messenger-Kommunikation gestaltet ...warum klare, strukturierte Nachrichten den Arbeitsfluss verbessern ...welche Rolle Vertrauen und Feedback in der Teamkultur spielen __________________________ ||||| PERSONEN |||||

(Presented by Material Security: We protect your company's most valuable materials -- the emails, files, and accounts that live in your Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 cloud offices.) Three Buddy Problem - Episode 82: We parse news that China-linked VoidLink is a malware framework created entirely by AI and the collapsing line between elite APT operations and everyday threat actors. Plus, a new Sean Heelan essay on low-cost exploit generation and why “AI guardrails” are mostly a comforting myth; AI slop overwhelming bug bounty programs; CISA's new Brickstorm YARA rules; and fresh research on a wiper-malware found in Russian attacks against Poland's electricity sector. Cast: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade, Ryan Naraine and Costin Raiu.

Live from the floor of BETT UK 2026, we sit down with Shantanu, who leads product and engineering for Google for Education, to discuss how AI is moving from "promise to practice" in classrooms worldwide. Shantanu reveals how Google is prioritizing educator control and student data privacy while rolling out powerful tools like Gemini 3.0, which is now accessible for free to education institutions. From the "LearnLM" initiative that fine-tunes models with learning science to new features in Google Classroom that can turn content into audio lessons, we explore how technology is being designed to meet the unique pedagogical needs of schools. We also dive into the transformative potential of personalization and accessibility, hearing how tools like NotebookLM allow users to convert complex research into podcasts or slide decks that suit their learning style. Shantanu shares insights from global pilots—including one in Northern Ireland where educators saved up to 10 hours a week—and discusses the importance of AI literacy resources like the gamified "AI Quest" for younger learners. Whether you are an educator looking to save time or a leader navigating the ethics of AI integration, this conversation offers a deep look into the future of the Google Workspace ecosystem. Ready to experience the innovation firsthand? Make sure to check out what is happening at BETT UK 2026 at https://uk.bettshow.com/ to join the global community of educators transforming the future. This episode is proudly sponsored by Edmentum – visit them at https://www.edmentum.com/ – and by Edruption, powering the future of learning at https://edruption.com/.

(Presented by Material Security (https://material.security): We protect your company's most valuable materials -- the emails, files, and accounts that live in your Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 cloud offices.) Three Buddy Problem - Episode 81: We dissect New York Times reporting on the "precision" of US cyber operations in Venezuela, the competing narratives around offensive cyber capabilities and "letters of marque" for private hackers. Plus, a mysterious failed cyber attack on Poland's power grid, internet blackouts in Iran (with fascinating DNS telemetry revealing Chinese bank traffic and Russian website spikes), and news of China's ban on US/Israeli cybersecurity software. We also cover Check Point's research on "VoidLink" (is it a successor to ShadowPad?), Microsoft's threat intelligence sharing practices, and Google Project Zero's disclosure of zero-click vulnerabilities caused by AI-powered transcription features. Cast: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (https://twitter.com/juanandres_gs), Ryan Naraine (https://twitter.com/ryanaraine) and Costin Raiu (https://twitter.com/craiu).

How I Would Start My Private Practice: with $1,000What would it actually look like to launch a solo private practice with just $1,000? In this episode, Julie Herres kicks off a practical three-part series walking you through exactly how she would build a private practice from the ground up—starting with a shoestring budget. Julie shares candid insights, must-have tools, and where not to spend your cash, all while keeping things approachable (and a little bit fun).  What You'll Learn:How to Prioritize Your $1,000Which foundational steps are absolutely necessary, and what can wait until later DIY Strategies to Stretch Your BudgetCommon Pitfalls to AvoidResources and LinksPrivate Practice Startup Course: https://www.greenoakaccounting.com/startup12Paperwork Packages:Private Practice Startup Paperwork Base: https://www.privatepracticestartup.com/private-practice-paperwork-basePrivate Practice Startup paperwork: https://the-private-practice-startup.thrivecart.com/base-package-299/?affiliate=greenoakFree HIPAA add-on: https://www.privatepracticestartup.com//hipaa-form?affiliate=greenoakBe Your Own Biller:Membership: https://www.beyourownbiller.com/byob-membershipCourse: https://www.beyourownbiller.com/ LLC/PLLC: Typically $50–$100 (check your state's Secretary of State website)Domain Name:$15/year at the time of recordingvia Squarespace: https://www.squarespace.com/or Wix: https://www.wix.com/ Google Workspace (Email): $14/month at the time of recordingSign up: https://workspace.google.com/Google Workspace for Business: https://workspace.google.com/lp/business/ How to get a BAA from Google (for HIPAA): https://support.google.com/a/answer/3407054?hl=enEMR/EHR: $50–$100/month (compare options for features, ease, and integration)Miscellaneous Listings or Memberships: $0–$50/month (Psychology Today, TherapyDen, etc.)Wix Website: Core or Light plan

Has organizational change redefined your job role? If it hasn't yet, it will at some point. Whether acknowledged or ignored, every organizational change at a company impacts you. This is broader than just layoffs and more employees under a single manager. What are the organizational changes we might see, and what can we do to stand out and stay the course? This week in episode 355 we're joined by guest Ryan Conley. Listen closely as we uncover different patterns of organizational change and provide practical tips to take action when those changes happen. Ryan helps us understand the corporate lifecycle and how to reframe this concept to understand where we are in the career lifecycle. You'll hear from Ryan's personal experience why the most resilient (and successful) technologists can identify and fill the gaps left after an organizational change whether that means working for a new boss, joining a different team, or changing job roles. Original Recording Date: 11-13-2025 Topics – Framing Our Focus on Organizational Change, Observations and Patterns, Defining the Career Lifecycle, When Colleagues Leave the Company, Layoff Resources, Working for a New Boss, Becoming Part of a Different Team, Shifting Job Roles or Job Level Changes, Parting Thoughts 2:58 – Framing Our Focus on Organizational Change Ryan Conley is a global field principal with 11p years of technical pre-sales experience. Before this, Ryan accumulated 13 years of systems administration in industries like education, finance, and consulting. In a recent episode of our show, guest Milin Desai compared organizations to living, breathing organisms that change. Nick posits that we don't always think changes at our company will or can affect us as employees, but they do. Ryan references Aswath Damodaran's writings about organizational change through the frame of a corporate lifecycle. We can relate by considering where our company might be in that lifecycle. As we experience the impacts of organizational change, Ryan encourages us to consider where we are in our career lifecycle. 4:19 – Observations and Patterns We see organizational change in different ways. What are some of the things Ryan has seen that he would classify as organizational changes? Let's take a step back, past the current headlines, and look at the wider industry. Companies are growing inorganically (through mergers and acquisitions) or organically through investments in R&D (research and development), for example. Ryan has worked with companies that grew by acquiring 2 new companies each year to give an example. When you're on the IT side of the acquiring company, there is a lot involved in the process like integrating e-mail systems, networks, and CRM systems. This process also involves getting 2 teams to work together. If one team needs to move from Office 365 to Gmail, it can be a big adjustment to employees' daily workflow. The acquiring and acquired companies may have the same or very different cultures. In some cases, a company will want to acquire others with similar cultures, while some may not be concerned about the culture and choose to focus on the intellectual property (products or services, knowledge of how to build or manufacture something, etc.) of the company to be acquired. Nick says the experience for people on the side of the acquiring company and that of the company getting acquired can be quite different. Nick worked in IT for a manufacturing company for about 9 years, and over the course of his time there saw the company acquire several other companies. Nick usually had to go assess technology systems of companies that were going to be acquired and figure out how to integrate the systems in a way that would best service the user base. From what Nick has seen, some employees from the acquired company were integrated into the acquiring company, while others were eventually no longer with the company. Anxiety levels about an acquisition may be different depending on whether you work for the acquiring company or the acquired company. “The people are just as much of the intellectual property of the company as, in many cases, the actual assets themselves. And in some cases, that culture just isn't a fit.” – Ryan Conley Ryan shares the example of someone he knew who left after another company acquired their employer because the culture was not a fit. Losing a key leader or a key subject matter expert after an acquisition could create a retention problem because others may want to follow them or start looking elsewhere. "So how do you protect the culture internally? How do you integrate a different culture in? But also, how do you kind of protect the long-term viability of the team as individuals, first and foremost, but then also the organization long-term? Depending on the intellectual property the acquiring company is after, we don't usually know the level of due diligence completed to understand the key resources or subject matter experts who must be retained for longer-term success. Ryan encourages to imagine being the CTO or VP of Research and Development at a specific company that is suddenly acquired. People in these roles drive the direction of the technology investment for their company today as well as years to come. After being acquired, these people might be asked to work in lower levels of leadership with different titles, which could result in “title shock” and require some humility to accept. This scenario is a leadership change that happens as a result of an acquisition, but we might see leadership changes outside of acquisitions. Some leadership positions get created because of a specific need, others are eliminated for specific reasons, and some get shifted down or changed. Each of these changes has a downstream impact on individual contributors. Ryan talks about the positive impacts of leadership changes and gives the example of when a former manager was promoted to senior manager and allowed that person to hire a manager underneath him. There isn't always internal mobility, but leadership changes could create these opportunities for individuals. Nick talks about the potential impact of a change in our direct boss / manager. If a boss who was difficult to work for leaves the company, getting a different boss could make a huge positive impact on our daily work lives. Similarly, we might have a great boss leave the company or take a different role, requiring that we learn to work for someone else who may operate very differently. Ryan tells us he has worked for some amazing leaders and says a leader is not the same as a manager. Ryan cites an example of getting promoted into a role that allowed him to have more strategic conversations about the focus of a team with his boss. We can choose to mentor members of our team so that when opportunities arise from structural change, they are equipped to seize those opportunities. Change can be viewed as an opportunity. A company's overall priorities may have changed. Shifting priorities may require a company to operate very differently than it has in the past, which can cause changes to people, processes, and technology. Nick references a conversation with Milin Desai on constrained planning from Episode 351. Milin encourages regularly asking the question “is this still how we want to operate?” The way a company or team operated in the past may not be the best way to do it in the future. Changes to operations may or may not create opportunities for our career. Ryan loves this mindset of reassessing, which could apply to the company, a team, a business unit, the technology decision, etc. “I love the mindset of ‘what was best, why did we do it, and why was it best then?' And then the follow up question is ‘is that still best today?' And it's ok if the answer is no because that leads to the next question – ‘how should we be doing it today…and why?'” – Ryan Conley, commenting on Milin Desai's concept of constrained planning Ryan talks about companies reassessing their core focus. We've seen some companies divest out of a particular space, for example. Nick says this reassessment could result in a decision to pursue an emerging market which could lead to the creation of a new business unit and new jobs / opportunities for people. It could also go in the other direction where the company decides to shut down an entire business unit. 15:30 – Defining the Career Lifecycle Going back to the analogy Ryan shared about corporate lifecycle, we can reframe this and look at the career lifecycle. “Where are you at in your individual career journey? Where are you at in that lifecycle?” – Ryan Conley People close to retirement may be laser focused on doing well in their current role and hesitant to make a change. Others earlier in the career may want to do more, go deeper, or be more open to making a change. Ryan recounts speaking to a peer who is working on a master's degree in AI. “With challenge comes opportunity, so do you want to try something new? And it's ok if the answer's no. But if there is an opportunity to try something new and you're willing to invest in yourself and in your company, I think that's worth considering.” – Ryan Conley We've talked to a number of former guests who got in on a technology wave at just the right time, which led to new opportunities and an entirely new career trajectory. Becoming aware of and developing expertise in emerging technologies can lead to new opportunities within your company (i.e. being able to influence the use of that technology within your company). “I think as technologists, whether you're a business leader over technology, whether you're day in / day out in technology as an individual contributor…emerging technology brings new challenges, just with a learning curve…. There's hard skills that have to be learned. You get beyond the education it's then also sharing with the peers around you…. So, what was best yesterday? Is it still best today? And tomorrow, we'll ask the question again.” – Ryan Conley Ryan says this goes back to our analogy. Should we be doing certain things manually now, or is it better to rely on tools that can help automate the process? If we go back for a second to Ryan's previous mention of integrating the technology stack for different companies, being part of the integration process might enable someone to learn an entire new technology stack. We might have to assess what is best between Google Workspace and Microsoft 365, for example, and develop the transition plan to move from one to the other and perhaps even capture the business case for using both within a company. To Ryan, this is an example of seeing a problem or gap and working to fill it. “If you want to be just a long-standing contributor to the team and your individual organization, I think it's worth calling out…those who stick around longer and get promoted faster are the ones who see a gap and they plug it.” – Ryan Conley Ryan shares a personal story about a co-worker who attended a Microsoft conference on their own dime. This person worked over a weekend to setup a solution that saved the team significant time doing desktop imaging. But then, Ryan's colleague took it a step further and trained the team on how to use it. Nick highlights the fact that we should remember to document our accomplishments to keep track of how we've changed as a result. We can use this information when searching for new opportunities or even in conversations with our leader. 20:34 – When Colleagues Leave the Company Another form of organizational change we've seen is outsourcing specific business functions. Daniel Paluszek spoke about companies outsourcing functions outside of their core business in Episode 338. If IT is outside the core business, a company might decide to outsource it. It doesn't mean that's the right decision, but it could be a possibility. Companies may outsource other functions like HR and payroll as well to give other examples. If IT was internal and it gets outsourced, that is an organizational change and will affect some people. Similarly, insourcing a function which was previously outsourced will have an impact. Ryan has learned in the last few years that some people are more adaptable to change than others. “And it's not just looking at the silver lining. It's recognizing the change. Maybe there's a why, and maybe there isn't a why. Or maybe the why hasn't been clearly articulated to you. Being able to understand, what does this mean to me…. As an organization do I still believe in them? Do I still believe in the technology as a technologist? Do I still enjoy the people I work with? Those are all questions that come up, but ultimately you have to decide…is this change I want to roll with? Is this change I don't want to roll with?” – Ryan Conley To illustrate, Ryan gives the example of a peer who left an organization after seeing a change they didn't like in order to shift the focus of their role from technology operations to more of a site reliability engineering focus. While this type of change that results in a talented individual leaving an organization can be difficult for teammates to accept and for a manager to backfill, these types of changes that are beneficial to someone's career should be celebrated. When we assess whether the changes made at a company are those we can accept and roll with, we can first make sure we understand what we are to focus on as individuals operating within the organization. We have an opportunity to relay that to other members of our team for the benefit of the overall team culture and to build up those who do not adapt to change well. Understanding organizational changes and what they mean for individuals may take repetition. While Ryan understands that he responds well to change, he remains empathetic to those folks to need to hear the message a few times to fully understand. Nick says we can learn from the circumstances surrounding someone leaving the company. For those we know, what interested them about taking a role at another company? Perhaps they took a role you've never thought about for yourself that could be something you pursue in the future. If a member of your team leaves the company, sometimes their role gets backfilled, and other times it may not. If the role is backfilled, you get to learn from a new team member. If not, the responsibilities of the departing team member will likely be divided among other team members. Though it would result in extra work, you could ask to take on the responsibility that would both increase your skill set and make you more valuable to the company. When Ryan worked for a hedge fund, the senior vice president left the company. This person was managing the company's backups. Ryan had experience in this area from a previous role at a consulting firm and volunteered to do it. Shortly after taking on this responsibility for backups, he found that restoring backups from tape and needing to order new servers posed a huge risk to the company in a disaster scenario (i.e. would take weeks to restore everything). Ryan was able to write up a business plan to address the business continuity risk and got it approved by the COO. “Being able to see a gap and fill it is the central theme, and that came from change.” – Ryan Conley Ryan says if you're willing to do a little more work, it is worth the effort to see a gap and work to fill it. 27:34 – Layoff Resources We acknowledged some of the byproducts of organizational change like layoffs and flatter organizations in the beginning of our discussion. We are not sidestepping the fact that layoffs happen, but that is not the primary focus of our discussion today. Here are a few things that may help if you find yourself being impacted by a layoff: First, know that you are not alone in experiencing this. “When a layoff hits, it's important to remember…it's extremely rare that that's going to be personal. Once it's firmly accepted, look for the opportunity in a forced career change. It's there.” – thought shared with us by Megan Wills Check out our Layoff Resources Page to find some of the most impactful conversations on the topic of layoffs on our show to date. We also have our Career Uncertainty Action Guide with a checklist of the 5 pillars of career resilience as well as reusable AI prompts to help you think through topics like navigating a recent layoff, financial planning, or managing your mindset and being overwhelmed. 28:43 – Working for a New Boss Let's move on to section 2 of our discussion. If you're still at a company after an organization change has happened, we want to talk through some of the ways you can take control, take action, and succeed. We want to share a thought from former guest Daniel Lemire as we begin this discussion: “Companies are the most complicated machine man has ever built. We build great machines to accomplish as set of goals, objectives, or outputs. The better you can understand the value the company delivers…the faster you can understand where you fit in that equation. If you don't understand where you contribute to that value, there's work to be done. That work may be on you, may be on your skills, or perhaps it's your understanding of where you fit into that equation.” – Daniel Lemire Let's say that you're impacted by an organizational change and will be working for a new boss. What can we control, and how to we make a positive impact? Ryan says we can be an asset to the team and support larger business goals by first giving some thought to who the new boss is as a person. Try to get to know them on a personal level. Ryan wants to get to know a new boss and be able to ask them difficult questions. Similarly, he wants a boss to be able to ask him difficult questions. Meeting a new boss face-to-face is ideal if that is possible, but this can be more difficult to arrange if your boss lives a large distance from you. Make sure you understand the larger organization's mission statement. As individual contributors, we may lose sight of this over time. “If that is important to the team and the culture, I think it's worth making sure you're aligned with that. I think it's worth understanding your direct manager's alignment toward that and then having that kind of fuel the discussions…. What are you expecting of me? Here are my expectations of you as my manager. Where do you see change in the next 6, 12, 18 months?” – Ryan Conley, on using mission to drive conversations with your manager A manager may not have all the answers to your questions. They could also be inheriting a new team. Ryan encourages us to ask how we can help our manager to develop the working relationship further. This is something he learned from a previous boss who would close every 1-1 with “is there anything else I can do to help?” Nick says a manager may be able to contextualize the organization's mission statement for the team and its members better than we can do for ourselves. For example, the mission and focus of the team may have changed from what it once was. A new manager should (and likely will) set the tone. Nick would classify Ryan's suggestions above as seeking to learn and understand how your new manager operates. Back in Episode 84 guest Brad Pinkston talked about the importance of wanting to know how his manager likes to communicate and be communicated with. This is about understanding your manager's communication preferences and can in some ways help set expectations. A manager may be brief when responding to text messages, for example, because they are in a lot of meetings. But if they tell you this ahead of time, it removes some assumptions about any hidden meanings in the response. Ryan gives the example of an executive who used to respond with Y for yes and N for no to e-mails when answering questions. We can also do research on a new boss in advance. We can look on LinkedIn to understand the person's background and work history. We can speak to other people inside the company to see what they know about the person. Ideally, get a perspective from someone who has worked for the manager in the past because a former direct report might be able to share some of the context about communication preferences and other lessons learned from working with that specific manager. We can also try to be mindful of how the manager's position may have changed due to organizational flattening. They may have moved from managing managers to having 15 direct reports who are individual contributors, for example. “Their time might be stretched thinner, and they're just trying to navigate this new leadership organizational change with you.” – Ryan Conley The manager may or may not have wanted the situation they are currently in. How is your boss measured by their boss, and how can you help them hit those metrics? You may not want to ask this in the first 1-1, but you should ask. Ryan suggests asking your boss what success looks like in their role. You can also ask what success for the team looks like in a year and what it will take to get there. Based on the answer, it might mean less 1-1s but more in depth each time, more independence than you want, or even more responsibility than you wanted or expected. Ultimately, by asking these questions, you're trying to help the team be more successful. We want our manager to understand that we are a competent member of the team. Understanding what success looks like allows us to communicate with our manager in a way that demonstrates we are doing a good job. Some of the time in our 1-1s with a manager will be spent communicating the things we have completed or on which we are actively working. We need to demonstrate our ability to meet deadlines, for example. Daniel Lemire shared this book recommendation with us – The First 90 Days: Proven Strategies for Getting Up to Speed Faster and Smarter. It's a great resource for new leaders but also excellent for individual contributors. Ryan tells us to keep track of our wins over the course of any given year (something that was taught to him) so we have it ready for performance reviews. He encourages keeping a journal that we start in January. Keep track not only of what you did but the outcomes your work delivered and the success metrics. For example, if you gave a presentation, note the number of people present. The company culture may have some impact on the language you need to use to word your accomplishments (i.e. using “I” statements). “I didn't want to be the only person who could do it. I'd rather learn it and then enable 5 other people to do it. And then those 5 people go do it, and that is a much bigger outcome.” – Ryan Conley, on the outcome of efforts at work and being a force multiplier Have a journal of the things you do at work that you update consistently. This could be screenshots, a written description, etc. “What are the metrics that you should be tracking? Mentally think about that because…when you have your annual review, you're going to miss something. You're going to miss a detail. You're going to miss an entire line item versus if you started in January and you just get into the practice of ‘I did this.' And then when you're having your first annual review with this brand-new manager, it's far easier to have a more successful conversation.” – Ryan Conley, on the importance of documenting our work in a journal somewhere Ryan reminds us it is ok to use generative AI tools to check our work. Use multiple different tools to get suggestions on how you might want to phrase the outcomes you delivered and the metrics you tracked. Nick says we should document our accomplishments as Ryan mentioned, but we should make sure we keep a copy of them so that we do not need to rewrite them from nothing in the event we are impacted by a layoff. If the journal containing all of your accomplishments is sitting in the corporate OneDrive or cloud storage, you will lose access to it when you leave the company. Be sure you have a disaster recovery plan for your accomplishments! The new boss is probably going to have team calls of some kind. While what you experience may vary from this, in Nick's experience the first time a manager hosts a call with their team they will share some career background, how they operate, and give team members some idea of what to expect. This kickoff team call usually happens before 1-1s begin. Listen really carefully when this first team call happens. Write down some questions you can ask the boss in that first 1-1 conversation. The manager will have to lead that first 1-1 conversation a little bit, but coming into it prepared with questions will be far easier than trying to think of questions in the moment. A simple follow up question Ryan suggests is how the manager wants to handle time off. Is there a shared team calendar, a formal process, carte blanche, specific blackout dates to be aware of, etc.? We can handle the simple things about how this new manager operates and what their values are early on in our working relationship. Ryan tells us he learned far too late to ask how managers handle promotion / raise / career growth conversations. One of Ryan's past managers scheduled a quarterly checkpoint to specifically talk about career growth items. Ryan was in charge of making the agenda in advance, and his manager would come prepared to talk about each agenda item. It's ok to ask for these regular career discussions. If your manager has a large team, these may be less frequent than otherwise. Ask the manager about the best way for both you and them to come into these discussions prepared. Nick likes the idea of an individual owning the agenda for these conversations. Nick tells us about a manager who sent out 1-1s to team members and provided a menu of options for the types of things that could be discussed during the 1-1 time in the body of the meeting invitation. It helps give people ideas for things to discuss but also lets them know the overall intention of the 1-1s. For the very busy manager, we could ask to use a specific 1-1 to talk about career-related items rather than in a separate meeting (if needed). Nick mentions a recent episode of Unicorns in the Breakroom Podcast in which Amy Lewis talks about using a shared document for 1-1s to hold an employee accountable for bringing agenda items and to document what transpired in previous conversations. Along the lines of trying to be helpful to a new manager, ask how they want to handle team calls when on vacation. Will team calls be cancelled when the manager is on vacation, or are they looking for team member volunteers to host these calls? This may be an opportunity to step up and do more if you want that, especially if you want to gain some leadership experience. Ryan tells us at one point he was a team lead, and part of his responsibility was leading team calls in his manager's absence. This involved leading the call, taking notes, and taking action on follow up items from the meeting. We should bring up time sensitive items to the boss quickly, especially if something needs attention. Communicate things that have a financial impact to the company (a subscription renewal, drop dead due date to exit a datacenter facility, point at which access to something will be lost, etc.). Do not assume your manager knows if you are unsure! Ryan recounts a story from earlier in his career when a CFO wanted a specific number of users added to the Exchange server. There were several cascading impacts of completing this task that went well beyond the scope of licensing and involved procuring more hardware. Ryan took the time to explain the implications. “This is a simple ask. You want the answer to be yes, but I'm going to give you more context…. There is a deadline. I want to make sure we hit it as a team, but there are some implications to your ask. I want to make sure you're fully aware.” – Ryan Conley, on giving more context to leadership Share what you have in flight and the priorities of those items. The new manager may want you to change the priority level on some things. 45:21 – Becoming Part of a Different Team You could end up working on a completely different team of peers as a result of organizational change. You might work on the same team as people you already know but might not. You may or may not work for the same boss. Ryan and Nick have experienced very large reorganization events and ended up in different divisions than they were previously. Ryan had a change of manager, change of a peer he worked closely with, and joined a new team of individuals reporting up to the same boss all at once. “A little bit of the tough lesson is you go into a bigger pond…. I think it's ok to take a moment and pause. For me, I had to kind of reassess and kind of figure out…what are these changes? What are the new best ways to operate within this new division so to speak? …within my team, no one on my prior team was on my team, so it was like this whole new world.” – Ryan Conley After this change, Ryan saw an opportunity to go deeper into technology and chose to take a different role. Ryan worked for a new (to Ryan at least) leader who was very supportive of his career goals. This leader helped Ryan through the change of roles. “If you do good work, even through change…if you're identifying gaps, you're filling it, you're stepping up where the team needs you to step up, you're aligning with the business direction to stay focused…I think there can still be good outcomes even if in the interim period you're not 100% happy.” – Ryan Conley If you don't know anyone on your new team, you have an entire set of people from which you can now learn. Does your job function change as a result of joining this new team? Make sure you understand your role and its delineation from other roles. Maybe you serve larger customers or work on different kinds of projects. Maybe you support the technology needs of a specific business unit rather than what we might deem as working in corporate IT. Maybe you focus on storage and high-level architecture rather than only virtualization. It could be a chance to learn and go deeper in new areas. Did the focus of the overall team change (which can trickle down and impact your job function)? Maybe you're part of a technology team that primarily manages the outsourced pieces of the technology stack for your company. So instead of working with just employees of your company you now work with consulting firms and external vendors. Ryan says we can still be intentional about relationships and he illustrates the necessary intentionality with the story behind his pursuit of a new role. Ryan was intentional about his desire to join a new team after the reorganization, but it didn't work out on the timeline he wanted. He remained patient and in constant, transparent communication with a specific leader who would eventually advocate for him with the hiring manager. Just doing our job can be difficult when we're in a challenging situation like a manager we do not get along with, trying to evolve with a top-level strategy change, etc. This can involve internal politics. Stay the course. Ryan tells us about a lesson he learned when interviewing for a new role he wanted. “Maybe be a little bit more vocal. Pat yourself on the back in a concise way. Again…go back to your journal, know your metrics, and stick by them.” – Ryan Conley, on interviewing and humility Nick says the intentionality behind building relationships applies to your relationship with your boss (a new boss or your current boss that has not changed). This also applies to new teammates! What are the strengths in the people you see around you? Who volunteers to help? Who asks questions when others will not? Ryan shares a story about 2 peers who on the surface seemed to disagree a lot but ended up making each other better (and smarter) by often taking opposing sides on a topic. When one of them left the company, the other person missed getting that perspective and intellectual challenge. Ryan suggests we pay attention to the personalities of team members and the kinds of questions they ask. If a specific teammate tends to do all the talking in meetings, find ways to enable others to speak up who have valuable perspectives but may be quieter. This at its heart is about upleveling others. We can do that when we join a new team, but we can also do this for former teammates by keeping in touch with them over time. This could apply to former teammates who still work at the same company as well as those who have left the company. Ryan tells us a story about when he first made the transition from working in IT operations to getting hired at a technology vendor in a very different role. “It's very different being face-to-face as a consultant, face-to-face as a vendor. And I had a buddy. He started going back 11 years almost to the day here. We were each other's lifeline…. He would have a bad day, and he would call me. Most of the time I was just there to listen…. And then the next week it was my turn, and I would call him…. So having a buddy in these change situations I think is a great piece of advice.” – Ryan Conley It can be easy to fall out of touch with people we no longer interact with on a daily or weekly basis. This takes some effort. We've met people who try to setup a 1-1 with someone in their professional network once every 1-2 weeks. Ryan has a tremendous amount of empathy for others who have recently had a child, for example. We can buddy up with specific professional or life experience and take the opportunity to learn from them. Ryan refers to building an “alumni network” of people you want to remain close with over time. While this helps build our own set of professional connections, we can do this by mentoring others as well (a chance to give back, which is usually much less of a time commitment than we think). Ryan has mentored a number of new college graduates and managed to keep up with their progress over time. Listen to the way he describes the career progression of his mentees and the long-term relationships it produced. We might be mentoring others (on our own team or beyond). This could act as relatable experience for a future role as a team lead or people manager, but highlighting this experience to your manager is something you should do in those career conversations. In those 1-1s with your manager you are asking how you are doing but also how you can do better. Sometimes that means doing more of something you have done in the past. Ryan reminds us that the journal is a tracking mechanism for specific actions and their impact. Whether it's mentoring or helping the manager with hiring or candidate evaluation, be sure to track it! There might be a gap in expertise on your team that you can fill (either because you have a specific skill or because you learned a new skill to fill that gap). When joining a new team, do some observing and stay humble before you declare there is a gap and that you are the one to fill it. Ryan says we can raise gaps with our manager. For example, maybe there is only one person on the team who knows how to do something. Could you pair with that person and cover them while they are on vacation? “I think it goes back to recognizing that you cannot learn it all and then revaluating…what do I need to learn? So, there's certain functions that you have to know how to do, and that's where your manager's going to help you set those expectations…. We're in technology, so as a technologist, what do you want to learn? What do you want to do more of? And that could be a gap that you see, and you have that conversation….” – Ryan Conley If there is not an opportunity at work to learn what you want to learn (i.e. your manager might not support you doing more of specific work, etc.), you can learn it on your own time and then re-evaluate longer term what you want to do. 59:46 – Shifting Job Roles or Job Level Changes We talked about this a little bit earlier. Maybe you stay an individual contributor, move into leadership, or change leadership levels entirely within an organization. Ryan talks about the new expectations when you change your daily role. There are expectations we put on ourselves and those expectations put on us by our leaders. There are both opportunities and challenges. Ryan shares that he has been approached in the past to lead a team, but when this has happened, he took the time to think through what he wanted (his career ladder, his motivations, and his desired focus). “Leading people is not something that I want to currently focus on. I know what I'm motivated by. I'm a technologist at heart. I want to keep learning, and I personally like the technology that I'm focused on right now. And it's not that leadership would necessarily remove technology entirely…. It's just it would be a different focus area. And I think in your career journey it's worth just kind of keeping tabs on where you're at in your career (the ladder of change that we keep mentioning, that lifecycle)…. Do you want to go up the ladder as part of your lifecycle and get into a management role? I think mentorship can be very fulfilling. I think leading people can be very fulfilling. But in my case, I've decided I still want to stay an individual contributor. There's still aspirations that I have there….It's ok to say no is really what I'm getting at…. Really think about the job that you're in at the company that you're in. What are the opportunities within? What motivates you? And stay true to that.” – Ryan Conley Ryan has said no to being a people leader as well as to technical marketing roles. He had a desire to get through the principal program. He encourages listeners to think about whether they would be happy in 1-2 years if they took a new role before making the final decision. Nick mentions the above is excellent when you have the choice to take a new role. But what if it's forced on you as the result of an organizational change? We can recognize where we are in the career lifecycle even if an organizational change places us in a new role that was not our choice. Make sure you understand what the new role is, and think about how you can align it with where you are in the career lifecycle (including the goals you have and the things you want). Nick had a manager who encouraged his team to align their overall life purpose to the current job role or assignment. In doing this, it will be easier to prevent intertwining your identity with your job or your company. We may have to put out heads down and just do the work for a while. But maybe there is an opportunity to align with the things you want and the type of work you want to do which is not immediately obvious. In this job market, if you are employed, be thankful and do a great job. Ryan hopes listeners can think back to an unexpected change that happened which led to new opportunities later. “Pause, recollect, align your focus with your new manager, align your focus with either the changing mission statement or the current mission statement…. What is fulfilling you personally (your own internal values)? If they are being conflicted, I think there's a greater answer to some of your challenges, but they're not being conflicted how can you be your best self in a company without the company being all of yourself? …The cultural identity of the workplace and the home can sometimes be a little too close, a little to intertwined…. Maybe you're just way too emotionally invested in your day job and it's just a good moment to reset…. What is your value system? Why? And then how can you be your best self in your workplace? And I think far too often we want to have our dream job…. ‘A dream job is still a job. There are going to be days when it is just a really difficult day because it's a really difficult job. It's still your dream job, but every job is going to have a difficult day.'” – Ryan Conley Every job will be impacted by some kind of organizational change multiple times throughout your career. 1:06:18 – Parting Thoughts Ryan closes with a funny anecdote about a person who worked on the same team as him that he never had the chance to meet in person. In this case, the person invested more in their former team than meeting members of their new team. Maybe a good interview question for those seeking new roles could be something about organizational changes and how often they are happening at the company. Ryan encourages us to lead with empathy in this job market and consider how we can help others in our network who may be seeking new roles. Ryan likes to share job alerts on LinkedIn and mentions it has been great to see the formation of alumni groups. “Share your rolodex. Help people connect the dots. And lead with empathy.” – Ryan Conley To follow up on this conversation with Ryan, contact him on LinkedIn. Mentioned in the Outro A special thanks to former guest Daniel Lemire and listener Megan Wills for sharing thoughts on organizational change that we were able to include in this episode! Ryan told us we can lead with empathy when helping others looking for work in this job market, but Nick thinks it's empathy at work when we're asking a new boss or team member how we can help. If you want to bring more empathy to the workplace, check out Episode 278 – Uncovering Empathy: The Greatest Skill of an Inclusive Leader with Marni Coffey (1/3) in which guest Marni Coffey tells us about empathy as her greatest skill. It's full of excellent examples. If you're looking for other guest experiences with organizational change, here are some recommended episodes: Episode 210 – A Collection of Ambiguous Experiments with Shailvi Wakhlu (1/2) – Shailvi talks about a forced change of role that was actually an opportunity in disguise Episode 168 – Hired and Acquired with Mike Wood (1/2) – Mike Wood's company was acquired, and the amount of travel went up soon after to increase his stress. Episode 169 – A Thoughtful Personal Sabbatical with Mike Wood (2/2) – Mike Wood shares another acquisition story that this time ended with him taking a sabbatical. Episode 84 -Management Interviews and Transitions with Brad Pinkston – Brad Pinkston shares what he likes to do when working for a new boss. Contact the Hosts The hosts of Nerd Journey are John White and Nick Korte. E-mail: nerdjourneypodcast@gmail.com DM us on Twitter/X @NerdJourney Connect with John on LinkedIn or DM him on Twitter/X @vJourneyman Connect with Nick on LinkedIn or DM him on Twitter/X @NetworkNerd_ Leave a Comment on Your Favorite Episode on YouTube If you've been impacted by a layoff or need advice, check out our Layoff Resources Page. If uncertainty is getting to you, check out or Career Uncertainty Action Guide with a checklist of actions to take control during uncertain periods and AI prompts to help you think through topics like navigating a recent layoff, financial planning, or managing your mindset and being overwhelmed.

Sign up for the FREE Money Master Plan- For Therapists Scaling into a Group Practice → https://mccancemethod.com/master-your-money-mindset-organic/ In this episode, I dive into what it really means to lead your team without blurring the lines of friendship. I share some lessons from my own leadership journey, including the mistakes I've made and give you a framework for rewarding team members fairly and effectively.Make sure to bring your paper and pen because this episode is full of actionable tips!Here are some key points in this episode:[04:25] The tricky balance between being yourself and stepping fully into your CEO role[06:43] Why it's okay and even important to reward high performers, as long as it's performance-based[11:34] The 90-day check-in strategy that can help you lead more effectively[16:00] What types of communication should happen in person vs. team-wide[19:39] Why sensitive leaders make the best CEOs Links From The Episode:Want my Watch List? DM me @nicole.mccancemethod on Instagram with just two words “Watch List” and I will send it right your way. Click here: https://www.instagram.com/nicole.mccancemethod/Google Workspace: https://referworkspace.app.goo.gl/EtJ2Want to watch this episode on video? Check it out here on YouTube:  https://youtu.be/ualmhYtKQ7U Follow me on Instagram, @nicole.mccanncemethod. If this episode provided you with value and inspiration, please leave a review and DM to let me know. Click here: https://www.instagram.com/nicole.mccancemethod

Edtech ThrowdownEpisode 206: Google Vids vs Canva Video and WeVideoWelcome to the EdTech Throwdown. This is episode 206 called “Google Vids vs Canva Video and WeVideo” In this episode, we'll talk about a new-ish Google app called Google Vids and how it stacks up against other popular classroom video creation tools. This is another episode you don't want to miss. Check it out.Segment 1: What is Google Vids?Narrative: Have we ever solved the problem of fast and easy screencasts? A teacher asked me that this week and I realized I didn't have a great answer. ScreenPal has an extension, but the increased tools make it slower WeVideo has an extension, but it is clunky and not free Screencastify still exists, but have to pay after 10 videosReleased: Google Vids was first announced and released in preview during Google Cloud Next in April 2024, with a wider rollout to all Google Workspace users starting in November 2024 as an AI-powered video creation tool for work. What is it? It is a video editing platform that feels more like creating a Google Slide than a video editing platform. Is this a positive thing … not sure yet.Free Basic Version: All users get access to the web-based editor, allowing recording, importing clips, using templates, and basic editing. AI Extras (Paid): Advanced AI tools, such as AI-generated clips from prompts, AI avatars, and enhanced script/outline generation, require paid Google Workspace or AI plan subscriptions. What can it do?Screen records with or without webcamConverts slides to videoUpload your own photos and videos for editingHas video templates with title slides, animations, etc.Multiple layouts: landscape, portrait, squareHas stock audio from Youtube audio library - good music!Has most, if not all, typical video editing tools: playhead, video preview, splitting, multiple track editing, etc.Benefits:Integration: Works directly within...

(Presented by Material Security (https://material.security): We protect your company's most valuable materials -- the emails, files, and accounts that live in your Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 cloud offices.) Three Buddy Problem - Episode 80: Researcher Hamid Kashfi returns to unpack Iran's latest unrest, separating economic reality from propaganda while examining how information control, cyber pressure, and state surveillance are shaping events on the ground. Plus, did cyber make the lights go out in Venezuela? Cast: Hamid Kashfi (https://twitter.com/hkashfi), Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (https://twitter.com/juanandres_gs), Ryan Naraine (https://twitter.com/ryanaraine) and Costin Raiu (https://twitter.com/craiu).

(Presented by Material Security (https://material.security): We protect your company's most valuable materials -- the emails, files, and accounts that live in your Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 cloud offices.) Three Buddy Problem - Episode 79: We cover MongoBleed (CVE‑2025‑14847), exposed MongoDB deployments, and the sad realization that zero-day attacks are a normal, everyday occurrence. Plus, AI's expanding role and misuse across products and workflows, proximity attacks against Bluetooth audio devices, spyware sanctions de-listings, and ransomware economics. In a special mailbag segment, we give our book recommendations and respond to common questions from the listeners. Cast: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (https://twitter.com/juanandres_gs), Ryan Naraine (https://twitter.com/ryanaraine) and Costin Raiu (https://twitter.com/craiu).

Send us a textIn this quick tip episode of The Private Practice Survival Guide, Brandon breaks down the real reason most private practices fail a HIPAA compliance audit: they don't realize how easily PHI can be exposed—often in ways that can be interpreted as gross negligence. From front-desk conversations and sign-in sheets to visible computer screens, unsecured paper charts, and unencrypted communication, Brandon explains how common “everyday” workflows create preventable compliance risk.You'll learn the most frequent audit failures: missing Business Associate Agreements (BAAs) (including the often-missed process for tools like Google Workspace), inadequate staff training, weak access controls, lack of annual security risk assessments, outdated policies, poor physical safeguards, improper disposal practices, and delayed breach identification. Brandon also outlines practical fixes: annual HIPAA training with documentation, role-based access, MFA, encryption standards for PHI at rest and in transit, vendor BAA tracking, secure texting/communication evaluation, and stronger physical privacy measures.If you run or operate a private practice, this episode is a direct checklist for reducing audit exposure, protecting patient trust, and building compliance into daily operations—so your practice can thrive, not just survive.Welcome to Private Practice Survival Guide Podcast hosted by Brandon Seigel! Brandon Seigel, President of Wellness Works Management Partners, is an internationally known private practice consultant with over fifteen years of executive leadership experience. Seigel's book "The Private Practice Survival Guide" takes private practice entrepreneurs on a journey to unlocking key strategies for surviving―and thriving―in today's business environment. Now Brandon Seigel goes beyond the book and brings the same great tips, tricks, and anecdotes to improve your private practice in this companion podcast. Get In Touch With MePodcast Website: https://www.privatepracticesurvivalguide.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandonseigel/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brandonseigel/https://wellnessworksmedicalbilling.com/Private Practice Survival Guide Book

Bet you didn't know you could do THAT in Google Sheets.

We close the season by revisiting ten standout moments that shaped a year of change, from AI pricing and buying group leadership to gold's surge, fancy color diamonds, and how Tahitian pearls really form. • AI pricing tools and the case for fair markup• JewelCraft as the jeweler's jeweler for scale• Google Workspace as a collaboration backbone• IJO ownership shift and long-term vision• Gold price drivers from rates to geopolitics• Reporting crime with care, not hype• Fancy color diamonds and profit logic• JCK Las Vegas• RJO's leadership focus on systems and learning• Pearl farming truth beyond the sand myth Send us a text Send feedback or learn more about the podcast: punchmark.com/loupe Learn about Punchmark's website platform: punchmark.com Inquire about sponsoring In the Loupe and showcase your business on our next episode: podcast@punchmark.com

In Episode 224, Shanna highlights Google Vids, a video creation tool inside Google Workspace that makes it easy for students and teachers to create polished videos quickly. Students can convert existing Google Slides into videos, record their own voiceovers, and create engaging presentations in less time than traditional slide talks. Shanna shares classroom examples (like research projects), discusses differences between teacher and student account features, and explains how Vids supports creativity, accessibility, and AI prompting practice—making it a strong alternative as other video tools move behind paywalls.Mentioned in this episode:Education Podcast NetworkTech Tools for Teachers is part of the Education Podcast Network. https://www.edupodcastnetwork.com/This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis: Podcorn - https://podcorn.com/privacyPodtrac - https://analytics.podtrac.com/privacy-policy-gdrp

In this episode of Building Better Foundations, we interview Hunter Jensen, founder and CEO of Barefoot Solutions and Barefoot Labs, to explore what it really takes when getting started with AI in your business. As companies rush toward AI adoption, Hunter offers grounded, practical advice on avoiding early mistakes, protecting your data, and choosing the right starting point. About Hunter Jensen Hunter Jensen is the Founder and CEO of Barefoot Solutions, a digital agency specializing in artificial intelligence, data science, and digital transformation. With over 20 years of experience, Hunter has worked with startups and Fortune 500 companies, including Microsoft and Salesforce, to implement innovative technology strategies that drive measurable ROI. A seasoned leader and expert in the AI space, Hunter helps businesses harness cutting-edge technologies to achieve growth and efficiency. Facebook / Twitter (X) / LinkedIn / Website Why "Just Add AI" Is Not a Strategy When Getting Started with AI in Your Business Hunter begins by addressing the biggest misconception leaders face when getting started with AI in their business: the belief that a single, all-knowing model can absorb everything your business does and instantly deliver insights across every department. "Leaders imagine an all-knowing model. We are nowhere near that being safe or realistic." – Hunter Jensen The core issue is access control. Even the best models cannot safely enforce who should or should not see certain data. If an LLM is trained on HR data, how do you stop it from sharing salary information with an employee who shouldn't see it? This is why getting started with AI in your business must begin with clear boundaries and realistic expectations. Safe First Steps When Getting Started with AI in Your Business As Hunter explains, companies don't need to dive straight into custom models. A safer, simpler path exists for getting started with AI in your business, especially for teams on Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace. Start With Tools Already Built Into Your Environment Hunter recommends two solid, low-risk entry points: Microsoft 365 Copilot Google Gemini for Workspace These platforms provide: Built-in enterprise protections Familiar workflows Safe, contained AI access A gentle learning curve for employees Hunter emphasizes that employees are already using public AI tools, even if policy forbids it. When getting started with AI in your business, providing approved tools is essential to keeping data safe. "If you're not providing safe tools, your team will use unsafe ones." – Hunter Jensen These tools won't solve every AI need, but they are an ideal first step. Choosing the Right Model for Your Needs Another common question when getting started with AI in your business is: Which model is best? ChatGPT? Gemini? Claude? Hunter explains that the landscape changes weekly—sometimes daily. Today's leading model could be irelevent tomorrow. For this reason, businesses should avoid hard commitments to a single model. Experiment Before Committing Hunter suggests opening multiple LLMs side-by-side—such as ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity—and testing each for quality and speed. This gives teams a feel for what works before deciding how AI fits into their workflow. This experimentation mindset is essential when getting started with AI in your business because: Different models excel at different tasks Some models are faster or cheaper Some handle long context or code better New releases constantly change the landscape Your AI system should remain flexible enough to shift models as needed. Protecting Your Data from Day One One of Hunter's strongest warnings is about data safety. If you're serious about getting started with AI in your business, you must pay attention to licensing. If you are not paying for AI, you have no control over your data. Some industries—like legal, finance, and healthcare—may need even stricter controls or private deployments. This leads naturally to the next stage of AI adoption. The Next Step After Getting Started with AI in Your Business Once companies understand their needs, the next phase is building an internal system that: Connects securely to business software Honors existing user permissions Keeps all data inside the company network Uses models selected for specific tasks Hunter's product Compass is perfect for this phase. Instead of trusting the model to protect data, you rely on your own systems and access controls. This is how AI becomes truly safe and powerful. "The model should only see what the user is allowed to see—nothing more." – Hunter Jensen Final Thoughts on Getting Started with AI in Your Business Part 1 of our interview with Hunter Jensen makes one thing clear: getting started with AI in your business isn't about chasing the latest model. It's about protecting your data, giving your team safe tools, and preparing for a multi-model future. Stay tuned for Part 2 as we dive deeper into internal AI deployment, advanced architectures, and building long-term AI strategy. Stay Connected: Join the Developreneur Community We invite you to join our community and share your coding journey with us. Whether you're a seasoned developer or just starting, there's always room to learn and grow together. Contact us at info@develpreneur.com with your questions, feedback, or suggestions for future episodes. Together, let's continue exploring the exciting world of software development. Additional Resources Leveraging AI for Business: How Automation and AI Boost Efficiency and Growth Business Automation and Templates: How to Streamline Your Workflow Why Bother With Automated Testing? Building Better Foundations Podcast Videos – With Bonus Content

professorjrod@gmail.comWhat if your help desk could solve recurring IT problems in minutes, not hours? In this episode, we explore the backbone of reliable IT support, focusing on clear SOPs that remove guesswork, SLAs that align technical work with business risk, and an effective ticketing flow that transforms scattered fixes into measurable outcomes. Whether you're preparing for a CompTIA exam or seeking practical IT skills development, you'll find valuable insights here. We share real-world examples—from login failures to VPN drops—that demonstrate how documentation, escalation tiers, and knowledge bases reduce time-to-resolution and prevent repeat incidents, making technology education and effective IT support attainable goals.We also get candid about the human side of support. Professionalism is not a soft skill; it is operational. We talk punctuality, clean language, and the kind of active listening that clarifies issues without talking down to users. De-escalation matters, but so do boundaries; you can stay calm without tolerating abuse. And yes, social media can cost you your job—one vague post is all it takes. These habits shape trust with customers and credibility inside the org.To round it out, we map the OS landscape you actually support: Windows, macOS, Linux, and ChromeOS on the desktop, plus iOS and Android in the field. We cover MDM realities with JAMF and Google Workspace, why file systems like NTFS and ReFS or APFS and ext4 affect security and performance, and how hardware requirements such as TPM 2.0 should drive upgrade planning. You will leave with a sharper playbook and four cert-style practice questions to test your knowledge.If you found this useful, follow the show, share it with a teammate, and leave a quick review to help others find it. Got a help desk win or a hard lesson learned? Send it our way and join the conversation.Support the showArt By Sarah/DesmondMusic by Joakim KarudLittle chacha ProductionsJuan Rodriguez can be reached atTikTok @ProfessorJrodProfessorJRod@gmail.com@Prof_JRodInstagram ProfessorJRod

Today's episode of How To Start Up dives into the reality of building a business from the ground up or bootstrap, so without investors, without a big marketing budget, and without a safety net. Joining us is Aimee Connolly, Founder and CEO of Sculpted by Aimee and Sculpted: The Academy, the global beauty brand she launched at just 23 in 2016 using the €10,000 she saved from her part-time job.Less than a decade later, Sculpted is a multi-award-winning brand with over 140 products, stocked in nine countries and shipped to 68 markets worldwide - all built from a bootstrapped beginning.In this episode, Aimee shares what it really takes to fund your own idea, stay lean while scaling, and build a global brand by relying on resourcefulness, grit, and an unshakeable belief in your vision.Aimee's advice:Grasp opportunities when they present themselvesWhen starting up, take each task one at a time and don't allow yourself to be overwhelmed by considering the enormity of the whole projectThink ahead about a year so that you have resourcesBe patient, things may grow slowlyAlways have a grasp of the finances and don't be afraid to confront the realities of demanding paymentPlay on your special strengthsShow your authenticity by telling your own storyApplaud yourself for each winCustomer feedback is essential; cultivate a community in your customers (social media/direct messaging) which will help you move forward constructivelyTake care of yourself: sleep, exercise, diet all support you mentallyAim to have a support network where you can find adviceThe pros of being boot-strapped are that you are in charge, not just financiallyBut the cons could be that you have fewer contacts and less flexibility financiallyTake care when picking partners, as although this could be a huge asset, if it were to go wrong it could be very damagingFF&M enables you to own your own PR & produces podcasts.Recorded, edited & published by Juliet Fallowfield, 2024 MD & Founder of PR & Communications consultancy for startups Fallow, Field & Mason.  Email us at hello@fallowfieldmason.com or DM us on instagram @fallowfieldmason. FF&M recommends: LastPass the password-keeping site that syncs between devices.Google Workspace is brilliant for small businessesBuzzsprout podcast 'how to' & hosting directoryCanva has proved invaluable for creating all the social media assets and audio bites.MUSIC CREDIT Funk Game Loop by Kevin MacLeod.  Link &  LicenceText us your questions for future founders. Plus we'd love to get your feedback, text in via Fan MailSupport the show

In this episode of CISO Tradecraft, host G Mark Hardy welcomes special guest Rajan Kapoor, VP of Security at Material Security, to discuss critical topics in cloud workspace security. From discussing the increased attack surfaces in cloud environments like Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 to practical solutions for mitigating these risks, Rajan provides invaluable insights into creating a secure cloud office environment. Tune in for expert advice on improving security maturity, managing cloud security tools efficiently, and leveraging modern technology for enhanced protection and reduced dwell time. Whether you're a small enterprise or a large corporation, this episode has actionable insights to help you strengthen your security posture.Check out the Material Security Scorecard to measure your Cloud Office Securityhttps://material.security/workspace-security-scorecardRajan Kapoorhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/rajankkapoor/MITRE ATT&CK® Office Suite platform https://attack.mitre.org/matrices/enterprise/cloud/officesuite/

TLDR: It was Claude :-)When I set out to compare ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Grok, and ChatPRD for writing Product Requirement Documents, I figured they'd all be roughly equivalent. Maybe some subtle variations in tone or structure, but nothing earth-shattering. They're all built on similar transformer architectures, trained on massive datasets, and marketed as capable of handling complex business writing.What I discovered over 45 minutes of hands-on testing revealed not just which tools are better for PRD creation, but why they're better, and more importantly, how you should actually be using AI to accelerate your product work without sacrificing quality or strategic thinking.If you're an early or mid-career PM in Silicon Valley, this matters to you. Because here's the uncomfortable truth: your peers are already using AI to write PRDs, analyze features, and generate documentation. The question isn't whether to use these tools. The question is whether you're using the right ones most effectively.So let me walk you through exactly what I did, what I learned, and what you should do differently.The Setup: A Real-World Test CaseHere's how I structured the experiment. As I said at the beginning of my recording, “We are back in the Fireside PM podcast and I did that review of the ChatGPT browser and people seemed to like it and then I asked, uh, in a poll, I think it was a LinkedIn poll maybe, what should my next PM product review be? And, people asked for ChatPRD.”So I had my marching orders from the audience. But I wanted to make this more comprehensive than just testing ChatPRD in isolation. I opened up five tabs: ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Grok, and ChatPRD.For the test case, I chose something realistic and relevant: an AI-powered tutor for high school students. Think KhanAmigo or similar edtech platforms. This gave me a concrete product scenario that's complex enough to stress-test these tools but straightforward enough that I could iterate quickly.But here's the critical part that too many PMs get wrong when they start using AI for product work: I didn't just throw a single sentence at these tools and expect magic.The “Back of the Napkin” Approach: Why You Still Need to Think“I presume everybody agrees that you should have some formulated thinking before you dump it into the chatbot for your PRD,” I noted early in my experiment. “I suppose in the future maybe you could just do, like, a one-sentence prompt and come out with the perfect PRD because it would just know everything about you and your company in the context, but for now we're gonna do this more, a little old-school AI approach where we're gonna do some original human thinking.”This is crucial. I see so many PMs, especially those newer to the field, treat AI like a magic oracle. They type in “Write me a PRD for a social feature” and then wonder why the output is generic, unfocused, and useless.Your job as a PM isn't to become obsolete. It's to become more effective. And that means doing the strategic thinking work that AI cannot do for you.So I started in Google Docs with what I call a “back of the napkin” PRD structure. Here's what I included:Why: The strategic rationale. In this case: “Want to complement our existing edtech business with a personalized AI tutor, uh, want to maintain position industry, and grow through innovation. on mission for learners.”Target User: Who are we building for? “High school students interested in improving their grades and fundamentals. Fundamental knowledge topics. Specifically science and math. Students who are not in the top ten percent, nor in the bottom ten percent.”This is key—I got specific. Not just “students,” but students in the middle 80%. Not just “any subject,” but science and math. This specificity is what separates useful AI output from garbage.Problem to Solve: What's broken? “Students want better grades. Students are impatient. Students currently use AI just for finding the answers and less to, uh, understand concepts and practice using them.”Key Elements: The feature set and approach.Success Metrics: How we'd measure success.Now, was this a perfectly polished PRD outline? Hell no. As you can see from my transcript, I was literally thinking out loud, making typos, restructuring on the fly. But that's exactly the point. I put in maybe 10-15 minutes of human strategic thinking. That's all it took to create a foundation that would dramatically improve what came out of the AI tools.Round One: Generating the Full PRDWith my back-of-the-napkin outline ready, I copied it into each tool with a simple prompt asking them to expand it into a more complete PRD.ChatGPT: The Reliable GeneralistChatGPT gave me something that was... fine. Competent. Professional. But also deeply uninspiring.The document it produced checked all the boxes. It had the sections you'd expect. The writing was clear. But when I read it, I couldn't shake the feeling that I was reading something that could have been written for literally any product in any company. It felt like “an average of everything out there,” as I noted in my evaluation.Here's what ChatGPT did well: It understood the basic structure of a PRD. It generated appropriate sections. The grammar and formatting were clean. If you needed to hand something in by EOD and had literally no time for refinement, ChatGPT would save you from complete embarrassment.But here's what it lacked: Depth. Nuance. Strategic thinking that felt connected to real product decisions. When it described the target user, it used phrases that could apply to any edtech product. When it outlined success metrics, they were the obvious ones (engagement, retention, test scores) without any interesting thinking about leading indicators or proxy metrics.The problem with generic output isn't that it's wrong, it's that it's invisible. When you're trying to get buy-in from leadership or alignment from engineering, you need your PRD to feel specific, considered, and connected to your company's actual strategy. ChatGPT's output felt like it was written by someone who'd read a lot of PRDs but never actually shipped a product.One specific example: When I asked for success metrics, ChatGPT gave me “Student engagement rate, Time spent on platform, Test score improvement.” These aren't wrong, but they're lazy. They don't show any thinking about what specifically matters for an AI tutor versus any other educational product. Compare that to Claude's output, which got more specific about things like “concept mastery rate” and “question-to-understanding ratio.”Actionable Insight: Use ChatGPT when you need fast, serviceable documentation that doesn't need to be exceptional. Think: internal updates, status reports, routine communications. Don't rely on it for strategic documents where differentiation matters. If you do use ChatGPT for important documents, treat its output as a starting point that needs significant human refinement to add strategic depth and company-specific context.Gemini: Better Than ExpectedGoogle's Gemini actually impressed me more than I anticipated. The structure was solid, and it had a nice balance of detail without being overwhelming.What Gemini got right: The writing had a nice flow to it. The document felt organized and logical. It did a better job than ChatGPT at providing specific examples and thinking through edge cases. For instance, when describing the target user, it went beyond demographics to consider behavioral characteristics and motivations.Gemini also showed some interesting strategic thinking. It considered competitive positioning more thoughtfully than ChatGPT and proposed some differentiation angles that weren't in my original outline. Good AI tools should add insight, not just regurgitate your input with better formatting.But here's where it fell short: the visual elements. When I asked for mockups, Gemini produced images that looked more like stock photos than actual product designs. They weren't terrible, but they weren't compelling either. They had that AI-generated sheen that makes it obvious they came from an image model rather than a designer's brain.For a PRD that you're going to use internally with a team that already understands the context, Gemini's output would work well. The text quality is strong enough, and if you're in the Google ecosystem (Docs, Sheets, Meet, etc.), the integration is seamless. You can paste Gemini's output directly into Google Docs and continue iterating there.But if you need to create something compelling enough to win over skeptics or secure budget, Gemini falls just short. It's good, but not great. It's the solid B+ student: reliably competent but rarely exceptional.Actionable Insight: Gemini is a strong choice if you're working in the Google ecosystem and need good integration with Docs, Sheets, and other Google Workspace tools. The quality is sufficient for most internal documentation needs. It's particularly good if you're working with cross-functional partners who are already in Google Workspace. You can share and collaborate on AI-generated drafts without friction. But don't expect visual mockups that will wow anyone, and plan to add your own strategic polish for high-stakes documents.Grok: Not Ready for Prime TimeLet's just say my expectations were low, and Grok still managed to underdeliver. The PRD felt thin, generic, and lacked the depth you need for real product work.“I don't have high expectations for grok, unfortunately,” I said before testing it. Spoiler alert: my low expectations were validated.Actionable Insight: Skip Grok for product documentation work right now. Maybe it'll improve, but as of my testing, it's simply not competitive with the other options. It felt like 1-2 years behind the others.ChatPRD: The Specialized ToolNow this was interesting. ChatPRD is purpose-built for PRDs, using foundational models underneath but with specific tuning and structure for product documentation.The result? The structure was logical, the depth was appropriate, and it included elements that showed understanding of what actually matters in a PRD. As I reflected: “Cause this one feels like, A human wrote this PRD.”The interface guides you through the process more deliberately than just dumping text into a general chat interface. It asks clarifying questions. It structures the output more thoughtfully.Actionable Insight: If you're a technical lead without a dedicated PM, or you're a PM who wants a more structured approach to using AI for PRDs, ChatPRD is worth the specialized focus. It's particularly good when you need something that feels authentic enough to share with stakeholders without heavy editing.Claude: The Clear WinnerBut the standout performer, and I'm ranking these, was Claude.“I think we know that for now, I'm gonna say Claude did the best job,” I concluded after all the testing. Claude produced the most comprehensive, thoughtful, and strategically sound PRD. But what really set it apart were the concept mocks.When I asked each tool to generate visual mockups of the product, Claude produced HTML prototypes that, while not fully functional, looked genuinely compelling. They had thoughtful UI design, clear information architecture, and felt like something that could actually guide development.“They were, like, closer to, like, what a Lovable would produce or something like that,” I noted, referring to the quality of low-fidelity prototypes that good designers create.The text quality was also superior: more nuanced, better structured, and with more strategic depth. It felt like Claude understood not just what a PRD should contain, but why it should contain those elements.Actionable Insight: For any PRD that matters, meaning anything you'll share with leadership, use to get buy-in, or guide actual product development, you might as well start with Claude. The quality difference is significant enough that it's worth using Claude even if you primarily use another tool for other tasks.Final Rankings: The Definitive HierarchyAfter testing all five tools on multiple dimensions: initial PRD generation, visual mockups, and even crafting a pitch paragraph for a skeptical VP of Engineering, here's my final ranking:* Claude - Best overall quality, most compelling mockups, strongest strategic thinking* ChatPRD - Best for structured PRD creation, feels most “human”* Gemini - Solid all-around performance, good Google integration* ChatGPT - Reliable but generic, lacks differentiation* Grok - Not competitive for this use case“I'd probably say Claude, then chat PRD, then Gemini, then chat GPT, and then Grock,” I concluded.The Deeper Lesson: Garbage In, Garbage Out (Still Applies)But here's what matters more than which tool wins: the realization that hit me partway through this experiment.“I think it really does come down to, like, you know, the quality of the prompt,” I observed. “So if our prompt were a little more detailed, all that were more thought-through, then I'm sure the output would have been better. But as you can see we didn't really put in brain trust prompting here. Just a little bit of, kind of hand-wavy prompting, but a little better than just one or two sentences.”And we still got pretty good results.This is the meta-insight that should change how you approach AI tools in your product work: The quality of your input determines the quality of your output, but the baseline quality of the tool determines the ceiling of what's possible.No amount of great prompting will make Grok produce Claude-level output. But even mediocre prompting with Claude will beat great prompting with lesser tools.So the dual strategy is:* Use the best tool available (currently Claude for PRDs)* Invest in improving your prompting skills ideally with as much original and insightful human, company aware, and context aware thinking as possible.Real-World Workflows: How to Actually Use This in Your Day-to-Day PM WorkTheory is great. Here's how to incorporate these insights into your actual product management workflows.The Weekly Sprint Planning WorkflowEvery PM I know spends hours each week preparing for sprint planning. You need to refine user stories, clarify acceptance criteria, anticipate engineering questions, and align with design and data science. AI can compress this work significantly.Here's an example workflow:Monday morning (30 minutes):* Review upcoming priorities and open your rough notes/outline in Google Docs* Open Claude and paste your outline with this prompt:“I'm preparing for sprint planning. Based on these priorities [paste notes], generate detailed user stories with acceptance criteria. Format each as: User story, Business context, Technical considerations, Acceptance criteria, Dependencies, Open questions.”Monday afternoon (20 minutes):* Review Claude's output critically* Identify gaps, unclear requirements, or missing context* Follow up with targeted prompts:“The user story about authentication is too vague. Break it down into separate stories for: social login, email/password, session management, and password reset. For each, specify security requirements and edge cases.”Tuesday morning (15 minutes):* Generate mockups for any UI-heavy stories:“Create an HTML mockup for the login flow showing: landing page, social login options, email/password form, error states, and success redirect.”* Even if the HTML doesn't work perfectly, it gives your designers a starting pointBefore sprint planning (10 minutes):* Ask Claude to anticipate engineering questions:“Review these user stories as if you're a senior engineer. What questions would you ask? What concerns would you raise about technical feasibility, dependencies, or edge cases?”* This preparation makes you look thoughtful and helps the meeting run smoothlyTotal time investment: ~75 minutes. Typical time saved: 3-4 hours compared to doing this manually.The Stakeholder Alignment WorkflowGetting alignment from multiple stakeholders (product leadership, engineering, design, data science, legal, marketing) is one of the hardest parts of PM work. AI can help you think through different stakeholder perspectives and craft compelling communications for each.Here's how:Step 1: Map your stakeholders (10 minutes)Create a quick table in a doc:Stakeholder | Primary Concern | Decision Criteria | Likely Objections VP Product | Strategic fit, ROI | Company OKRs, market opportunity | Resource allocation vs other priorities VP Eng | Technical risk, capacity | Engineering capacity, tech debt | Complexity, unclear requirements Design Lead | User experience | User research, design principles | Timeline doesn't allow proper design process Legal | Compliance, risk | Regulatory requirements | Data privacy, user consent flowsStep 2: Generate stakeholder-specific communications (20 minutes)For each key stakeholder, ask Claude:“I need to pitch this product idea to [Stakeholder]. Based on this PRD, create a 1-page brief addressing their primary concern of [concern from your table]. Open with the specific value for them, address their likely objection of [objection], and close with a clear ask. Tone should be [professional/technical/strategic] based on their role.”Then you'll have customized one-pagers for your pre-meetings with each stakeholder, dramatically increasing your alignment rate.Step 3: Synthesize feedback (15 minutes)After gathering stakeholder input, ask Claude to help you synthesize:“I got the following feedback from stakeholders: [paste feedback]. Identify: (1) Common themes, (2) Conflicting requirements, (3) Legitimate concerns vs organizational politics, (4) Recommended compromises that might satisfy multiple parties.”This pattern-matching across stakeholder feedback is something AI does really well and saves you hours of mental processing.The Quarterly Planning WorkflowQuarterly or annual planning is where product strategy gets real. You need to synthesize market trends, customer feedback, technical capabilities, and business objectives into a coherent roadmap. AI can accelerate this dramatically.Six weeks before planning:* Start collecting input (customer interviews, market research, competitive analysis, engineering feedback)* Don't wait until the last minuteFour weeks before planning:Dump everything into Claude with this structure:“I'm creating our Q2 roadmap. Context:* Business objectives: [paste from leadership]* Customer feedback themes: [paste synthesis]* Technical capabilities/constraints: [paste from engineering]* Competitive landscape: [paste analysis]* Current product gaps: [paste from your analysis]Generate 5 strategic themes that could anchor our Q2 roadmap. For each theme:* Strategic rationale (how it connects to business objectives)* Key initiatives (2-3 major features/projects)* Success metrics* Resource requirements (rough estimate)* Risks and mitigations* Customer segments addressed”This gives you a strategic framework to react to rather than starting from a blank page.Three weeks before planning:Iterate on the most promising themes:“Deep dive on Theme 3. Generate:* Detailed initiative breakdown* Dependencies on platform/infrastructure* Phasing options (MVP vs full build)* Go-to-market considerations* Data requirements* Open questions requiring research”Two weeks before planning:Pressure-test your thinking:“Play devil's advocate on this roadmap. What are the strongest arguments against each initiative? What am I likely missing? What failure modes should I plan for?”This adversarial prompting forces you to strengthen weak points before your leadership reviews it.One week before planning:Generate your presentation:“Create an executive presentation for this roadmap. Structure: (1) Market context and strategic imperative, (2) Q2 themes and initiatives, (3) Expected outcomes and metrics, (4) Resource requirements, (5) Key risks and mitigations, (6) Success criteria for decision. Make it compelling but data-driven. Tone: confident but not overselling.”Then add your company-specific context, visual brand, and personal voice.The Customer Research WorkflowAI can't replace talking to customers, but it can help you prepare better questions, analyze feedback more systematically, and identify patterns faster.Before customer interviews:“I'm interviewing customers about [topic]. Generate:* 10 open-ended questions that avoid leading the witness* 5 follow-up questions for each main question* Common cognitive biases I should watch for* A framework for categorizing responses”This prep work helps you conduct better interviews.After interviews:“I conducted 15 customer interviews. Here are the key quotes: [paste anonymized quotes]. Identify:* Recurring themes and patterns* Surprising insights that contradict our assumptions* Segments with different needs* Implied needs customers didn't articulate directly* Recommended next steps for validation”AI is excellent at pattern-matching across qualitative data at scale.The Crisis Management WorkflowSomething broke. The site is down. Data was lost. A feature shipped with a critical bug. You need to move fast.Immediate response (5 minutes):“Critical incident. Details: [brief description]. Generate:* Incident classification (Sev 1-4)* Immediate stakeholders to notify* Draft customer communication (honest, apologetic, specific about what happened and what we're doing)* Draft internal communication for leadership* Key questions to ask engineering during investigation”Having these drafted in 5 minutes lets you focus on coordination and decision-making rather than wordsmithing.Post-incident (30 minutes):“Write a post-mortem based on this incident timeline: [paste timeline]. Include:* What happened (technical details)* Root cause analysis* Impact quantification (users affected, revenue impact, time to resolution)* What went well in our response* What could have been better* Specific action items with owners and deadlines* Process changes to prevent recurrence Tone: Blameless, focused on learning and improvement.”This gives you a strong first draft to refine with your team.Common Pitfalls: What Not to Do with AI in Product ManagementNow let's talk about the mistakes I see PMs making with AI tools. Pitfall #1: Treating AI Output as FinalThe biggest mistake is copy-pasting AI output directly into your PRD, roadmap presentation, or stakeholder email without critical review.The result? Documents that are grammatically perfect but strategically shallow. Presentations that sound impressive but don't hold up under questioning. Emails that are professionally worded but miss the subtext of organizational politics.The fix: Always ask yourself:* Does this reflect my actual strategic thinking, or generic best practices?* Would my CEO/engineering lead/biggest customer find this compelling and specific?* Are there company-specific details, customer insights, or technical constraints that only I know?* Does this sound like me, or like a robot?Add those elements. That's where your value as a PM comes through.Pitfall #2: Using AI as a Crutch Instead of a ToolSome PMs use AI because they don't want to think deeply about the product. They're looking for AI to do the hard work of strategy, prioritization, and trade-off analysis.This never works. AI can help you think more systematically, but it can't replace thinking.If you find yourself using AI to avoid wrestling with hard questions (”Should we build X or Y?” “What's our actual competitive advantage?” “Why would customers switch from the incumbent?”), you're using it wrong.The fix: Use AI to explore options, not to make decisions. Generate three alternatives, pressure-test each one, then use your judgment to decide. The AI can help you think through implications, but you're still the one choosing.Pitfall #3: Not IteratingGetting mediocre AI output and just accepting it is a waste of the technology's potential.The PMs who get exceptional results from AI are the ones who iterate. They generate an initial response, identify what's weak or missing, and ask follow-up questions. They might go through 5-10 iterations on a key section of a PRD.Each iteration is quick (30 seconds to type a follow-up prompt, 30 seconds to read the response), but the cumulative effect is dramatically better output.The fix: Budget time for iteration. Don't try to generate a complete, polished PRD in one prompt. Instead, generate a rough draft, then spend 30 minutes iterating on specific sections that matter most.Pitfall #4: Ignoring the Political and Human ContextAI tools have no understanding of organizational politics, interpersonal relationships, or the specific humans you're working with.They don't know that your VP of Engineering is burned out and skeptical of any new initiatives. They don't know that your CEO has a personal obsession with a specific competitor. They don't know that your lead designer is sensitive about not being included early enough in the process.If you use AI-generated communications without layering in this human context, you'll create perfectly worded documents that land badly because they miss the subtext.The fix: After generating AI content, explicitly ask yourself: “What human context am I missing? What relationships do I need to consider? What political dynamics are in play?” Then modify the AI output accordingly.Pitfall #5: Over-Relying on a Single ToolDifferent AI tools have different strengths. Claude is great for strategic depth, ChatPRD is great for structure, Gemini integrates well with Google Workspace.If you only ever use one tool, you're missing opportunities to leverage different strengths for different tasks.The fix: Keep 2-3 tools in your toolkit. Use Claude for important PRDs and strategic documents. Use Gemini for quick internal documentation that needs to integrate with Google Docs. Use ChatPRD when you want more guided structure. Match the tool to the task.Pitfall #6: Not Fact-Checking AI OutputAI tools hallucinate. They make up statistics, misrepresent competitors, and confidently state things that aren't true. If you include those hallucinations in a PRD that goes to leadership, you look incompetent.The fix: Fact-check everything, especially:* Statistics and market data* Competitive feature claims* Technical capabilities and limitations* Regulatory and compliance requirementsIf the AI cites a number or makes a factual claim, verify it independently before including it in your document.The Meta-Skill: Prompt Engineering for PMsLet's zoom out and talk about the underlying skill that makes all of this work: prompt engineering.This is a real skill. The difference between a mediocre prompt and a great prompt can be 10x difference in output quality. And unlike coding or design, where there's a steep learning curve, prompt engineering is something you can get good at quickly.Principle 1: Provide Context Before InstructionsBad prompt:“Write a PRD for an AI tutor”Good prompt:“I'm a PM at an edtech company with 2M users, primarily high school students. We're exploring an AI tutor feature to complement our existing video content library and practice problems. Our main competitors are Khan Academy and Course Hero. Our differentiation is personalized learning paths based on student performance data.Write a PRD for an AI tutor feature targeting students in the middle 80% academically who struggle with science and math.”The second prompt gives Claude the context it needs to generate something specific and strategic rather than generic.Principle 2: Specify Format and ConstraintsBad prompt:“Generate success metrics”Good prompt:“Generate 5-7 success metrics for this feature. Include a mix of:* Leading indicators (early signals of success)* Lagging indicators (definitive success measures)* User behavior metrics* Business impact metricsFor each metric, specify: name, definition, target value, measurement method, and why it matters.”The structure you provide shapes the structure you get back.Principle 3: Ask for Multiple OptionsBad prompt:“What should our Q2 priorities be?”Good prompt:“Generate 3 different strategic approaches for Q2:* Option A: Focus on user acquisition* Option B: Focus on engagement and retention* Option C: Focus on monetizationFor each option, detail: key initiatives, expected outcomes, resource requirements, risks, and recommendation for or against.”Asking for multiple options forces the AI (and forces you) to think through trade-offs systematically.Principle 4: Specify Audience and ToneBad prompt:“Summarize this PRD”Good prompt:“Create a 1-paragraph summary of this PRD for our skeptical VP of Engineering. Tone: Technical, concise, addresses engineering concerns upfront. Focus on: technical architecture, resource requirements, risks, and expected engineering effort. Avoid marketing language.”The audience and tone specification ensures the output will actually work for your intended use.Principle 5: Use Iterative RefinementDon't try to get perfect output in one prompt. Instead:First prompt: Generate rough draft Second prompt: “This is too generic. Add specific examples from [our company context].” Third prompt: “The technical section is weak. Expand with architecture details and dependencies.” Fourth prompt: “Good. Now make it 30% more concise while keeping the key details.”Each iteration improves the output incrementally.Let me break down the prompting approach that worked in this experiment, because this is immediately actionable for your work tomorrow.Strategy 1: The Structured Outline ApproachDon't go from zero to full PRD in one prompt. Instead:* Start with strategic thinking - Spend 10-15 minutes outlining why you're building this, who it's for, and what problem it solves* Get specific - Don't say “users,” say “high school students in the middle 80% of academic performance”* Include constraints - Budget, timeline, technical limitations, competitive landscape* Dump your outline into the AI - Now ask it to expand into a full PRD* Iterate section by section - Don't try to perfect everything at onceThis is exactly what I did in my experiment, and even with my somewhat sloppy outline, the results were dramatically better than they would have been with a single-sentence prompt.Strategy 2: The Comparative Analysis PatternOne technique I used that worked particularly well: asking each tool to do the same specific task and comparing results.For example, I asked all five tools: “Please compose a one paragraph exact summary I can share over DM with a highly influential VP of engineering who is generally a skeptic but super smart.”This forced each tool to synthesize the entire PRD into a compelling pitch while accounting for a specific, challenging audience. The variation in quality was revealing—and it gave me multiple options to choose from or blend together.Actionable tip: When you need something critical (a pitch, an executive summary, a key decision framework), generate it with 2-3 different AI tools and take the best elements from each. This “ensemble approach” often produces better results than any single tool.Strategy 3: The Iterative Refinement LoopDon't treat the AI output as final. Use it as a first draft that you then refine through conversation with the AI.After getting the initial PRD, I could have asked follow-up questions like:* “What's missing from this PRD?”* “How would you strengthen the success metrics section?”* “Generate 3 alternative approaches to the core feature set”Each iteration improves the output and, more importantly, forces me to think more deeply about the product.What This Means for Your CareerIf you're an early or mid-career PM reading this, you might be thinking: “Great, so AI can write PRDs now. Am I becoming obsolete?”Absolutely not. But your role is evolving, and understanding that evolution is critical.The PMs who will thrive in the AI era are those who:* Excel at strategic thinking - AI can generate options, but you need to know which options align with company strategy, customer needs, and technical feasibility* Master the art of prompting - This is a genuine skill that separates mediocre AI users from exceptional ones* Know when to use AI and when not to - Some aspects of product work benefit enormously from AI. Others (user interviews, stakeholder negotiation, cross-functional relationship building) require human judgment and empathy* Can evaluate AI output critically - You need to spot the hallucinations, the generic fluff, and the strategic misalignments that AI inevitably producesThink of AI tools as incredibly capable interns. They can produce impressive work quickly, but they need direction, oversight, and strategic guidance. Your job is to provide that guidance while leveraging their speed and breadth.The Real-World Application: What to Do Monday MorningLet's get tactical. Here's exactly how to apply these insights to your actual product work:For Your Next PRD:* Block 30 minutes for strategic thinking - Write your back-of-the-napkin outline in Google Docs or your tool of choice* Open Claude (or ChatPRD if you want more structure)* Copy your outline with this prompt:“I'm a product manager at [company] working on [product area]. I need to create a comprehensive PRD based on this outline. Please expand this into a complete PRD with the following sections: [list your preferred sections]. Make it detailed enough for engineering to start breaking down into user stories, but concise enough for leadership to read in 15 minutes. [Paste your outline]”* Review the output critically - Look for generic statements, missing details, or strategic misalignments* Iterate on specific sections:“The success metrics section is too vague. Please provide 3-5 specific, measurable KPIs with target values and explanation of why these metrics matter.”* Generate supporting materials:“Create a visual mockup of the core user flow showing the key interaction points.”* Synthesize the best elements - Don't just copy-paste the AI output. Use it as raw material that you shape into your final documentFor Stakeholder Communication:When you need to pitch something to leadership or engineering:* Generate 3 versions of your pitch using different tools (Claude, ChatPRD, and one other)* Compare them for:* Clarity and conciseness* Strategic framing* Compelling value proposition* Addressing likely objections* Blend the best elements into your final version* Add your personal voice - This is crucial. AI output often lacks personality and specific company context. Add that yourself.For Feature Prioritization:AI tools can help you think through trade-offs more systematically:“I'm deciding between three features for our next release: [Feature A], [Feature B], and [Feature C]. For each feature, analyze: (1) Estimated engineering effort, (2) Expected user impact, (3) Strategic alignment with making our platform the go-to solution for [your market], (4) Risk factors. Then recommend a prioritization with rationale.”This doesn't replace your judgment, but it forces you to think through each dimension systematically and often surfaces considerations you hadn't thought of.The Uncomfortable Truth About AI and Product ManagementLet me be direct about something that makes many PMs uncomfortable: AI will make some PM skills less valuable while making others more valuable.Less valuable:* Writing boilerplate documentation* Creating standard frameworks and templates* Generating routine status updates* Synthesizing information from existing sourcesMore valuable:* Strategic product vision and roadmapping* Deep customer empathy and insight generation* Cross-functional leadership and influence* Critical evaluation of options and trade-offs* Creative problem-solving for novel situationsIf your PM role primarily involves the first category of tasks, you should be concerned. But if you're focused on the second category while leveraging AI for the first, you're going to be exponentially more effective than your peers who resist these tools.The PMs I see succeeding aren't those who can write the best PRD manually. They're those who can write the best PRD with AI assistance in one-tenth the time, then use the saved time to talk to more customers, think more deeply about strategy, and build stronger cross-functional relationships.Advanced Techniques: Beyond Basic PRD GenerationOnce you've mastered the basics, here are some advanced applications I've found valuable:Competitive Analysis at Scale“Research our top 5 competitors in [market]. For each one, analyze: their core value proposition, key features, pricing strategy, target customer, and likely product roadmap based on recent releases and job postings. Create a comparison matrix showing where we have advantages and gaps.”Then use web search tools in Claude or Perplexity to fact-check and expand the analysis.Scenario Planning“We're considering three strategic directions for our product: [Direction A], [Direction B], [Direction C]. For each direction, map out: likely customer adoption curve, required technical investments, competitive positioning in 12 months, and potential pivots if the hypothesis proves wrong. Then identify the highest-risk assumptions we should test first for each direction.”This kind of structured scenario thinking is exactly what AI excels at—generating multiple well-reasoned perspectives quickly.User Story GenerationAfter your PRD is solid:“Based on this PRD, generate a complete set of user stories following the format ‘As a [user type], I want to [action] so that [benefit].' Include acceptance criteria for each story. Organize them into epics by functional area.”This can save your engineering team hours of grooming meetings.The Tools Will Keep Evolving. Your Process Shouldn'tHere's something important to remember: by the time you read this, the specific rankings might have shifted. Maybe ChatGPT-5 has leapfrogged Claude. Maybe a new specialized tool has emerged.But the core principles won't change:* Do strategic thinking before touching AI* Use the best tool available for your specific task* Iterate and refine rather than accepting first outputs* Blend AI capabilities with human judgment* Focus your time on the uniquely human aspects of product managementThe specific tools matter less than your process for using them effectively.A Final Experiment: The Skeptical VP TestI want to share one more insight from my testing that I think is particularly relevant for early and mid-career PMs.Toward the end of my experiment, I gave each tool this prompt: “Please compose a one paragraph exact summary I can share over DM with a highly influential VP of engineering who is generally a skeptic but super smart.”This is such a realistic scenario. How many times have you needed to pitch an idea to a skeptical technical leader via Slack or email? Someone who's brilliant, who's seen a thousand product ideas fail, and who can spot b******t from a mile away?The quality variation in the responses was fascinating. ChatGPT gave me something that felt generic and safe. Gemini was better but still a bit too enthusiastic. Grok was... well, Grok.But Claude and ChatPRD both produced messages that felt authentic, technically credible, and appropriately confident without being overselling. They acknowledged the engineering challenges while framing the opportunity compellingly.The lesson: When the stakes are high and the audience is sophisticated, the quality of your AI tool matters even more. That skeptical VP can tell the difference between a carefully crafted message and AI-generated fluff. So can your CEO. So can your biggest customers.Use the best tools available, but more importantly, always add your own strategic thinking and authentic voice on top.Questions to Consider: A Framework for Your Own ExperimentsAs I wrapped up my Loom, I posed some questions to the audience that I'll pose to you:“Let me know in the comments, if you do your PRDs using AI differently, do you start with back of the envelope? Do you say, oh no, I just start with one sentence, and then I let the chatbot refine it with me? Or do you go way more detailed and then use the chatbot to kind of pressure test it?”These aren't rhetorical questions. Your answer reveals your approach to AI-augmented product work, and different approaches work for different people and contexts.For early-career PMs: I'd recommend starting with more detailed outlines. The discipline of thinking through your product strategy before touching AI will make you a stronger PM. You can always compress that process later as you get more experienced.For mid-career PMs: Experiment with different approaches for different types of documents. Maybe you do detailed outlines for major feature PRDs but use more iterative AI-assisted refinement for smaller features or updates. Find what optimizes your personal productivity while maintaining quality.For senior PMs and product leaders: Consider how AI changes what you should expect from your PM team. Should you be reviewing more AI-generated first drafts and spending more time on strategic guidance? Should you be training your team on effective AI usage? These are leadership questions worth grappling with.The Path Forward: Continuous ExperimentationMy experiment with these five AI tools took 45 minutes. But I'm not done experimenting.The field of AI-assisted product management is evolving rapidly. New tools launch monthly. Existing tools get smarter weekly. Prompting techniques that work today might be obsolete in three months.Your job, if you want to stay at the forefront of product management, is to continuously experiment. Try new tools. Share what works with your peers. Build a personal knowledge base of effective prompts and workflows. And be generous with what you learn. The PM community gets stronger when we share insights rather than hoarding them.That's why I created this Loom and why I'm writing this post. Not because I have all the answers, but because I'm figuring it out in real-time and want to share the journey.A Personal Note on Coaching and ConsultingIf this kind of practical advice resonates with you, I'm happy to work with you directly.Through my pm coaching practice, I offer 1:1 executive, career, and product coaching for PMs and product leaders. We can dig into your specific challenges: whether that's leveling up your AI workflows, navigating a career transition, or developing your strategic product thinking.I also work with companies (usually startups or incubation teams) on product strategy, helping teams figure out PMF for new explorations and improving their product management function.The format is flexible. Some clients want ongoing coaching, others prefer project-based consulting, and some just want a strategic sounding board for a specific decision. Whatever works for you.Reach out through tomleungcoaching.com if you're interested in working together.OK. Enough pontificating. Let's ship greatness. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit firesidepm.substack.com

In this highly practical episode of the SpeakersU Podcast, James Taylor and Maria Franzoni share the essential tools they use every day to run successful, scalable speaking businesses. From payments and scheduling to CRM systems, international banking, SEO, video production, writing, and travel management, this episode delivers a full behind-the-scenes tour of a modern professional speaker's tech stack. Maria reveals how she automates coaching bookings end-to-end using Stripe, Calendly, Zapier, Xero, and Zoom, plus the browser tools she relies on for productivity, documentation, and client management. James shares the marketing, SEO, video, writing, and travel tools that power his global keynote career including Kajabi, SEMrush, Ecamm Live, Scrivener, eSpeakers, and TripIt Pro. If you want to save time, increase your efficiency, improve your marketing, streamline your finances, and stay sane on the road, this episode is a must-listen.     Key Takeaways Automate your bookings and payments to remove admin friction using Stripe, Calendly, Zapier, Xero, and Zoom. Choose your ecosystem wisely with an all-in-one platform like Google Workspace or a diversified stack for redundancy. Kajabi is a powerhouse for speakers running courses, memberships, websites, and email marketing in one place. Scribe creates instant SOPs by recording your screen and auto-generating training documentation. Wise saves thousands in international banking fees for globally travelling speakers. eSpeakers simplifies lead tracking, contracts, and inquiry management for professional speakers. TextExpander massively boosts productivity with smart text shortcuts across all devices. Scrivener is ideal for long-form writing including books and keynote research. Pipedrive offers a clean, mobile-friendly CRM with real-time proposal tracking. TripIt Pro is a game-changer for global travel management with live itinerary updates and travel analytics. SEMrush reveals keyword gaps and competitive SEO strategy for authority positioning. Ecamm Live enables professional virtual keynotes and multi-camera live broadcasting.     Memorable Quotes "Stripe, Calendly, Zapier, Xero, and Zoom all talking to each other changed my life." – Maria Franzoni "Why are we paying five different companies when one system can do most of it?" – James Taylor "Scribe builds your SOPs while you work. It's magic." – Maria Franzoni "Wise saved me an absolute fortune in international bank charges." – Maria Franzoni "If you want to rank number one in your topic, you have to invest in SEO tools." – James Taylor "TextExpander gives you your time back in the smallest, smartest way." – Maria Franzoni "TripIt Pro is my mission control for global travel." – James Taylor     Episode Timestamps 00:00 – Welcome and why tools equal ROI 01:27 – Maria's automated booking stack: Stripe, Calendly, Zapier, Xero, Zoom 03:05 – Dropbox vs Google Workspace debate 06:25 – Fathom AI meeting notes and cloud backups 08:44 – Kajabi for courses, memberships, websites, and email 11:35 – Scribe for instant SOP creation 13:12 – Tea etiquette and British cultural detour 14:23 – eSpeakers for speaker CRM, contracts, and inquiries 16:08 – Wise for international payments and currency accounts 18:41 – Ecamm Live for virtual keynotes and livestreaming 20:27 – GoFullPage for capturing entire web pages 21:31 – SEMrush for competitive SEO tracking 23:57 – TextExpander for instant productivity gains 26:31 – Scrivener for book writing and keynote creation 28:40 – Pipedrive CRM with email, LinkedIn, and pipeline tracking 31:18 – TripIt Pro for global travel stats and itineraries 34:00 – Wrap-up and future episode on physical gear    

Today on the podcast, Chris Maynard sits down with filmmaker Kevin Lewis—yes, that Kevin Lewis, the mad genius who gave us Willy's Wonderland and cemented his place in modern cult horror. He's back with a new Southern-Gothic nightmare, Pig Hill, a film that premiered at FrightFest and is now available on VOD courtesy of Cineverse, the folks behind Terrifier 3 and The Toxic Avenger.Pig Hill follows Carrie, played by Rainey Qualley, a young woman obsessed with the eerie legend of the “pig people”—grotesque creatures said to stalk the wooded hills of her rural hometown. As the disappearances of local women reach a chilling tenth victim, Carrie, her brother (Shiloh Fernandez), and their friend Andy (Shane West) begin digging into the folklore… and discover there may be more truth to the stories than anyone wants to believe.Today's episode of the Following Films Podcast is brought to you by Google Workspace. We keep things running smoothly and efficiently at Following Films with the convenience of cloud-based Google Workspace programs. Google Docs lets you work and save on Google Drive, Hangouts lets you video chat, Gmail gives you a professional email, and Calendar lets you organise – from anywhere, at any time. You should try it and see how it can help your business, too. Google Workspace is offering a 14-day trial. If you sign up using my link, I can give you a discount, and it helps to support the show go to https://referworkspace.app.goo.gl/G6uFSo let's dive into Pig Hill, the filmmaking process, and what keeps Kevin chasing the next nightmare. Pig Hill is available on VOD today—and I'm thrilled to welcome Kevin Lewis back to the pod.

Cloud-based workspaces such as Google Workspace are often the backbone of an organization. But they also face threats from spam and phishing, account takeovers, and illicit access to sensitive documents and files. On today's Packet Protector we talk with sponsor Material Security about how it brings additional layers of protection to Google Workspace, including email... Read more »

Cloud-based workspaces such as Google Workspace are often the backbone of an organization. But they also face threats from spam and phishing, account takeovers, and illicit access to sensitive documents and files. On today's Packet Protector we talk with sponsor Material Security about how it brings additional layers of protection to Google Workspace, including email... Read more »

While many businesses rely on Microsoft 365, Salesforce and Google Workspace security features, critical blind spots remain—the recent series of high profile SaaS breaches demonstrate this. So what should you do? Mike Puglia, General Manager of Kaseya Labs, joins Business Security Weekly to discuss the risks in SaaS applications. In this segment, Mike will explore how bad actors are focusing their attacks on SaaS applications, hijacking tokens and how misconfigured integrations are used to bypass traditional defenses. Mike will also discuss how IT leaders can rethink protecting their essential SaaS business applications with tools that go beyond endpoint and MFA strategies to secure the modern user. This segment is sponsored by Kaseya 365 User. Visit https://securityweekly.com/k365 to learn more about them! In the leadership and communications segment, The rise of the chief trust officer: Where does the CISO fit?, When Another Company's Crisis Hurts Your Reputation, Effective Workplace Communication Tips, and more!   Visit https://www.securityweekly.com/bsw for all the latest episodes! Show Notes: https://securityweekly.com/bsw-424

While many businesses rely on Microsoft 365, Salesforce and Google Workspace security features, critical blind spots remain—the recent series of high profile SaaS breaches demonstrate this. So what should you do? Mike Puglia, General Manager of Kaseya Labs, joins Business Security Weekly to discuss the risks in SaaS applications. In this segment, Mike will explore how bad actors are focusing their attacks on SaaS applications, hijacking tokens and how misconfigured integrations are used to bypass traditional defenses. Mike will also discuss how IT leaders can rethink protecting their essential SaaS business applications with tools that go beyond endpoint and MFA strategies to secure the modern user. This segment is sponsored by Kaseya 365 User. Visit https://securityweekly.com/k365 to learn more about them! In the leadership and communications segment, The rise of the chief trust officer: Where does the CISO fit?, When Another Company's Crisis Hurts Your Reputation, Effective Workplace Communication Tips, and more!   Show Notes: https://securityweekly.com/bsw-424

While many businesses rely on Microsoft 365, Salesforce and Google Workspace security features, critical blind spots remain—the recent series of high profile SaaS breaches demonstrate this. So what should you do? Mike Puglia, General Manager of Kaseya Labs, joins Business Security Weekly to discuss the risks in SaaS applications. In this segment, Mike will explore how bad actors are focusing their attacks on SaaS applications, hijacking tokens and how misconfigured integrations are used to bypass traditional defenses. Mike will also discuss how IT leaders can rethink protecting their essential SaaS business applications with tools that go beyond endpoint and MFA strategies to secure the modern user. This segment is sponsored by Kaseya 365 User. Visit https://securityweekly.com/k365 to learn more about them! In the leadership and communications segment, The rise of the chief trust officer: Where does the CISO fit?, When Another Company's Crisis Hurts Your Reputation, Effective Workplace Communication Tips, and more!   Visit https://www.securityweekly.com/bsw for all the latest episodes! Show Notes: https://securityweekly.com/bsw-424

Welcome to episode 333 of The Cloud Pod, where the forecast is always cloudy! Justin, Ryan, and Matt are taking a quick break from re:Invent festivities. They bring you the latest and greatest in Cloud and AI news. This week, we discuss Norad and Anthropic teaming up to bring you Christmas cheer. Wait, is that right? Huh. We also have undersea cables, some Turkish region delight, and a LOT of Opus 4.5 news. Let's get into it! Titles we almost went with this week Boring Error Pages Not Found Claude Goes Native in Snowflake: Finally, AI That Stays Where Your Data Lives Cross-Cloud Romance: AWS and Google Make It Official with Interconnect Google Gemini Puts OpenAI in Code Red: The Tables Have Turned Azure NAT Gateway V2: Now With More Zones Than a Parking Lot From ChatGPT to Chat-Uh-Oh: OpenAI Sounds the Alarm as Gemini Steals 200 Million Users Scheduled Actions: Because Your VMs Need a Work-Life Balance Too Finally, Your 500 Errors Can Look as Good as Your Homepage Foundry Model Router: Because Choosing Between 47 AI Models is Nobody’s Idea of Fun Google Takes the Scenic Route: New Cable Avoids the Sunda Strait Traffic Jam Azure Application Gateway Gets Its TCP/IP Diploma Google Cloud Gets Its Türkiye Dinner: 2 Billion Dollar Cloud Feast Coming Soon Microsoft Foundry: Turning AI Chaos into Compliance Gold AI Is Going Great, or How ML Makes Money  02:59 Nano Banana Pro available for enterprise Google launches Nano Banana Pro (Gemini 3 Pro Image) in general availability on Vertex AI and Google Workspace, with Gemini Enterprise support coming soon. The model supports up to 14 reference images for style consistency and generates 4K resolution outputs with multilingual text rendering capabilities. The model includes Google Search grounding for factual accuracy in generated infographics and diagrams, plus built-in SynthID watermarking for transparency. Copyright indemnification will be available at general availability under Google’s shared responsibility framework. Enterprise integrations are live with Adobe Firefly, Photoshop, Canva, and Figma, enabling production-grade creative workflows. Major retailers, including Klarna, Shopify, and Wayfair, report using the model for product visualization and marketing asset generation at scale. Developers can access Nano Banana Pro through Vertex AI with Provis

Today we're joined by the brilliant Michelle Pughe-Parry de Klerk, founder of The Women's Chapter, the UK's first network for women in business to achieve B Corp certification.Michelle's journey is an extraordinary example of how a passion project, started on a shoestring as a side hustle, can evolve into a thriving, impact-led portfolio career. Since launching in 2014, The Women's Chapter has reached more than 30,000 women through events, thought leadership, membership and pro bono initiatives. Michelle also champions women and girls beyond the community through her work as an ambassador for The King's Trust Women Supporting Women, a UN Women UK delegate and a council member for Founders4Schools and Maths4Girls.In this episode you'll learn:• Why a portfolio career is an asset, not a failing, and how to recognise the skills you've built across different areas of work • How to decide whether your passion project should stay a passion or become a commercial venture • Why community isn't a “nice to have” but a biological, emotional and strategic necessity • How small businesses can use sustainability frameworks to drive meaningful impact, even without formal certification • What Michelle learned from becoming unexpectedly financially exposed and how founders can protect themselves • Practical ways to combat imposter syndrome using evidence-based techniques • Why connection lowers cortisol, boosts leadership ability and helps founders make better decisions • How niching down and staying in your lane creates focus, momentum and clarity • The role of conversation as a catalyst for collaboration and change • Networking is a form of self careFF&M enables you to own your own PR & produces podcasts.Recorded, edited & published by Juliet Fallowfield, 2024 MD & Founder of PR & Communications consultancy for startups Fallow, Field & Mason.  Email us at hello@fallowfieldmason.com or DM us on instagram @fallowfieldmason. FF&M recommends: LastPass the password-keeping site that syncs between devices.Google Workspace is brilliant for small businessesBuzzsprout podcast 'how to' & hosting directoryCanva has proved invaluable for creating all the social media assets and audio bites.MUSIC CREDIT Funk Game Loop by Kevin MacLeod.  Link &  LicenceText us your questions for future founders. Plus we'd love to get your feedback, text in via Fan MailSupport the show

¿Sigues "casado" con ChatGPT? Nosotras también lo estábamos, hasta que probamos esto.Hoy ponemos a prueba a Google Gemini y Nano Banana Pro en situaciones reales: desde actuar como entrenador personal analizando videos de gimnasio, hasta digitalizar recetas manuscritas y encontrar clips virales automáticamente.Analizamos su capacidad de razonamiento, su "Deep Research" y sus nuevas funciones multimodales. Los resultados fueron tan sorprendentes que nos plantearon una duda seria: ¿Es hora de cancelar la suscripción a ChatGPT? Quédate hasta el final para ver la magia que hizo con una simple foto...⏰ Minutos (00:00) Intro: ¿ChatGPT o Gemini? El debate(00:58) Personalidades de las IA: El psicólogo vs El experto(02:14) La ventaja del ecosistema: Google Workspace y almacenamiento(05:07) La gran desventaja de Gemini: No tiene "Proyectos(07:28) Tutorial: Cómo usar "Deep Research" (Caso práctico: Máquinas de café)(11:46) Integraciones: Gestión de correos y calendario con IA(12:40) Gemini analiza video: Tu entrenador personal de gimnasio gratis(16:25) De papel a web app: Digitalizando la receta de las hallacas(18:43) Cómo encontrar clips virales automáticos en videos largos(20:39) Nano Banana Pro: Retoque fotográfico y edición con IA(26:16) Generación de diagramas y renders de arquitectura(27:33) Animación de imágenes: De estático a video en segundos(28:22) Conclusiones: La competencia entre Google y OpenAI

(Presented by Material Security (https://material.security): We protect your company's most valuable materials -- the emails, files, and accounts that live in your Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 cloud offices.) Three Buddy Problem - Episode 74: We attempt to parse the rumor-fog around Microsoft's CISO at CYBERWARCON and what it reveals about the company's shifting posture on intel sharing, regulation, and its outsized grip on the security ecosystem. Plus, coverage of the Shai-Hulud npm supply-chain mess, CISA's mobile spyware guidance, NSO's legal contortions, a sharp new GRU-linked intrusion from Arctic Wolf. We also discuss the FCC retreating on telco security rules, and the emerging AI arms race shaping how cloud giants hunt threats and how Washington misunderstands all of it. Cast: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (https://twitter.com/juanandres_gs), Ryan Naraine (https://twitter.com/ryanaraine) and Costin Raiu (https://twitter.com/craiu).

(Presented by Material Security (https://material.security): We protect your company's most valuable materials -- the emails, files, and accounts that live in your Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 cloud offices.) Three Buddy Problem - Episode 73: The buddies react to Google's release of Gemini 3 and its early performance, new Chrome interface changes landing on users' machines, and major highlights from CYBERWARCON. We revisit the long-running debate over APT naming conventions, examine Amazon's latest threat-intel reporting on Iranian activity, and walk through the Cloudflare outage that briefly knocked chunks of the internet offline. Plus, new APT reports from ESET, Positive Technologies, and SecurityScorecard, and China's CN-CERT (now validated claim) that the U.S. government seized billions in Bitcoin tied to the Lubian mining-pool hack. Cast: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (https://twitter.com/juanandres_gs), Ryan Naraine (https://twitter.com/ryanaraine) and Costin Raiu (https://twitter.com/craiu).

In this Blind Abilities episode, Jeff Thompson talks with Jeff Bishop, president of BITS—Blind Information Technology Specialists—an all-volunteer organization empowering blind and low-vision individuals through accessible technology, community, and hands-on learning. Bishop outlines BITS' rapid growth, affordable memberships, and expanding reach across platforms like WhatsApp, Facebook, email lists, and mentoring channels. BITS offers high-impact training, including Python programming, Microsoft Office, Google Workspace, NVDA, and AI immersion courses—all with fully accessible materials and strong completion rates. Their partnerships with APH, Bookshare, NLS, Microsoft, and others ensure free resources and meaningful industry feedback opportunities, including paid participation in Microsoft's Project Empower. With free Remote Incident Manager (RIM) support, active mentoring, and a welcoming culture, BITS serves beginners and experts alike. As the group considers rebranding the "S" in BITS to Solutions, the mission remains clear: meeting people where they are and helping them thrive in their digital lives. Link to BITS

Sign up for the FREE Clinic Growth Map Program Open House → https://mccancemethod.com/open-house/ Want to watch this episode on video? Check it out here on YouTube: https://youtu.be/yYC0XVpSmFMIn this episode, I share how to roll out big changes in your practice without overwhelming your team. I know you're excited to implement everything all at once, but I walk you through exactly how to pace it out, get team buy-in, and avoid breaking what you've already built.Make sure to bring your paper and pen because this episode is full of actionable tips!Here are some key points in this episode:[03:15] Why growth requires change and how to prepare your team for it[05:49] The mindset shift: Systems equal safety—for you and your team[08:10] When to switch practice management software (and why sooner is better)[10:28] The change management framework Nicole used with big corporations[12:27] How to get team buy-in and motivate them with “what's in it for them”[16:43] What to do when your team resists change—and how to lead through itLinks From the Episode:Nicole's YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Nicole.McCanceMethodHere is the Janeapp link for TWO free months on us! https://janesoftware.partnerlinks.io/ytg4vn Use Coupon: MCCANCE2MOWant the Consult Call Script? DM me @nicole.mccancemethod on Instagram with just three words “Consult Call Script” and I will send it right your way. Click here: https://www.instagram.com/nicole.mccancemethod/ Google Workspace: https://referworkspace.app.goo.gl/EtJ2Follow me on Instagram, @nicole.mccanncemethod. If this episode provided you with value and inspiration, please leave a review and DM to let me know. Click here: https://www.instagram.com/nicole.mccancemethod

In today's episode, we're joined by Siff Haider one part of the co-founders due behind Arrae - the wellness brand that's redefining the supplement space with elegant, effective, natural solutions for issues like bloating, anxiety and sleep. Since launching in 2020, Arrae has gained a cult following thanks to its minimalist aesthetic, loyal community, and commitment to solving real, everyday problems - all while standing out in a saturated and often sceptical market.Stay tuned to hear how Siff and Nish approached brand-building with intention from day one, why storytelling and science go hand-in-hand and what it takes to grow in a crowded category.Siff's advice: Founder mindset tip: Have faith in yourself and trust your abilities.Leadership advice: Don't be ruled by ego; stay flexible and be prepared to change direction if necessary.Motivation lesson: Take one step at a time, steady progress is sustainable progress.Resilience insight: There will always be challenges; this is normal, and you can cope with them.Growth advice: Learn from your mistakes, apply the lessons, and keep moving forward.Perspective shift: Don't take challenges personally, they're all part of evolving and growing.Purpose-driven business tip: Think about your primary driver, which hopefully isn't just profit; purpose will motivate you to keep going.Lifestyle principle: Make personal rules about your life, your fitness, and your happiness and stick to them.Customer connection advice: Communicating with customers will always be worthwhile and deeply satisfying.Workplace culture tip: Create an environment that others will appreciate and thrive in.Branding advice: Be honest and clear in your branding, and always stay relevant to the customer.Inspiration insight: Look for motivation and new ideas in the world around you.Entrepreneurship lesson: If you're not making some mistakes, you're not truly pushing yourself or innovating.FF&M enables you to own your own PR & produces podcasts.Recorded, edited & published by Juliet Fallowfield, 2024 MD & Founder of PR & Communications consultancy for startups Fallow, Field & Mason.  Email us at hello@fallowfieldmason.com or DM us on instagram @fallowfieldmason. FF&M recommends: LastPass the password-keeping site that syncs between devices.Google Workspace is brilliant for small businessesBuzzsprout podcast 'how to' & hosting directoryCanva has proved invaluable for creating all the social media assets and audio bites.MUSIC CREDIT Funk Game Loop by Kevin MacLeod.  Link &  LicenceText us your questions for future founders. Plus we'd love to get your feedback, text in via Fan MailSupport the show

Presented by Material Security: We protect your company's most valuable materials -- the emails, files, and accounts that live in your Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 cloud offices. Three Buddy Problem - Episode 72: We unpack Anthropic's conflicting self-promotion around the “first AI-orchestrated cyberattack” using Claude Code and the future of automated APT attacks. Plus, Chinese cyber vendor KnownSec falls victim to data breach, fresh accusations that the U.S. stole billions in Bitcoin, Amazon warning about Cisco/Citrix zero-days, Google's new Private AI Compute and Microsoft kernel zero-day marked as "actively exploited." Cast: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (https://twitter.com/juanandres_gs), Ryan Naraine (https://twitter.com/ryanaraine) and Costin Raiu (https://twitter.com/craiu).

Presented by Material Security: We protect your company's most valuable materials -- the emails, files, and accounts that live in your Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 cloud offices. Three Buddy Problem - Episode 71: The buddies travel to Canada for a live recording at the Countermeasure conference, discussing the Google v FFmpeg open-source patching brouhana, ransomware negotiators charged and linked to ransomware attacks, the looming TP-Link ban in the U.S., and the discovery of LANDFALL, an APT attack caught using a Samsung mobile zero-day. Cast: Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade (https://twitter.com/juanandres_gs), Ryan Naraine (https://twitter.com/ryanaraine) and Costin Raiu (https://twitter.com/craiu).

Three words to Google Gemini and you can kiss your PowerPoint woes goodbye.

Today I'm joined by Director and Showrunner Nancy Schwartzman to discuss DEATH IN APARTMENT 603: WHAT HAPPENED TO ELLEN GREENBERG?The emotional and gripping docuseries investigates the mysterious death of Ellen Greenberg, a 27-year-old Philadelphia schoolteacher found dead in the apartment she shared with her fiancé on a snowy night in January 2011, just seven months before her upcoming wedding. Greenberg sustained 20 knife wounds and had 11 bruises on her body in various stages of healing. To the shock of many who knew her, detectives on the scene treated her death as a suicide; but when her autopsy results came back, her cause of death was ruled a homicide. Shortly thereafter, the manner of death was inexplicably reversed to suicide, and the city of Philadelphia shut the case without further investigation. Now, 14 years later, this three-part series exclusively follows Ellen's parents, Sandee and Josh Greenberg, as they fight to reopen the investigation and learn the truth about their daughter's untimely death.  DEATH IN APARTMENT 603: WHAT HAPPENED TO ELLEN GREENBERG?features more than 20 new interviews with those who knew Greenberg best, including close friends, family members, and her former students and colleagues, painting a portrait of a warm, vibrant young woman who was planning her wedding and deeply loved by those who knew her. The docuseries also grants rare access to Greenberg's case file, including her fiancé's frantic 911 call, crime scene photos, autopsy analysis and surveillance footage. Additional new interviews include former neighbors and staff who were present in Greenberg's apartment building at the time of her death, a former colleague of her fiancé, and attorneys and law enforcement experts. The show delivers an intimate look into Greenberg's life and a probing examination of the cracks in the system that have left one haunting question unanswered: What really happened to Ellen Greenberg?Today's episode of the Following Films Podcast is brought to you by Google Workspace. We use Google Workspace to keep things running smoothly and efficiently here at Following Films, and I can't recommend it enough. Try it for your business and see how it can help you stay organized and connected. If you sign up using my link, you'll get a discount — and you'll be supporting the show: https://referworkspace.app.goo.gl/G6uF.DEATH IN APARTMENT 603: WHAT HAPPENED TO ELLEN GREENBERG? Is now streaming on HULUI hope you enjoy the show

In this episode, we dive into the often-overwhelming world of building a tech stack for your coaching business! We know the thought of sorting through all the technology options can make your eyes glaze over, but fear not! We break it down into manageable pieces, discussing everything from accounting software to payment processors, calendaring systems, and even email marketing tools. Adding tech to your process should save you time and money, not cause you headaches and cost you cash. Our goal is to help you streamline your processes so you can focus on what you do best – coaching! Are you ready to take your coaching business to the next level? Listen in as we share our personal experiences with different tools and provide recommendations that can help you build a solid tech foundation for a thriving coaching practice.

Today I'm joined by Sean King O'Grady to discuss his latest project, SUSPICIOUS MINDSSUSPICIOUS MINDS is a docuseries that investigates the disturbing rise of artificial intelligence as a trigger for delusional thinking.Through powerful firsthand accounts and in-depth interviews with leading experts in psychiatry, neuroscience, and AI ethics, the series unpacks a growing psychological phenomenon: individuals developing complex, often life-altering delusions rooted in AI technologies. From chatbots to surveillance fears, the show examines how emerging technologies are reshaping the landscape of paranoia and how these modern delusions echo, amplify, and challenge our historical understanding of the human mind.Today's episode of the Following Films Podcast is brought to you by Google Workspace. We use Google Workspace to keep things running smoothly and efficiently here at Following Films, and I can't recommend it enough. Try it for your business and see how it can help you stay organized and connected. If you sign up using my link, you'll get a discount — and you'll be supporting the show: https://referworkspace.app.goo.gl/G6uF.Suspicious Minds is a weekly video documentary series and podcast that is currently airing..Platforms include YouTube, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Substack, and more. Series One will be released weekly for a total of 8 video and podcast episodes.

Today, I'm joined by two-time Oscar-nominated cinematographer Jeff Cronenweth.Jeff joins me to talk about his work on Tron: Ares, which is now in theaters. He also shot Amazon's Being the Ricardos for director Aaron Sorkin, starring Nicole Kidman and Javier Bardem. Kidman was so impressed with Jeff's work that she later asked him to shoot her now-famous AMC Theatres commercial.We also dive into his long-running collaboration with David Fincher on films like Fight Club, The Social Network, and Gone Girl. Plus, Jeff gives us a glimpse into his latest project — the just-begun follow-up to The Social Network, titled The Social Reckoning. Aaron Sorkin is not only writing but also directing this one, with a stellar cast that includes Jeremy Allen White, Mikey Madison, Jeremy Strong, Betty Gilpin, and Bill Burr.When I first heard about The Social Reckoning, my initial reaction was, “Why on earth would they make that?” But the more I've thought about it, the more I've realized it's an essential story — a vital piece of modern history that deserves to be explored and cemented in the public consciousness.Today's episode of the Following Films Podcast is brought to you by Google Workspace. We use Google Workspace to keep things running smoothly and efficiently here at Following Films, and I can't recommend it enough. Try it for your business and see how it can help you stay organized and connected. If you sign up using my link, you'll get a discount — and you'll be supporting the show: https://referworkspace.app.goo.gl/G6uF.Tron: Ares is now playing in theaters everywhere. Go see it on the biggest screen you can — it's an incredible cinematic experience.I hope you enjoy the conversation.

Today, we're celebrating a piece of television history. It's been 25 years since Resurrection Blvd. first hit the airwaves—a groundbreaking series that redefined Latino representation in Hollywood. And now, that legacy is being honored in a big way.On October 19th, 2025, the Fox Tucson Theatre—the crown jewel of downtown Tucson—will host A Day with Resurrection Blvd: The 25th Anniversary Celebration. Presented by Elephant Scout Films, this one-of-a-kind event brings together cast, crew, and fans for an unforgettable reunion. There'll be a special screening of the pilot, behind-the-scenes insights, and a live panel moderated by Dan Guerrero, featuring an incredible lineup: Dennis Leoni, Tony Plana, Esai Morales, and Nicholas Gonzalez. Today's guests were involved both in front of and behind the camera on Ressurection Blvd—first up, actor/director Lou Diamond Phillips, then show creator Dennis Leoni.Lou joins me to talk about his time on Resurrection Blvd., its cultural impact, and what this reunion means to him. We also chat about storytelling, legacy, and the power of authentic representation on screen.Whether you grew up with the Santiago family or you're just discovering the series for the first time, this episode is a celebration of community, creativity, and resilience.Today's episode of the Following Films Podcast is brought to you by Google Workspace. We keep things running smoothly and efficiently at Following Films with the convenience of cloud-based Google Workspace programs. You should try it and see how it can benefit your business as well. If you sign up using my link, I can give you a discount, and it helps to support the show https://referworkspace.app.goo.gl/G6uFTickets for A Day With Resurrection Blvd: The 25th Anniversary Celebration are available at www.foxtucson.com/resurrection. Hope to see you there this Sunday, 10/19.

Tune in as the team discusses:The importance of adopting tech to scale your land business without creating another job.Beginner must-haves: LG Pass, GeekPay, Google Workspace, Slack, Trello, and MailChimp.How Zamplo brings list-building, pricing, and mapping into one unified system.Tips for creating a virtual office setup for future delegation.Why learning the process yourself before outsourcing gives you leverage.Key tools for marketing, CRM tracking, and payment automation.Real talk about early struggles, outdated methods, and the game-changing role of automation. TIP OF THE WEEKRyan: Don't outsource what you don't understand.Before you hand off marketing or tech tasks to a VA, make sure you've done it yourself at least once. Mastering the basics gives you clarity, confidence, and control when it's time to delegate. WANT MORE?Enjoyed this episode? Dive into more episodes of AOPI to discover how to build real passive income through land investing.UNLOCK MORE FREE RESOURCES:Get instant access to my free training, a free copy of my Bestseller Dirt Rich Book, and exclusive bonuses to accelerate your land investing journey—it's all here: https://thelandgeek.ac-page.com/Podcast-Linktree."Isn't it time to create passive income so you can work where you want when you want, and with whomever you want?"

Breaking: Google just released Gemini Enterprise.

On Hands-On Tech, Mikah Sargent describes how to easily migrate an email account to Gmail using Google Workspace. Don't forget to send in your questions for Mikah to answer during the show! hot@twit.tv Host: Mikah Sargent Download or subscribe to Hands-On Tech at https://twit.tv/shows/hands-on-tech Want access to the ad-free video and exclusive features? Become a member of Club TWiT today! https://twit.tv/clubtwit Club TWiT members can discuss this episode and leave feedback in the Club TWiT Discord.