Podcasts about thinkers

Four types of Thinkers... Lost money found / not returned??... Attorney charges with sex…   Email: chewingthefat@blazemedia.com Subscribe to BlazeTV for more content www.blazetv.com/jeffy $20 off annual subscription / limited time Government Wild Horses… U.S. Open & Tennis Balls… Shows to watch… Who Died Today: King Harold V of Norway 89 / Vanessa Blanca 30 / Frank Beard 77 / ( edit ) Shelley Fabares 82 / Hayden Panettiere 36 / Plas Johnson 94,,, Joke of The Day…   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Protect your family with our 1-minute free parent quiz https://www.smartsocial.com/newsletter Join our next weekly live parent events: https://smartsocial.com/events Episode Summary: Join host Josh Ochs on the SmartSocial.com Podcast as he talks with Chris Reykdal, Superintendent of the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction in Washington, about tech overload, student focus, media literacy, and responsible AI use in schools. Reykdal explains how students are being shaped by constant digital content, algorithms, and business models designed to keep them watching, clicking, and engaging, and why families should not see this as a parenting failure. The conversation also covers how personal devices and social media have affected focus, reading, achievement, and student engagement, plus why media literacy and digital information literacy need to be part of every classroom. Reykdal shares why schools should teach students to verify what they see online, ask better questions, and use AI with a human at the beginning and end of the learning process. He also explains Washington's approach to AI guidance for schools, including going slow, setting clear policies, and helping students become critical thinkers who know how to check what technology gives them. Become a Smart Social VIP (Very Informed Parents) Member: https://SmartSocial.com/vip District Leaders: Schedule a free phone consultation to get ideas on how to protect your students in your community https://smartsocial.com/partner Download the free Smart Social app: https://www.smartsocial.com/appdownload Learn about the top 190+ popular teen apps: https://smartsocial.com/app-guide-parents-teachers/ View the top parental control software: https://smartsocial.com/parental-control-software/ The SmartSocial.com Podcast helps parents and educators to keep their kids safe on social media, so they can Shine Online™

Author and pediatric surgeon Dana Suskind joins us to discuss her new book, Human Raised: Nurturing Connection, Curiosity & Lifelong Learning in the Age of AI. We get into why true caring is what makes us unique from machines, how human parenting instills critical thinking and empathy, the role of governments and regulators in dealing with AI harms, her HOPE framework for raising kids in the age of AI, and more. For paid subscribers, we do a deeper dive into the importance of “good enough” parenting—and how it compares to the gentle parenting and intensive parenting approaches. We also discuss Christy's response as an eating-disorders specialist to the comparison between AI and ultra-processed foods.      As a paid subscriber, you get the full version of this episode. Thanks so much for your support! If you love what you hear, please consider leaving a rating and review here, or gifting Rethinking Wellness to a friend. Get full show notes and references on Substack.More from Christy:Christy's second book, The Wellness Trap, is available wherever books are sold! Order it here, or ask for it in your favorite local bookstore. If you're looking to make peace with food and break free from diet and wellness culture, check out Christy's Intuitive Eating Fundamentals online course.Subscribe on Substack for full interviews and more! Support the podcast by becoming a paid subscriber, and unlock great perks like extended interviews, subscriber-only Q&As, full access to our archives, commenting privileges, and a place to connect with other listeners.Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit rethinkingwellness.substack.com/subscribe

Hank Crawford of Blue Collar Robotics and Paul Harker, retired CCO of Woolworths Group, on grocery store robotics a retailer can deploy today.There are 280,000 people walking the aisles of US grocery stores right now picking somebody else's order, and grocers cannot hire fast enough to keep up with the growth. That number comes from Hank Crawford, Co-Founder and CEO of Blue Collar Robotics, and it frames the whole conversation. Online grocery keeps growing. Labor keeps getting harder to find. And the two big swings the industry took at eGrocery fulfillment, the centralized fulfillment center and the micro fulfillment center, both left grocers with high CapEx, duplicated inventory, and people still picking most of the order. Hank is joined by Paul Harker, retired Chief Commercial Officer of Woolworths Group, Australia's largest retailer, who joined Blue Collar Robotics as a strategic advisor. Together with Ricardo Belmar and Casey Golden they work through the economics of eGrocery fulfillment from the operator's side of the table: why the warehouse answer collapsed, what grocery store robotics has been getting wrong, and why a purpose-built robot with a remote operator behind it can drop into a supermarket that already exists. The mechanism is the interesting part. Blue Collar Robotics sells the picking as a service. A grocer pays a cost per pick, which moves the spend from CapEx into OpEx. The robot handles packaged center-aisle goods using vacuum suction, which is roughly 65% of a typical order, and store associates get redeployed to fresh, where care actually shows up in the customer's bag. Blue Collar reports eGrocery fulfillment cost reductions of as much as 50%. This is Season 6, Episode 10.In This Episode, You'll Learn•       Why centralized fulfillment centers failed for grocery on four separate counts: volume density, distance from the customer, fresh, and CapEx•       What Paul Harker says micro fulfillment centers still cannot solve, including duplicated inventory and picking "the uglies"•       Why over 80% of a grocer's business is still the in-store customer, and how eGrocery growth quietly degrades that experience•       The case for a human behind every robot, and why it is now standard practice for anything operating in an unstructured environment•       What robot etiquette means in a store aisle, and what China's hotel delivery robots taught Hank about how not to do it•       How the grocery store robotics buying conversation changes when the customer has no robotics team of its own•       Why grocery store robotics took this long to find product-market fit in a supermarket, and what changed•       Why the labor argument runs backwards here: there is no line of people waiting for picking jobs•       How remote operation opens picking work to people who could never physically do it, and opens a 24 hour picking clock for the store•       What Hank says is actually slowing adoption, and it is not the technologySupport our sponsorsThis Episode is Brought to You By RetailClub.Retail and brand leaders can attend RetailClub AI Festival completely budget-free, plus get $1,750 toward travel and hotel. From the founders of Shoptalk and Groceryshop, it's three days fully outdoors in Huntington Beach, September 22 to 24, with 2,000 senior leaders working through how AI is transforming retail. If you're shaping AI's future in retail, budget shouldn't be why you miss it. Register by August 28 at retailclub.com/retail-razor-podcast.Subscribe & FollowHow much did you love this episode? Drop us a 5‑star rating and review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Goodpods. Subscribe on YouTube so you never miss an episode and check out the other shows in the Retail Razor Podcast Network: Retail Transformers, Blade to Greatness, and Data Blades.Subscribe to the Retail Razor Podcast Network: https://retailrazor.com/Subscribe to our Newsletter: https://retailrazor.substack.comSubscribe to our YouTube channel: https://go.retailrazor.com/utubeFeatured guestsHank Crawford. https://www.linkedin.com/in/hank-crawford-a4a9755/Co-Founder & CEO of Blue Collar Robotics. https://bluecollarrobotics.aiHank Crawford is Co-Founder & CEO of Blue Collar Robotics, where he leads the company's mission to make in-store grocery picking affordable for retailers through purpose-built robots delivered as a service, pairing AI-driven autonomy with human-assisted teleoperation. A technology entrepreneur and commercial leader with more than 35 years of experience in advanced composites, global manufacturing, and robotics, Crawford has founded companies in the United States and China including PURE Material Science, a Guangzhou-based pioneer of continuous fiber-reinforced thermoplastic composites and has helped scale advanced technology businesses in senior engineering and commercial roles at Performance Materials Corporation (acquired by Toray), Daimler Trucks in both North America and China, TRB Lightweight Structures, and Avient. He holds multiple patents in composite materials and manufacturing.Paul Harker. https://www.linkedin.com/in/paul-s-harker/Retired Chief Commercial Officer, Woolworths Group. Strategic Advisor. Blue Collar Robotics.Paul Harker has more than three decades of senior leadership experience across Australia's retail and FMCG sectors, including 33 years with Woolworths Group. Most recently, Paul served as Chief Commercial Officer for Woolworths Group, where he was accountable for the $51 billion Australian Food commercial portfolio. In this role, he oversaw commercial practices across more than 1,000 stores and helped lead large-scale enterprise transformation initiatives, including the modernization of digital systems and the integration of data-led analytics across complex supply chain networks. Paul's earlier executive roles at Woolworths included leadership across Replenishment, Supply Chain, and Store Operations, giving him a broad understanding of the full retail operating model – from store execution to enterprise-level commercial strategy.Chapters00:00 Teaser 00:48 Show Intro 05:34 Welcome Hank and Paul! 06:37 Why Warehouses Failed 09:02 Store Picking Tensions 10:28 Amazon Threat Reality 14:47 Robotics Hype vs Reality 16:34 Human in the Loop 18:34 Blue Collar Robotics Intro 19:46 Service Model Economics 22:35 How Store Deployment Works 25:48 Comparing Other Models 30:50 Automation and Jobs 32:35 Scaling Labor With Robots 33:43 24 Hour Store Operations 35:09 Accuracy And Quality Standards 36:48 AI Regulation And Safety 40:18 Robot Etiquette In Aisles 41:36 China Robotics Lessons 45:19 Selling To Risk Averse Grocers 49:36 Five Year Outlook And Jobs 52:19 Wrap Up And Where To Learn More 53:40 Show CloseMeet your hostsHelping you cut through the clutter in retail & retail tech:Ricardo Belmar is an NRF Top Retail Voice for 2025 and a RETHINK Retail Top Retail Expert from 2021 – 2026. Thinkers 360 has named him a Top 10 Thought Leader in Retail, a Top 25 Thought Leader in AGI and Careers, a Top 50 Thought Leader in Agentic AIand Management, and a Top 100 Thought Leader in Digital Transformation and Transformation. Thinkers 360 also named him a Top Digital Voice for 2024 and 2025. He is an advisory council member at George Mason University's Center for Retail Transformationand the Retail Cloud Alliance. He was most recently the partner marketing leader for retail & consumer goods in the Americas at Microsoft.Casey Golden, is the North America Leader for Retail & Consumer Goods at CI&T, and CEO of Luxlock. She is a RETHINK Retail Top Retail Expert from 2023 - 2026, and Retail Cloud Alliance advisory council member. After a career on the fashion and supply chain technology side of the business, Casey is obsessed with the customer relationship between the brand and the consumer and is slaying franken-stacks and building retail tech! MusicIncludes music provided by imunobeats.com, featuring Overclocked, and E-Motive from the album Beat Hype, written by Heston Mimms, published by Imuno.

To listen to our extra innings conversation, head over to patreon.com/theologyintheraw and become a member of the TITR community and get access to all of my extra innings conversations and a bunch bonus contentDr. Alison Cook is a therapist, psychologist of religion, bestselling author, and host of the top-ranked The Best of You podcast. She holds degrees from Dartmouth College (BA), Denver Seminary (MA), and the University of Denver (PhD). Alison has spent over two decades helping people move from feeling disconnected to feeling secure, grounded, and loved. She's the author of four books including her most recent book: The Secure Soul: Finding Inner Strength and Connection When Trust Doesn't Come Easy, which forms the foundation of our conversation. https://www.amazon.com/dp/1400352606?lv=shuf&channelId=500&plpRedirect=mhFallbackTime Stamps00:00 Introduction02:06 Splitting time between Wyoming and Boston07:35 Attachment Theory Explained10:35 How Childhood Trauma Shapes Adult Relationships18:01 What About People That Didn't Experience Trauma?22:47 Does everyone have some kind of attachment issue? 23:59 Why the Church Often Misunderstands Self-Care24:37 The Problem with Secular Self-Care Culture 25:22 Avoidant Attachment: First Steps30:09 Preston Gets Live Therapy34:00 Thinkers vs. Feelers 39:04 Core Memories and Emotional Healing46:43 Getting to Know our own Souls 48:06 Can Christians Trust Psychology?50:29 How Your Parents Shape Your View of God53:41 Common Unaddressed Issues: Shame or BlameSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

"Once you get through the labels, leadership becomes about dealing with the heart, soul, and core of who a person is." GigSalad co-founder and CEO Mark Steiner joins host Josh Seldin to explore how a late-in-life ADHD diagnosis transformed his perspective on leadership, empathy, and talent development. Mark shares his journey from acting to co-founding a thriving online marketplace, offering a candid look at how understanding neurodiversity can help leaders build truly human-centered, high-performing organizations. Josh and Mark dive into why traditional corporate molds often fail diverse thinkers, how leaders can shift from rigid metrics to curiosity-driven management, and the immense value of investing in employees' long-term strengths. From giving team members the freedom to pivot into roles where they excel to fostering environments where people don't feel forced to mask who they are, this episode provides an inspiring, actionable playbook on leading with compassion, adaptability, and vision. Key Takeaways: ✅ The Late-Diagnosis Perspective: How discovering ADHD at age 57 brought clarity, peace, and a fresh lens for recognizing potential in non-traditional thinkers. ✅ Beyond Standard Molds: Why rigid corporate environments force diverse thinkers to mask, and how leaders can build flexible systems that support unique minds. ✅ Investing in Strengths Over Titles: The business case for patience, mentorship, and allowing team members to explore different functions to find their unique "sweet spot." ✅ Curiosity Over Assumption: How replacing top-down directives with genuine inquiry builds psychological safety and uncovers what team members truly need to succeed. ✅ Flat Hierarchies & Low Ego: Why stripping away corporate arrogance and approaching your team as equal partners cultivates lasting loyalty and alignment. ✅ Embracing Continuous Growth: How viewing life changes and identity shifts at any age can drive renewed purpose, confidence, and momentum in leadership.

Think you've got a one-of-a-kind brain?

Patreon backer Alexander brings you this special episode all about puzzle monsters, riddle monsters, and strategy challenges! Patreon backer Emil brings you this special episode all about what happens when more than one kind of monster lives together.  If you're enjoying the show, why not consider supporting it on Patreon? You'll get access to lots of new bonus content, including my other podcast, Patron Deities!

Robert Hagstrom joins Matt Zeigler and Bogumil Baranowski to revisit the 25th anniversary edition of The Warren Buffett Portfolio and explain why volatility is not the same as investment risk.They discuss concentrated portfolios, active share, business valuation, behavioral finance, complex adaptive systems, and Warren Buffett's warning that the market's casino can overwhelm its cathedral.Matt Zeigler and I had the privilege of hosting Robert Hagstrom for a special 100-Year Thinkers Edition of the Excess Returns Podcast.Available now on Excess Returns Podcast and Talking Billions.

Why do smart strategies fail so often? According to Kevin Ertell, the problem isn't a lack of ideas—it's execution. In this Encore episode of The Voice of Retail, Michael LeBlanc sits down live in person at the NRF Big Show in New York in The Remarkable Retail Narvar podcasting studio with Kevin Ertell, founder of Mistere Advisory, veteran retail operator, and former Vice President of Global Retail at Nike. Kevin is also the author of the new book The Strategy Trap: Why Companies Fail at Execution and How to Get It Right, which draws on more than two decades of hands-on leadership experience across iconic retail brands including Tower Records, Borders, Sur La Table, and Nike. Kevin explains how organizations fall into the “strategy trap”—a tendency to over-invest in ideas, decks, and executive alignment while underestimating the human and organizational work required to execute effectively. He argues that strategy should be treated as the first step of execution, not as a theoretical exercise completed before real work begins. Using well-known retail case studies, including the failed transformation of JCPenney, Kevin illustrates how untested assumptions, poor internal alignment, and misunderstanding customer behavior can derail even bold strategies. Leaders often assume that communication equals understanding, when in reality teams fill in the gaps with their own interpretations—creating misalignment that only becomes visible once execution is underway. The conversation introduces Kevin's practical “Six Cs of Execution” framework. The first phase—co-creation, clarity, and capacity—focuses on setting the stage by involving the right people, defining priorities, and making space for execution. The second phase—communication, coordination, and coaching—highlights the role of active leadership in sustaining momentum and course-correcting as conditions change. Kevin also shares actionable tools leaders can use immediately, including structured problem-definition sessions, force-ranking priorities, and creating safe environments where teams can challenge assumptions. He emphasizes that focus is a leadership discipline—and that trying to pursue too many initiatives at once almost guarantees failure. For retail leaders navigating AI disruption, economic volatility, and shifting consumer expectations, this episode offers a clear, operator-led blueprint for escaping the strategy trap and turning strategy into results. Presented by Kokek, Canada's Way to Pay. Visit Konek.ca to learn more. Michael LeBlanc is the president and founder of M.E. LeBlanc & Company Inc, a senior retail advisor, keynote speaker and now, media entrepreneur. He has been on the front lines of retail industry change for his entire career. Michael has delivered keynotes, hosted fire-side discussions and participated worldwide in thought leadership panels. He brings 25+ years of brand/retail/marketing & eCommerce leadership experience with Levi's, Black & Decker, Hudson's Bay, CanWest Media, Pandora Jewellery, The Shopping Channel and Retail Council of Canada to his advisory, speaking and media practice.Michael produces and hosts a network of leading retail trade podcasts, including the award-winning No.1 independent retail industry podcast in America, Remarkable Retail with his partner, Dallas-based best-selling author Steve Dennis; Canada's top retail industry podcast The Voice of Retail and Canada's top food industry and one of the top Canadian-produced management independent podcasts in the country, The Food Professor with Dr. Sylvain Charlebois from Dalhousie University in Halifax.Rethink Retail has recognized Michael as one of the top global retail experts for the fifth year in a row, the National Retail Federation has designated Michael as on their Top Retail Voices for 2025 and 2026. Thinkers 360 has named him on of the Top 50 global thought leaders in retail. If you are a BBQ fan, you can tune into Michael's cooking show, Last Request BBQ, on YouTube, Instagram, X and yes, TikTok.Michael is available for keynote presentations helping retailers, brands and retail industry insiders explaining the current state and future of the retail industry in North America and around the world.

Unlock your creative genius with 15 riddles only true artistic thinkers can solve!

Michael Brand is a CX strategist and trainer, based in Switzerland, who has been named a Thinkers 360 Top 50 Global Thought Leader on Customer Loyalty. Dr. Vincent Covello directs the Center for Risk Communications, and is a nationally and internationally recognized trainer, researcher, consultant, and expert in emergency, crisis, risk, and change communications. Deanna Leonard is a futurist, executive coach, and AI transformation leader. Her career has spanned senior leadership posts across a wide range of Fortune 500 companies. In this freewheeling, one-hour roundtable discussion, the focus is on the Customer Experience through the lens of both the opportunities and misuses that AI involves. The topics addressed include the following: 1) the importance of active listening, 2) the 20 words that can make or break an exchange with a customer, 3) how front-line CX employees can be enabled to do their jobs better, and 4) the need for training budgets to be protected, if not increased. In emotional terms, two feelings rise to prominence in this session: fear (of not being heard and responded to) and trust (rooted in the demonstration of caring before knowledge gets shared or an action-step taken). The answers as to who people trust, and why, when experiencing stress will be sure to surprise you. Real Transformations: Business Change That Works from the Inside Out is co-hosted by Julie Anixter and Dan Hill, PhD, entrepreneurs with deep experience as corporate change agents, devoted to helping companies make continuous change work for everyone through clarity and connection. To learn about their keynote talks, workshops and labs, check out Real-Transformation.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

Jennifer Garvey Berger is a leadership coach, developmental psychologist, and the author of several books, including: Unlocking Leadership Mindtraps, Changing on the Job, and Unleash Your Complexity Genius. In 2023, she was shortlisted as one of the top 8 coaches in the world by Thinkers 50. In this conversation, we explore: — Daniel Gilbert's idea that human beings are works in progress that mistakenly think they're finished - and the implications this has for growth and development — The 4 minds: self sovereign, socialized, self authoring, and self transforming - and how to know which stage you are at — What it means to become a ‘complexity genius' — The importance of continuously upgrading our mental models all throughout life - and how best to do this. And more. You can explore Jennifer's work and books at https://www.cultivatingleadership.com. --- Jennifer Garvey Berger believes that leadership is one of the most vital renewable resources in the world. At a time when organisations are often forging the path rather than following the path of others, leadership is about creating the conditions for people to be their most creative, connected, intelligent selves. She is a founding partner and CEO of Cultivating Leadership, a consultancy that serves executives and executive teams in the private, non-profit, and government sectors around the world. Her clients include Google, Microsoft, Novartis, Wikipedia, and Oxfam International. Jennifer designs and teaches leadership programs, coaches senior teams, and supports new ways of thinking about strategy and people with clients facing these dramatic shifts in complexity, volatility, and change in their workplaces and markets. She blends deep theoretical knowledge with a driving quest for practical ways to make leaders' lives better. Jennifer also supports leaders one-on-one as a leadership coach. She supports clients to find their current growing edge and then make choices about how they want to grow, and she teaches coaches around the world transformational and developmental coaching approaches in her Growth Edge Coaching certification series. Jennifer speaks at leadership and coaching conferences, and she offers occasional courses for coaches at universities all over the world like Harvard University, the University of Sydney, and Oxford Brookes University. Jennifer holds a doctorate in adult development from Harvard University, where she studied under and worked with acclaimed developmental psychologist Robert Kegan. She was an Associate Professor at George Mason University before she left the academy on a mission to connect powerful research and the people doing real work in the world. Jennifer is an American by birth, a Kiwi by choice, and finds herself living now in London, far from her beach house on the Tasman Sea. Wherever she might call home, she loves laughing with her two nearly-grown children, rolling on the floor with her dog, and writing about leading, coaching, and living. --- Interview Link: — Jennifer's website - https://www.cultivatingleadership.com

Cindy Esliger examines what happens when we have a bigger vision for our career than our current work environment supports. Bold ideas can disappear into the ether when colleagues are more comfortable following the agenda, protecting the status quo, or doing things the same way they've always been done. Wanting to think outside the box is not a flaw, and Cindy points out that dreaming bigger is a practice, especially when fear, limited thinking, and workplace pressure make safety feel more responsible than possibility. Cindy identifies three fears that often shape career decisions: 1. Fear of failure, 2. Fear of rejection, and 3. Fear of instability. These fears are real, but they're data instead of instructions to stop. Cindy contrasts safety-driven decisions, which ask what will keep us comfortable, with aligned decisions, which ask what we need to do the work we actually came to do. She encourages us to consult our future selves by asking three questions: 1. Who have we become?, 2. What did we have to let go of to get here, and 3. What is the one thing we would tell ourselves today that would save us two years of hesitation? Cindy also challenges us to get honest about what we truly want, without requiring a business case or immediate proof that it's possible. When the answer feels buried, she offers four questions to help us uncover it: 1. If we already knew the answer, what would it be? 2. In a perfect world with no constraints on possibility, what would we want? 3. What is the thing we've always wanted but never said out loud, and 4. If nobody in our lives had an opinion about it, what would we do? Specific wants create something to plan around. The goal isn't to wait for permission from small thinkers, but to deliberately seek out generous and curious people who are willing to think bigger, explore possibilities, and support meaningful career growth. Resources discussed in this episode: Guide to Dreaming Bigger Astronomic Audio Confidence Collective — Contact Cindy Esliger  Career Confidence Coaching: website | instagram | facebook | linkedin | email Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Michael Brand is a CX strategist and trainer, based in Switzerland, who has been named a Thinkers 360 Top 50 Global Thought Leader on Customer Loyalty. Dr. Vincent Covello directs the Center for Risk Communications, and is a nationally and internationally recognized trainer, researcher, consultant, and expert in emergency, crisis, risk, and change communications. Deanna Leonard is a futurist, executive coach, and AI transformation leader. Her career has spanned senior leadership posts across a wide range of Fortune 500 companies. In this freewheeling, one-hour roundtable discussion, the focus is on the Customer Experience through the lens of both the opportunities and misuses that AI involves. The topics addressed include the following: 1) the importance of active listening, 2) the 20 words that can make or break an exchange with a customer, 3) how front-line CX employees can be enabled to do their jobs better, and 4) the need for training budgets to be protected, if not increased. In emotional terms, two feelings rise to prominence in this session: fear (of not being heard and responded to) and trust (rooted in the demonstration of caring before knowledge gets shared or an action-step taken). The answers as to who people trust, and why, when experiencing stress will be sure to surprise you. Real Transformations: Business Change That Works from the Inside Out is co-hosted by Julie Anixter and Dan Hill, PhD, entrepreneurs with deep experience as corporate change agents, devoted to helping companies make continuous change work for everyone through clarity and connection. To learn about their keynote talks, workshops and labs, check out Real-Transformation.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Michael Brand is a CX strategist and trainer, based in Switzerland, who has been named a Thinkers 360 Top 50 Global Thought Leader on Customer Loyalty. Dr. Vincent Covello directs the Center for Risk Communications, and is a nationally and internationally recognized trainer, researcher, consultant, and expert in emergency, crisis, risk, and change communications. Deanna Leonard is a futurist, executive coach, and AI transformation leader. Her career has spanned senior leadership posts across a wide range of Fortune 500 companies. In this freewheeling, one-hour roundtable discussion, the focus is on the Customer Experience through the lens of both the opportunities and misuses that AI involves. The topics addressed include the following: 1) the importance of active listening, 2) the 20 words that can make or break an exchange with a customer, 3) how front-line CX employees can be enabled to do their jobs better, and 4) the need for training budgets to be protected, if not increased. In emotional terms, two feelings rise to prominence in this session: fear (of not being heard and responded to) and trust (rooted in the demonstration of caring before knowledge gets shared or an action-step taken). The answers as to who people trust, and why, when experiencing stress will be sure to surprise you. Real Transformations: Business Change That Works from the Inside Out is co-hosted by Julie Anixter and Dan Hill, PhD, entrepreneurs with deep experience as corporate change agents, devoted to helping companies make continuous change work for everyone through clarity and connection. To learn about their keynote talks, workshops and labs, check out Real-Transformation.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Michael Brand is a CX strategist and trainer, based in Switzerland, who has been named a Thinkers 360 Top 50 Global Thought Leader on Customer Loyalty. Dr. Vincent Covello directs the Center for Risk Communications, and is a nationally and internationally recognized trainer, researcher, consultant, and expert in emergency, crisis, risk, and change communications. Deanna Leonard is a futurist, executive coach, and AI transformation leader. Her career has spanned senior leadership posts across a wide range of Fortune 500 companies. In this freewheeling, one-hour roundtable discussion, the focus is on the Customer Experience through the lens of both the opportunities and misuses that AI involves. The topics addressed include the following: 1) the importance of active listening, 2) the 20 words that can make or break an exchange with a customer, 3) how front-line CX employees can be enabled to do their jobs better, and 4) the need for training budgets to be protected, if not increased. In emotional terms, two feelings rise to prominence in this session: fear (of not being heard and responded to) and trust (rooted in the demonstration of caring before knowledge gets shared or an action-step taken). The answers as to who people trust, and why, when experiencing stress will be sure to surprise you. Real Transformations: Business Change That Works from the Inside Out is co-hosted by Julie Anixter and Dan Hill, PhD, entrepreneurs with deep experience as corporate change agents, devoted to helping companies make continuous change work for everyone through clarity and connection. To learn about their keynote talks, workshops and labs, check out Real-Transformation.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/technology

In this episode, David and Chris speak with two of the world's leading experts on corporate sustainability, Aron Cramer, President and CEO of BSR, and Tensie Whelan, Distinguished Professor of Practice Emerita, the Center for Sustainable Business at NYU's Stern School. The conversation explores the origins of so much focus on the business case for sustainability, how this could be optimally framed, the way businesses can realize value from sustainability and why we need to be bold in advocating for it.

Some of each apply most times.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Think you've got sharp eyes and a quick brain?

In this episode of The Masonic Roundtable, we ask a challenging and fundamental question about the modern purpose of our fraternity: Are we building thinkers or followers? We examine whether our lodges have shifted toward producing compliant members who simply memorize ritual and follow administrative rules, or if we are truly cultivating independent, philosophical minds. Our panel explores whether brothers are joining the Craft merely to belong to a comfortable social club, or if they are actively engaged in the difficult, transformative labor of self-improvement. Join us as we reflect on the true meaning of making "good men better" and how to inspire a culture of genuine intellectual and moral growth within our ranks.

Why do most new products fail — even when they solve a real problem? In this episode of The Voice of Retail, presented by Konek – Canada's way to pay. Visit Konek.ca to learn more., host Michael LeBlanc sits down with Rob Snyder, founder and author of the new book The Power of Pull, to unpack why understanding customer demand is fundamentally different from pitching supply — and what that means for retailers, vendors, and startups trying to win business today. Snyder's path here started at McKinsey & Company, where he grew frustrated with consulting from the outside and moved into the startup world to learn how companies actually work. After Harvard Business School, he built his first startup selling into retail and restaurants — and spent two brutal years hitting a wall before finally cracking the code and scaling to $4 million in annual recurring revenue in under two years. That hard-won experience became the foundation for his PULL framework, and for a career spent studying, through Harvard Innovation Labs, startup advising, and angel investing, why some new ideas take off while most don't. The conversation digs into the core distinction at the heart of Snyder's book: demand is not the same thing as wanting a product. Demand is a person trying to accomplish something in their life; supply is simply the tool they pull in to get it done. Snyder revisits the famous (and possibly apocryphal) Henry Ford "faster horses" quote to explain why asking customers what they want often produces the wrong answer — and why the real skill is identifying what people are stuck trying to do with the options already in front of them. For retailers fielding constant vendor pitches, Snyder offers a practical filter: can this startup speak your language, cite specific relevant case studies, and explain exactly how they've unstuck a comparable business — or are they hiding behind buzzwords like "agentic AI"? He also tackles how AI is reshaping the competitive landscape for B2B startups, arguing that as AI closes gaps in the "limitations" side of the PULL framework, vendors need to find pull in places AI hasn't reached yet. The episode closes with Snyder's advice for retail leaders trying to uncover genuine, unfiltered demand: skip the customer interviews, and instead watch shoppers struggle in real time — in-store and online — to find the moments where existing options fall short. Rob Snyder's new book, The Power of Pull, is available now wherever books are sold. Connect with him on LinkedIn or at robsnyder.org.  This episode presented by Konek – Canada's way to pay. Visit Konek.ca to learn more. Michael LeBlanc is the president and founder of M.E. LeBlanc & Company Inc, a senior retail advisor, keynote speaker and now, media entrepreneur. He has been on the front lines of retail industry change for his entire career. Michael has delivered keynotes, hosted fire-side discussions and participated worldwide in thought leadership panels. He brings 25+ years of brand/retail/marketing & eCommerce leadership experience with Levi's, Black & Decker, Hudson's Bay, CanWest Media, Pandora Jewellery, The Shopping Channel and Retail Council of Canada to his advisory, speaking and media practice.Michael produces and hosts a network of leading retail trade podcasts, including the award-winning No.1 independent retail industry podcast in America, Remarkable Retail with his partner, Dallas-based best-selling author Steve Dennis; Canada's top retail industry podcast The Voice of Retail and Canada's top food industry and one of the top Canadian-produced management independent podcasts in the country, The Food Professor with Dr. Sylvain Charlebois from Dalhousie University in Halifax.Rethink Retail has recognized Michael as one of the top global retail experts for the fifth year in a row, the National Retail Federation has designated Michael as on their Top Retail Voices for 2025 and 2026. Thinkers 360 has named him on of the Top 50 global thought leaders in retail. If you are a BBQ fan, you can tune into Michael's cooking show, Last Request BBQ, on YouTube, Instagram, X and yes, TikTok.Michael is available for keynote presentations helping retailers, brands and retail industry insiders explaining the current state and future of the retail industry in North America and around the world.

Think you've got a one-of-a-kind brain?

Thomas Doherty was joined by Haley Marshall and Joe Hinds, editors of the new edition of Ecotherapy: Theory, Research, Practice, and Education, of which Thomas authored the first chapter.  The trio reflected on the science and stories behind ecotherapy's rise from the margins to mainstream practice, and remembered their colleague, pioneering UK ecotherapist, Martin Jordan. Contrary to common misconceptions, outdoor or ecotherapy is neither new, nor unstudied. Thinkers like Martin, Hayley, Joe, Thomas and others have been clarifying  and building best practices in this field for decades. This episode is an essential listen for those seeking a solid background on the history and development of mental health therapy in the outdoors. 

Some children answer questions immediately. Others need minutes, or even days, to think before they respond. In a fast paced world, those slower processors can easily be mislabeled as indecisive or anxious. In this episode of Facing the Dark, Wayne and Dr. Kathy explore new research showing that deep verbal thinkers often process life more thoroughly than others realize. Together, they discuss how parents can distinguish between unhealthy rumination and healthy reflection while learning to nurture children according to the unique ways God designed them to think.

JUST ANNOUNCED! Anna's upcoming book, Getting Back to You is coming out soon! To be the first to hear about it, click here to get on her list! In Part Two of this two-part series on abundance versus scarcity, Anna Gibbs moves beyond the mindset conversation and gets practical, exploring the everyday habits and thought patterns that separate abundant thinkers from those who unknowingly operate from fear, limitation, and survival mode. In this episode, Anna shares nine attributes of abundant thinkers and challenges you to look honestly at where scarcity may still be quietly influencing the way you lead, work, make decisions, and move toward what you want. Inside this episode, you'll discover: How to create a long term vision that will keep you out of constantly feeling like you're in survivor mode The difference between having a plan and being rigid, and why abundant thinkers know how to stay focused on where they are going while remaining flexible about how they get there How you may be unknowingly collecting evidence against your own dreams and talking yourself out of opportunities How to recognize when you are making important decisions from fear, urgency, or emotion instead of clarity and knowledge Also in this episode Anna challenges you to take her One-Week Abundance Challenge and pay attention to where scarcity shows up in that one area of your life. Then, one decision at a time, practice choosing the abundant response instead.. If you have been working hard, carrying a lot, and wondering why the next level still feels harder than you expected, this episode may help you recognize the thought patterns quietly keeping you where you are and show you where to begin shifting them. Resources Mentioned in the Show: Ep 145: The 3 Myths Keeping You From Abundance Anna's Build Your Best Life Journal Journal Prompts: Am I in survival mode or vision mode? What do I want my life to look like in a year? Have I broken down my goals into smaller steps? Quotes to Remember: Abundance is our birthright. Sometimes we win and sometimes we learn. You don't have to postpone joy or happiness. Connect with Anna: To learn more about Anna's upcoming book go to: gettingbacktoyoubook.com Monday Morning Mojo Facebook Group Facebook  Instagram Watch the Monday Morning Mojo Video on YouTube To set up a discovery call with Anna visit Calendly.com/annagibbs  To learn more about coaching with Anna visit  coachannagibbs.com To learn more about the supplements and products Anna uses to improve her overall health and well-being visit: https://plexusworldwide.com/annagibbs  Learn more about the makeup and skincare company Anna uses that also makes donations to important women's causes. It's bigger than beauty.

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

S6E9 Mark Ryski on why stores convert up to 70% of store traffic while online only converts 3% and Amazon only 10%77% of shoppers who walked out of a big box store without buying told exit interviewers they came in to buy. They couldn't find help, wouldn't wait in line, and left empty-handed. Mark Ryski has spent almost 3 decades measuring that gap, and his new book gives it a name: Store Traffic Is A Gift, and most retailers waste it. This episode, Ricardo and Casey sit down with Mark Ryski, founder and CEO of HeadCount Corporation, to dig into retail's most misunderstood metric: in-store conversion. Physical stores convert 20% to 70%+ of their store traffic. Typical online sites convert under 3%, and Amazon converts about 10%. The store converts several times better than any other channel, yet 84% of retail sales (US Census Bureau, March 2026) still get managed as if online were winning, and in-store conversion gets treated as a vibe at the end of the day.In This Episode, You'll Learn•       Why a store can get more traffic and sell less, and what conversion data reveals.•       The exit survey result that changed a big box operator's mind about service.•       The single fastest conversion win, and why most chains schedule it backwards.•       How super converting stores hit 75% while sister stores in the same chain sit at 30%.•       The CFO conversation: what 100 basis points of conversion is worth in top-line sales.•       What BOPIS, curbside, and Amazon returns really do to store traffic and conversion.•       Why accurate store traffic data is the demand signal AI needs before anything else.Subscribe & FollowIf you enjoyed this episode, please leave us a 5‑star rating and review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Goodpods. Subscribe on YouTube so you never miss an episode and check out the other shows in the Retail Razor Podcast Network: Retail Transformers, Blade to Greatness, and Data Blades.Subscribe to the Retail Razor Podcast Network: https://retailrazor.com/Subscribe to our Newsletter: https://retailrazor.substack.comSubscribe to our YouTube channel: https://go.retailrazor.com/utubeFeatured guestMark Ryski. https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-ryski-8826601/CEO, HeadCount Corporation. https://headcount.comAuthor, Store Traffic Is A Gift. https://a.co/d/00VI3UujMark Ryski is the founder and CEO of HeadCount Corporation and one of the retail industry's leading authorities on store traffic and shopper conversion. For more than 20 years, he has helped retailers—from independent stores to large national chains in over 20 countries—convert more store visits into sales and make better operating decisions. He is the author of three books on retail performance, including Store Traffic Is a Gift: The Retailer's Guide to Converting Visits into Sales, Conversion: The Last Great Retail Metric, and When Retail Customers Count, the first book dedicated to the study of store traffic. Mark is a longtime BrainTrust contributor on RetailWire and has been recognized as a Rethink Retail Top Retail Expert in 2025 and 2026.Chapters00:00 Teaser00:32 Show Intro05:06 Welcome, Mark Ryski!10:28 Traffic Is a Gift13:09 Origin Story - Counting Traffic16:45 Conversion Numbers and Fast Wins23:16 Exit Surveys Reveal Missed Sales26:22 Proving Payroll Pays Back28:08 Inside Super Converting Stores31:57 BOPIS And Amazon Traffic Trap38:23 AI Needs Clean Traffic Data44:52 Optimism For Physical Retail48:03 Show CloseMeet your hostsHelping you cut through the clutter in retail & retail tech:Ricardo Belmar is an NRF Top Retail Voice for 2025 and a RETHINK Retail Top Retail Expert from 2021 – 2026. Thinkers 360 has named him a Top 10 Thought Leader in Retail, a Top 25 Thought Leader in AGI and Careers, a Top 50 Thought Leader in Agentic AIand Management, and a Top 100 Thought Leader in Digital Transformation and Transformation. Thinkers 360 also named him a Top Digital Voice for 2024 and 2025. He is an advisory council member at George Mason University's Center for Retail Transformationand the Retail Cloud Alliance. He was most recently the partner marketing leader for retail & consumer goods in the Americas at Microsoft.Casey Golden, is the North America Leader for Retail & Consumer Goods at CI&T, and CEO of Luxlock. She is a RETHINK Retail Top Retail Expert from 2023 - 2026, and Retail Cloud Alliance advisory council member. After a career on the fashion and supply chain technology side of the business, Casey is obsessed with the customer relationship between the brand and the consumer and is slaying franken-stacks and building retail tech! MusicIncludes music provided by imunobeats.com, featuring Overclocked, and E-Motive from the album Beat Hype, written by Heston Mimms, published by Imuno.

Tim Harrison explains why AI won't replace great leaders—but leaders who stop thinking for themselves may replace themselves.What starts as a conversation about AI quickly becomes a discussion about leadership, adaptability, and the future of work. Tim Harrison shares why technology should amplify human capability instead of replacing it, how real expertise comes from living the work every day, and why the leaders who remain curious, creative, and engaged will continue to outperform those who offload their thinking.In this episode, you'll learn:• Why AI should amplify your strengths instead of replacing your thinking• How pattern recognition creates the frameworks that great leaders teach• The progression from incompetence to competence, excellence, and your zone of genius• Why staying "behind the wheel" matters—even as AI becomes more capable• How AI rewards adaptable, creative, and lifelong learners• Why execution and real-world experience matter more than theory• How Tim built AI workflows that reduce hours of work to seconds• Why leadership in the AI era is ultimately about personal responsibility, not technologyAbout Tim HarrisonTim Harrison is the Founder and CEO of Coaching Innovation Lab, helping leaders and organizations leverage artificial intelligence effectively, authentically, and responsibly. He serves on the AI Coaching Coalition of North America and has been recognized by Marshall Goldsmith for helping shape the future of coaching and leadership development. Tim combines executive coaching with practical AI implementation to help leaders build better systems without losing their humanity.Chapters00:00 Introduction• Meet Tim Harrison and explore the future of leadership in the AI era.02:15 Tim's Journey• From executive coaching to founding Coaching Innovation Lab.• Helping leaders integrate AI into their organizations.10:04 AI Is a Multiplier• Why "who you are is how you prompt."• AI amplifies the strengths—and weaknesses—of its user.20:30 AI Literacy• The difference between knowing about AI and actually using it.• Why application creates a competitive advantage.28:45 AI Workflows• How Tim uses AI systems to automate hours of work in seconds.• Practical examples of AI supporting—not replacing—human expertise.38:28 Technology That Feels Like Magic• Why today's AI shift is comparable to the transition from horses to automobiles.• Understanding the scale of change happening now.43:00 Who Will Thrive?• Why creative, adaptable, high-character leaders will continue to win.• The importance of staying engaged instead of outsourcing your thinking.52:56 Living the Work• How real experience produces authentic frameworks.• The journey from competence to a true zone of genius.53:18 Closing• Final thoughts and where to connect with Tim and watch more episodes from 10X Your Team.Connect with Tim Harrison:Website:https://coachinginnovationlab.com/Podcast Resources:https://coachinginnovationlab.com/podcast/LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/coachtimharrison/YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/@CoachingInnovationLab/TEDx:https://tedxspokane.com/speaker/tim-harrison/

In this episode of The Voice of Retail podcast, host Michael LeBlanc sits down with one of retail technology's most accomplished leaders: Julie Averill, former Chief Information Officer of Lululemon and REI, and author of the new book Chief Impact Officer: Real Transformation Comes from Human, Not Just Artificial Intelligence. Joining the conversation is Menachem Salinas, Co-Founder and Chief Revenue Officer of Nimble, the expert AI web search platform making live web data enterprise-grade. A self-described "serial retail technologist," Julie's career spans the defining chapters of modern retail technology. She spent a decade at Nordstrom leading pioneering omnichannel initiatives, drove a technology transformation as CIO of REI, and then took a leap to a then-$2 billion company called Lululemon — where, over eight years as CIO, she helped power the brand's growth to $10 billion. Today, she runs her own advisory business focused on enterprise AI adoption, and her new book makes the case that real transformation comes from people, not just technology. Drawing on years of parsing signal from noise in the CIO chair, Julie delivers a masterclass in AI reality-checking. Her verdict on where retail stands in the AI journey? "Maybe the first inning." She argues the technology itself is now the easy part — the real reasons so many AI pilots fail are data quality, governance, workflow readiness and organizational capability. Julie shares the exact questions she asks to separate a slick demo from a solution built to survive contact with a real omnichannel operation: Whose data does this run on? What workflow actually changes, and for whom? Who owns the errors? What does this cost at scale? And she tells a cautionary tale of a board-driven AI pitch that promised everything — and why "yes, we can do everything" is the surest sign of an immature vendor. Julie also maps the future of the CIO role itself: from technology gatekeeper to curious, strategic business enabler. With AI tools now arriving through the browser, control is gone — the new job is curation, education and helping executives tell what's real. The businesses that win, she argues, will be the ones that learn to evolve continuously and dream about what was previously impossible. Menachem Salinas adds the vendor-side perspective, explaining how Nimble delivers real-time competitive pricing, digital shelf monitoring and out-of-stock intelligence across thousands of retail sites — and why he believes agentic commerce will transform e-commerce within twelve months. His candid ShopTalk Barcelona assessment: even the world's biggest brands rate no better than five out of ten on AI data readiness. Julie's book Chief Impact Officer is available now everywhere books are sold. Learn more at julieaverill.com and nimbleway.com. Michael LeBlanc is the president and founder of M.E. LeBlanc & Company Inc, a senior retail advisor, keynote speaker and now, media entrepreneur. He has been on the front lines of retail industry change for his entire career. Michael has delivered keynotes, hosted fire-side discussions and participated worldwide in thought leadership panels. He brings 25+ years of brand/retail/marketing & eCommerce leadership experience with Levi's, Black & Decker, Hudson's Bay, CanWest Media, Pandora Jewellery, The Shopping Channel and Retail Council of Canada to his advisory, speaking and media practice.Michael produces and hosts a network of leading retail trade podcasts, including the award-winning No.1 independent retail industry podcast in America, Remarkable Retail with his partner, Dallas-based best-selling author Steve Dennis; Canada's top retail industry podcast The Voice of Retail and Canada's top food industry and one of the top Canadian-produced management independent podcasts in the country, The Food Professor with Dr. Sylvain Charlebois from Dalhousie University in Halifax.Rethink Retail has recognized Michael as one of the top global retail experts for the fifth year in a row, the National Retail Federation has designated Michael as on their Top Retail Voices for 2025 and 2026. Thinkers 360 has named him on of the Top 50 global thought leaders in retail. If you are a BBQ fan, you can tune into Michael's cooking show, Last Request BBQ, on YouTube, Instagram, X and yes, TikTok.Michael is available for keynote presentations helping retailers, brands and retail industry insiders explaining the current state and future of the retail industry in North America and around the world.

These 15 riddles don't care if someone feels smart — they only reward people who actually think. This video starts off easy, then quickly turns into the kind of puzzles that expose guessing, rushing, and overconfidence instantly. Some riddles rely on logic, some on patterns, and a few are designed to trick the brain on purpose. Every question gives a chance to pause, rethink, and catch the tiny detail most people miss. It's the perfect challenge for anyone who wants to prove they're a thinker, not just a guesser

This week, we're giving the full episode to everyone for free, and we're doing the same next week too. As always, every 5th episode is free for everybody because we care and we truly appreciate everyone who listens.If you're rocking with us, hit that like button and share the episode with somebody who needs to hear it.For full exclusive access to all of our content and more, visit [www.patreon.com/theafacts](http://www.patreon.com/theafacts).Thanks for all the love and support! ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Welcome to the What's Next! Podcast with Tiffani Bova.    My guest this week is Caroline Stokes, a leading strategist, executive coach, Thinkers 50 Radar honoree, and author of AfterShock to 2030. Her work focuses on helping leaders navigate reinvention in a world where the old playbooks may no longer apply. While we spend a lot of time talking about AI, disruption and transformation, Caroline argues that the real challenge may be something deeper: how leaders adapt themselves before they try to transform everyone else.    THIS EPISODE IS PERFECT FOR…leaders navigating the changes of our world who want to stay relevant, help their teams adapt, and build confidence in an increasingly uncertain future.   TODAY'S MAIN MESSAGE…many leaders are focused on transforming their organizations, but Caroline argues that the real challenge is transforming themselves first. As AI, economic uncertainty, and societal shifts accelerate simultaneously, old leadership playbooks are becoming less effective. Caroline explains why curiosity, continuous learning, and self-reinvention are now essential leadership skills. She also explores how leaders can use AI thoughtfully without losing the human connection that drives trust, collaboration, and meaningful change.   KEY TAKEAWAYS: Curiosity is one of the most important skills leaders can develop. AI should enhance human collaboration, not replace it. Transformation starts with personal reinvention. Fear slows adaptation while experimentation accelerates learning. Leaders must help people navigate change, not just announce it.   WHAT I LOVE MOST…Caroline's reminder that it's never too late to become a "learn-it-all" instead of a "know-it-all." In a world changing this quickly, curiosity may be the most valuable leadership advantage we have.   Running Time: 29:40 Subscribe on iTunes   Find Tiffani Online: LinkedIn Facebook X    Find Caroline Online: LinkedIn Website   Caroline's Book: AfterShock to 2030: A CEO's Guide to Reinvention in the Age of AI, Climate, and Societal Collapse

Solving riddles is like giving your brain a workout—it challenges your problem-solving skills and boosts cognitive flexibility. Plus, it's a fun way to keep your mind sharp and engaged, kind of like a mental gym session. Riddles also encourage creative thinking and lateral reasoning, helping you approach problems from different angles. Ultimately, solving riddles is like giving your brain a well-rounded exercise routine, keeping it healthy, agile, and ready to tackle whatever challenges come your way! So, dive in and enjoy this fun form of an IQ test. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of The Wisdom Of … Show, I speak with Maeve Ferguson, The Authority Architect, Founder and CEO of Maeve Ferguson Consulting, and Creator of The Client Engine™. With a background in Big Four accounting at Ernst & Young and private equity leadership, Maeve brings forensic data precision to the challenge of turning a thought leader's unstructured expertise into diagnostic infrastructure that qualifies, converts, and scales without them in the room. Her clients include Arthur Brooks, Jen Kem, Selena Soo, Mike Kim, and The Hyatts. Her assessments rival Myers-Briggs and StrengthsFinder in sophistication.After a virus left her bedridden for four years, she rebuilt her entire business around systems that work without her presence, and now runs her global practice from a working horse farm in Northern Ireland while raising two young children.Maeve and I build a live visual model in this episode - The Authority Architecture, mapping the three-stage journey from Invisible Genius to Category of One.Episode breakdown00:00 Welcome to The Wisdom Of … Show and introduction of Maeve Ferguson02:30 Equine science, Ernst & Young, and private equity: the unlikely path to diagnostic architecture07:00 The virus, four years bedridden, and the principle that rebuilt everything: systems that work without you12:00 "Respected but replaceable": what that phrase means for even the most recognised thought leaders16:30 Tetris Brain: how Maeve extracts unstructured IP into diagnostic frameworks in real time22:00 The difference between a quiz funnel and genuine diagnostic authority: sophistication, data, and what the market can now smell28:00 LIVE MODEL BUILD: The Authority Architecture: Invisible Genius → Structured IP → Diagnostic Authority38:00 The three types of diagnostic infrastructure: quiz funnel, score-based assessment, multi-dimensional diagnostic43:00 AI, real IP, and why the market is about to separate those with genuine depth from those who only appear to have it46:30 92 AI agents, KPI dashboards, and how Maeve has applied her own methodology to her own business49:00 The IP to PD transition: intellectual property becoming proprietary data, and why that changes the value conversation52:00 Closing lesson: "Be ready"54:30 What most people don't know about Maeve Ferguson: foaling season on a horse farm in Northern IrelandAbout Maeve FergusonMaeve Ferguson is The Authority Architect, founder and CEO of Maeve Ferguson Consulting, and creator of The Client Engine™. Her methodology transforms established thought leaders from "respected but replaceable" to Category of One by turning their unstructured intellectual property into diagnostic infrastructure that qualifies, converts, and scales without them in the room.With a background in Big Four accounting (Ernst & Young) and private equity leadership, Maeve brings data-driven precision to an industry long dominated by tactics. Her signature "Tetris Brain" capability allows her to extract a thought leader's unstructured IP into measurable diagnostic frameworks in real time. She has built 10,000 hours of diagnostic architecture across dozens of verticals. Her assessments rival Myers-Briggs and StrengthsFinder in sophistication. Her clients include Arthur Brooks, Jen Kem, Selena Soo, Mike Kim, and The Hyatts.After a virus left her bedridden for four years, Maeve rebuilt her practice on a single principle: systems that work whether she's in the room or not. She now runs her global consulting firm from a working horse farm in Northern Ireland while raising two young children.Connect with Maeve Ferguson:Website: https://www.maevefergusonconsulting.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maeveferguson/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iammaeveferguson/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@maevefergusonFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/iammaeveferguson/About Simon BowenSimon has spent over two decades working with influential leaders across complex industries. His focus is on elevating thinking in organisations, recognising that success is directly proportional to the quality of thinking and ideas within a business. Simon leads the renaissance of thinking through his work with global leaders and organisations.Connect with SimonLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/simonbowen-mm/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/officialsimonbowen/Website: https://thesimonbowen.com/Get Simon Bowen's Personal Newsletter for Leaders, Thinkers, and Entrepreneurs!Sign Up Now: https://thesimonbowen.com/newsletter.Join Simon's Masterclass: Unlock your leadership potential with The Models Method.Learn to articulate your unique value and create scalable impact.Watch it Now: https://thesimonbowen.com/masterclass.

On this episode of the 100 Year Thinkers, Chris Mayer and Matt Zeigler discuss long-term investing, 100-baggers, AI stocks, SpaceX valuation, founder-led companies, and why the best investments often come with brutal drawdowns. We also cover his new book The Investor's Odyssey, the danger of letting labels like AI do too much work, how to think about TAM and capital allocation, and why patience may be the biggest edge for investors trying to own great businesses for decades.⁠Subscribe to the 100 Year Thinkers on Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠Subscribe to the 100 Year Thinkers on Apple⁠The Investor's Odyssey: Resisting the Sirens and Playing the Long Game⁠https://amzn.to/44BMXeJ⁠Main topics coveredWhy SpaceX, AI and trillion-dollar IPOs are testing investor disciplineHow Chris Mayer thinks about valuation after watching Google become a huge winnerWhy great businesses can still be terrible investments at the wrong priceThe danger of letting labels like AI, quality and TAM replace real analysisWhy many AI features may not create real customer valueWhat the dot-com bubble can teach investors about AI adoption and shakeoutsWhy investors do not need to be early if a company is truly exceptionalHow to separate AI anecdotes from real financial impactWhy capital allocation and return on invested capital matter more as companies scaleHow to evaluate founder control, governance, incentives and trustWhy the best long-term stocks can still fall 50 percent or more along the wayWhat rational exuberance might look like for long-term investorsTimestamps00:00 Intro: Chris Mayer on AI, SpaceX and long-term investing04:00 SpaceX valuation vs Google and the risk of paying too much08:01 Why labels like AI and quality can do too much work12:05 The AI pause, the dot-com analogy and where real value may emerge16:06 Why investors do not need to be early when a business is real21:00 Becoming a great company versus already being mature25:10 Thinking about TAM, market share and realistic growth expectations29:43 Corporate governance, free float and shareholder rights34:27 How to judge founder trust, incentives and compensation38:57 Employee ownership, culture and building enduring companies43:02 Investor frustration in a lopsided AI-driven market47:02 Why even a perfect stock picker would face brutal drawdowns52:17 The rise of trillion-dollar IPOs and the question of rational exuberance56:29 The Investor's Odyssey and playing the long game

What gives life meaning? It's a question that has fascinated humanity for centuries. From ancient philosophers and mystics to modern psychologists, some of history's greatest thinkers have explored what it means to live a purposeful and fulfilling life. In this episode, we examine their timeless wisdom on meaning, resilience, connection, and personal growth—and discover practical ways to apply these insights to our own lives.

In this Encore episode of The Voice of Retail, I'm joined by James B. Smith, Founder and CEO of Rare Placement, for a wide-ranging conversation on modern leadership, executive search, and the future of talent in the retail industry. James brings an exceptional career journey to the mic, beginning in advertising with agencies like Grey and Ogilvy, moving into marketing leadership at Citibank, in leadership roles at Esquire and then Conde Nast Traveller—where he helped it become the top-performing title, even outpacing Vogue. His passion for growth and transformation led him to become a CEO, owner-operator, and eventually launch Rare Placement, a boutique executive search firm focused on personalized, human-centric talent solutions. In our conversation, James emphasizes the power of storytelling—not just for brands, but for leaders. He reveals that every candidate he's placed has gone on to become a client, a testament to his laser focus on culture fit, agility, and soft skills over just resumes. We dive into how executive hiring has changed, why modern CEOs need courage, humility, and the ability to say “I don't know,” and how COVID permanently reshaped leadership styles and expectations around flexibility and culture. James shares practical advice for current and aspiring retail leaders—from building a strong, concise personal narrative to investing in ongoing networking, not just when you're in transition. He stresses that succession planning should be an ongoing, layered strategy, and reminds executives that “people buy leaders, not logos.” We also explore the increasing importance of board roles—both fiduciary and advisory—and how executives can position themselves for these opportunities by knowing what they uniquely bring to the table. Whether you're a retail executive planning your next move, a CEO rethinking your leadership team, or a rising leader wondering how to stand out, this episode is packed with actionable insights. Michael LeBlanc is the president and founder of M.E. LeBlanc & Company Inc, a senior retail advisor, keynote speaker and now, media entrepreneur. He has been on the front lines of retail industry change for his entire career. Michael has delivered keynotes, hosted fire-side discussions and participated worldwide in thought leadership panels. He brings 25+ years of brand/retail/marketing & eCommerce leadership experience with Levi's, Black & Decker, Hudson's Bay, CanWest Media, Pandora Jewellery, The Shopping Channel and Retail Council of Canada to his advisory, speaking and media practice.Michael produces and hosts a network of leading retail trade podcasts, including the award-winning No.1 independent retail industry podcast in America, Remarkable Retail with his partner, Dallas-based best-selling author Steve Dennis; Canada's top retail industry podcast The Voice of Retail and Canada's top food industry and one of the top Canadian-produced management independent podcasts in the country, The Food Professor with Dr. Sylvain Charlebois from Dalhousie University in Halifax.Rethink Retail has recognized Michael as one of the top global retail experts for the fifth year in a row, the National Retail Federation has designated Michael as on their Top Retail Voices for 2025 and 2026. Thinkers 360 has named him on of the Top 50 global thought leaders in retail. If you are a BBQ fan, you can tune into Michael's cooking show, Last Request BBQ, on YouTube, Instagram, X and yes, TikTok.Michael is available for keynote presentations helping retailers, brands and retail industry insiders explaining the current state and future of the retail industry in North America and around the world.

On this special segment of The Full Ratchet, the following Investors are featured: Eric Byunn of Centana Growth David Ulevitch of Andreessen Horowitz Jake Saper of Emergence Capital We asked guests to tell the most important lesson they've learned in their career. The host of The Full Ratchet is Nick Moran of New Stack Ventures, a venture capital firm committed to investing in founders outside of the Bay Area. We're proud to partner with Ramp, the modern finance automation platform. Book a demo and get $150—no strings attached.   Want to keep up to date with The Full Ratchet? Follow us on social. You can learn more about New Stack Ventures by visiting our LinkedIn and Twitter.

D&P Highlight: The power of speech and debate...we need more critical thinkers. full 422 Thu, 25 Jun 2026 18:58:00 +0000 JeSLT6H7cnOrP72v9L8BPHAXLIGwLKTq news The Dana & Parks Podcast news D&P Highlight: The power of speech and debate...we need more critical thinkers. You wanted it... Now here it is! Listen to each hour of the Dana & Parks Show whenever and wherever you want! © 2025 Audacy, Inc. News https://player.

Welcome to Day 2891 of Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me. This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom – Theology Thursday – When Myth Remembers: The Case for the Supernatural in History. Wisdom-Trek Podcast Script - Day 2891 Welcome to Wisdom-Trek with Gramps!   I am Guthrie Chamberlain, and we are on Day 2891 of our Trek.   The Purpose of Wisdom-Trek is to create a legacy of wisdom, to seek out discernment and insights, and to boldly grow where few have chosen to grow before. Our current series of Theology Thursday lessons is written by theologian and teacher John Daniels. I have found that his lessons are short, easy to understand, doctrinally sound, and applicable to all who desire to learn more of God's Word. John's lessons can be found on his website   theologyinfive.com.   Today's lesson is titled:  When Myth Remembers: The Case for the Supernatural in History. Modern thinking often treats myths as primitive fiction, old stories made up to explain what ancient people didn't understand. This is a shallow and deeply flawed view. A myth, in its original form, was never just a tale. It was a framework for understanding reality. Myths carried the collective memory, theology, morality, and worldview of a people group. They encoded truth, not always literal in every detail, but meaningful, historical, and often rooted in real events, places, and supernatural encounters. To dismiss myths because they involve divine beings or miracles is to miss their purpose. Ancient people did not separate the sacred from the secular. Their myths reflected how they understood the world and how they encountered powers beyond it. The first segment is: Historical Memory Preserved in Myth Some myths are poetic versions of real events. The story of the Trojan War, once thought to be legend, gained new weight when archaeological discoveries confirmed the existence of a city that fits Homer's description of Troy. Likewise, while the legends of King Arthur are wrapped in fantasy, they are likely based on a real post-Roman warlord who resisted Saxon invaders. Even in Scripture, the events that modern critics label “mythic” often show clear signs of historical anchoring. The global flood, the destruction of Sodom, the Tower of Babel, and the conquest of Canaan are presented not as metaphors but as real acts of God in human history. These accounts, though cosmic in scope, are rooted in geography, time, and national memory. The second segment is: Myth as Cultural Lens Myths also reveal what mattered most to a people. Norse mythology, shaped by harsh winters and unrelenting violence, emphasizes cold, fate, and struggle. Mesopotamian myths center on divine kingship and cycles of fertility, reflecting the importance of rivers, temples, and crops. These stories do not just preserve events; they preserve the lens through which cultures viewed divine activity. In the Bible, this same pattern holds. Its creation narrative, flood story, and judgments are not recycled myths but deliberate responses to the surrounding pagan world. Scripture confronts and corrects the worldview embedded in other myths. It does not borrow their gods. It defeats them. The third segment is: The Modern Turn Against the Supernatural The rejection of mythic material as a source of truth is not ancient. It is modern. It was not the biblical writers or the early Church who dismissed the supernatural. That rejection began in earnest during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, when Western intellectual culture began shifting under the influence of the Enlightenment. The Enlightenment exalted reason, skepticism, and empirical science. Thinkers like David Hume and Immanuel Kant argued that miracles violated the laws of nature and were therefore unreliable as historical events. Supernatural claims were relegated to the realm of fiction or psychological projection. This created a new definition of truth, one that excluded divine intervention, spiritual beings, and cosmic conflict. In the nineteenth century, these assumptions were applied to the Bible through the historical-critical method. Scholars such as Julius Wellhausen dissected Scripture not as divine revelation but as a collection of evolving mythologies shaped by human communities. The creation narrative, the flood, the Tower of Babel, and the miracles of Jesus were no longer treated as actual events but as religious poetry or borrowed legends. In this model, myth was not something to be trusted. It was something to be deconstructed. Even movements that sought to preserve the value of myth, such as Romanticism, did so by redefining it. Myths were not allowed to speak about divine realities. Instead, they were reduced to metaphors for the human condition. Their theological and historical weight was stripped away in favor of psychological interpretation. The fourth segment is: Augustine's Overcorrection: From Mysticism to Minimalism But the groundwork for this modern rejection of mythic material was laid even earlier. Augustine of Hippo, one of the most influential theologians in Christian history, had once been deeply involved in Manichaeism, a mystical cult that emphasized a cosmic struggle between light and darkness. After leaving the cult and converting to Christianity, Augustine understandably sought to distance himself from the elaborate supernatural systems he had once embraced. However, in doing so, he overcorrected. He rejected many established supernatural interpretations of Scripture, favoring more allegorical and philosophical approaches. Influenced by Neoplatonism, Augustine prioritized abstract spiritual realities over tangible supernatural beings. He reinterpreted Genesis 6, for example, not as a rebellion of divine beings, but as a moral tale about the intermarriage of the godly and ungodly. Though Augustine never denied God's power or the reality of miracles, his discomfort with mythic material and his desire for theological respectability led him to downplay or spiritualize the cosmic conflict found in much of the Bible. His influence steered much of Western theology away from the ancient worldview that accepted divine councils, rebellious spirits, and supernatural intervention as real components of history. This theological shift made it easier for Enlightenment thinkers to later dismiss myth outright. The supernatural had already been contained and abstracted. In many ways, the modern rejection of myth did not begin with science. It began with Augustine's reaction against his own past. The fifth segment is: The Myth That Was True and the Myths That Remembered Not all myths are lies. Many are distorted memories of real events, echoes of a spiritual history that the nations once knew but later twisted. The flood, the divine rebellion, the rise of giants, the war among the gods, these appear in cultures across the globe not because they were invented out of thin air, but because they preserve fragments of true events. The nations remembered the rebellion of the sons of God, but they passed it down in corrupted form. They remembered divine judgments, but attached them to false deities. Their stories are not false because they are myth. They are flawed because they lost the context of Yahweh's supremacy. In the twentieth century, this idea was captured powerfully in a conversation between J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis. At the time, Lewis still considered myths to be beautiful lies, moving, meaningful, but ultimately untrue. Tolkien challenged that view. He explained that myths resonate because they point to something real. Humanity tells stories of gods and sacrifice and resurrection because it dimly remembers. Made in the image of a Creator who speaks through story, we carry within us a longing for the true version of the story all nations once knew. Tolkien told Lewis, “The story of Christ is a myth working on us in the same way as the others, but with this tremendous difference: it really happened.” The point was not that the other myths were worthless, but that they were shadows. The gospel is the fulfillment of what all the others pointed toward. It is not myth in the modern sense of fiction, but myth in the ancient sense of divine reality revealed in story. Where the nations preserved pieces of divine truth wrapped in confusion, Scripture restores the original pattern. Where paganism elevates rebel gods and obscures justice, the Bible reorients the mythic structure around Yahweh, the Most High. It does not erase the mythic imagination. It redeems it. The sixth segment  is: Yahweh Is Not Bound by the System He Created A major reason people reject mythic material is the presence of supernatural events. Miracles, divine appearances, and acts of judgment are written off as fabrications because they do not conform to natural law. But that objection is built on a misunderstanding of who Yahweh is. If we believe that Yahweh is...

In this conversation, John Anderson sits down with Prof. Simon Haines and Dr. Fiona Mueller to examine how Australia's schools and universities stopped teaching children how to think, and what a genuine restoration of education would look like. The results are measurable in falling literacy, rising school refusal, and a curriculum that has prioritised ideological formation at the expense of knowledge.From the classical roots of Western education and the Trivium to the ideological capture of teacher training and university management, Haines and Mueller expose the ideas driving the decline and the institutions already proving a better model is possible. What is at stake is not just educational outcomes, but the capacity of the next generation to reason clearly, to govern themselves wisely, and to pass on what they have inherited.Prof. Simon Haines is the Distinguished Professor of Liberal Arts at Campion College Australia, Adjunct Professor at the Australian Catholic University, and a founding Fellow of the Hong Kong Academy of the Humanities. He previously served as the inaugural CEO of the Ramsay Centre for Western Civilisation and is a Director of Humanities for Life.Dr. Fiona Mueller served as Head of ANU College at the Australian National University and as Director of Curriculum at the Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA), and was named among the five most influential people in Australian education by the Australian Financial Review in 2019. She is an Adjunct Fellow with the Centre for Independent Studies, a Senior Fellow with Advance HE (formerly the Higher Education Academy), and currently serves as Director of Research at the Page Research Centre.

Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming retail, but are retailers giving away too much decision-making power to algorithms? On this episode of The Voice of Retail, host Michael LeBlanc welcomes back retail strategist, educator, speaker and author Carl Boutet to the podcast to discuss his latest book, The Flip. Drawing on more than three decades of retail experience and his work advising organizations around the world, Carl offers a thought-provoking perspective on how AI is reshaping retail strategy, customer engagement and business leadership. The conversation begins with Carl's unique vantage point as a global retail observer. Fresh off another teaching engagement at the Asian Institute of Technology in Bangkok, Carl shares insights from Southeast Asia's rapidly evolving retail landscape. From super apps and mobile commerce to experiential shopping destinations and high-energy retail environments, he explains why emerging markets are often leapfrogging traditional retail models and creating new opportunities for customer engagement. Michael and Carl then explore one of the most important topics facing retailers today: the growing influence of artificial intelligence on decision-making. Carl argues that while AI can dramatically improve efficiency, it also poses the risk that businesses become increasingly dependent on algorithmic recommendations, potentially sacrificing the creativity, differentiation, and strategic judgment that make brands unique. At the center of the discussion is Carl's new framework outlined in The Flip. He introduces the four forces that he believes are fundamentally reshaping commerce: automation, optimization, contextualization and immersion. Together, these forces are changing how retailers attract customers, personalize experiences, manage operations and compete in increasingly digital environments. The discussion extends beyond technology into the future of retail itself. Carl shares observations from his travels across Asia, highlighting how retailers are creating energy-rich destinations that blend shopping, entertainment, food and community. These experiences offer important lessons for North American retailers seeking to remain relevant in a world where consumers increasingly have unlimited digital choices at their fingertips. Michael and Carl also examine the rise of AI-powered customer discovery, the future of search and marketing, the growing importance of trust, and why retailers must think carefully about where human value creation fits inside increasingly automated organizations. Carl explains why curiosity, organizational adaptability and a relentless focus on core business fundamentals remain essential leadership capabilities despite the rapid pace of technological change. Michael LeBlanc is the president and founder of M.E. LeBlanc & Company Inc, a senior retail advisor, keynote speaker and now, media entrepreneur. He has been on the front lines of retail industry change for his entire career. Michael has delivered keynotes, hosted fire-side discussions and participated worldwide in thought leadership panels. He brings 25+ years of brand/retail/marketing & eCommerce leadership experience with Levi's, Black & Decker, Hudson's Bay, CanWest Media, Pandora Jewellery, The Shopping Channel and Retail Council of Canada to his advisory, speaking and media practice.Michael produces and hosts a network of leading retail trade podcasts, including the award-winning No.1 independent retail industry podcast in America, Remarkable Retail with his partner, Dallas-based best-selling author Steve Dennis; Canada's top retail industry podcast The Voice of Retail and Canada's top food industry and one of the top Canadian-produced management independent podcasts in the country, The Food Professor with Dr. Sylvain Charlebois from Dalhousie University in Halifax.Rethink Retail has recognized Michael as one of the top global retail experts for the fifth year in a row, the National Retail Federation has designated Michael as on their Top Retail Voices for 2025 and 2026. Thinkers 360 has named him on of the Top 50 global thought leaders in retail. If you are a BBQ fan, you can tune into Michael's cooking show, Last Request BBQ, on YouTube, Instagram, X and yes, TikTok.Michael is available for keynote presentations helping retailers, brands and retail industry insiders explaining the current state and future of the retail industry in North America and around the world.

Building a media brand from scratch isn't easy.

What happens when you spend half a year picking the brains of the world's most disruptive founders, tech leaders, and community architects? You get a crystal-clear map of where the world is heading right now. In this special reflection episode, host Rob Ryan looks back at the invaluable lessons learned from six months of intense entrepreneurial conversations. From the compounding speed of tech acceleration and the irreplaceable value of human judgment, to the deep business need for trust and community, Rob unpacks the major themes defining the future of innovation in 2026. Whether you are a startup founder or an industry leader, this episode is your masterclass in what it takes to build, survive, and thrive in the modern economy.Feel free to follow and engage with GUEST here:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robryan/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iamrobryan/Threads: https://www.threads.com/@iamrobryanWe're so grateful to you, our growing audience of entrepreneurs, investors and community leaders interested in the human stories of the Entrepreneurial Thinkers behind entrepreneurial economies worldwide.As always we hope you enjoy each episode and Like, Follow, Subscribe or share with your friends. You can find our shows here, and our new Video Podcast, at “Entrepreneurial Thinkers” channel on YouTube. Plug in, relax and enjoy inspiring, educational and empowering conversations between Rob and our guests.¡Cheers y gracias!,Entrepreneurial Thinkers Team.

Stay informed on current events, visit www.NaturalNews.com  - Equities and Gold Silver Flash Crash Analysis (0:10) - Impact of the War on Gold Prices (5:16) - The Greater Bag Holder Theory and IPOs (8:26) - The Role of Gold and Silver in Financial Security (13:07) - The Future of Battery Technology and Donut Lab (27:37) - The Importance of Independent Research and Analysis (1:12:37) - The Role of AI in Advancing Technology (1:12:58) - The Economic and Social Impact of AI (1:25:35) - The Role of Precious Metals in Financial Security (1:25:48) - The Importance of Open-Mindedness and Rational Thinking (1:26:02) - Energy as the Foundation of Wealth (1:26:20) - The Role of Energy in Human Abundance (2:37:03) - Financial Strategies for the Future (2:38:41) - Promoting Battalion Metals (2:40:04) - Final Thoughts and Recommendations (2:42:17) Watch more independent videos at http://www.brighteon.com/channel/hrreport  ▶️ Support our mission by shopping at the Health Ranger Store - https://www.healthrangerstore.com ▶️ Check out exclusive deals and special offers at https://rangerdeals.com ▶️ Sign up for our newsletter to stay informed: https://www.naturalnews.com/Readerregistration.html Watch more exclusive videos here:

In this episode of The 100 Year Thinkers, Robert Hagstrom explains why modern portfolio theory pulled investors away from business analysis and toward portfolio math.We discuss Markowitz, beta, efficient markets, Warren Buffett, Charlie Munger, business-driven investing, owner earnings, benchmarks, and why thinking like a business owner changes how investors understand risk.The Warren Buffett Portfolio, 25th Anniversary Editionhttps://amzn.to/4uz8sZ3Topics covered:Why Hagstrom thinks modern portfolio theory changed investing's objectiveThe difference between volatility, variance and real investment riskHow Benjamin Graham and John Burr Williams framed risk around intrinsic valueWhy beta became the dominant shorthand for riskHow the 1973-74 bear market helped institutionalize modern portfolio theoryWhy Berkshire preserved the business owner's lensThe “cathedral and casino” distinction between owning businesses and trading stocksOwner earnings, return on invested capital and cost of capitalWhy business owners often make better long-term equity investorsLook-through earnings and building a “mini Berkshire”The difference between making money and beating a benchmarkHow benchmarks can distort investor behaviorWhy knowing yourself and your clients matters in portfolio constructionMatt Zeigler and I had the privilege of hosting Robert Hagstrom for a special 100-Year Thinkers Edition of the Excess Returns Podcast.Available now on Excess Returns Podcast and Talking Billions.

How many times do you hear in a day “Mom, I need your help"?  How many times do you say to yourself,  “I need him to do more on his own without my help or without me directing every step of the way.”  In this week's episode, Carrie is addressing a question she gets all the time:  “How can I get my kid to be more independent?”  Carrie shares simple strategies to help your children and teens to become critical thinkers, independent learners, and self-motivated individuals.  It's never too early to start and it's never too late to try.  Pour yourself a cup of coffee, put your feet up and join Carrie for a little coffee and conversation about critical thinking and self-directed learning.Support the showSupport the ShowPurchase A Home Education Handbook: 9 Questions to Ask for Simple & Balanced Home-Based LearningPurchase Homeschool High School:  A Handbook for Christian EducationPurchase Just Breathe (and Take a Sip of Coffee):  Homeschool Simply & Enjoyably.  Schedule a Coffee Date (One-on-One Personalized Coaching Session:  Coffee With Carrie Subscribe to Coffee With Carrie email newsletter for FREE Morning Time Plans and monthly tips  https://coffeewithcarrie.org Follow on Instagram @coffeewithcarrieconsultant.

What does it truly take to build a workplace where people don't just show up - they ignite? In this electrifying episode of Start With a Win, host Adam sits down with Moe Carrick, a visionary work futurist and culture architect whose unconventional path - from wilderness guide to organizational mastermind - has given her a perspective on human potential that most leaders never discover. Moe pulls back the curtain on the invisible forces shaping today's most successful (and most struggling) organizations. In a world rocked by seismic workplace shifts, a loneliness epidemic, and the relentless rise of AI, she challenges everything leaders think they know about what employees actually need - and what it costs when those needs go unmet. This is the raw, resonant truth about what separates thriving cultures from toxic ones, and the surprisingly human principles that make all the difference. If you lead people - or aspire to - this episode will change how you see your organization forever.Moe Carrick is a work futurist, culture architect, and bestselling author who helps leaders and organizations turn workplace friction into fuel for growth. With over two decades of experience working with companies big and small - from Nike to nonprofits - Moe's research-backed methods help teams align, scale, and create cultures where connection drives performance. A TEDx and SXSW speaker recognized by Thinkers 360, Fast Company, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Moe is on a mission to fix the way we work so people thrive - and businesses win.00:00 Intro03:45 We all need this… 04:54 This is where organizational culture starts.08:55 Never heard this statement before… 12:40 Employers are being mindful and designing systems for this! 16:00 Biggest important need!20:01 Why we fixing after the fact when those things are core?24:50 Non-negotiable in setting a culture for your organization. 26:15 My fav ritual.  https://moementum.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/moecarrick/ https://www.instagram.com/moecarrick/ ===========================Subscribe and Listen to the Start With a Win Podcast HERE:

Mike and Ethan Strauss joined to talk on Substack and they talked about Ethan's 4:00 a.m. "rise and grind" writing routine, the frustrating trend of "great writers, bad thinkers" across the media landscape, and the unique cultural heat that drives the WNBA's popularity. They also dive into the lost art of the "gamer," mourning the slow death of the rapid-fire, post-game sports recaps that once defined the industry. Produced by Corey Wara Video and Social Media by Geoff Craig Do you have questions or comments, or just want to say hello? Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠thegist@mikepesca.com For full Pesca content and updates, check out our website at https://www.mikepesca.com/⁠ For ad-free content or to become a Pesca Plus subscriber, check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://subscribe.mikepesca.com/ For Mike's daily takes on Substack, subscribe to The Gist List https://mikepesca.substack.com/ Follow us on Social Media:⁠⁠⁠⁠ YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4_bh0wHgk2YfpKf4rg40_g⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/pescagist/ X https://x.com/pescami TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@pescagist To advertise on the show, contact ⁠⁠⁠⁠sales@amplitudemediapartners.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.