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(00:00) Tim McKone & Matt McCarthy - in for Zolak & Bertrand - take calls on the Jaylen Brown situation. (10:36) The guys continue to explore trade possibilities for Jaylen Brown. Will the Celtics be forced to accept pennies on the dollar in order to breakup the Jay's?(22:12) The guys talk about the World Cup and if they should expand to 64 teams(34:36) Do the Celtics have to move on from Jaylen Brown? The guys explore the underlying issues with the current Celtics' team.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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He Could Become Anyone on Stage. What Was He Hiding Offstage?Danny Gans was the Man of Many Voices, the highest-paid headliner on the Las Vegas Strip, and the first performer to sell a $100 ticket on the Strip. He could become almost anyone on stage. Privately, he carried a pain he kept hidden. In Voices: The Danny Gans Story, his son Andrew Davies Gans sets out to tell that whole story, the legend and the man, in his directorial debut.In Episode 280, Christian Taylor sits down with director and producer Andrew Davies Gans to talk about the documentary he made about his father. Andrew shares how a baseball injury and his father's death in the same month set him on the path to filmmaking, why he chose to put himself and his family inside the frame, and how the film became a search for the truth about Danny's chronic pain and the legacy he left behind.The conversation traces a three-generation pattern of athletic dreams cut short and lives reinvented in entertainment, from Danny's father singing in the Catskills to Danny's rise from a severed Achilles to the top of the Strip. Andrew talks about comedian Louie Anderson's advice to tell the story the hard way, the Scent of a Woman speech that became one of the film's most powerful edits, and the decision to show his father's chronic pain honestly rather than hide it. It is a conversation about grief, fatherhood, and what we owe the people who came before us.In this episode, you'll learn:How Danny Gans went from a minor league baseball career to becoming the Man of Many Voices in Las VegasWhy three generations of the Gans family traded athletic dreams for lives on stageHow Danny Gans became the first performer to sell a $100 ticket on the Las Vegas StripWhat it takes to direct your first documentary about your own fatherWhy Andrew Davies Gans chose to put himself and his family inside the filmWhat comedian Louie Anderson taught Andrew about telling a story the hard wayHow the Scent of a Woman speech became one of the film's most powerful momentsWhy Andrew decided to tell the truth about his father's struggle with chronic painHow an editor earned a writing credit in the documentary edit roomWhat a three-and-a-half-hour first cut taught Andrew about finding the real filmChapters0:00 Losing his father and his baseball dream in the same month2:09 From a Major League dream to filmmaking: a son finds his father's story5:34 Three generations of dreamers: the grandfather, the Catskills, and a family that reinvents itself7:22 The White Sox draft, a severed Achilles, and Danny's rise to the Man of Many Voices10:54 Why Andrew made the film: a 10th anniversary, a teaser, and a COVID shutdown14:17 Trailer: Voices: The Danny Gans Story, the $100 ticket legend, and a word from Virgil Films18:27 Rebuilding after COVID, and becoming a father mid-production20:42 Choosing vulnerability: the decision to put himself in the film22:57 Louie Anderson and the choice to tell the story the hard way26:30 The hardest truth: the Al Pacino 'Scent of a Woman' edit, chronic pain, and one of millions35:20 First-time filmmaking lessons: why you shouldn't be 100% prepared38:16 Inside the edit room: movie magic and a writing credit for the editor41:48 The Vegas voices: Tony Orlando, Donny Osmond, and Steve Wynn48:37 What's next: narrative films, the festival run, and distribution52:37 DocuView Déjà Vu: Shuffle and Searching for Sugar ManFrequently Asked QuestionsWho was Danny Gans?Danny Gans was a singer, actor, and impressionist billed as The Man of Many Voices. He was named Las Vegas Entertainer of the Year roughly a dozen times and was the first performer to sell a $100 ticket on the Las Vegas Strip, headlining sold-out shows for years at the Mirage and the Encore at Wynn Las Vegas. A former minor league baseball player, he turned to entertainment after a career-ending injury.How did Danny Gans die?Danny Gans died on May 1, 2009, at age 52, in his sleep at his home in Henderson, Nevada. The Clark County coroner ruled the death accidental, caused by a toxic reaction to the prescription painkiller hydromorphone, which Gans took for chronic pain syndrome. Underlying heart disease and a blood disorder were contributing factors. The coroner stated clearly that this was not a case of drug abuse.What is Voices: The Danny Gans Story about?Voices: The Danny Gans Story is a documentary directed by Danny's son, Andrew Davies Gans, in his directorial debut. It traces Danny's improbable rise from a baseball injury to Las Vegas stardom, then becomes a personal account as Andrew searches for the truth about his father's hidden struggle with chronic pain. The film is as much about grief, fatherhood, and legacy as it is about a legendary career.Who directed the Danny Gans documentary?The documentary was directed by Andrew Davies Gans, Danny Gans's son, in his directorial debut after producing roughly a dozen films. Andrew appears in the film himself, wrestling on camera with how much of his father's private life to reveal. That decision becomes a central thread in the second half of the movie.Where can I watch Voices: The Danny Gans Story?Voices: The Danny Gans Story premiered in June 2025 at Dances with Films at the TCL Chinese Theatre and went on to screen at festivals including the Austin Film Festival, along with additional special screenings. At the time of this conversation, a wider distribution deal was being finalized. Check the film's official channels for the latest on where to watch.DocuView Déjà Vu PicksShuffle, a documentary about fraud in the drug rehabilitation industry (not yet released at the time of recording)Searching for Sugar Man, the documentary about musician Sixto RodriguezSponsored by Virgil Films EntertainmentThis episode is sponsored by Virgil Films Entertainment, with over 25 years of distribution experience and a catalog that includes Super Size Me, the Oscar-nominated Restrepo, and Forks Over Knives. Learn more at https://virgilfilms.com.About Andrew Davies GansAndrew Davies Gans is a film director and producer based in Los Angeles, and the founder of Glanzrock Productions. Voices: The Danny Gans Story is his directorial debut, following a career producing roughly a dozen films. A drafted baseball player whose career ended in injury, he turned to acting, then screenwriting, then producing, before stepping behind the camera to tell his father's story.Find Andrew Davies Gans and Glanzrock Productions:Website: https://glanzrock.productionsInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/gans_andrewLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrew-davies-gansGlanzrock Productions on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/Glanzrock-Productions-100063642647635/About Danny GansDanny Gans was a Las Vegas singer, actor, and impressionist known as The Man of Many Voices. He was named Las Vegas Entertainer of the Year roughly a dozen times and headlined sold-out theaters built for him at the Mirage and the Encore at Wynn Las Vegas. Known for a wholesome, faith-centered public image, he died in 2009 at the age of 52.About Documentary FirstDocumentary First is a weekly podcast about the craft, business, and truth of filmmaking, hosted by documentary filmmaker Christian Taylor. Each episode is a conversation with someone who holds another piece of the filmmaking puzzle, from first-time directors to Emmy and Peabody winners. Christian Taylor is a documentary filmmaker (The Girl Who Wore Freedom), actor, voice actor, and podcast host. Learn more at https://documentaryfirst.com.Resources MentionedVoices: The Danny Gans Story (IMDb):

Michael Smith—Managing Partner and Founder, Emerald Advisors Michael Smith shares how a client-first philosophy, niche specialization, and independence helped Emerald Advisors grow from $385mm to more than $1B in assets. In Summary What happens when an advisor builds a business around client service rather than operational efficiency? Jason Diamond speaks with Michael Smith, Founder and Managing Partner of Emerald Advisors, about the path from a successful Merrill practice to an independent RIA that has grown from approximately $385mm to more than $1B in assets. Along the way, Michael shares the story of being told he was “overservicing” clients, why that moment became a catalyst for independence, and how a highly specialized service model fueled the firm's growth. Drawing on lessons from a 24-year Navy career, Michael offers a perspective on leadership, specialization, client care, and what it takes to build a durable business in today's wealth management landscape. The Storyline Growth is often viewed as the result of marketing, referrals, acquisitions, or scale. Michael Smith sees it differently. After building a successful practice at Merrill, Michael found himself at odds with the constraints of the traditional wirehouse model. What ultimately stood out wasn't compensation, technology, or platform capabilities. It was a philosophical difference around client service. When he was told he was spending too much time helping clients navigate tax planning, equity compensation, and other financial decisions outside the traditional scope of investment management, he began to question whether the model aligned with the way he wanted to serve families. That realization eventually led him to launch Emerald Advisors in late 2019. The firm started with roughly 85 clients and approximately $385mm in assets. Today, Emerald serves more than 225 families and oversees more than $1B in assets. Throughout the conversation, Michael reflects on the lessons learned from building an independent firm, developing a niche around concentrated stock positions and executive compensation, navigating custodial and technology decisions, and creating a culture rooted in accountability and service. Underlying it all is a simple belief: when firms become highly intentional about who they serve and how they serve them, growth often becomes the outcome rather than the objective. Topics Covered Merrill breakaways and independence Client service as a growth driver Building an RIA RIA growth and scalability Organic growth strategies Concentrated stock positions and equity compensation planning Ideal client personas and niche specialization Schwab and Fidelity custody relationships Advisor succession and enterprise value Navy leadership principles in wealth management The rise of mega RIAs Advisor technology and infrastructure > Download a transcript of this episode… Listen and Learn Highlights for Advisors Why did being accused of “overservicing” clients become a turning point? (08:15)Michael explains how a conversation with management revealed a deeper misalignment between his client-service philosophy and the wirehouse model. What does client service look like beyond portfolio management? (11:30)The discussion explores how tax planning, equity compensation guidance, and proactive coordination can deepen client relationships. Why can specialization accelerate growth? (15:45)Michael shares why serving a defined niche often creates stronger referrals, greater expertise, and clearer positioning. How has the RIA landscape evolved since 2019? (20:30)Michael reflects on the rise of mega RIAs, changing technology capabilities, and why he believes independent firms still have significant advantages. What role do custodians really play in an independent business? (23:15)Michael discusses his experience working with Schwab and Fidelity and why he views custodians as strategic partners rather than competitors. Is the wirehouse model still the right fit for some advisors? (26:45)The conversation challenges the assumption that independence is the best path for everyone and explores the realities of running a business. Does reaching $1 billion in assets actually change anything? (32:45)Michael offers a practical perspective on growth, success, and why asset milestones can be misleading. What can advisors learn from the “steamboat” philosophy? (37:15)Drawing on his Navy experience, Michael shares a leadership framework that continues to shape how he approaches business building and decision-making. Key Takeaways Exceptional client service can become a meaningful competitive advantage when it extends beyond investment management. Independence gave Michael the flexibility to build a service model that aligned with his philosophy rather than adapting his philosophy to fit the platform. Developing a niche around executive compensation and concentrated stock positions helped accelerate Emerald's growth. The ability to make technology, custodial, and operational decisions quickly remains a significant advantage for independent firms. Not every advisor should be independent. Running a business requires a different set of skills and responsibilities than serving clients alone. Growth milestones are useful, but they do not define success. Michael believes success existed long before Emerald reached $1 billion in assets. High-performing teams with a clear client focus often find that growth becomes a natural byproduct of execution. https://youtu.be/RjzsMcC2DnY Quotable Moments “I literally had to go back and Google the word overservicing.” “Servicing the client is the most important thing that we can do today.” “If you serve a niche and you're very good at that niche, that word gets around.” “Growth becomes the outcome.” FAQs Can an advisor really “over-service” clients? The discussion explores the tension between efficiency and depth of service. While some business models prioritize scale and consistency, others are built around solving a broader range of client problems. The right answer often depends on the advisor's philosophy and business model. Does specialization still matter in a relationship business? Michael argues that developing expertise in a specific area can accelerate growth by making referrals easier and helping advisors become known for solving a particular set of problems. What actually changes when an advisor becomes independent? Beyond economics, independence often creates more flexibility around client service, technology, processes, and business decisions. At the same time, advisors assume responsibility for running the business itself. Is full independence the right path for every advisor? No. Michael acknowledges that many advisors benefit from the structure, support, and resources available within traditional firms. Independence offers flexibility, but it also introduces complexity and responsibility. How should advisors think about the $1 billion milestone? Michael views asset milestones as useful benchmarks but not measures of success. In his view, business quality, client outcomes, and sustainability matter more than any specific asset number. What role does an ideal client persona play in growth? Rather than trying to serve everyone, Emerald built its business around a clearly defined client profile. Michael believes that focus improves service, creates operational consistency, and supports organic growth. How can advisors balance growth with client service? One of the central themes of the episode is that growth and service are not necessarily competing objectives. In some cases, a differentiated service model becomes the reason a business grows. The discussion explores the tension between efficiency and depth of service. While some business models prioritize scale and consistency, others are built around solving a broader range of client problems. The right answer often depends on the advisor's philosophy and business model. Michael argues that developing expertise in a specific area can accelerate growth by making referrals easier and helping advisors become known for solving a particular set of problems. Beyond economics, independence often creates more flexibility around client service, technology, processes, and business decisions. At the same time, advisors assume responsibility for running the business itself. No. Michael acknowledges that many advisors benefit from the structure, support, and resources available within traditional firms. Independence offers flexibility, but it also introduces complexity and responsibility. Michael views asset milestones as useful benchmarks but not measures of success. In his view, business quality, client outcomes, and sustainability matter more than any specific asset number. Rather than trying to serve everyone, Emerald built its business around a clearly defined client profile. Michael believes that focus improves service, creates operational consistency, and supports organic growth. One of the central themes of the episode is that growth and service are not necessarily competing objectives. In some cases, a differentiated service model becomes the reason a business grows. Related Resources The Transitioning Advisor's Lament: Things I Wish I Knew Before Freedom vs. Familiarity: Is it Worth Disrupting Comfort for Something That Might Be Better? IBD vs. RIA Revisited: Two Independent Pathways for Advisors to Consider Advisor Transition Report 2026 Guest Bio Michael Smith, CPWA® is the Founder and Managing Partner of Emerald Advisors, an independent wealth management firm overseeing more than $1 billion in assets for affluent families, executives, and business owners with complex planning needs. Mike entered the wealth management industry in 2005 after a distinguished 24-year career in the United States Navy, where he served both as an enlisted sailor in the Submarine Force and later as a Limited Duty Officer aboard USS Abraham Lincoln and on major staffs around the world. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Management and an MBA with dual emphases in Finance & Accounting and International Business. Throughout his career, Mike has been known for his commitment to comprehensive planning, helping clients navigate complex issues involving concentrated stock positions, executive compensation, tax strategy, estate planning, philanthropy, and multi-generational wealth transfer. His client-first approach and passion for education have helped Emerald Advisors grow from a startup firm in 2019 to a nationally recognized RIA serving more than 225 families. Outside of the office, Mike is an avid ultrarunner, golfer, lifelong learner, and dedicated advocate for children’s health initiatives. He is a current member of the Legacy Council at Seattle Children’s Hospital and has served in leadership and board roles supporting the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, the Barbara Davis Center for Diabetes, the ALS Association, and the Alyssa Burnett Adult Life Center. He is also the proud father of Kat Smith. NOTE: The views and opinions expressed by the guests on this podcast are their own and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of Diamond Consultants. Neither Diamond Consultants nor the guests on this podcast are compensated in any way for their participation. View the transcript of this episode… From “Overservicing” Clients to Building a $1B RIA: A Merrill Breakaway Story A conversation with Jason Diamond and Michael Smith, Managing Partner and Founder of Emerald Advisors.      Jason Diamond: Welcome to the latest episode of our podcast series for financial advisors. Today’s episode is From “Overservicing” Clients to Building a $1B RIA: A Merrill Breakaway Story. It’s a conversation with Michael Smith, managing partner and founder of Emerald Advisors. I’m Jason Diamond and this is the Diamond Podcast for financial advisors. Mindy Diamond: At Diamond Consultants, we help elite advisors identify the right environment for their businesses to thrive whether that’s at a wirehouse, boutique or independent firm. With nearly three decades of experience, we’ve guided thousands of advisors and represented more than a quarter of a trillion dollars in assets transitioned and, each year, one in four advisors managing a billion dollars or more who change firms are our clients. Our process is education driven and based on building relationships starting as your strategic partner well before you’re even thinking of a move. To schedule a confidential conversation, call us at (908) 879-1002. Wondering why advisors change firms and where they’re headed? Are transition deals going up or down? Those very questions and more inspired us to create our annual advisor transition report. It’s the award-winning, data-driven resource designed for advisors that connects the dots between the motivations around movement and the firm’s appetite for top talent. Arm yourself with the knowledge you need to make smart decisions. Download your copy at diamond-consultants.com/transitionreport. Jason Diamond: Growth is often viewed as the result of better marketing, stronger referrals, a larger team and even acquisition and that’s all true yet growth can be the byproduct of something else entirely. For example, Michael Smith built a successful practice at Merrill then, one day, he was told he was spending too much time with his clients, or his management put it over-servicing clients. For Michael, that wasn’t a warning sign about his approach, it was a signal that he might have outgrown the firm and the model. Today, Michael is the founder and managing partner of Emerald Advisors, the independent RIA he launched in late 2019 with roughly 385 million in assets and 85 client relationships. Less than seven years later, the firm has grown to more than a billion in assets while remaining deeply focused on a highly-specialized client base and an unusually hands-on service model. What makes this story particularly interesting isn’t just the growth, it’s the thinking behind it. Michael’s perspective was shaped long before he entered wealth management. After serving more than two decades in the Navy, he brought a leadership philosophy centered on accountability, discipline and what he calls steamboat people, those who keep moving forward regardless of conditions, that mindset continues to influence how he builds his team, serves clients and evaluates opportunities. In this episode, we discuss the decision to leave Merrill, the realities of launching a fully independent RIA, why specialization can accelerate growth, the evolving role of custodians and technology and why he believes exceptional client service remains one of the industry’s most durable competitive advantages. Because Michael’s experience suggests that growth isn’t always the result of finding more opportunities, sometimes it’s the result of creating the freedom to execute the vision you already had so let’s jump in. Michael, thank you so much for joining us today. For starters, can you walk us through your background and what brought you to the world of wealth management? Michael Smith: Jason, thank you so much for the opportunity to be here today, I do listen to the podcast a lot especially before I left Mother Merrill. But my background and how I got into financial services is really distinct because I was on the board of JDRF back in the day and the national sponsor for JDRF was UBS PaineWebber and they’re like, “Mike, why don’t you be a financial advisor?” And my master’s degree was actually a finance and accounting in portfolio management because I’ve managed my own portfolio for years and years and so, when I couldn’t get a job, I just fell into it because I couldn’t get a job and I needed a job. That was 21 years ago, Memorial Day so that’s how I got into this industry. Jason Diamond: It’s a unique background, it’s super interesting and I want to talk more about it. You mentioned Mother Merrill, we’ll certainly get there. Before we do, give us a little bit of context on the current business you operate, Emerald Advisors, any context you can share on size, number of staff, types of clients you serve would be great. Michael Smith: Sure. So, we launched Emerald in 2019, November 2019 with about 85 clients and you always talk about this on the podcast how scared it is to launch and go independent. And I would say we took over about 95% of our clients that we wanted to bring over and today we’re at about 230 clients, I think we have some onboarding right now, we have just over a billion of assets. So, we launched with the 85 clients and around 350, 385 million, now we’re over a billion. Jason Diamond: Good for you. Michael Smith: Thank you. And I launched with four employees and we’re now at 11. And I would give a shout-out to one of my key employees because, when I launched, I actually hired somebody that had no experience with us and that was really a good thing because that allowed that person to really focus on operations and back office stuff while my business partner Emily and I were able to focus on bringing on the clients and alleviating any issues that they may have or thought. Jason Diamond: So, meaning you hired somebody basically immediately upon launch to help you with the transition and with this next chapter? Michael Smith: Correct. I hired them before but they started the day we launched. Jason Diamond: Brilliant, I love it. Oh, let’s definitely talk more about that because I think that’s a great strategy for … You’re right, you said it in a joking manner now because you’re seven years past but it’s a very real fear that advisors have and I think it’s worth talking more about. I want to mention too you have, obviously, built this business and grown this business dramatically. I don’t want to make this episode about the pandemic but you moved the business at a, certainly, a unique time. Did it impact your growth at all? Did you feel like you hit a brick wall? Just curious about your thoughts. Michael Smith: No, Jason, that’s a great observation. I would venture to say that the pandemic was actually a good thing for us. Jason Diamond: Interesting. Michael Smith: And I say that because, all of a sudden, you could hit pause because everyone was relearning how to do business, how do we do client reviews, how do we communicate with clients in a environment. So, I think the pandemic allowed us to just really reset our expectations visiting with clients because I used to fly a lot because I have clients in 38 different states so this has actually been, not just good for me, but good for the industry because I think it’s reset our expectations that we don’t have to be every day with a client facing. Jason Diamond: I agree with that largely and it’s true of our business too, by the way, it’s certainly reshaped the way people expect to be communicated with. I think Zoom has become much more mainstream, phone calls and we’ve heard from many other advisors who say something similar. I was just curious because you moved so close to or if there was an impact but I get, honestly, I think you’re right, it allowed you to have this nice natural inflection point and almost like flipping a switch of a clean slate. Michael Smith: It allowed us to learn the processes too. So, we launched in November 1st, by March we were in lockdown and so it gave us the opportunity to take several months of just learning the processes of how to be an RIA, it was pretty good. Jason Diamond: Absolutely. So, one of the things you mentioned in that was the way in which you serve clients and I’d read something funny and I think it was around the time of your move. You were talking about that, Merrill, you had a manager who spoke about that you would overserve your clients, you serve clients too much, tell me about that. Michael Smith: That was such an interesting topic because I got called down to the ops officer’s office and they’re like, “Ugh, Mike.” And it brought my admin down with me and they’re like, “Mike, these reports that you’re taking care of your clients too much,” and I’m like, “What do you mean?” “Well, you’re overservicing them.” Jason, I literally had to go back and Google the word overservicing because I was like, “How do you overservice the client? I’m not making their bed.” It was just so funny to me that I got counsel for overservicing clients when we’re in a client-facing job and I think that was part of the catalyst. Jason Diamond: Tell me more about what they meant, you think. Michael Smith: Hindsight, I think they … I like to take care of people which means I’m very intuitive towards taxes, I understand how the tax code works, I understand how everything impacts their bottom line. So, when we’re doing deferred comp enrollments or 401(k) enrollments or I’m a big believer in Roth 401(k)s and backdoor Roths and I’ve been doing them for years, I think what Mother Merrill wanted at that time was us not to do that. And, again, nothing against Merrill, I get it but this is how they wanted us to act and I wasn’t in that mold, I was taking care of clients to a much deeper depth is how I would say it. Jason Diamond: And I think that speaks to you outgrew the model not necessarily the firm. I think Merrill does a lot of things really well, you would agree with that, I think given that you built 85 clients and 350 million in assets is nothing to sneeze at. But the model that it seems like you value client service and an integrated client service experience of that and the wirehouse model oftentimes doesn’t put a premium on that. Tell me about your ethos or your thoughts around client service today and what being independent enables you to do. Michael Smith: So, that’s an interesting observation because one of my clients actually just mentioned to me that the reason we’re growing so much is because of our service model and the fact that we deliver a tremendous amount of value over just portfolio management. I said my managers is in portfolio management, I don’t do that any longer, I have a staff that handles that for me but it’s really the servicing of the clients because they don’t know what we know and I think servicing the client is the most important thing that we can do today. Jason Diamond: Give me some examples of what you mean by servicing the client in a more holistic way. I agree with you, by the way, portfolio management, table stakes, financial planning, table stakes, tell me more about what you mean. Michael Smith: By that I mean we do a quarterly review on tax. So, a lot of people don’t understand how taxes work and how estimated taxes work. So, estimated taxes are January 1st to March 31st, January 1st to May 31st, January 1st to August 31st, that’s how you do your estimated tax payments, you figure out what that is. And for compensated employees where they have RSUs that come in at different times of the year or different grants or exercise their options at a different time, that can affect their estimated tax liability and I’m not big on giving Uncle Sam any more money than they have to have until they need it. And then everyone doesn’t understand how the penalties and interest works on the IRS. And I’m big on the tax payments because that’s where we can add a lot of value for not a lot of time and we integrate it with our portfolio so we know what we’re doing with our gains. And I happen to reside in Washington State which has a long-term capital gains tax rate once you surpass about 270,000 of long-term capital gains. So, it’s super important for us to be aware of this and that’s how we service them. We also help them with their rebalancing of their 401(k)s, things that wirehouses cannot supposed to do, we are not supposed to be helping them with some of their aspects of life. Jason Diamond: Yup. That’s what I was alluding to earlier, it’s limitations on the model, not because they’re bad models, it’s just a different way, a different ethos around client service. You mentioned RSUs and corporate employees, I know that’s a niche you have is around concentrated stock positions and equity comp plans. I guess let me ask you two different questions around this. First of all, why that niche? Interested. And then, second of all, do you think a team needs to have a specialization to be competitive these days or do you think it’s okay just to be like, “My job is to be the best advisor and I want to service assets wherever those assets may come from?” Michael Smith: Another great observation. I’m going to address the niche first and foremost. I think, and I talked to R.J. Shook’s staff just recently, and having a niche gives you a specialization and it also accelerates your growth factor. If you serve a niche and you’re very good at that niche, then that word gets around. If you’re a jack of all trades, you can do lots of things but I don’t think you’re focused and you’re not hitting the right numbers that I like to see. And I think that would be my theme is the niche allows you to focus on a very specific type of ideal client, that’s a Schwab thing where you have an ideal client persona and our firm has an ideal client persona. As far as having the equity comp, I absolutely was one of the teams at Merrill Lynch that was equity compensation designated, I managed a couple of plans. My exposure to that, Jason, I haven’t thought about this in a very long time, came from UBS where I had team members that were colleagues that were associated with the Nextel Sprint plan. And I always thought that you’re taking care of the top executives but, really, my background being in the military was how do we take care of the troops, the troops, I call them sailors, and how do we educate those sailors. And one of the things I’ve always said in my entire career in the military and I still say to this day is 50% of every bonus or a promotion or something like that should go to long-term savings. So, I use that same mentality with RSUs, with stock options, with bonuses. Set that aside, let that grow because you’re not used to spending it and you will learn to spend what you make. Jason Diamond: I think that’s a great reason, it’s super smart and I love your explanation, it was a very simplistic way. Honestly, even I hadn’t thought about that around your niche, I think, becomes almost like a force multiplier for your own growth because it’s much easier to become the guy in X, Y, Z vertical than to be the guy in every financial advisor of America, across America. Let me ask you a follow-up question, you mentioned the ideal client persona. I spend a lot of time at our firm thinking about this as well, what does your ideal client persona look like. How do you think about an opportunity though that differs from that persona? So, it’s great. Obviously, everybody, it’s easy, you get somebody who’s your perfect prospect, they walk in the front door, sign me up. But when you get something that’s not down the fairway for you, is it just I evaluate it on a one-off basis or are you super disciplined to that approach because it’s who your firm is? Michael Smith: I truly haven’t given that a whole lot of thought but I will tell you how I would handle that because I am handling it with some one-offs. I like the opportunity because you’re stretching your brain in that you’re thinking about how somebody else is reacting so you’d never know. So, I like it from a learning perspective but I also know it comes with a lot of other baggage, I’ll call it baggage, because, all of a sudden, they want to short the market, they want to go long-short strategies. So, all of a sudden, they’re not in our niche and, all of a sudden, they’re taking a lot of time, they’re draining our time so I think you got to be very careful about what you wish for. And there’s a lot of great advisors out there that will walk circles around these topics that I’m like, “Okay, I would rather refer somebody so they get the right experience than give them the wrong experience.” Jason Diamond: I absolutely love that answer. The bow you just put on it, I think, is the appropriate way in my mind to put a bow. At the end of the day, wouldn’t you rather service somebody more optimally even if you don’t believe it’s yourself, I agree with that. I want to ask you one more point on the client service piece. I was playing around on your website and, on your service model, you have health as a component of the client experience of your diagram. Why do you think health matters in a financial context? Michael Smith: I always believed in a healthy mind and a healthy body will bring so much joy to you and I think health is just part of your persona. If you don’t take care of yourself and your body and your mind, then it doesn’t matter what I do, I think you got to start with health. So, I’m very big on the executive physicals, I routinely require all of our staff to have an annual physical. And, again, they’re young people but you got to have these annual … I live and breathe going to see a doctor every year to do my annual physical, not because I think I’m pretty good health, I still run, I do a lot of things but I think your life starts with being healthy. Jason Diamond: Yeah, it’s refreshing to hear that, no doubt. It’s funny to think about but 2019 is a long time ago now and, in RIA world, I almost think of it like dog years. You’ve been around the block now for a little while so I’m curious how have you seen this space change since you launched in 2019? Michael Smith: In 2019, I didn’t know what I was doing, I could barely get out a wet paper bag but I do think it’s changed dramatically. I would say the biggest thing I’ve seen in just the six and a half, almost seven years is the rise of the mega RIAs and how they’re going to shape the industry. Everyone talked about fee compression at Merrill Lynch. When I was at Merrill, we talked about fee compression, then they talked about robo-advisors and now they’re talking about artificial intelligence replacing advisors, I don’t believe that and I don’t think that’s going to happen in the RIA space. What I see the RIA space maturing is into these very big mega firms as well as these independent RIAs like myself that serve a very niche market where we can walk in our lane. The ability to transact today is so much easier as an RIA than it was at a wirehouse as well because we have instant access to technology. My military background, my Navy background says make a decision right, wrong or different, if you don’t like it afterwards or you get new data, course change. So, in our industry, we can change on a notice. I hired a tech firm last year, I didn’t like the experience nine months into it, guess what, they’re not coming back. So, I can do that but you can’t do that at the bigger firms and even the bigger mega firms would have a hard time navigating a change just like that on a dime. Jason Diamond: You bring up an interesting point. To the extent you face competition, do you find yourself competing more against traditional wirehouse type firms or RIAs like yourself, mega caps RIAs? Are your clients attuned to any of this? Michael Smith: That’s an observation I haven’t thought of either there, Jason. I would say I don’t feel that I have a … I know there’s competition out there but we have a growth issue more than we have anything else so I don’t … I can’t take on the clients that want to become my clients so I’m not competing with people too much. Jason Diamond: A capacity issue, you mean? Michael Smith: Yeah, I have a capacity issue. Jason Diamond: I think you’re not alone in that. How can I even think about competition and the like when … A lot of advisors would probably say that. I want to talk more about the capacity situation but, before I do, let’s talk a little more about the RIA setup. Who do you custody with, remind us, and why or how did you arrive at that decision? Michael Smith: Yeah. So, when I launched, I went with Schwab, Schwab is a phenomenal partner, they helped me get a lot of stuff done, I couldn’t have done it without Schwab. During the pandemic, I realized that I should probably … So, remember, during the pandemic, we had a lot of issues with the banking industry, it was almost like a financial crisis but in a very compressed time. So, during the COVID, I decided to add Fidelity as another custodian so now I have two custodians and I opened accounts on both sides of the house but I like the custodians that are there to help you, they’re very good at what they do. I don’t even consider them a competitor and they aren’t competitors, they have their own branch so I don’t consider them competitors, I think they’re my partners and both Charles Schwab and Fidelity are good partners. Jason Diamond: Yeah, I think that’s the healthy way to look at the custody relationship. That’s a very common approach, I think, is launching with one custodian and then adding a secondary custodian or a tertiary custodian down the line for one reason or another so I appreciate you sharing that because we get those types of nuts and bolts questions a lot so I figured I’d ask you. One last question on the setup and then we’ll shift gears. Has anything been a negative? So, you talked about leaving Mother Merrill behind and, Mother Merrill, we use it facetiously but obviously it implies a degree of comfort and the homeland so I’m curious if you miss anything. Michael Smith: I miss the camaraderie of being with a bunch of other folks. I mentioned this when I first launched, I mentioned it year over year with my team, the one thing that we miss as an RIA and, again, Dynasty has their benefits as well and the mega RIAs have their benefits but, if you’re a true independent like myself, we get to go to conferences that we want to and that’s a timing issue, really, a time constraint. But one thing Merrill and Morgan, JPMorgan, and the other big wirehouses have as well as the megas, they have the ability to put conferences together for their advisors or their administrators and have this education. That’s the one thing that, I think, would evolve in the RIA industry in the future as well. They’re not my competitors, they’re my business colleagues. And if we think of them as competitors, and a lot of people do because I don’t want to share my client information or what I do with my competitor because they may steal them, if you’re that insecure, then you’re probably not the right advisor in the first place. Jason Diamond: I don’t disagree with that. It’s interesting too, I hear two common answers to that question, not about Merrill but just about somebody who’s broken away, what do you miss about the captive firm world. Either on this podcast or just in conversations with advisors, brand comes up a lot and then the point you just raised. I’ll even hear like, “Hey, forget the conferences and the trainings, just being able to have an office where I’ve got eight other advisors on a row for me, it’s a little bit of a different setup than in the independent space,” and I think that’s just a reality of you take the good with the bad. And for other advisors, by the way, one of the things I want to ask you about to this point is do you believe that there are advisors that are just better served in the W2 traditional firm world or do you think that every advisor should be looking at the RIA space? Michael Smith: I think that wirehouse serves a great purpose and- Jason Diamond: Okay, me too. Michael Smith: … there’s a lot of great people that are great advisors in that wirehouse, they need the structure. What I hadn’t alluded to is, and I mentioned this to a former manager from Merrill Lynch of mine just recently, actually, I was like, “I don’t think advisors realize what it takes to run a business.” I’m not trying to sugarcoat it, running an RIA is hard work, it takes a lot of your time day in and day out to run a business as well as taking care of and servicing your clients so I do think the wirehouse venue is the right way to go. And, Jason, I want to go back to one other thing about your identity. I launched as the Smith Group because that’s what I was known at Merrill Lynch. Within three or four months, I changed that name to a firm because I did not want to be associated with it. So, when you’re at one of the wirehouses, you’re known as your team name or something of that sort, I didn’t want to be known as that, I wanted to be known as Emerald Advisors not the Smith Group because, all of a sudden, you have a single point of failure. So, brand identity, it’s not so unique inside the wirehouse because it’s a team name versus Merrill or Morgan Stanley or something like that. Jason Diamond: It’s a good segue because I’ll tell you where my mind goes when you bring that up. My mind goes is you’re smart in a way that you might not even realize or maybe you do realize which is that, if and when it ever comes time to sell this business, it is probably more valuable without your name attached to it or maybe not. But in some way, shape or form, as an RIA, you have an obligation to be thinking about that or it’s probably on your radar, maybe not an obligation. Have you given an ounce of thought to M&A either acquiring businesses, growing in that way or, ultimately, when you succeed out of this business and what the RIA space enables you to do? Michael Smith: To answer that question, yes. Everyone’s thinking about merger and acquisition, I think about succession planning from day one. I actually thought about I’m a big team person, I come from the submarine force where everyone is a key player on a submarine, every single person has a job and responsibility on a nuclear submarine. So, inside the financial services industry, I know Merrill Lynch was very big on teaming, I understand Morgan Stanley is as well because teaming gives them a breadth of responsibility where the responsibilities are shared. So, mergers and acquisitions or selling my business, I think, if you’re not thinking about that … And I’m not thinking about selling my business because that’s a distraction to me. If I needed the money, then I would’ve went to a wirehouse and that’s okay, you monetize your life’s work. Today, I’m all about what’s right for the client, what’s right for my team and what’s right for where I want to be in the next 10 to 20 years. So, I am growing, I do want to grow, I’m looking at opening offices in probably three locations in the next 24 months or so. Jason Diamond: Well, that’s what I was going to say, plenty of advisors I think would say the same, I have a lot of runway. But what about the other side of this equation which is you’ve had tremendous organic growth, you’ve tripled your client base, you’ve more than tripled the asset base, have you thought about acquisition as a mean to jet fuel the inorganic growth side of things? Michael Smith: I have but not in the typical sense that you’re looking at as buying a book of business. I want to partner with like-minded advisors that share that common thread of taking care of clients where you can serve as their trusted counsel and sit in the meetings with their attorneys and sit in the meetings with the accountants and give them sage counsel that you can only do because you’ve been with the family for 20 years. You know this family and that, not always, but I think that’s missed a lot in other firms. Jason Diamond: Yeah, I think that’s fair. I just thought of something else that you brought up. You brought Dynasty so I’m going to ask … I’m going to pull on this thread. That implies to me that you’re at least loosely aware of the supportive independence models that are out there yet you chose a very independent, autonomous path, why? Michael Smith: Because I didn’t know what I was doing. Jason Diamond: Fair. Michael Smith: Let’s be honest, I like Dynasty, I talked with Dynasty when I left. I talked to them all, I talked to Rockefeller, I talked to Morgan, I talked to Dynasty and then, when push came to shove, I wanted to be Mike Smith and launch my own firm and learn. And I will tell you, you learn drinking through a fire hose and we did that, we learned, I know the mistakes. What I didn’t want to do is just go to someplace where this is the stuff you’re going to have to use. So, I think Dynasty is a great launching platform, I think there’s other ones out there that are similar to Dynasty or the Rockefellers or the Morgans, it’s truly what you’re trying to achieve in life. What do you want for you and your clients and I always put my clients before me because I’ve always had this lifelong thing of, you do the right thing, you’re going to get taken care of. Jason Diamond: Yeah. And that’s a very common analysis, by the way, and it’s very common too for big advisors like yourself to say I did my homework across all of those different categories. I looked at the traditional wirehouses and regional firms and boutique firms, I looked at the independent broker dealers, I looked at the support platforms and the aggregators and the roll-ups and here’s ultimately what I landed on and why. Did you always know that though or was that something that it took you a diligence process to figure out? There was plenty of advisors, by the way, who come to us and they’re like, “I knew for the last five years that I was sitting there I was launching an RIA someday.” Michael Smith: Yeah. I did not know that and, to be honest with you, hindsight, I think one of those partners probably could have made me a little bit better at first because then I could have focused on clients versus focusing on, hey, how to open a business, who’s your technology … We talked about custodians and some other things but we didn’t talk about technology, how do you go find that technology. Where’s your email address come from? Who’s your chief compliance officer? When it resides on you, you got to look in the mirror. So, I think those parties out there that provide that for brand-new advisors launching could be very beneficial. I had in my mind what I needed to do and I knew I’m very frugal so mine boiled down to how much money I wanted to spend, to be honest with you. Jason Diamond: I think it is a cost benefit analysis, it is. It’s absolutely … Because if you list the functions of a support platform on paper and you showed it to somebody who didn’t know the industry, they would say, “Why on earth wouldn’t you do this? They’re taking off your plate compliance and tech and custody and the like,” and the answer is because there’s a cost associated with it and plenty of advisors decide what you decide, I wanted … Or I just wanted a greater degree of autonomy and freedom, to your point, the name on the door piece, I wanted this to be mine. Michael Smith: And, Jason, I think it also goes to the uncertainty. I had never done anything since Navy, financial advising and then launching. So, for me, I was launching with four employees I had to take care of and here I was going to hire a third party that I was going to have to spend X amount on and I didn’t even know what my income was going to be. That’s different if you’re a multi-billion dollar FA coming out of a wirehouse, the monetary dynamics are different. Jason Diamond: Agreed. Okay, here’s a good one for you. We get this concept from advisors, from firms, from private equity that a billion dollars in assets is like this magic number in our industry. Do you feel like anything’s changed now that you’re at a billion and what’s the next chapter for Emerald Advisors? Is it just continuing on this steady trajectory and serving clients and trust that everything else comes with that? Michael Smith: I go back and forth on a billion, everyone thinks that’s the right number, the biggest number that you need but I think it’s just an arbitrary numbers because it didn’t define who I was. And a lot of people define success at a billion, they define success that you’re a successful firm at a billion. I think I was a successful firm at 300 million, I was a successful financial advisor with 20 clients in 2005. I would say a billion is a multiplier, what I would tell new advisors out there today is gather assets. The more assets you have, the more revenue you generate. The more revenue you generate, the more money you can put in your pocket which means the longer you can stay in the industry. The problem with the industry is an attrition problem, not anything else. So, assets just give us the ability to have revenue which gives us the ability to grow. Jason Diamond: And is that the plan? Keep adding assets, keep growing one client at a time with the focus though, obviously, on what makes you which is a very client-centric service model. Michael Smith: Correct. There’s a lot of things I want to do in the next couple of years and expanding our footprint is our biggest one with the right partners and then just keep adding. I have a business development officer that I’m probably offer a job to here pretty soon and things are going well. Jason Diamond: Yeah, that’s great. You mentioned the tech stack and the other components of the business and I hear you on the frugal cost-benefit analysis. But who did you turn to for some of those early decisions, was it Schwab primarily who helped hold your hand through that? Michael Smith: Schwab was very good at helping me identify the tech stack at first and the tech stack is actually the one consistent, there’s a lot of things I’ve been consistent on but tech is one that I’ve stayed with them. I launched with RightSize, now they’re Advisory, they’re very good, they do the right job for us and I’m big on cybersecurity. So, tech was helpful from Schwab, Schwab helped us with that. Jason Diamond: So, we spoke a little bit about your naval experience but, I’m curious, can you tell us how has your naval experience shaped your perception or your experience in wealth management? Michael Smith: My Navy path was a lot different than many officers. I served 12 years as an enlisted person before I got my direct commission as a Mustang officer, typically called limited duty officers or loud, dumb and obnoxious as I like to say. But that experience gave me a unique perspective because I was able to be the enlisted side and officer which are the workers and then the management side so I had both experiences which was unique. When I was commissioned, Admiral Jerry Ellis, a submarine admiral that commissioned me, heard this lesson to the podium, he was just talking about me in this point but he said, “There are three kinds of people in every organization. You have rowboat people who need to be pushed, you have sailboat people who move whenever the conditions are favorable and then there’s steamboat people, they move continuously through calm or storm.” And he said, “This is Ensign Michael Smith,” he said, “Make your course.” And that’s always stood with me because you do have those three types of people in life. You got people that are just … They’re robo people, they go until they get tired. You got sailboat people that go wherever the wind blows them and then you got steamboat people that chart their own course. I would say for advisors out there make your course or just be happy with what you’re doing. But for some of us hard chargers, I think that analogy has stayed with me my entire career. Jason Diamond: It’s fantastic. I love the analogy, great naval tie in also. Thanks for sharing that. We got time for one more question. You have a fascinating background, a fascinating path to the industry, obviously, an incredibly disciplined approach around client service, any parting thoughts, words of wisdom especially as it relates to growth? That’s what strikes me most about your story is the growth that your move unlocked and that’s what every advisor who listens to our show is looking for. Michael Smith: I’m going to give another plug to Schwab on this. We actually were fortunate and I got their consulting group to come in right afterwards and I’m a big believer in having offsite. So, I’ve had an offsite, two offsites a year for my team and it’s the entire team unlike the wirehouses where you don’t take your admins and stuff like that. I take my entire team to an offsite and we group up on what we’re trying to achieve and have goals and objectives for the year. Schwab allowed us to use their consultants and we came up with our ideal client persona. Teams or firms that have this model become high performing. When you become high performing, growth becomes the outcome. I couldn’t do anything but grow. Jason, I couldn’t not grow because I had this ideal client persona, I knew how I was going to do it, it was measurable. So, growth becomes the outcome and, if you hold people responsible, then we’re all going to grow together and it’s a fun outcome. Jason Diamond: Fantastic, it’s a great place to end. Thank you so much for sharing your expertise with us, I can’t wait to see what the next chapter holds for Emerald, this has been a lot of fun. Michael Smith: Jason, thank you so much. I appreciate everything you do for the industry as well. Mindy Diamond: As a financial advisor, you hold yourself to the highest standards of integrity, honesty and credibility. You are successful because you take your professional responsibility seriously and are dedicated to your clients. But are you living your best business life? Are your goals aligned with your firms or could a better option exist? Should I Stay or Should I Go? Is a book written with you in mind? It’s a self-guided journey that walks you through the key steps that we take with our advisor clients. This strategic thought process and roadmap to professional self-discovery is designed to help you ask the right questions and think critically and objectively whether you’re considering change or not. Learn how to get your copy at diamond-consultants.com/thebook. From “Overservicing” Clients to Building a $1B RIA: A Merrill Breakaway Story A conversation with Jason Diamond and Michael Smith, Managing Partner and Founder of Emerald Advisors.      Jason Diamond: Welcome to the latest episode of our podcast series for financial advisors. Today’s episode is From “Overservicing” Clients to Building a $1B RIA: A Merrill Breakaway Story. It’s a conversation with Michael Smith, managing partner and founder of Emerald Advisors. I’m Jason Diamond and this is the Diamond Podcast for financial advisors. Mindy Diamond: At Diamond Consultants, we help elite advisors identify the right environment for their businesses to thrive whether that’s at a wirehouse, boutique or independent firm. With nearly three decades of experience, we’ve guided thousands of advisors and represented more than a quarter of a trillion dollars in assets transitioned and, each year, one in four advisors managing a billion dollars or more who change firms are our clients. Our process is education driven and based on building relationships starting as your strategic partner well before you’re even thinking of a move. To schedule a confidential conversation, call us at (908) 879-1002. Wondering why advisors change firms and where they’re headed? Are transition deals going up or down? Those very questions and more inspired us to create our annual advisor transition report. It’s the award-winning, data-driven resource designed for advisors that connects the dots between the motivations around movement and the firm’s appetite for top talent. Arm yourself with the knowledge you need to make smart decisions. Download your copy at diamond-consultants.com/transitionreport. Jason Diamond: Growth is often viewed as the result of better marketing, stronger referrals, a larger team and even acquisition and that’s all true yet growth can be the byproduct of something else entirely. For example, Michael Smith built a successful practice at Merrill then, one day, he was told he was spending too much time with his clients, or his management put it over-servicing clients. For Michael, that wasn’t a warning sign about his approach, it was a signal that he might have outgrown the firm and the model. Today, Michael is the founder and managing partner of Emerald Advisors, the independent RIA he launched in late 2019 with roughly 385 million in assets and 85 client relationships. Less than seven years later, the firm has grown to more than a billion in assets while remaining deeply focused on a highly-specialized client base and an unusually hands-on service model. What makes this story particularly interesting isn’t just the growth, it’s the thinking behind it. Michael’s perspective was shaped long before he entered wealth management. After serving more than two decades in the Navy, he brought a leadership philosophy centered on accountability, discipline and what he calls steamboat people, those who keep moving forward regardless of conditions, that mindset continues to influence how he builds his team, serves clients and evaluates opportunities. In this episode, we discuss the decision to leave Merrill, the realities of launching a fully independent RIA, why specialization can accelerate growth, the evolving role of custodians and technology and why he believes exceptional client service remains one of the industry’s most durable competitive advantages. Because Michael’s experience suggests that growth isn’t always the result of finding more opportunities, sometimes it’s the result of creating the freedom to execute the vision you already had so let’s jump in. Michael, thank you so much for joining us today. For starters, can you walk us through your background and what brought you to the world of wealth management? Michael Smith: Jason, thank you so much for the opportunity to be here today, I do listen to the podcast a lot especially before I left Mother Merrill. But my background and how I got into financial services is really distinct because I was on the board of JDRF back in the day and the national sponsor for JDRF was UBS PaineWebber and they’re like, “Mike, why don’t you be a financial advisor?” And my master’s degree was actually a finance and accounting in portfolio management because I’ve managed my own portfolio for years and years and so, when I couldn’t get a job, I just fell into it because I couldn’t get a job and I needed a job. That was 21 years ago, Memorial Day so that’s how I got into this industry. Jason Diamond: It’s a unique background, it’s super interesting and I want to talk more about it. You mentioned Mother Merrill, we’ll certainly get there. Before we do, give us a little bit of context on the current business you operate, Emerald Advisors, any context you can share on size, number of staff, types of clients you serve would be great. Michael Smith: Sure. So, we launched Emerald in 2019, November 2019 with about 85 clients and you always talk about this on the podcast how scared it is to launch and go independent. And I would say we took over about 95% of our clients that we wanted to bring over and today we’re at about 230 clients, I think we have some onboarding right now, we have just over a billion of assets. So, we launched with the 85 clients and around 350, 385 million, now we’re over a billion. Jason Diamond: Good for you. Michael Smith: Thank you. And I launched with four employees and we’re now at 11. And I would give a shout-out to one of my key employees because, when I launched, I actually hired somebody that had no experience with us and that was really a good thing because that allowed that person to really focus on operations and back office stuff while my business partner Emily and I were able to focus on bringing on the clients and alleviating any issues that they may have or thought. Jason Diamond: So, meaning you hired somebody basically immediately upon launch to help you with the transition and with this next chapter? Michael Smith: Correct. I hired them before but they started the day we launched. Jason Diamond: Brilliant, I love it. Oh, let’s definitely talk more about that because I think that’s a great strategy for … You’re right, you said it in a joking manner now because you’re seven years past but it’s a very real fear that advisors have and I think it’s worth talking more about. I want to mention too you have, obviously, built this business and grown this business dramatically. I don’t want to make this episode about the pandemic but you moved the business at a, certainly, a unique time. Did it impact your growth at all? Did you feel like you hit a brick wall? Just curious about your thoughts. Michael Smith: No, Jason, that’s a great observation. I would venture to say that the pandemic was actually a good thing for us. Jason Diamond: Interesting. Michael Smith: And I say that because, all of a sudden, you could hit pause because everyone was relearning how to do business, how do we do client reviews, how do we communicate with clients in a environment. So, I think the pandemic allowed us to just really reset our expectations visiting with clients because I used to fly a lot because I have clients in 38 different states so this has actually been, not just good for me, but good for the industry because I think it’s reset our expectations that we don’t have to be every day with a client facing. Jason Diamond: I agree with that largely and it’s true of our business too, by the way, it’s certainly reshaped the way people expect to be communicated with. I think Zoom has become much more mainstream, phone calls and we’ve heard from many other advisors who say something similar. I was just curious because you moved so close to or if there was an impact but I get, honestly, I think you’re right, it allowed you to have this nice natural inflection point and almost like flipping a switch of a clean slate. Michael Smith: It allowed us to learn the processes too. So, we launched in November 1st, by March we were in lockdown and so it gave us the opportunity to take several months of just learning the processes of how to be an RIA, it was pretty good. Jason Diamond: Absolutely. So, one of the things you mentioned in that was the way in which you serve clients and I’d read something funny and I think it was around the time of your move. You were talking about that, Merrill, you had a manager who spoke about that you would overserve your clients, you serve clients too much, tell me about that. Michael Smith: That was such an interesting topic because I got called down to the ops officer’s office and they’re like, “Ugh, Mike.” And it brought my admin down with me and they’re like, “Mike, these reports that you’re taking care of your clients too much,” and I’m like, “What do you mean?” “Well, you’re overservicing them.” Jason, I literally had to go back and Google the word overservicing because I was like, “How do you overservice the client? I’m not making their bed.” It was just so funny to me that I got counsel for overservicing clients when we’re in a client-facing job and I think that was part of the catalyst. Jason Diamond: Tell me more about what they meant, you think. Michael Smith: Hindsight, I think they … I like to take care of people which means I’m very intuitive towards taxes, I understand how the tax code works, I understand how everything impacts their bottom line. So, when we’re doing deferred comp enrollments or 401(k) enrollments or I’m a big believer in Roth 401(k)s and backdoor Roths and I’ve been doing them for years, I think what Mother Merrill wanted at that time was us not to do that. And, again, nothing against Merrill, I get it but this is how they wanted us to act and I wasn’t in that mold, I was taking care of clients to a much deeper depth is how I would say it. Jason Diamond: And I think that speaks to you outgrew the model not necessarily the firm. I think Merrill does a lot of things really well, you would agree with that, I think given that you built 85 clients and 350 million in assets is nothing to sneeze at. But the model that it seems like you value client service and an integrated client service experience of that and the wirehouse model oftentimes doesn’t put a premium on that. Tell me about your ethos or your thoughts around client service today and what being independent enables you to do. Michael Smith: So, that’s an interesting observation because one of my clients actually just mentioned to me that the reason we’re growing so much is because of our service model and the fact that we deliver a tremendous amount of value over just portfolio management. I said my managers is in portfolio management, I don’t do that any longer, I have a staff that handles that for me but it’s really the servicing of the clients because they don’t know what we know and I think servicing the client is the most important thing that we can do today. Jason Diamond: Give me some examples of what you mean by servicing the client in a more holistic way. I agree with you, by the way, portfolio management, table stakes, financial planning, table stakes, tell me more about what you mean. Michael Smith: By that I mean we do a quarterly review on tax. So, a lot of people don’t understand how taxes work and how estimated taxes work. So, estimated taxes are January 1st to March 31st, January 1st to May 31st, January 1st to August 31st, that’s how you do your estimated tax payments, you figure out what that is. And for compensated employees where they have RSUs that come in at different times of the year or different grants or exercise their options at a different time, that can affect their estimated tax liability and I’m not big on giving Uncle Sam any more money than they have to have until they need it. And then everyone doesn’t understand how the penalties and interest works on the IRS. And I’m big on the tax payments because that’s where we can add a lot of value for not a lot of time and we integrate it with our portfolio so we know what we’re doing with our gains. And I happen to reside in Washington State which has a long-term capital gains tax rate once you surpass about 270,000 of long-term capital gains. So, it’s super important for us to be aware of this and that’s how we service them. We also help them with their rebalancing of their 401(k)s, things that wirehouses cannot supposed to do, we are not supposed to be helping them with some of their aspects of life. Jason Diamond: Yup. That’s what I was alluding to earlier, it’s limitations on the model, not because they’re bad models, it’s just a different way, a different ethos around client service. You mentioned RSUs and corporate employees, I know that’s a niche you have is around concentrated stock positions and equity comp plans. I guess let me ask you two different questions around this. First of all, why that niche? Interested. And then, second of all, do you think

Born and raised in San Diego, Charles Snow held a variety of jobs early in life, including: paperboy, grocery store cashier, accounting clerk, chauffeur, and sports director at a private school; each of which taught him important lessons about how organizations worked and were managed. Chuck earned his PhD in Business Administration from the University of California, Berkeley, and spent his entire academic career as a professor and researcher at Penn State. While there, Chuck taught management subjects to MBA students and executives in more than 35 countries. In this episode, we focus on the core essay that Chuck and co-editor Oystein D. Fjelstad wrote for their book, “Actor-Oriented Organizing,” which is part of Cambridge University's Companions to Management series. In conversation, Chuck discusses three key qualities essential to flattening hierarchical bureaucracies so that teams of employees can respond to emerging customer needs with greater speed and spontaneity. First, there's a great (often unmet) value in openness to change and transparency. The second is a “commons” area, a space where team members feel they're on equal, shared ground. And third is having the resources – financial, digital, and political – to ensure their work leads to outcomes that are incorporated into the company's operational bloodstream. Underlying the entire approach that Chuck advocates for is seeking to act for the common good of all, embodying the “mutual sympathy” style that made Adam Smith not the just the “Father of Modern Economics,” but also a leading promoter of empathy before the term rose to prominence today. 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

Digital content creator for MASN Annie Klaff joined the show to discuss some Orioles that have turned it on of late.

Born and raised in San Diego, Charles Snow held a variety of jobs early in life, including: paperboy, grocery store cashier, accounting clerk, chauffeur, and sports director at a private school; each of which taught him important lessons about how organizations worked and were managed. Chuck earned his PhD in Business Administration from the University of California, Berkeley, and spent his entire academic career as a professor and researcher at Penn State. While there, Chuck taught management subjects to MBA students and executives in more than 35 countries. In this episode, we focus on the core essay that Chuck and co-editor Oystein D. Fjelstad wrote for their book, “Actor-Oriented Organizing,” which is part of Cambridge University's Companions to Management series. In conversation, Chuck discusses three key qualities essential to flattening hierarchical bureaucracies so that teams of employees can respond to emerging customer needs with greater speed and spontaneity. First, there's a great (often unmet) value in openness to change and transparency. The second is a “commons” area, a space where team members feel they're on equal, shared ground. And third is having the resources – financial, digital, and political – to ensure their work leads to outcomes that are incorporated into the company's operational bloodstream. Underlying the entire approach that Chuck advocates for is seeking to act for the common good of all, embodying the “mutual sympathy” style that made Adam Smith not the just the “Father of Modern Economics,” but also a leading promoter of empathy before the term rose to prominence today. 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.

Born and raised in San Diego, Charles Snow held a variety of jobs early in life, including: paperboy, grocery store cashier, accounting clerk, chauffeur, and sports director at a private school; each of which taught him important lessons about how organizations worked and were managed. Chuck earned his PhD in Business Administration from the University of California, Berkeley, and spent his entire academic career as a professor and researcher at Penn State. While there, Chuck taught management subjects to MBA students and executives in more than 35 countries. In this episode, we focus on the core essay that Chuck and co-editor Oystein D. Fjelstad wrote for their book, “Actor-Oriented Organizing,” which is part of Cambridge University's Companions to Management series. In conversation, Chuck discusses three key qualities essential to flattening hierarchical bureaucracies so that teams of employees can respond to emerging customer needs with greater speed and spontaneity. First, there's a great (often unmet) value in openness to change and transparency. The second is a “commons” area, a space where team members feel they're on equal, shared ground. And third is having the resources – financial, digital, and political – to ensure their work leads to outcomes that are incorporated into the company's operational bloodstream. Underlying the entire approach that Chuck advocates for is seeking to act for the common good of all, embodying the “mutual sympathy” style that made Adam Smith not the just the “Father of Modern Economics,” but also a leading promoter of empathy before the term rose to prominence today. 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

Feeling overwhelmed by the complex emotions of female rage, hormonal changes, and societal conditioning? This episode explores how women can recognise, understand, and safely channel their anger, particularly during life transitions like perimenopause, to support emotional well-being and self-empowerment.In this episode:The societal conditioning behind female suppression of anger and its impactsHow emotional suppression, people-pleasing, and invisibility labour fuel female rageThe influence of hormonal fluctuations during perimenopause on mood and emotional regulationDifferentiating healthy versus unhealthy rage and ways to channel emotions constructivelyPractical tools for nervous system regulation, including tracking, breathwork, and community connectionThe importance of self-awareness around triggers, beliefs, and internal languageHow Ayurveda's principles support understanding individual hormonal and emotional responsesBuilding boundaries and cultivating the courage to address underlying emotional griefThe role of hormonal therapy, self-compassion during transition, and holistic approachesResources:Anna Veale - Website | InstagramDr. Harmony Robinson-Stagg - Website | InstagramAyurveda Alchemist Academy: https://www.ayurvedaalchemist.com.auBook: Ayurveda and the Alchemy of Her by Dr. Harmony Robinson-StaggTimestamps:00:00 - Welcome and episode overview: embracing female rage and societal conditioning02:25 - How societal messages discourage women from expressing anger04:17 - The impact of childhood labeling and suppressing natural emotions07:32 - Conditioning and traditional gender roles fueling emotional suppression08:43 - Underlying causes of feminine rage and the importance of autonomy10:24 - Real-life example of fawning response in dangerous situations11:50 - Breaking the cycle: trusting instinct and setting boundaries13:13 - Historical roots of labels like hysteria and societal shame15:01 - Workplace disparities and reinforcing the "good girl" programming16:49 - Teaching emotional literacy and healthy expression of anger18:18 - Differentiating destructive rage from informative anger19:33 - Ayurvedic tools for understanding personal triggers and responses21:10 - The importance of self-awareness and managing internal narratives22:20 - Practical ways to release rage healthily—movement, breath, nature25:07 - Hormonal impacts on mood swings and emotional reactivity during menopause33:45 - Personal stories illustrating hormonal influence on emotional expression39:35 - The neuroendocrine changes in perimenopause and their effects on stress tolerance47:00 - Effective communication and community support to manage emotional health48:54 - Practical tools: tracking, breathwork, and conversation courage51:04 - Language awareness and the power of internal dialogue52:08 - Recognizing individual expressions of rage through Ayurveda's dosha framework

If all you need is love… you gotta get it right. Kellie Rasberry is here to help. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We're revisiting our 2024 conversation with Joseph Flynn. He's an associate professor of curriculum and instruction at Northern Illinois University. He's also the university's executive director of equity and inclusion.

“What if the exhaustion, brain fog, low libido, and metabolic changes women experience in midlife are actually rooted in a deeper cellular energy crisis?” In this episode, Dr. Mariza sits down with Dr. Andrew Salzman — physician, inventor, biochemical engineer, and Chief Scientific Officer of Wonderfeel — to unpack the powerful connection between NAD, mitochondrial health, inflammation, ovarian aging, gut integrity, nitric oxide, and the dramatic energy shifts women experience during perimenopause and menopause. Dr. Salzman explains why menopause represents a major biological inflection point for women and how declining NAD levels may be contributing to fatigue, brain fog, poor recovery, metabolic dysfunction, sleep issues, reduced stress resilience, cardiovascular changes, and shifts in sexual health. Together, they explore the evolutionary role of menopause, why ovarian senescence accelerates aging pathways, how inflammation and the enzyme CD38 rapidly deplete NAD stores, and why the gut microbiome may be one of the biggest drivers of inflammation and energy decline in modern women. They also dive into nitric oxide production, cardiovascular health, the brain's dependence on NAD for sleep and cognitive function, and why ingredients like NMN and creatine are gaining attention for supporting healthy aging and resilience in midlife. If you've ever looked in the mirror and thought, “I don't feel like myself anymore,” this conversation will help connect the dots between your symptoms, your mitochondria, and your long-term vitality. ANDREW SALZMAN Dr. Andrew Salzman is a physician, inventor, biochemical engineer, and the Chief Scientific Officer of Wonderfeel. With more than 30 years of experience in drug discovery and development, over 170 scientific publications, and more than 50 patents, Dr. Salzman has spent decades studying aging biology, inflammation, cellular resilience, nitric oxide signaling, and mitochondrial health IN THIS EPISODE Why menopause is a major biological inflection point for women How declining NAD levels impact energy, metabolism, sleep, and brain function Why CD38 accelerates inflammation and NAD depletion during aging The surprising connection between gut health, inflammation, and menopause symptoms How estrogen decline contributes to leaky gut and systemic inflammation Why nitric oxide is essential for circulation, libido, cardiovascular health, and cognition The role of NAD in circadian rhythm, sleep quality, and stress resilience Why NMN and creatine are gaining attention for healthy aging and vitality QUOTES“Menopause will happen, but the question is: how do we maintain vibrancy and resilience through it?” “NAD is the common currency that drives energy throughout the body.” “The gut is the foundational driver of inflammation as we age.” “Without NADPH, you don't have nitric oxide production.” RESOURCES MENTIONED Subscribe and Save $15 on Wonderfeel Youngr™ NMN: https://tidd.ly/4rPnckS Use code ENERGIZED and get 30% off on your first BATCH order https://hellobatch.com/ENERGIZED Order my newest book: The Perimenopause Revolution https://peri-revolution.com/ Wonderfeel Website Wonderfeel Instagram Wonderfeel YouTube RELATED EPISODES  741: Estrogen, Gut Health, Mitochondria, and Cardiovascular Health: What Changes In Perimenopause with Dr. Siobhan Mitchel 691: The Fertility Crisis No One Talks About: Why Your Health Today Impacts Future Generations with Dr. Ann Shippy 717: “I Don't Feel Like Myself Anymore”: The Mental & Emotional Reality of Perimenopause 743: Why Your Heart Risk Changes in Menopause (And What You Can Do About It) with Dr. Jayne Morgan

Ten Baltic and Scandinavian (and the UK) have agreed to come together to form a multi-national maritime force for crisis response around Northern Europe, specifically on the maritime border with Russia. All parties are NATO members, and members of the Joint Expeditionary Force – itself a NATO framework organisation. Ed Arnold from the D Group explains why this is about operationalising the JEF when the politics of it is wandering. But the credibility of the UK is being pressed hard when command commitments are growing, diverse, geographically spread, and rely on too few qualified and experienced people. Why should the UK command? Why should others follow? Why is Northwood the right place? And, how will the UK balance the long-standing habit of using US C2 systems with an announcement that declares an intent to command on whatever system European Allies favour? Ed Arnold answers all these questions and queries. Underlying the discussion sits some uncomfortable concerns about UK command credibility, the need for continued momentum if the Northern Navies Initiative is to survive, and the desperate need for some form of political prioritisation of tasks from London.

Stijn Vanheule is a clinical psychologist, psychoanalyst, and professor at Ghent University, Belgium. Our conversation was inspired by his most recent book, Why Psychosis Is Not So Crazy.Stijn overviews the work of French psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan. He explains Lacan's three registers: the Symbolic, the Imaginary, and the Real; psychosis as a confrontation with the Real; the security and limitations of symbolic convention; how words and stories structure reality; logic versus artistic coherence; and the existential value of paranoia.We compare Lacanian and Jungian approaches on subjects such as the paradox of archetypal and individual, personal myth, and self-knowledge as a never-ending process. Underlying our conversation is the common ground of viewing psychosis not as an illness, but in Stijn's words: “the subjective manifestation of a struggle that touches upon the fundamental aspects of human existence."

When a neurodivergent child or teen struggles with daytime focus, emotional volatility, or low frustration tolerance, caregivers naturally look for behavioral or psychological explanations. However, chronic sleep deprivation frequently hides behind these daytime struggles, acting as an unseen amplifier for executive dysfunction and sensory overload. Dr. Melisa Moore, a clinical psychologist and board-certified behavioral sleep medicine specialist at Rady Children's Health San Diego, joins Emily Kircher-Morris to reframe sleep not as an isolated nighttime issue, but as a continuous 24-hour biological reality deeply intertwined with neurodivergence. They talk about specific genetic, chronobiological, and comorbid factors that cause sleep disorders, the structural differences in adolescent circadian rhythms, and methods to address bedtime sensory traps. TAKEAWAYS Neurodivergent individuals experience higher rates of sleep disorders due to shared genetic roots, co-occurring medical conditions, and baseline variations in biological clocks. ADHDers often experience a natural circadian rhythm delay of up to two hours, while autistic people often possess highly inconsistent circadian patterns from night to night. Daytime sleepiness in younger children rarely presents as lethargy and instead as hyperactivity, increased irritability, dysregulation, and an increased use of negative emotion words. Shifting the bedtime linguistic framework from "trying to sleep" to "waiting for sleep to arrive" reduces cognitive pressure and lowers physiological alertness. Underlying physiological issues like obstructive sleep apnea or periodic limb movement disorder directly mimic or exacerbate the core diagnostic criteria of ADHD, including severe inattention and social friction. Perfectionism can be difficult to identify in therapy, and once identified, still very difficult to overcome. If you're a mental health professional, join us for Overcoming Perfectionism in Therapy: Supporting Neurodivergent Clients Who Keep Moving the Finish Line. Matt Zakreski will present this 1.5 hour continuing education course on June 5th at 1:00 pm Central, and if you can't join us live, that's okay. The video will be available afterward for anyone who registers, and either version is APA and NBCC approved for 1.5 hours of continuing education credit. Register now or learn more at this link, or just go to neurodiversity.university. Dr. Melisa Moore, PhD is a clinical psychologist and board-certified behavioral sleep medicine specialist who focuses on sleep and mood challenges in children, teens, and young adults. She works at the sleep center at Rady Children's Health San Diego and also provides care through her private practice, supporting clients across the country with a specialization in neurodiversity. Dr. Moore is the author of The Good Sleep Guide for Neurodivergent Kids, offering practical, research-informed strategies to help families improve sleep in ways that are both effective and affirming. BACKGROUND READING Melisa's website, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn The Neurodiversity Podcast is on Facebook, Instagram, BlueSky, and you're invited to join our Facebook Group. For more information go to www.NeurodiversityPodcast.com If you'd like members of your organization, school district, or company to know more about the subjects discussed on our podcast, Emily Kircher-Morris provides keynote addresses, workshops, and training sessions worldwide, in-person or virtually. You can choose from a list of established presentations, or work with Emily to develop a custom talk to fit your unique situation. To learn more, visit our website.

From judicial reform battles at home to rising geopolitical tension abroad, today's headlines point to one theme: power struggles everywhere. DESCRIPTION On today's AmperWave Daily, multiple storylines collide across law, politics, and global security. At home, fierce debate continues over judicial authority, redistricting rulings, and whether proposed reforms could reshape the structure of U.S. courts and election maps. Supporters frame it as correcting legal imbalance. Critics warn it risks destabilizing institutional norms. Overseas, a high-stakes diplomatic and economic moment unfolds as Donald Trump travels with senior officials including Marco Rubio, amid renewed tensions with China and the Chinese Communist Party. Business leaders, including Elon Musk, are also tied into broader economic discussions involving trade, manufacturing, and strategic supply chains. Meanwhile, geopolitical concerns intensify around Iran-related security issues, regional intermediaries, and accusations involving influence networks stretching across Pakistan, the Middle East, and Asia—fueling debate over U.S. military posture and diplomatic strategy.

Every weekday, award-winning columnist Dejan Kovacevic and DK Pittsburgh Sports reporter Chris Halicke deliver three ‘Double Shot' shows as a supplement to the morning ‘Daily Shot' of Steelers, Penguins and Pirates podcasts!  Video versions streaming live on YouTube starting at 3 p.m.! Eastern Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In this episode, Ash and Dusty discuss the important topic of when worsening ADHD symptoms may actually be caused or worsened by other physiological or medical conditions. They explore how hormonal changes related to PMS, PMDD, perimenopause, and menopause can significantly impact cognition, mood, and executive function. Dusty shares her personal experience with PMDD and how medication has been life-changing in managing symptoms that overlap with ADHD but require different treatment approaches. They also highlight other health issues such as anemia, mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS), hypermobility disorders like Ehlers-Danlos, TMJ, migraines, and sleep disruptions that can mimic or exacerbate ADHD symptoms. The hosts emphasize the importance of recognizing these co-occurring or separate conditions and how ADHD coaching can support managing them by focusing on follow-through, executive functioning, and problem-solving rather than "coaching out" chronic illness itself. Ash and Dusty encourage listeners to advocate for themselves with healthcare providers, get regular checkups, and explore potential underlying causes when symptoms suddenly worsen. They also caution against dismissing new or worsening symptoms as just ADHD and stress the value of integrated care between medical treatment and coaching to improve overall functioning and quality of life. Episode links + resources: Join the Community | Become a Patron Our Process: Understand, Own, Translate. About Asher and Dusty For more of the Translating ADHD podcast: Episode Transcripts: visit TranslatingADHD.com and click on the episode Follow us on Twitter: @TranslatingADHD Visit the Website: TranslatingADHD.com

Welcome back to this week's Friday Review where I can't wait to share with you the best of the week!     I'm looking forward to reviewing:     PEMF Dog Mat (product review) Sleep is a Hormonal Event (tip of the week) Skin Tags & Underlying Issues (research) Allergies & Sublingual Drops (research)     For all the details tune into this week's Cabral Concept 3745 – Enjoy the show and let me know what you thought!   - - - For Everything Mentioned In Today's Show: StephenCabral.com/3745 - - - Get a FREE Copy of Dr. Cabral's Book: The Rain Barrel Effect - - - Join the Community & Get Your Questions Answered: CabralSupportGroup.com - - - Dr. Cabral's Most Popular At-Home Lab Tests: > Complete Minerals & Metals Test (Test for mineral imbalances & heavy metal toxicity) - - - > Complete Candida, Metabolic & Vitamins Test (Test for 75 biomarkers including yeast & bacterial gut overgrowth, as well as vitamin levels) - - - > Complete Stress, Mood & Metabolism Test (Discover your complete thyroid, adrenal, hormone, vitamin D & insulin levels) - - - > Complete Food Sensitivity Test (Find out your hidden food sensitivities) - - - > Complete Omega-3 & Inflammation Test (Discover your levels of inflammation related to your omega-6 to omega-3 levels) - - - Get Your Question Answered On An Upcoming HouseCall: StephenCabral.com/askcabral - - - Would You Take 30 Seconds To Rate & Review The Cabral Concept? The best way to help me spread our mission of true natural health is to pass on the good word, and I read and appreciate every review!  

There is a certain irony in your situation, visible only if you step back far enough. You have spent your entire adult life getting very good at one particular skill: earning. It built the career, the bank account, the reputation. Then you walked into the one room in life where earning stops working — love — and wondered why your strategy had failed you. Your strategy didn't fail. It's just that the room is now different. Underlying all of it is one contract, signed before you could read, and honoured every day since. The contract says you must earn love. But love, the real kind, cannot be earned. And you will never know it — with a partner, an ageing parent, an old friend — until you face the foundation beneath. A part of you, learned long ago, believes you are not worthy of love. But you are. Your existence is the proof. This episode shows you why every relationship has ended the same way. It names the capacity that carries you through any loss, any failure, any pain an intimate life will eventually bring. And it shows you what the right foundation actually is, and how to lay it. Retire the contract. Before you sign it once more on a marriage certificate. Listen now.  Show Highlights Include: The one capacity you must build if you want a fulfilling intimate life (and why you don't need the right partner, the right circumstances, or the right timing to start cultivating this skill) (0:26)  Why you don't have a dating problem or a finding the right partner problem (even though the real problem wears both of these masks to deceive you) (1:35)  How to stop carrying the baggage of a lack of self-worth that will cripple every relationship you have until you're fed up with feeling empty inside (2:10) Why finding the right partner fundamentally cannot help you feel worthy of love (2:45)  The insidious "disease acting like the cure" trap you're falling into in relationships and in therapy that will take you further from a fulfilling intimate life as it pretends to bring you closer (3:30)  How greeting cards and pop songs have warped your perception of love and actually has made it harder to find unconditional love (4:57)  The precise psychological process of how your nervous system learned you're not worthy (and how a seemingly innocent memory can control every aspect of your adult life) (8:52)  How to help your nervous system know that you carry a worth that no resume and no failure could ever take away (11:25)  Why changing just one word in your vocabulary can almost mystically open up a new door in your life: one that leads to unconditional love (18:40)  For more about David Tian, go here: https://www.davidtianphd.com/about/  Feeling like success in one area of life has come at the expense of another? Maybe you've crushed it in your career, but your relationships feel strained. Or you've built the life you thought you wanted, yet there's still something important missing. I've put together a free 3-minute assessment to help you see what's really holding you back. Answer a few simple questions, and you'll get instant access to a personalized masterclass that speaks directly to where you are right now. It's fast. It's practical. And it could change the way you approach leadership, love, and fulfillment. Take the first step here → https://dtphd.com/quiz

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Send us Fan MailThe underlying factors to hair loss VJ Hamilton, award winning nutritionist helps people with autoimmune issues & hair loss in Harrogate & London. She studied immunology & alopecia at University.She was diagnosed with alopecia herself at just 7 years old, then later also developed psoriasis in her teens too.She got a job in London but began to experience extreme fatigue and had no energy to get through the day. She decided to start to look into nutrition, and after studying, within 2 years, all her skin & hair issues had dissappeared & she got her energy back.She loves working as a nutritionist and helping people with alopecia, especially children. We talk about the influences your environment can have on your hair health, including micotoxins, free radicals & mold. VJ also shares how energy functions, mitochondrial energy and oxidative stress can be factors, and that hair loss is more than just a scalp issue.Connect with VJ:InstagramThreadsWebsite Hair & Scalp Salon Specialist course Support the showConnect with Hair therapy:FacebookInstagramTwitterClubhouse- @Hair.TherapyHair Therapy WebsiteDonate towards the podcast Start your own podcastHair & Scalp Salon Specialist Course ~ Book now to become an expert! Polytar Medicated Shampoo

If you own property in Australia right now, or you're thinking about buying, what we're going to share with you today could change how you think about where this market is heading.   You see, there's a bit of a disconnect in today's property market, and if you're only following the headlines, it's easy to miss what's really going on.   While prices are still rising and demand is holding up, underneath that, the dynamics are starting to shift.   Growth is slowing. Confidence is becoming more fragile. And the gap between the strongest and weakest markets is widening in a way we haven't seen for a while.   In fact, the latest data shows national house prices have now risen for 14 consecutive months and are up more than 10% over the year, yet the most recent quarterly growth was modest, reflecting a market that's still moving forward but clearly losing a bit of steam.   However, this is exactly the type of environment where experienced investors tend to do well, because when the market becomes fragmented, opportunities become more targeted rather than broad-based.   So today, Dr Andrew Wilson discusses the state of the current Australian property market, uncovering its fragile resilience amid slowing growth, regional disparities, and influential economic factors.     Takeaways    Fragmentation of markets signals opportunity for the strategic investor. Underlying fundamentals remain resilient despite sentiment shifts. Differentiating between segments reveals true market health. The cycle of market optimism and correction follows predictable patterns. Success seeds require active cultivation—passion triggers growth. Market noise distracts but fundamentals tune the real melody. Strategic patience combined with adaptability secures long-term wealth. Regional disparities create niches for targeted investments. Emotional energy fuels consistent action towards dreams. Long-term strategic planning mitigates risks in volatile markets.   Links and Resources:   Answer this week's trivia question here - https://www.propertytrivia.com.au/ ·        Win a hard copy of How To Grow A Multi-Million Dollar Property Portfolio In Your Spare Time. Everyone wins a copy of a fully updated property report. ·        Everyone wins a copy of a fully updated property report – What's ahead for property for 2026 and beyond.   Get a bundle of eBooks and Reports at: www.PodcastBonus.com.au    Get the team at Metropole to help build your personal Strategic Property plan. Click here and have a chat with us.     Michael Yardney – Subscribe to my Property Update newsletter here.     Join Michael Yardney plus a team of experts, at Wealth Retreat 2026 on the Gold Coast in May. Find out more about it here and register your interest www.wealthretreat.com.au It's Australia's premier event for successful investors and business people.   Also, please subscribe to my other podcast Demographics Decoded with Simon Kuestenmacher – just look for Demographics Decoded wherever you are listening to this podcast and subscribe so each week we can unveil the trends shaping your future.   About The Michael Yardney Podcast | Property Investment And Wealth Creation Australia   The Michael Yardney Podcast helps Australians build financial independence through strategic investing, wealth creation strategies and smart property decisions.   We go beyond property headlines to discuss:   • Building long-term wealth • Creating intergenerational wealth • Passive income strategies Australia • Asset allocation and portfolio growth • Financial freedom through property • Strategic investing for professionals and business owners • Risk management and wealth protection • Structuring your investments for capital growth • Money management and financial habits   If you want to move from earning an income to building assets that fund your lifestyle, this podcast will help you think and act like a successful investor.   Discover more insights at:https://propertyupdate.com.auhttps://metropole.com.au

The Gary & Shannon Show Hour 1 (04.28) – Andy Riesmeyer jumps in as the show opens on a mix of real tension and cultural absurdity.• Guest host → Andy Riesmeyer joins Gary with Shannon out• WHCD fallout → new details on the shooting, unanswered questions about how it happened, and who actually fired the shot that hit a Secret Service agent• Media moment → confusion, delayed details, and journalists reacting to being part of the story• Royal optics → King Charles III visits D.C. and addresses Congress → but what’s the actual purpose?• Underlying tension → U.K. support, global positioning, and what doesn’t get said publicly• Kimmel controversy → Jimmy Kimmel under fire for remarks about Melania Trump → Gary & Andy call it lazy, poorly timed, and damaging to late-night credibility• Bigger shift → how political comedy changed… and why it’s losing audiences• Iran update → negotiations stall as both sides posture over the Strait and nuclear talks• Side chaos → LA Times coverage mocked, WHCD leftovers get looted, and Gary fully endorses taking the wineSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

8:05PM: Excessive Napping May Be a Warning Sign of Underlying or Developing Health Conditions in Older Adults. What your napping habits could reveal… Guest: Dr. Chenlu Gao (pronounced CH-EN-LOU – G-AH-OW) – lead author of the study & an investigator in the Department of Anesthesiology in the Mass General Brigham, who is also an affiliated research fellow in the Division of Sleep and Circadian Disorders in the Department of Medicine 8:15PM: Project Bread's Walk for Hunger Returns to Boston Common Sunday, May 3rd. Now in its 58th year, the event draws participants for a family-friendly 3-mile loop as well as virtual walkers across the Commonwealth and country to raise $1 million annually to support Project Bread’s work connecting children and families across Massachusetts to reliable, nutritious food. Guest: Erin McAleer – CEO of Project Bread 8:30PM: The broader employment landscape in the veteran community. What types of options are available for our veterans when they finish their service? Guest: Chris Newsome - SVP Government Services & US Army Veteran with RecruitMilitary 8:45PM: Somerville rolls out tools and tips to tackle rodent activity head on! This week is “DeRATification” Week for taking on Somerville Rats! Guest: Somerville Mayor Jake WilsonSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For years, auto shows have been primarily about new models.多年来，车展的核心一直是全新车型。At Auto China 2026 in Beijing, it is increasingly about new systems — from AI-driven driving to centralized computing architectures.而在北京 2026 中国国际汽车展览会上，焦点正逐步转向全新系统，涵盖人工智能驾驶、集中式计算架构等多个领域。This year's show, the largest of its kind, has drawn more than 2,000 companies from 21 countries and regions, with 1,451 vehicles on display.本届车展为全球规模最大的汽车展会，吸引了 21 个国家和地区的 2000 余家企业参展，展出车辆 1451 台。It includes a total of 181 global debuts and 71 concept cars, hitting a new high.展会共迎来 181 款全球首发车型与 71 台概念车，数量创下历史新高。More than 60 percent of global premieres at the show come from Chinese brands, while the number of concept vehicles has reached a record level.本届车展超六成全球首发车型来自中国品牌，概念车展出数量也创下历史纪录。Behind the numbers, however, a deeper transformation is underway, one defined by artificial intelligence, software architecture and system-level innovation.但在亮眼数据背后，一场以人工智能、软件架构、系统级创新为核心的深度行业变革正在悄然推进。Chinese automakers, long known for their expansive product lineups, are now using the show floor to highlight technology stacks as much as vehicles.中国车企素来以丰富的产品矩阵著称，如今在车展舞台上，其展示重心已兼顾整车产品与全栈核心技术。Large standalone halls occupied by domestic brands — including BYD, Chery and Geely — reflect not only product breadth but also accumulated capabilities in electrification and intelligent systems.比亚迪、奇瑞、吉利等中国品牌坐拥独立大型展馆，既彰显了产品覆盖面，也体现出在电动化、智能化领域长期积累的技术实力。As performance gaps in batteries, motors and electronic control systems narrow, competition is moving toward shaping technological identity and capturing user mindshare, said analysts.分析人士表示，随着电池、电机、电控系统的性能差距不断缩小，汽车行业的竞争正转向打造专属技术标签、抢占用户心智。Artificial intelligence has become the focal point of this shift.人工智能已然成为这场行业变革的核心焦点。Geely is highlighting its full-domain AI 2.0 system, while SAIC's Roewe brand is showcasing AI-based in-car applications developed with Volcano Engine.吉利重点展出全域人工智能 2.0 系统，上汽荣威则亮相与火山引擎联合研发的车载智能应用。Huawei's automotive business also made its first appearance as an independent brand cluster, presenting multiple new models alongside its Harmony-based intelligent cockpit ecosystem.华为汽车业务首次以独立品牌矩阵形式参展，多款全新车型同台亮相，同步展示基于鸿蒙系统打造的智能座舱生态。Across the exhibition, intelligent driving, smart cockpits and large language model integration are no longer isolated features, but part of unified system architectures.整场展会中，智能驾驶、智能座舱、大模型融合技术不再是孤立配置，而是融入一体化系统架构的核心组成部分。One of the most explicit articulations of this transition came from XPeng CEO He Xiaopeng, who outlined the company's strategy centered on "physical AI".小鹏汽车董事长何小鹏清晰阐释了行业转型趋势，并介绍了企业以「物理人工智能」为核心的发展战略。XPeng's latest model, he said, is the first Chinese vehicle designed with full hardware redundancy to meet robotaxi standards and has already obtained road testing permits in Guangzhou, Guangdong province.他表示，小鹏全新车型为国内首款搭载全冗余硬件、符合自动驾驶出租车标准的量产车型，目前已在广东广州获得道路测试资质。The company is currently conducting regular Level 4 pilot operations and plans to begin passenger-carrying tests with safety drivers later this year, targeting fully driverless operation by early 2027.企业现阶段已常态化开展 L4 级自动驾驶试点运营，计划今年年内启动带安全员的载人测试，力争 2027 年初实现完全无人驾驶落地。He also extended the concept of physical AI beyond vehicles.何小鹏还将物理人工智能的应用范畴拓展至汽车之外。XPeng is developing humanoid robots following a "commercial-first" path, with initial deployment in retail environments.小鹏正以商业化优先为导向研发人形机器人，首批落地场景聚焦零售行业。The company aims to sell more than 10,000 units by 2027.企业目标在 2027 年前实现人形机器人销量破万台。Underlying these initiatives is a broader industry view: hardware iteration is slowing, while software, particularly AI-driven capabilities, is becoming the primary driver of differentiation.一系列创新举措的背后，是行业共识：硬件迭代速度放缓，软件能力尤其是人工智能技术，正成为车企核心差异化竞争力。The integration of AI is also reshaping the underlying computing architecture of vehicles.人工智能的深度融合，也在重构汽车底层计算架构。At a technology event two days ahead of the show, Horizon Robotics introduced its Starry chip, built on a 5-nanometer automotive-grade process.车展开幕前两天，地平线在技术发布会上推出星辰系列芯片，该芯片采用 5 纳米车规级制程工艺打造。With 650 TOPS of computing power, the chip supports both intelligent driving and cockpit AI models on a unified platform.芯片算力可达 650TOPS，可在同一平台兼容智能驾驶与智能座舱大模型运算需求。This shift toward centralized computing, combining previously separate domains, is expected to reduce system complexity, lower costs and shorten development cycles.集中式计算架构打破以往各模块独立运行的模式，有望降低系统复杂度、压缩生产成本、缩短车型研发周期。According to the company, integrated architectures could cut vehicle-level costs by up to 4,000 yuan ($585) and reduce development timelines from 18 months to eight months.地平线表示，一体化架构最高可使单车成本降低 4000 元（折合 585 美元），并将车型研发周期从 18 个月缩短至 8 个月。More than 10 carmakers and suppliers including BYD, Chery, Volkswagen and Bosch have shown interest in the chip, said the company, indicating growing industry alignment around unified computing platforms.官方透露，比亚迪、奇瑞、大众、博世等十余家车企及供应链企业已表达合作意向，行业正加速向统一计算平台靠拢。Horizon Robotics CEO Yu Kai described autonomous driving as "the first large-scale application of physical AI", placing the current technological wave within a broader transition toward intelligent systems interacting with the physical world.地平线创始人余凯表示，自动驾驶是「物理人工智能」首个大规模落地场景，当下技术浪潮，本质是智能系统与实体世界深度融合的时代变革。For the first time, core suppliers and automakers have appeared in the same exhibition halls — a structural change that reflects shifting power dynamics across the industry.核心零部件供应商与车企首次同馆参展，这一结构性变化，折射出汽车产业格局与话语权的重塑。Battery makers, chip companies and AI solution providers are no longer operating behind the scenes.电池企业、芯片厂商、人工智能解决方案供应商不再局限于幕后研发。Instead, they are presenting integrated system solutions directly to the market.转而直接面向市场输出一体化系统解决方案。CATL, for example, built a 1,500-square-meter energy technology zone at the entrance of one hall, showcasing its next-generation battery concepts, including solid-state and sodium-ion technologies.例如宁德时代在展馆入口打造 1500 平方米能源技术展区，集中展示固态电池、钠离子电池等下一代动力电池前沿技术。Other major suppliers, from Bosch to SenseAuto, are also displaying full-stack solutions rather than individual components.博世、毫末智行等头部供应链企业，也不再单独展示零部件，转而推出全栈式技术解决方案。Global automakers accelerate localization国际车企加速本土化布局International carmakers are deepening their engagement with China's AI ecosystem.海外车企正深度融入中国人工智能产业生态。Volkswagen Group CEO Oliver Blume said the company is moving beyond electrification and driver assistance toward "agentic AI for all".大众汽车集团首席执行官奥利弗・布鲁姆表示，企业发展重心已从电动化、辅助驾驶，升级为普及全域智能体人工智能。"Starting this year, our in-car AI Agent will begin coming to our locally developed cars," he said.他称：「从今年起，车载智能体将逐步搭载于本土研发车型。"With this step, the Volkswagen Group is the first global automaker to deploy agentic AI across an entire vehicle portfolio in China at scale."借此举措，大众成为首家在华全系车型规模化落地智能体人工智能的跨国车企。The system, based on a locally trained large language model, is designed to proactively understand user intent and execute complex, multisystem tasks through natural interaction, while keeping data processing within the vehicle.该系统依托本土训练大模型打造，可主动识别用户需求，通过自然交互完成多系统复杂操作，同时实现数据车端本地化处理。BMW Group CEO Oliver Zipse emphasized a similar approach to localization.宝马集团首席执行官奥利弗・齐普斯也强调了本土化协同发展战略。"In China, we can integrate local partners such as Momenta and Alibaba," he said, highlighting the flexibility of software-defined architectures.他指出：在中国市场，我们将深度整合毫末智行、阿里巴巴等本土合作伙伴资源，并着重提及软件定义架构带来的灵活升级优势。Zipse added that artificial intelligence will underpin the future of driving itself.齐普斯补充道，人工智能将成为未来出行的核心基石。"The vehicle will anticipate your next move — slowing down before a turn or adapting to your habits," he said.未来车辆可预判驾驶员操作，提前弯道减速、适配个人出行习惯。"AI and sheer driving pleasure are not contradictory; they are fundamentally connected."人工智能与驾驶乐趣并非对立，二者相辅相成、深度融合。architecture /ˈɑːkɪtektʃə(r)/n. 架构；体系结构redundancy /rɪˈdʌndənsi/n. 冗余；备份localization /ˌləʊkəlaɪˈzeɪʃn/n. 本土化；本地化ecosystem /ˈiːkəʊsɪstəm/n. 生态系统

Every weekday, award-winning columnist Dejan Kovacevic and DK Pittsburgh Sports reporter Chris Halicke deliver three ‘Double Shot' shows as a supplement to the morning ‘Daily Shot' of Steelers, Penguins and Pirates podcasts!  Video versions streaming live on YouTube starting at 3 p.m.! Eastern Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Colonel Jack Jacobs provides a strategic assessment of the escalating conflict between the United States and Iran, highlighting the disconnect between ongoing military provocations and the underlying desire for a diplomatic exit. He suggests that while decentralized command structures may lead to unauthorized skirmishes on the ground, both nations are incentivized to reach a ceasefire due to political and economic exhaustion. Jacobs argues that the primary American objectives have shifted, noting that while the neutralization of Iran's nuclear capabilities is likely achievable through continued surveillance, the goal of forced regime change remains unrealistic. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

1012. Feeling financially squeezed by the rising cost of homeowners insurance? Laura answers a listener's question about how to pay less while maintaining coverage required by a lender. Find out how to protect your finances with home insurance without overpaying for it.We talk about:Underlying reasons why homeowners premiums are rising, especially in high-risk areas.Tips for saving by increasing home insurance deductibles.Comparing the price of bundled coverage to policies with different carriers. How various home upgrades and technologies can qualify for money-saving discounts.The role that having good credit plays in reducing your home and auto insurance rates (in most states).Why proactively shopping and asking about potential homeowners insurance discounts is essential for cutting the cost.Upcoming Wedding Series This May: We want your questions about wedding finances! Whether you're the bride, groom, or a guest, send us your questions about budgeting for the big day. Email: money@quickanddirtytips.com or leave a voicemail: (302) 364-0308.Money Girl is a Quick and Dirty Tips Podcast, hosted by Laura Adams.Discover more from Money Girl!FacebookNewsletterTranscripts available at QuickandDirtyTips.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Today we have war updates... patience and caution are needed as we focus on recent headlines. From inflation data and Fed commentary to geopolitical tensions and a temporary ceasefire, there has been surprisingly little lasting impact on markets. Underlying market weakness existed before the war and the conflict has mainly reshuffled sector performance leaving markets stuck in a fragile, uncertain range. While some areas like energy, materials, and staples showed prior strength, others such as software and parts of financials remain weak. Conflicting signals from interest rates, the dollar, and inflation expectations, along with continued volatility driven by political narratives rather than fundamentals, make it difficult to form a high-conviction outlook.  We discuss...  Markets largely ignored major news on inflation, Fed policy, and geopolitics, suggesting underlying uncertainty and indecision. The market was already weakening before the war, meaning the conflict mainly shifted trends rather than creating new ones. Current price action reflects a choppy trading range with no clear directional trend emerging. Software and parts of technology remain notably weak, even compared to pre-war levels. Semiconductor stocks have held up better, creating divergence within the tech sector. Financials are showing signs of stress, partly due to concerns around private credit and hidden risks. Lack of transparency in financial system exposures poses a greater risk than the size of the problem itself. The yield curve is flattening, reducing profitability for banks and signaling potential economic pressure. Interest rates, the dollar, and inflation expectations are sending mixed and unreliable signals. Oil price dynamics and futures markets suggest expectations of declining prices despite short-term spikes. Inflation impacts from higher energy costs may not be fully felt for several months. Geopolitical developments, particularly involving Trump's negotiation style, add unpredictability to market behavior. Sitting in cash is a valid strategy in uncertain environments despite inflation concerns. Missing small upside moves is preferable to being exposed to sudden market drawdowns. Elevated valuations and lingering macro risks suggest markets may not be as stable as they appear. Relief rallies can occur even while underlying economic and market stress persists. There are currently very few high-conviction investment opportunities across markets. Today's Panelists: Kirk Chisholm | Innovative Wealth Douglas Heagren | Mergent College Advisors Follow on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/moneytreepodcast Follow LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/money-tree-investing-podcast Follow on Twitter/X: https://x.com/MTIPodcast For more information, visit the full show notes at https://moneytreepodcast.com/war-updates-patience-and-caution 

There is a system to everything - the better it is, the more reliably and effectively it produces for you.Want to see my personal (and private) high performances systems in action? Click here!

If there's one formula that truly determines your happiness (and success) as a business owner, it's this: capacity equals demand. What does that mean? It's simple. If you have too much capacity—too many employees, too much equipment—and not enough demand from customers, life gets stressful and you start losing money. On the flip side, when demand is off the hook and you don't have enough capacity, you're overwhelmed, your team gets burned out, and the client gets frustrated.  Capacity = demand isn't just a finance concept—it's the secret sauce to scaling a home service business without losing your sanity. The closer you keep these two variables in balance, the smoother your business runs, and the more you can enjoy building something valuable for your team, your customers, and yourself. It's not always easy. Staying intentional about this formula is a daily practice, and few talk about the emotional impact of getting it right—or wrong. But when things finally click, there's nothing better. The compounding value of capacity = demand. This episode dives deep into the math, mindset, and actionable strategies for starting, scaling and optimizing your business.  In this episode, you will discover:   The 5 essential steps to properly setting up your business finances, including separating your personal and business accounts and understanding your roles as both CEO and owner. The magic formula for running a service business successfully: Capacity equals demand, and what happens when those are out of balance. The reality of the inflection point of scaling—why scaling up means changing roles, taking risks, and investing in marketing, recruiting, and infrastructure, as well as the challenges of hiring and retaining employees. The pros and cons of commission pay vs. hourly pay and how these choices affect production rates, employee motivation, and business profitability. Whether buying equipment to save on taxes actually works, and the math behind making effective assets and purchases.      "Capacity equals demand is the magic formula to grow a business that doesn't s*ck." - Dan Platta Topics Covered:   00:01:05 – The "Math Game" of Business Every business, regardless of its niche, is fundamentally about managing math—clarity on profits, costs, and investments. Serving people is important, but profitability is essential to benefit everyone involved: family, customers, employees. 00:01:54 – Step 1: Separate Business and Personal Finances Business owners must stop mixing personal and business transactions. Commingling makes it "impossible to make good decisions" because you can't accurately track expenses, investments, or returns. Creating separation brings immediate clarity and allows assessment of where money is coming in and going out. 00:02:46 – Step 2: Distinguishing CEO vs. Owner Roles Understand the distinction between being the CEO (day-to-day operations, business decisions) and the owner/investor (providing capital, expecting a return). Many owners only pay themselves for their labor and never separate out an owner's return, resulting in businesses that aren't truly profitable when they step away from operations. 00:05:54 – Step 3: Debt Isn't Evil; Credit Cards & Business Loans Have a Place Dan Plata clarifies the difference between personal debt aversion and business leverage. Credit cards, when paid off monthly, offer "0% interest for 30–40 days" plus bonus points, making them an asset for cash flow management. 00:09:02 – Step 4: Keep Accounting Systems Separate from Operating Systems Don't expect one tool to do it all. Mixing operating software (e.g., Jobber) with accounting software (e.g., QuickBooks) leads to confusion and misuse. Specialized tools should do what they do best in their domains. 00:12:24 – Step 5: LLC, S-Corp, and the $100K Revenue Turning Point When your net income is $25,000–$50,000 or more, Dan Plata recommends switching your LLC to be taxed as an S-corp using IRS Form 2553. This can save significantly on payroll taxes—at $50K net income, payroll taxes drop from ~$7,600 to ~$3,800. 00:44:45 – The "Magic Formula": Capacity Equals Demand Aligning business capacity (employees, resources) with customer demand is key to sustainability and less stress. Too much capacity and not enough demand leads to underutilized workers and attrition; too much demand and not enough capacity leads to burnout and customer dissatisfaction. Straying from this balance creates chaos. 01:26:15 – Employee Acquisition Cost & Recruitment Mindset Investing in high-quality employees is critical. Dan Plata shares the importance of treating recruiting costs as investments, not expenses. 01:50:47 – Commission Pay vs. Hourly Pay Commission-based pay aligns incentives—employees win when the company wins, motivating higher production rates (often boosting output by 30–50%). Hourly pay firms up quality but can encourage slower work, as workers are paid for time, not outcomes. 02:13:54 – Buying Assets the Right Way & Year-End Tax Purchases When scaling, don't buy equipment just to "save on taxes." It's best to invest in marketing and recruiting first; these are what drive growth and profits. Buy assets only after you have work and employees to use them. Finance 70%, put 30% down to avoid being upside down, and avoid new vehicles—used work trucks are sufficient.   Key Takeaways Set up your business finances correctly from the start; separate personal and business accounts to gain clarity and make better decisions. As your business grows past $100,000 revenue or $25,000 net income, switch your LLC to be taxed as an S-corp—this can save you thousands on payroll taxes and clarify owner vs. employee income. Scaling your business comes with "purgatories"—periods of losing money and chaos before the next stage of profitability; expect these, budget for them, and push through. Invest heavily in recruiting the right employees; the true cost is often underestimated, but employees are more valuable than clients, and spending money to find good ones is crucial. Underlying all growth: business ownership is about pride and doing hard things—money is a byproduct, but fulfillment comes from progress and resilience. Connect with Keith Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/keithkalfas/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thelandscapingemployeetrap Website: https://www.keithkalfas.com/resources Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@keith-kalfas   Resource Links Mentioned Jobber: getjobber.com/kalfas Rebold Website AI: keithkalfas.com/rebolt CallRail Call Tracking: keithkalfas.com/callrail   Written and Edited by: Ma. Teresa Catangay-Bardinas

This discussion examines how senior leaders can navigate complexity, technology, and organizational change without losing clarity of purpose. Drawing on experience across global consumer brands, logistics, and technology, Louisa Loran outlines a practical approach to leadership that extends beyond execution into shaping direction. Key insights from the conversation: First, career progression at senior levels depends less on exceeding assigned tasks and more on articulating distinct value. Advancement requires a clear answer to a simple question: why should this individual be selected to shape the future of the business? Without that clarity, performance remains reactive and interchangeable. Second, leadership in change environments requires understanding how people respond to disruption. Resistance is rarely personal. Effective leaders identify who is ready to move, who needs context, and who requires time, adjusting their approach accordingly rather than forcing alignment. Third, many professionals remain overly focused on activity rather than contribution. Busyness often reflects adherence to process rather than progress toward outcomes. Leaders must continually reassess whether their efforts are advancing strategic objectives or simply maintaining momentum. Fourth, the ability to think independently is becoming more important as technology advances. AI can accelerate research, synthesis, and articulation, but it does not replace judgment. Those who rely on it without strengthening their own reasoning risk becoming indistinguishable from the tools they use. Fifth, organizations frequently approach AI adoption without sufficient clarity on their identity. Efficiency gains alone are insufficient. The critical question is what proprietary knowledge or capability should be developed and retained, and what can be commoditized through external tools. Loran also introduces four reinforcing leadership behaviors: setting a sufficiently high ambition, expanding perspective through curiosity, making clear and timely decisions, and consistently embodying the direction being set. These are not episodic actions but daily practices that determine whether leaders shape change or respond to it. Underlying the conversation is a consistent principle: leadership begins with self-awareness. Without a clear understanding of one's own strengths and perspective, it is difficult to remain open, to adapt, or to lead others through uncertainty. Get Louisa's book, Leadership Anatomy in Motion, here: https://tinyurl.com/3a97vt5c Claim your free gift: Free gift #1 McKinsey & BCG winning resume www.FIRMSconsulting.com/resumePDF Free gift #2 Breakthrough Decisions Guide with 25 AI Prompts www.FIRMSconsulting.com/decisions Free gift #3 Five Reasons Why People Ignore Somebody www.FIRMSconsulting.com/owntheroom Free gift #4 Access episode 1 from Build a Consulting Firm, Level 1 www.FIRMSconsulting.com/build Free gift #5 The Overall Approach used in well-managed strategy studies www.FIRMSconsulting.com/OverallApproach Free gift #6 Get a copy of Nine Leaders in Action, a book we co-authored with some of our clients: www.FIRMSconsulting.com/gift

In his book, “Praying the Bible,” Donald S. Whitney makes the point that one of the difficulties in prayer is that we tend to “say the same old things, about the same old things,” and that gets tiresome. While that is true during some seasons of our lives, his suggestion that we pray as we read our Bibles is a good way to add variety to our supplications.We can also ignite our prayers by constantly remembering those who need salvation. In John 4, Jesus tells the disciples that His food is to do the will of the Father. The will of the Father?“For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.” Luke 19:10“For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul?” Mark 8:36“Many other signs therefore Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these have been written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.” John 20:30-31Our So what?We can spice up the same old concerns by remembering those we love who need salvation. Letting our love for others, with the great anticipation of rejoicing in their salvation, invigorate our communion with our Father!Brethren, let's pray for one another. “Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever.” Amen1 Timothy 1:17”What a man is on his knees before God, that he is and nothing more." Robert Murray M'Cheynee Donation link:https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=G9JGGR5W97D64Or go to www.freerangepreacheronprayer.com and use the Donations tab.Assistant Editor: Seven Jefferson Gossard.www.freerangepreacheronprayer.comfreerangeprayer@gmail.comFacebook - Free Range Preacher MinistriesInstagram: freerangeministriesAll our Scripture quotes are drawn from the NASB 1977 edition.For access to the voice-over services of Richard Durrington, please visit RichardDurrington.com or email him at Durringtonr@gmail.comOur podcast art was designed by @sammmmmmmmm23 on InstagramSeason 008Episode 020

We live in a world, especially here in my culture in the United States, we live in a world that's drowning in vitriol, that vitriol, that hatred. Those angry, ugly words are applauded in my culture. And not only that, they're sometimes made heroic. And all they do is tear down.Jesus, on the other hand, asks us to be gentle and humble at heart, and to speak our family language. The language is in a paraphrase form. The language He heard from the Father. How do we learn our family language?Our family language is humor. We make each other laugh.Family language is natural.I learned to cuss from my dad, but only in the company of hard men. In my family, I learned a language that built up unity in love. As Christians, little Christs, as the early church was thus insulted, we learn our family language from the word of God.James 5:12, and: “Who among you is wise and understanding? Let him show by his good behavior his deeds in the gentleness of wisdom. 14 But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, do not be arrogant and so lie against the truth. 15 This wisdom is not that which comes down from above, but is earthly, natural, demonic. 16 For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing. 17 But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy. 18 And the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.: James 4:13-18“Pleasant words are a honeycomb, Sweet to the soul and healing to the bones.” Proverbs 16:24We tell each other the truth, 2 Timothy 4:2We don't shrink back from the whole counsel:“All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; 17 that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.” 2 Timothy 3:16Encouraging words, Hebrews 10:23From time to time, I went to work or fishing with my dad, and I learned slowly scurrilous speech, speech that tore down, but the day-to-day language I heard in my home was uplifting even in rebuke. I felt great to be in the family I was born into.Our So what?In our first Family Language episode, we learned “pray, pray, pray,” then we heard “practice practice practice,” now our encouragement is to “read, read, read.” When we expose our growing inner man to the Scriptures, our worship, confession, intercession, supplication, and thanksgiving are besotted or soaked, or permeated with Biblical words that build up. “Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever.” Amen1 Timothy 1:17”What a man is on his knees before God, that he is and nothing more." Robert Murray M'Cheynee Donation link:https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=G9JGGR5W97D64Or go to www.freerangepreacheronprayer.com and use the Donations tab.Assistant Editor: Seven Jefferson Gossard.www.freerangepreacheronprayer.comfreerangeprayer@gmail.comFacebook - Free Range Preacher MinistriesInstagram: freerangeministriesAll our Scripture quotes are drawn from the NASB 1977 edition.For access to the voice-over services of Richard Durrington, please visit RichardDurrington.com or email him at Durringtonr@gmail.comOur podcast art was designed by @sammmmmmmmm23 on InstagramSeason 008Episode 019

We welcome Chile and Czechia to the podcast family, and we highlight the country that has jumped into second place on our list. Thank You, Jesus. Part one of this little. Refresher was Pray, Pray, Pray. In part two, we are encouraged to Practice, Practice, Practice. We see how God is a better Father than we are. He never tells us to avoid prayer until we are mature enough.We are encouraged to let God guide us as we mature, but not to let anyone torpedo the practice and refinement of our prayer lives. God is our Father: “And I will be a father to you, And you shall be sons and daughters to Me,” Says the Lord Almighty.” 2 Corinthians 6:18He trains us in His wisdom:“Train up a child in the way he should go, Even when he is old he will not depart from it.” Proverbs 22:6And we are encouraged to practice. “Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, let your mind dwell on these things. 9 The things you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, practice these things; and the God of peace shall be with you.” Philippians 4:8-9Our So What?Practice, practice, practice our communion with the only true God.Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen1 Timothy 1:17”What a man is on his knees before God, that he is and nothing more." Robert Murray M'Cheynee Donation link:https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=G9JGGR5W97D64Or go to www.freerangepreacheronprayer.com and use the Donations tab.Assistant Editor: Seven Jefferson Gossard.www.freerangepreacheronprayer.comfreerangeprayer@gmail.comFacebook - Free Range Preacher MinistriesInstagram: freerangeministriesAll our Scripture quotes are drawn from the NASB 1977 edition.For access to the voice-over services of Richard Durrington, please visit RichardDurrington.com or email him at Durringtonr@gmail.comOur podcast art was designed by @sammmmmmmmm23 on InstagramSeason 008Episode 018

If there's one formula that truly determines your happiness (and success) as a business owner, it's this: capacity equals demand. What does that mean? It's simple. If you have too much capacity—too many employees, too much equipment—and not enough demand from customers, life gets stressful and you start losing money. On the flip side, when demand is off the hook and you don't have enough capacity, you're overwhelmed, your team gets burned out, and clients get frustrated. Capacity = demand isn't just a finance concept—it's the secret sauce to scaling a home service business without losing your sanity. The closer you keep these two variables in balance, the smoother your business runs, and the more you can enjoy building something valuable for your team, your customers, and yourself. It's not always easy. Staying intentional about this formula is a daily practice, and few talk about the emotional impact of getting it right—or wrong. But when things finally click, there's nothing better. The compounding value of capacity = demand. This episode dives deep into the math, mindset, and actionable strategies for starting, scaling, and optimizing your service business.    In this episode, you will discover: The 5 essential steps to properly setting up your business finances, including separating your personal and business accounts and understanding your roles as both CEO and owner. The magic formula for running a service business successfully: Capacity equals demand, and what happens when those are out of balance. The reality of the inflection point of scaling—why scaling up means changing roles, taking risks, and investing in marketing, recruiting, and infrastructure, as well as the challenges of hiring and retaining employees. The pros and cons of commission pay vs. hourly pay and how these choices affect production rates, employee motivation, and business profitability. Whether buying equipment to save on taxes actually works, and the math behind making effective asset purchases.   "Capacity equals demand is the magic formula to grow a business that doesn't suck."  - Dan Platta   Topics Covered: 00:01:05 – The "Math Game" of Business Dan Plata explains that every business, regardless of its niche (landscaping, window cleaning, janitorial, epoxy floor coating, etc.), is fundamentally about managing math—specifically, clarity on profits, costs, and investments. He emphasizes that while serving people is important, being profitable is essential to benefit everyone involved: family, customers, employees. 00:01:54 – Step 1: Separate Business and Personal Finances Business owners must stop mixing personal and business transactions. Dan Plata describes how commingling these makes it "impossible to make good decisions" because you can't accurately track expenses, investments, or returns. Creating separation brings immediate clarity and allows assessment of where money is coming in and going out. 00:02:46 – Step 2: Distinguishing CEO vs. Owner Roles At this point, Dan Plata highlights the distinction between being the CEO (running day-to-day operations, making business decisions) and the owner/investor (providing capital and expecting a return). Many owners only pay themselves for their labor and never separate out an owner's return, resulting in businesses that aren't truly profitable when they step away from operations. 00:05:54 – Step 3: Debt Isn't Evil; Credit Cards & Business Loans Have a Place Transitioning to finance strategy, Dan Plata clarifies the difference between personal debt aversion and business leverage. He explains that credit cards, when paid off monthly, offer "0% interest for 30–40 days" plus bonus points, making them an asset for cash flow management. 00:09:02 – Step 4: Keep Accounting Systems Separate from Operating Systems Don't expect one tool to do it all: Dan Plata advises against integrating operational software (e.g., Jobber) with accounting software (e.g., QuickBooks). Mixing them leads to confusion and data misuse. Specialized tools should do what they do best in their respective domains. 00:12:24 – Step 5: LLC, S-Corp, and the $100K Revenue Turning Point Once your net income is $25,000–$50,000 or more, Dan Plata recommends switching your LLC to be taxed as an S-corp using IRS Form 2553. This shift enables business owners to save significantly on payroll taxes by paying themselves a reasonable wage (subject to payroll taxes) and taking the remainder as a distribution (not subject to payroll tax). The math: at $50K net income, payroll taxes drop from ~$7,600 to ~$3,800. 00:44:45 – The "Magic Formula": Capacity Equals Demand Dan Plata reveals that aligning your business's capacity (employees, resources) with customer demand is the key to a sustainable and less stressful business. Too much capacity and not enough demand leads to underutilized workers and attrition; too much demand and not enough capacity leads to burnout and customer dissatisfaction. Straying from this balance creates chaos and problems in business operations. 01:26:15 – Employee Acquisition Cost & Recruitment Mindset Investing in high-quality employees is critical. Dan Plata points out he spent $35,000 on job ads to hire 45 people for a million-dollar business, and it was the best investment made—more effective than spending on customer marketing. He recommends a mindset shift: treat recruiting costs as investments, not expenses. 01:50:47 – Commission Pay vs. Hourly Pay Dan Plata explains how commission-based pay aligns incentives—employees win when the company wins. Commission motivates higher production rates (often boosting output by 30–50%), as workers are directly rewarded for their efficiency and results. Hourly pay firms up quality but can encourage slower work, as workers are paid for time, not outcomes. 02:13:54 – Buying Assets the Right Way & Year-End Tax Purchases When scaling, don't buy equipment upfront just to "save on taxes." Dan Plata stresses that it's best to invest in marketing and recruiting first—these are what actually drive growth and profits. Buy assets only after you have work and employees to use them. Finance 70%, put 30% down to avoid being upside down, and avoid new vehicles—used work trucks are sufficient for business needs.   Key Takeaways Setting up your business finances correctly from the start is essential; separate personal and business accounts to gain clarity and make better decisions As your business grows past $100,000 revenue or $25,000 net income, switch your LLC to be taxed as an S-corp—this can save you thousands on payroll taxes and clarify owner vs. employee income. Scaling your business comes with "purgatories"—periods of losing money and chaos before the next stage of profitability; expect these, budget for them, and push through. Invest heavily in recruiting the right employees; the true cost is often underestimated, but employees are more valuable than clients, and spending money to find good ones is crucial. Underlying all growth: business ownership is about pride and doing hard things—money is a byproduct, but fulfillment comes from progress and resilience.   Connect with Dan Website: yourblueskies.com Podcast: Bookkeeping, Beer & BS | Podcast on Spotify   Connect with Keith Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/keithkalfas/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thelandscapingemployeetrap Website: https://www.keithkalfas.com/resources Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@keith-kalfas   Resource Links Mentioned Blue Skies Bookkeeping & Recruiting: yourblueskies.com/kalfas Jobber: getjobber.com/kalfas Rebold Website AI: keithkalfas.com/rebolt CallRail Call Tracking: keithkalfas.com/callrail   Written and Edited by Ma. Teresa Catangay - Bardinas

At the historic grounds of Vermilionville, beneath the oaks and along the bayou that so vividly reflect our region's living history, this special episode of Discover Lafayette was recorded during the second annual LFT Fiber Powered by Connectivity Summit on March 19th, 2026. The summit's theme, Growth Powered by Fiber, Where Technology Meets Community, comes to life in a conversation with Whitney Savoie, Chief Marketing Officer of FlyGuys, a Lafayette-based technology company operating at the intersection of innovation, safety, and cultural preservation. This LFT summit showcased local leaders and gathered their thoughts on the power of connectivity in shaping our community, businesses and the economy. Whitney brings more than 15 years of experience in marketing, brand development, and customer acquisition, much of it rooted in high-growth tech startups. Her journey includes early work with Waitr, where she says she was “in the first 1% of employees,” helping scale what was then a groundbreaking on-demand food delivery platform. Reflecting on those years traveling across the country launching markets, she shared a perspective that would later shape her appreciation for home: “What that taught me then, and I have an appreciation for now, is in every small to medium community that I went into, you couldn’t feel the culture like you can feel in Acadiana.” That deep connection to place is central to Whitney's story. Raised along the bayous near Morgan City, she recalls a childhood that feels quintessentially South Louisiana. “In high school, my dad would take me crawfishing to make extra money, in the marsh in a pirogue lifting traps.” Today, as she reflects on culture through the lens of technology, she sees opportunity in preserving those moments. “I need to go back out with my dad and take pictures, even maybe put a drone up because I want to preserve that memory.” That idea, technology as a tool to preserve, not replace, human experience, runs throughout this conversation. FlyGuys itself is a powerful example of how innovation can serve real-world needs. Headquartered in downtown Lafayette and operating nationwide, the company provides drone-based data capture services across industries ranging from infrastructure and construction to agriculture. As Whitney explains, “FlyGuys is a reality data capture platform. We match data seekers with data providers.” Those providers include a network of approximately 20,000 FAA Part 107 certified drone pilots across the country. The concept is deceptively simple but highly impactful. When a company needs critical visual or analytical data, whether inspecting a cell tower, surveying farmland, or assessing storm damage, FlyGuys deploys a pilot to capture that data safely and efficiently. “Instead of having a human climb that cell tower, a drone can do it safer, faster, more efficiently.” The data is then processed and analyzed through FlyGuys' platform, delivering actionable insights to clients. The applications are vast. In agriculture, drones can identify disease at the level of a single plant, reducing the need for widespread pesticide use. In infrastructure, they allow for safer inspections of bridges, roofs, and aging structures. In cultural settings like Vermilionville, FlyGuys has even created “digital twins,” highly detailed 3D models, using advanced ground scanning technology to document and preserve historic spaces. Underlying all of this is an immense reliance on connectivity. FlyGuys processes thousands of missions each month, each generating massive amounts of data. “One mission could produce 10,000 files,” Whitney explains. “We do about 8,000 missions a month.” The ability to upload, process, and analyze that data in real time depends entirely on robust, high-speed internet infrastructure, making events like the LFT Fiber Connectivity Summit especially relevant. But for Whitney, the conversation ultimately comes back to people. In one of the most memorable moments of the interview, she reflects on hosting FlyGuys team members from Colombia in Lafayette. A crawfish boil at Moncus Park turned into an impromptu cultural exchange, blending zydeco dancing with salsa. “It was like this beautiful marriage of both cultures coming together… It was the picture of what we’re trying to preserve.” That spirit, connection across cultures, generations, and technologies, is exactly what she hopes people take away from the summit. “My hope is that people really understand what the LFT fiber team is trying to do here. They’re trying to bring us together. It’s really not about the technology. It’s about the fact that we’re all connecting and human. The beauty of the whole conference to me is that tech isn’t the hero, it’s the people that are the heroes and the things that we’re doing with the tech. In this age of technology, with AI, where there is some fear and trepidation, I believe that humans are going to really start leaning into that human connection.” In a time when artificial intelligence and automation are rapidly reshaping how we live and work, Whitney offers a grounded reminder of what matters most. “We need to preserve the human connection through all of it because that is what matters at the end of the day.” From the bayous of her childhood to the cutting edge of drone technology, Whitney Savoie's story is one of honoring where we come from while building thoughtfully toward the future. And in Acadiana, where culture runs as deep as the waters that shape it, that balance may be our greatest strength.

Transforming the Kitchen Experience: How Kitchen365 Streamlines Design, Specification, and Delivery At KBIS 2026, Bhavin Patel and Hiren Modi of Kitchen365 discuss how their end-to-end technology platform is reshaping the kitchen cabinet industry—making design faster, orders more accurate, and showrooms more agile. Digitizing Kitchen Design: Kitchen365's design service accelerates the process from field measurement to final kitchen plan, completing in hours instead of a week. B2B Order Management System (OMS): Streamlines dealer and distributor interactions, supports tiered pricing, multi-warehouse fulfillment, and integrates with existing design software like ProKitchen. Consumer-Facing Digital Tools: Price estimators and visualizers allow homeowners to explore and configure kitchens online, reducing showroom dependency. Reducing Scope Creep & Specification Drift: Digital twins and high-fidelity visualizations ensure designs align with customer expectations, lowering errors and change orders. Process Integration & Efficiency: CSV-driven workflows reduce manual data entry, freeing staff for higher-value work and increasing accuracy. Hybrid Showroom Model: Physical showrooms serve as inspiration hubs, while digital platforms handle design, ordering, and lead generation. Democratizing Information: Transparency across pricing, inventory, and specifications strengthens trust between showrooms, designers, distributors, and clients. Competitive Advantage Through Workflow: Beyond products and aesthetics, efficiency and integration of design, data, and delivery create the next edge in the kitchen industry. At KBIS 2026, Kitchen365 is showcasing a transformative approach to the kitchen cabinet industry. Founded to address the fragmented workflows between designers, retailers, and manufacturers, Kitchen365 is more than a software company—it is a full-scale ecosystem that digitizes, automates, and scales the kitchen design process. Bhavin Patel, President, and Hiren Modi, Co-Founder and CEO, shared their journey of identifying inefficiencies in the industry. From lengthy design cycles that could take a week to fulfill to manual order entry prone to costly errors, the opportunity for modernization was clear. Kitchen365 first tackled this by offering a kitchen design service that allows designers to focus on client interactions while the platform handles technical drawings, reducing turnaround times to mere hours. The platform's B2B Order Management System (OMS) revolutionizes distributor and dealer workflows. Tiered pricing, multi-warehouse inventory tracking, and CSV integrations with design software reduce manual errors and improve fulfillment speed. Retailers now have the ability to quickly provide quotes, place orders, and communicate with clients without extensive back-office staffing. For homeowners, Kitchen365 offers interactive digital tools like price estimators and 3D visualizers, enabling them to explore kitchen options remotely. High-fidelity visualizations and digital twins reduce “specification drift,” ensuring that what is imagined in the design phase aligns with the final installation. This not only minimizes costly post-order changes but also enhances the overall customer experience. Kitchen365 also empowers showrooms to evolve. Dealers gain enterprise-level digital portals with catalog management, lead generation, and design visualization, all accessible for a modest subscription. This hybrid model integrates physical and digital experiences, giving clients the tactile inspiration of a showroom and the efficiency of an online platform. Underlying all these innovations is a commitment to transparency. By democratizing information across pricing, inventory, and specifications, Kitchen365 strengthens relationships between distributors, dealers, designers, and end clients. The result is a seamless, efficient, and more confident workflow—from first consultation to final installation. Bhavin and Hiren emphasize that technology does not replace the human element but amplifies it. Designers become “complexity curators,” focusing on aesthetics and client experience while Kitchen365 handles data management, order accuracy, and process efficiency. The platform exemplifies how technology, when paired with industry expertise, can elevate every participant in the kitchen cabinet ecosystem. In a market long defined by artisanal craftsmanship and manual processes, Kitchen365 demonstrates that the next competitive advantage isn't just in style or materials—it's in integrated, intelligent workflows that make the industry faster, more transparent, and more client-focused. Guest: Brandon Drum, Owner | Prime Cabinetry Learn more about Kitchen365: Kitchen365 Website

“There is nothing radical about doing what is easy… what is truly radical is to do what is necessary to build a better world.” In this episode, Craig speaks with forester and author Ethan Tapper about his award-winning book How to Love a Forest and what it means to care for ecosystems in an age of climate change, biodiversity loss, and what he calls “global change.” Ethan's path into forestry began unexpectedly, with a life-changing wilderness expedition that reshaped how he saw the natural world. That experience grew into a career working in forests and, eventually into a book that blends ecology, storytelling, and a deeply personal reflection on stewardship. “The more you look, the more you see… and the more you see, the more you care.” A central idea in the conversation is the need to move beyond the familiar dichotomy of either preserving nature or exploiting it. In today's context, Ethan argues, that framing no longer works. Forests are now shaped by overlapping pressures - climate change, invasive species, fragmentation, and the long legacy of human land use. Simply leaving them alone is often not enough. Instead, stewardship requires active, ongoing care. “How could we love forests and cut trees? It doesn't make sense—until you understand the moment we're in.” Through his work, Ethan reframes practices like tree cutting, invasive species management, and deer population control as necessary, if difficult, acts of restoration. These decisions are often emotionally challenging, but they reflect a deeper responsibility: recognizing that inaction can cause harm too. “We are their greatest threat and also their best hope.” The conversation highlights how multiple stressors are undermining forest health, particularly their ability to regenerate. Without regeneration, forests cannot adapt or survive. This leads to a critical distinction: the greatest threat is not the cutting of trees, but deforestation—the permanent conversion of forests into other uses. In this sense, land-use planning, density, and zoning become central climate strategies. “If we can't keep forests as forests, nothing else we do matters.” Turning to cities, Ethan reflects on the role of urban forests as both ecological and social infrastructure. Parks and ravines can provide meaningful habitat and climate benefits, but they also require trade-offs. Not every space can maximize ecological function, human use and cultural value are part of the equation. “The answers aren't simpler—they're more complicated.” Underlying the discussion is Ethan's concept of “deep environmentalism” - an approach that moves beyond simply stopping harm toward actively doing good. It embraces complexity, trade-offs, and a more engaged relationship with the natural world. One of the most powerful examples comes from his work restoring his own degraded forest, Bear Island, which has become a symbol not of loss, but of possibility. “I'm not just preventing loss - I'm trying to build something more abundant.” The episode closes with a simple call to action: engage locally. Connect with conservation organizations, participate in their work, and become part of the community caring for the ecosystems around you.

In this episode of the Planet MicroCap Podcast, I'm joined by Andrew Pogue, Founder of the Underlying Value Substack, to break down his differentiated approach to microcap investing that blends deep fundamental work with an operator's mindset and the use of AI. Andrew walks us through how he evaluates businesses with a sharp focus on management quality and capital allocation, why he sees massive opportunity outside the U.S. in the Nordics, South Africa, Canada and Australia, and how he leverages AI as a high-powered research assistant to uncover overlooked ideas globally. We also dive into his disciplined approach to position sizing, identifying real catalysts, spotting red flags like “consulting-speak,” and why the ability to talk yourself out of an investment may be one of the most important skills for long-term success in microcaps. We mention several companies and sectors during this conversation, and I'm not a shareholder in any of them. For more information about the Underlying Value Substack, please visit: https://underlyingvalue.substack.com/ Chapters: 00:00 Diving into Micro Cap Investments 02:50 Understanding the Micro Cap Ecosystem 05:35 Investment Discovery Process 08:44 Catalysts for Investment Opportunities 11:37 Exploring International Markets: Focus on South Africa 16:45 Exploring South Africa's Investment Landscape 17:58 Navigating Investor Psychology and Promotional Cycles 20:28 Understanding Value and Catalysts in Investing 23:28 Lessons from Microcap Investing Experiences 26:41 Evaluating Management and Company Insights 30:41 Strategies for Selling and Position Management 35:14 Key Lessons from Business Ownership 37:58 Advice for New Investors in Microcaps Planet Microcap hosts the highest quality in-person microcap events in North America. The mission is to bring the best microcap investors, companies, and allocators together to gather, connect, and grow.; visit https://planetmicrocap.com/ to learn more about our Las Vegas and Toronto events. This presentation is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as a recommendation to purchase or sell any security referenced herein. Planet MicroCap Holdings LLC and MicroCapClub LLC (collectively, “we” or “our”) are not licensed brokers nor registered investment advisors. We, our partners, contractors, members, subscribers, guests, or affiliates may or may not hold positions in one or more of the securities mentioned in this presentation and may trade in such securities at any time. We may have received cash compensation from one or more participants for presenting at past, present, or future events. We recommend you consult a licensed investment adviser, broker, or legal counsel before purchasing or selling any securities referenced in this presentation.

Once again, a little review, prayer is talking to God; we have made that case from 2018. It is also true we grow in prayer, and a new concept up coming, we will see the importance of our family language. We feature Mauritius in our nuts-and-bolts addendum. In Mauritius, we have the second-largest listening base for the podcast. Today, we are urged, wherever you are in your Christian life, to draw close to God by prayer, prayer, prayer. Free Range Prayer Foundations:And this is eternal life, that they may know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent.John 17:317pray without ceasing; - implies constant conversation.! Thessalonians 5:17“Trust in Him at all times, O people; Pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us. Selah.” - He wants to hear from our souls.Psalm 62:8The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD, but the prayer of the upright is His delight. - God delights in our communion. Proverbs 15:8Our So What?We find the abundant life, through prayer, and perhaps the most moving call to fellowship with The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is:“Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. 29 “Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and YOU SHALL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS. 30 “For My yoke is easy, and My load is light.”Matthew 11:28-30 Oh, how we need to rest through prayer!Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen1 Timothy 1:17”What a man is on his knees before God, that he is and nothing more." Robert Murray M'Cheynee Donation link:https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=G9JGGR5W97D64Or go to www.freerangepreacheronprayer.com and use the Donations tab.Assistant Editor: Seven Jefferson Gossard.www.freerangepreacheronprayer.comfreerangeprayer@gmail.comFacebook - Free Range Preacher MinistriesInstagram: freerangeministriesAll our Scripture quotes are drawn from the NASB 1977 edition.For access to the voice-over services of Richard Durrington, please visit RichardDurrington.com or email him at Durringtonr@gmail.comOur podcast art was designed by @sammmmmmmmm23 on InstagramSeason 008Episode 016

Another beautiful episode on NDE's where we try to tie in the meaning and foundational truths of the experiences. For most, we know that there's something there with these experiences but many people don't know what to make of it. That's why we're here to give our best take, stay weird! To Follow Us On Patreon—> https://www.patreon.com/c/MetaMysticsEmail Us!—> MetaMystics@yahoo.comSubscribe to our Youtube—> http://www.youtube.com/@MetaMysticsTo Follow Us On TikTok—> https://www.tiktok.com/@metamysticsGive us a follow on Instagram—> @MetaMystics111Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/meta-mystics--5795466/support.You Don't Know What You Don't Know!

Meet Kevin Sutherland of SI Delivery Consulting Kevin Sutherland is doing bold things to bring agile methods to large-scale government. He went from early days with Accenture, through first-hand experience with waterfall and the pitfalls of massive system delivery, to founding his own company focused on state-level innovation. Kevin isn't just theorizing about agile transformation, he's in the trenches, dealing with resistance, bureaucratic inertia, and public stakeholder pushback. Kevin discusses what makes public sector agile so distinct and challenging. What are the unique obstacles in government (political incentives, captive user bases, absence of commercial profit motives) that make scaling agile so complex? Regulation, oversight, legacy systems, and decades of policy layering are persistent blockers that most commercial agilists rarely encounter. Many true agile practitioners just avoid or walk away from government environments, choosing not to engage because the culture or ecosystem isn't receptive. You’ll hear what Kevin is actually testing and using in a time when agile has become a dirty word in many orgs, and how he finds ways to deliver value without strictly using “agile” terminology or dogma. You’ll hear about the incremental approach and the transformational strategies he's developing in Minnesota. You’ll also learn about the tension between short-term, emergency-driven bursts of agility and the longer, harder work of organizational transformation. His strategy in action starts with outcome-focused use cases, and creating a safe, incubator environment for experimentation to enable change without risking the status quo. Getting buy-in from the willing, finding pockets of urgency, and managing vendor relationships in environments where incentive structures aren't naturally aligned are some of the ongoing challenges. Underlying everything is the growing pace of technological change, especially with AI reshaping expectations about speed and delivery. It’s difficult to know what agile principles look like when roles themselves are changing, and the fundamental problems aren't getting better on their own. There are never simple answers, but Kevin’s work will give you a clearer sense of the complicated, often contradictory world of government agile and why persistence, honesty, and outcome orientation matter so much. You can find Kevin Sutherland at: https://si-delivery.com Minnesota MES Modernization Strategy RFI Mural Board – includes the strategy videos and links as well as the results of vendor feedback and engagement: https://app.mural.co/t/minnesotamesmodernizationcan3670/m/minnesotamesmodernizationcan3670/1754081683082/fccc2005d83a2d11a12bea54bf6c2caa55b5fdbc?sender=uc99ad10c761de24074363019 Procurement Innovation – contenton procurement innovation at the State Health IT Connect Summit in Feb. https://procurement.innovation.si-delivery.com Procurement Innovation Contract Examples – samples of contract templates that could be used to execute the approach and shrink procurement lead times. https://si-delivery.com/starter-kit **FORGE GENESIS IS HERE** All the skills you need to stop relying on job postings and start enjoying the freedom of an Agile career on YOUR terms. First cohort starts in Q1 2026 https://learning.fusechamber.com/forge-genesis **THE ALL NEW FORGE LIGHTNING** 12 Weeks to elite leadership! https://learning.fusechamber.com/forge-lightning **JOIN MY BETA COMMUNITY FOR AGILE ENTREPRENEURS AND INTRAPRENEURS** The latest wave in professional Agile careers. Get the support you need to Forge Your Freedom! Join for FREE here: https://learning.fusechamber.com/offers/Sa3udEgz **GET THE BUSINESS OUTCOMES PARTNER PLAYBOOK** Learn how to deliver undeniable ROI that saves your job and accelerates your future https://learning.fusechamber.com/outcomes-partner-playbook **CHECK OUT ALL MY PRODUCTS AND SERVICES HERE:** https://learning.fusechamber.com **ELEVATE YOUR PROFESSIONAL STORYTELLING – Now Live!** The most coveted communications skill – now at your fingertips! https://learning.fusechamber.com/storytelling **JOIN THE FORGE*** New cohorts for Fall 2025!  Email for more information: contact@badassagile.com We’re also on YouTube! Follow the podcast, enjoy some panel/guest commentary, and get some quick tips and guidance from me: https://www.youtube.com/c/BadassAgile ****** Follow The LinkedIn Page: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/badass-agile ****** Our mission is to create an elite tribe of leaders who focus on who they need to become in order to lead and inspire, and to be the best agile podcast and resource for effective mindset and leadership game. Contact us (contact@badassagile.com) for elite-level performance and agile coaching, speaking engagements, team-level and executive mindset/agile training, and licensing options for modern, high-impact, bite-sized learning and educational content.

James 4:1-3

In this Dialogue episode of The Synopsis, we discuss Netflix stepping away from Warner Bros., Duolingo and underlying growth issues, plus Paypal and what makes a great manager.  Five Minute Money Newsletter Free Sign Up YouTube Video Links: Paypal, Netflix, Duolingo ~*~ You can also get a free trial to AlphaSense to read 200k+ expert calls through this link.  ~*~ For full access to all of our updates and in-depth research reports become a Speedwell Member here. Please reach out to info@speedwellresearch.com if you need help getting us to become an approved research vendor in order to expense it. -*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*- Show Notes (0:00)  — Intro, Netflix/Paramount Warner Bros. Deal (17:17)  — Duolingo Selloff (30:08)  — Duolingo Valuation (36:20)  — PayPal Overview (42:48)  — What Makes a Good Manager? (52:41)  — PayPal Valuation -*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*- For full access to all of our updates and in-depth research reports, become a Speedwell Member here. Please reach out to info@speedwellresearch.com if you need help getting us to become an approved research vendor in order to expense it. *-*-*- Follow Us: Twitter: @Speedwell_LLC Threads: @speedwell_research Email us at info@speedwellresearch.com for any questions, comments, or feedback. -*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*- Disclaimer Nothing in this podcast is investment advice nor should be construed as such. Contributors to the podcast may own securities discussed. Furthermore, accounts contributors advise on may also have positions in companies discussed. This may change without notice. Please see our full disclaimers here:  https://speedwellresearch.com/disclaimer/

Dr. Majid Fotuhi, neurologist, neuroscientist, and adjunct professor at Johns Hopkins University, has spent decades studying how the brain ages and what determines whether cognitive performance declines or strengthens over time. In this discussion, he challenges one of the most widely accepted assumptions about aging: that deterioration of memory and thinking is inevitable. The evidence, he explains, points in a different direction. Cognitive health is strongly shaped by daily choices, and meaningful improvements can occur within weeks when those choices change.  Fotuhi organizes the science of cognitive resilience around five pillars: exercise, sleep, nutrition, stress management, and brain training. Each pillar affects the brain through measurable biological mechanisms. Exercise, for example, increases mitochondrial activity and stimulates the growth of new neurons in regions responsible for memory. Even modest activity matters. Walking several thousand steps daily has been associated with reduced markers of Alzheimer's disease in the brain, while higher fitness levels correlate with stronger cognitive performance.  Sleep represents the second pillar. Consistent rest of seven to eight hours supports the brain's ability to regulate stress hormones and maintain cognitive clarity. Persistent sleep disruption is often tied not to physiology but to unresolved concerns. Fotuhi notes that many professionals carry a large number of unresolved problems into the night. Creating clear plans for addressing those issues often reduces anxiety enough for normal sleep patterns to return. Nutrition is the third pillar. Highly processed foods, particularly those containing trans fats, increase inflammation and are associated with smaller volumes in the hippocampus, the region of the brain responsible for memory. By contrast, a Mediterranean-style diet rich in fruits, vegetables, fish, and olive oil supports long-term brain health. Food, in this sense, functions as daily neurological input rather than simple fuel.  The fourth pillar is stress regulation. Chronic stress elevates cortisol, which can damage memory-related brain structures over time. Fotuhi emphasizes that much stress is generated internally through expectations and repeated negative thought patterns. Techniques such as cognitive behavioral therapy, meditation, and deliberate reframing help interrupt these cycles and allow the brain to operate in a more stable state.  The final pillar is brain training. Cognitive capacity strengthens when the brain is consistently challenged through activities that require learning and adaptation. Language study, music, strategic games, or complex physical skills all stimulate neural pathways. The key is sustained engagement in activities that are both demanding and enjoyable. The brain, like muscle, develops strength through repeated use. Underlying these pillars is a broader insight about aging itself. Fotuhi argues that the second half of life can be a period of cognitive growth rather than decline if individuals adopt the habits that support brain health. The goal is not merely to avoid disease but to maintain clarity, memory, and mental energy well into later decades. For senior professionals whose performance depends on sustained cognitive capacity, the implications are practical. The brain remains highly adaptable. With deliberate attention to exercise, sleep, diet, stress, and learning, cognitive capability can be preserved and, in many cases, strengthened over time. Get Majid's book, The Invincible Brain, here: https://tinyurl.com/ymf47ee3 Claim your free gift: Free gift #1 McKinsey & BCG winning resume www.FIRMSconsulting.com/resumePDF Free gift #2 Breakthrough Decisions Guide with 25 AI Prompts www.FIRMSconsulting.com/decisions Free gift #3 Five Reasons Why People Ignore Somebody www.FIRMSconsulting.com/owntheroom Free gift #4 Access episode 1 from Build a Consulting Firm, Level 1 www.FIRMSconsulting.com/build Free gift #5 The Overall Approach used in well-managed strategy studies www.FIRMSconsulting.com/OverallApproach Free gift #6 Get a copy of Nine Leaders in Action, a book we co-authored with some of our clients: www.FIRMSconsulting.com/gift

Enterprise IT spending is projected to reach $4.5 trillion by 2026, but this growth is concentrated in software, cloud services, and AI infrastructure for large organizations, according to HG Insights and Omdia research cited by Dave Sobel. The system integration market is positioned to approach $950 billion in 2025, with enterprises working with an average of 6.3 technology partners. A substantial surge in AI-optimized server sales, as reflected in Dell Technologies' reported 342% year-over-year increase in revenue for those systems, is reshaping supply chains and vendor dynamics, leading to shortages of DRAM, SSDs, and hard drives. Underlying this development are volatile component costs. DRAM prices have doubled quarter over quarter, and both Micron Technologies and Western Digital have indicated they are sold out for 2026. HP reports that RAM now constitutes 35% of new PC materials costs, up dramatically from 18% the previous quarter. Such cost shifts are creating downstream risks for managed service providers (MSPs) with fixed-price agreements, as the economic assumptions underpinning many contracts—stable hardware prices and predictable cloud costs—no longer hold. The episode also highlights an increase in application sprawl and a widening gap between IT budgets and other operational costs. A Torii report shows large enterprises use over 2,191 applications on average, with more than 61% bypassing formal IT approvals, resulting in unmanaged security and compliance exposure. Additionally, 80% of small businesses report rising energy costs that directly compete with IT budget allocations. Industry analysis from Jefferies and Boston Consulting Group signals that AI and automation are not viewed uniformly as productivity boosters and may compress revenue models in both Indian and domestic IT services sectors. The practical implication for MSPs is the urgent need to audit and reprice contracts related to hardware procurement and refresh cycles, clearly documenting and communicating current cost realities with clients. Dave Sobel stresses reframing device lifecycle extensions as a security risk rather than a cost-saving measure and warns against selling clients on speculative AI market projections. The advice is to focus on specific, scoped use cases and to structure agreements that accurately reflect volatility in component costs and the operational burden of application sprawl, ensuring financial and legal accountability as the IT services landscape evolves. 00:00 $4.96T IT Spend Surge Bypasses SMBs as AI Infrastructure Captures Enterprise Budgets 03:58 Dell's $43B AI Server Backlog Triggers DRAM Shortage, Repricing Downstream Hardware 05:52 AI Shrinks IT Services Revenue Model; MSPs Face Contested Implementation Role   This is the Business of Tech.    Supported by:

“There's something sort of romantic about losing everything and going back to zero.” Garry Vee Continuing to champion a winning mindset after Super Bowl week, We sit down with serial entrepreneur, investor, cultural icon and friend of The Pivot Gary Vaynerchuk, better known to the world as Gary Vee. From immigrating to the U.S. as a kid and transforming his family's liquor store into a multimillion-dollar business, to building VaynerMedia and becoming one of the most influential voices in entrepreneurship, Gary's journey is all about betting on yourself and embracing the long game. Gary dives right in on the do's and don'ts of navigating everyday life, offering research and guidance whether you are someone who feels stuck, looking for the next thing or experiencing self-doubt, he shares something for everyone in this conversation by making complex ideas seem relatable and breaking down what's hold someone back. He breaks down the fears associated with AI and how, electricity, something we couldn't live without now, was once feared that same way. Gary gets real about taking chances before you're ready, the fears that still drive him, and why self-awareness is the ultimate competitive advantage. He breaks down what most people get wrong about success, money, and happiness, and why patience, humility, and execution matter more than hype. The conversation also dives into emerging business and media trends, where attention is really going in 2026, and how creators, athletes, and entrepreneurs can stay ahead without burning out. Plus, Gary connects his passion for sports to leadership, ownership, and legacy—and explains why athletes are perfectly positioned to dominate the business world if they play it right. This is a masterclass in mindset, risk, and evolution from someone who's lived every chapter and has a willingness to share information hoping to make an impact. Pivot Family, please like, comment and hit the subscribe button, we love hearing from you! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

PREVIEW FOR LATER TONIGHT: Cleo Paskal details a new US initiative to support Palau's national defense against Beijing's influence operations and visa-less entries. While headlines focus on Palau accepting 75 US deportees, the underlying deal provides this strategic ally—which recognizes Taiwan—with resources to patrol borders and secure its sovereignty.1930 PALAU