Podcasts about Walmart

Last week, we shared Part 1 of Junaliza Chappell's story. By February of 2007, Juna was preparing to leave her husband, Timothy, and start over in California with her 3-year-old daughter, Ashley.Juna had carefully crafted her exit plan. Ashley was already in California, staying with Juna's trusted friends, Frank and Grace. Juna had moved some of her belongings into a storage unit there. She had a new job waiting for her, but first she needed to attend job training in Florida. From there, the plan was for Juna to fly back to Atlanta, get her car, and drive west. But Juna never made it to California.Timothy later claimed that he picked Juna up from the Atlanta airport and took her to Walmart to pick up a prescription. He said Juna went inside and never came back out. From the beginning, there were problems with that story, and by the time investigators tried to verify it, potential surveillance footage was already gone.Then the situation became even more alarming. Juna's coworker and friend, Faye, began learning more about Timothy's past. Around that same time, Timothy seemed to disappear, too, and Ashley was with him. When Timothy was eventually found, he was driving Juna's car, and Ashley was in the backseat. Inside the vehicle were belongings Juna likely would have taken with her if she had been the one driving to California, including her purse.Timothy was arrested that day, but not for anything connected to Juna's disappearance. He was arrested because he was a sex offender who had failed to register, and authorities had found Ashley in his care.In Part 2, we shift the focus to the women who kept pushing after Juna vanished. Faye kept digging. She searched for more information about Timothy's past, followed the details that did not add up, and tried to gather anything that might help keep him incarcerated. Now-retired U.S. Marshal Katrina stayed focused on Timothy from a different angle. She had already been searching for him before Juna disappeared. As new information surfaced, the case became darker, more complicated, and increasingly tied to the man Juna had been trying to leave.If you have any information about the disappearance of Junaliza Chappell, please contact the Atlanta Police Department Missing Persons Unit at 404-546-4235.Ashley has also created an email address for tips. If you have information but do not feel comfortable contacting law enforcement directly, you can email bringjunalizahome@gmail.com. Tips can be sent anonymously.If you have a missing loved one that you would like to have featured on the show, please fill out our case submission form.Follow The Vanished on social media at:FacebookInstagramPatreonSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Walmart Employee Gets Fired… Then Snaps

Group Chat News is back for America's 250th birthday week and the guys go deep on the gamification of everything, AI gatekeeping, and the great retail shakeup. Steve Pitino of Ales Grey stops by with a massive Walmart 4th of July shoe giveaway before the crew gets into why politics might be the biggest trap of all, the AI lockout dividing the haves from the have-nots, and how Jersey Mike's just dethroned Chick-fil-A. This week's Group Chat covers: America at 250 — is the country falling apart or winning more than ever? NYC affordability, the DSA, and the middle-class squeeze in big cities Declining birth rates and the forecasted hit to car sales by 2040 The gamification of everything — sports betting, Polymarket & Kalshi, and $165 billion wagered How retail traders and day-trading boomers now move even the biggest stocks AI gatekeeping — Anthropic and OpenAI limiting frontier models to 100 companies and the government China's open-source AI catching up to the US frontier labs Should you put confidential financials into AI? The data privacy debate Jersey Mike's dethrones Chick-fil-A and goes public at a $12 billion valuation Reformation's IPO and why "retail is dead" is a lie Sephora's new "quiet hours" and the future of the in-store experience ⭐ EXCLUSIVE ALES GREY 4TH OF JULY SHOE DEAL ⭐ Steve Pitino is doing the biggest giveaway yet for the 250th. Here's how it works: Head to Walmart.com and buy any Ales Grey shoes (seven colors, including the new Red, White & Blue — made in the USA. For every pair you buy, Ales Grey matches you with a FREE pair of black shoes, unlimited. If you buy 10, get 10 free. The first 25 Catties also get the limited Red, White & Blue pair free — only 250 made in the world, each a one of one, not even available to the public yet. To claim: DM a picture of your receipt to @alesgrey on Instagram and they'll send your free shoes.

On today's show we create alternate reality TV Spinoffs of some of our favorite TV shows.  We also read your emails and take a look at the week's news. News: What Fox's Roku Acquisition Signals For Local Broadcast Wurl Chief Warns FAST Business Model Is 'Fundamentally Flawed' Walmart in reported $1.4 billion deal to acquire connected TV ad platform Google Home will soon get better at recognizing you Other: Pioneer SPHERA car stereo review Clever Spinoffs to Our Favorite TV Shows HBO Max is making a clever spinoff from "The Big Bang Theory" called "Stuart Fails to Save the Universe". The show follows comic book store owner Stuart Bloom from The Big Bang Theory in a new series where he attempts - and apparently fails - to save the universe, staying true to his unlucky nature. The spinoff consists of ten episodes, streaming every Thursday at 9 PM. It debuts July 23 on HBO Max . So this got us thinking about some cool spinoffs with quirky characters from other shows we've watched over the years. Here are three clever spinoff concepts in the same spirit as Stuart Fails to Save the Universe: Jack Bauer from 24 Title: 24/7 After finally retiring from CTU, Jack Bauer is forced to take a mundane job as head of security at a mid-sized suburban office park in Los Angeles — mostly to keep his health insurance. Still operating with the intensity, paranoia, and zero-tolerance policy that once saved the world multiple times, Jack now applies his elite counter-terrorism skills to everyday annoyances: package thieves, passive-aggressive HR Manager, broken printers, and the HOA president who keeps violating noise ordinances. Every episode plays out in real time (a 24-minute comedy format), following Jack as he tackles a new "crisis" — whether it's a missing office dog, a suspected mole in accounting, or an all-out war with the food truck that keeps getting his lunch order wrong. Jack still does dramatic split-screen monologues, tortures (metaphorically) the vending machine, and keeps a "go bag" full of zip ties and protein bars in his desk. His long-suffering team includes a burnt-out millennial assistant, a retired cop who just wants to nap, and his daughter Kim, who keeps trying to get him into therapy. Tagline: He saved the world 8 times. Now he has to survive the corporate retreat. Chandler and Monica of Friends Title: The One Where They're Spies After years of marriage, Chandler Bing and Monica Geller have the perfect cover: a boring, stable suburban life in New Jersey. Chandler works as a "data analyst" for a vague government contractor, and Monica runs a high-end catering business. In reality, they're a highly skilled CIA husband-and-wife operative team. Chandler's deadpan sarcasm and quick wit make him an elite handler and master of undercover personas. Monica's terrifying organizational skills, attention to detail, and competitive nature make her an absolute weapon in logistics, interrogation, and hand-to-hand combat (she once took down three targets with a perfectly thrown fondue fork). While they're out saving the world from international threats, they have to keep their double lives completely hidden from Ross, Rachel, Joey, and Phoebe — who still think Chandler hates his job and Monica is just an obsessive chef. Every episode balances high-stakes spy action with classic Friends-style comedy as the couple frantically tries to explain away their suspicious behavior: "Why do you have a go-bag in the closet?" "Why does Chandler suddenly speak fluent Mandarin?" "Why was Monica gone for three days and came back with a new scar and a Russian accent?" Tagline: They're saving the world… between coffee at Central Perk. Charles Boyle from Brooklyn 99 Title: Boyle After a high-profile case goes sideways, Detective Charles Boyle is transferred to the NYPD's newly formed Unsolved & Unusual Crimes Unit — a ragtag squad that handles cold cases too weird or embarrassing for anyone else. Still the passionate, food-obsessed, emotionally open romantic we know and love, Boyle now channels his legendary enthusiasm into solving the city's strangest unsolved mysteries: everything from a serial killer who leaves gourmet meals at crime scenes to a black-market truffle smuggling ring. He attacks each case with the same intensity he once reserved for perfecting his coq au vin recipe. Backed by a small team of misfits (a jaded ex-homicide detective, a tech genius who only communicates in food puns, and a rookie who idolizes him), Boyle brings both razor-sharp detective work and delightful chaos to every investigation. He still cries during interrogations, quotes obscure food history mid-stakeout, and maintains an emergency "comfort cassoulet" in the precinct fridge. Tagline: He may cry at crime scenes… but he always gets his man.

In this episode, the boys cut in with two breaking stories. First, Walmart buys Vibe.co, a connected TV advertising platform, in a move that could make Walmart's already-growing ad business even more interesting. Robert believes the strategy is right, especially with Walmart's retail media business and Vizio already in the fold, but thinks the price tag may have been a bit too rich. Then Joe and Robert revisit the FIFA stadium branding story. FIFA's clean-stadium policy has forced brands like Levi's, Heinz and others to cover up their logos during World Cup matches. But instead of making those brands disappear, FIFA may have created the perfect Streisand effect. Heinz, Beats and Levi's have all turned the restrictions into creative marketing moments. Is FIFA protecting its sponsors, or accidentally giving non-sponsors a bigger story? In our main stories, Google and A24 announce a partnership around AI filmmaking tools. The big question is not whether AI will make the final movie. It's whether AI will control more of the creative workflow before the final product ever exists. Then Meta and Snap both make new moves in smart glasses. Meta pushes toward a lower-cost, more mainstream AI glasses play, while Snap launches its new AR-focused Specs. If glasses become the next interface, marketers may have to rethink content for a world where the screen is no longer in your hand. It's on your face. In Winners and Losers, Joe's winner is TIME Canada. TIME is launching a licensed Canadian edition with a local team, local office, original reporting, video, social, print and events. In a world of generated content, Joe likes the bet on trusted editorial brands with a local heartbeat. Robert's winner is McDonald's, which is bringing back the fried apple pie. Sometimes nostalgia, timing and a little bit of fried goodness is all the marketing strategy you need. In Rants and Raves, Joe raves about The Infinity Machine by Sebastian Mallaby, a book about Demis Hassabis, DeepMind and the race toward superintelligence. Robert delivers a super rant on TuneCore and how independent creators may be getting the short end of the stick as AI music floods the market and distribution platforms try to figure out who gets through, who gets blocked, and who gets paid. Also mentioned this week: In the Weights, a site that lets you see whether you show up in the "weights" of different AI models: https://www.intheweights.com/ Subscribe and Follow: Follow Joe Pulizzi and Robert Rose on LinkedIn for insights, hot takes, and weekly updates from the world of content and marketing.  ------- This week's sponsor: Did you know that most businesses only use 20% of their data? That's like reading a book with most of the pages torn out. Point is, you miss a lot. Unless you use HubSpot. Their AEO and customer platform gives you access to the data you need to grow your business. The insights trapped in emails, call logs, and transcripts.  All that unstructured data that makes all the difference. Because when you know more, you grow more. Visit https://www.hubspot.com/ to hear how HubSpot can help you grow better. ------- Get all the show notes: https://www.thisoldmarketing.com/ Get Joe's new book, Burn the Playbook, at http://www.joepulizzi.com/books/burn-the-playbook/ Subscribe to Joe's Newsletter at https://www.joepulizzi.com/signup/. Get Robert Rose's new book, Valuable Friction, at https://robertrose.net/valuable-friction/  Subscribe to Robert's Newsletter at https://seventhbearlens.substack.com/ ------- This Old Marketing is part of the HubSpot Podcast Network: https://www.hubspot.com/podcastnetwork

This Omni Talk Retail Fast Five segment breaks down the explosive June 2025 e-grocery data from Brick Meets Click and Mercatus, which showed a 28% year-over-year surge to $9.8 billion, with delivery, pickup, and ship-to-home all posting gains of 25% or more. Chris Walton and Jenn Hahn dig into what's really driving the growth, from the rise of the free delivery era to why time-starved consumers are leaning on online grocery harder than ever. Chris makes the case that regional grocers shouldn't just benchmark against Walmart and Amazon. They should be looking to Sweden, where grocers are making e-grocery profitable despite $35-an-hour starting wages. They also discuss why Walmart is quietly gobbling up grocery market share, what hard discounters like Aldi are doing right, and why Jenn's 80%+ online grocery habit might be the canary in the coal mine for traditional supermarkets everywhere. ⏩ Tune in for the full episode here: https://youtu.be/k2JviUlR0-Q

Josh is joined by a special guest co-host for this month's listener episode…his wife, McKenzie! While Seth is away, the two catch up about Mackenzie's recent trip home to western Massachusetts for her high school reunion, including nostalgic visits to her old campus, time with both parents, a newly renovated porch and chimney that sparked plenty of conversation, and a stop at the recently reopened Bridge of Flowers in Shelburne Falls. They also hear some fantastic listener stories, including a Girl Scout cross-country train trip, childhood summers at a remote Canadian cabin, and a trip to Spain that swapped a highly anticipated Barcelona soccer match for an unexpectedly awkward all-day olive oil tour. Plus, Josh and Mackenzie answer listener questions! Watch this episode on the Family Trips YouTube or Spotify, or listen wherever you get your podcasts! Want to submit your family trips story for our next listener episode? Or send a question in to Seth and Josh? Submit your voicemail to speakpipe.com/familytripspod! Get your tickets for Family Trips Live! 8/12 - Philadelphia: https://tickets.citywinery.com/event/family-trips-with-the-meyers-brothers-il7k6b 8/13 - Boston: https://tickets.citywinery.com/event/family-trips-with-the-meyers-brothers-iipsfk Support our sponsors: OlipopGet a free can of OLIPOP: Buy any 2 cans of Olipop in store, and they'll pay you back for one Works on single cans of any flavor, any retailer visit https://drinkolipop.com/TRIPS OLIPOP is available in the soda aisle and with the chilled beverages at thousands of retailers nationwide, including Walmart and Target Mint MobileTo get your new wireless plan for just 15 bucks a month, go to https://MINTMOBILE.com/TRIPS. That's it there's no catch. $45 upfront payment required (equivalent to $15/mo.). New customers on first 3 month plan only. Speeds slower above 40GB on Unlimited plan. Additional taxes, fees, & restrictions apply. See MINTMOBILE.com for details Lola BlanketsGet 40% off select Lola Blankets products at https://Lolablankets.com by using code TRIPS at checkout. Experience the world's #1 blanket with Lola Blankets. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The world's first any only "Sourcing to Shipping" software has arrived for Amazon and Walmart sellers.   Reselling has been reduced to TWO general steps as a result: Find asins anywhere and everywhere (it doesn't matter where) Load those ASINs into 3Pmercury!   And in this episode, you'll hear why the creators of 3PMercury are so confident that this system will work for you that they are offering it to you for one month for just $1 - and that includes training! See details at SilentJim.com/1d   Watch this episode on our YouTube channel here: https://youtu.be/w4-FYfABNSk     Show note LINKS:   3PMercury 30-day FULL ACCESS $1 trial with a training session: 3pmercury.com/thirty   Get the 3PMercury chrome extension (on-screen calculator) free here: 3pmercury.com/extension   How to evaluate a lead training with Khang: Youtube.com/live/DkzCsYjWQwc?si=MpszZpW6BW2tQtgu   TheProvenConference.com - August 25-27th:  TheProvenConference.com/scholarship August 24 Pre-event one-day "laptops open" workshop: TheProvenConference.com/mbw   ProvenAmazonCourse.com The comprehensive course that contains ALL our Amazon training modules, recorded events and a steady stream of latest cutting edge training, including of course the most popular starting point, the REPLENS selling model. The PAC is updated free for life!   SilentJim.com/kickstart  - If you want a shortcut to learning all you need to get started, then get the Proven Amazon Course and go through Kickstart.   SilentSalesMachine.com - Text the word "free" to 507-800-0090 to get a free copy of Jim's latest book in audio about building multiple income streams online (US only) or visit SilentJim.com/free11   SilentJim.com/bookacall - Schedule a FREE, customized and insightful consultation with my team or me (Jim) to discuss your e-commerce goals and options.   My Silent Team Facebook group. 100% FREE! Facebook.com/groups/mysilentteam - Join 83,000 + Facebook members from around the world who are using the internet creatively every day to launch and grow multiple income streams through our exciting PROVEN strategies! There's no support community like this one anywhere else in the world!    

Welcome to the Millennial Special Anniversary Edition—we're celebrating 50 years of Star Wars by doing what we do best: connecting fictional universes to our very real problems. Then we get into the real meat: how the Prequel Trilogy—Episodes 1-3—basically predicted the slow-motion collapse of democracy. We draw the obvious parallels to modern executive overreach, the erosion of checks and balances, and how Congress just... stopped checking anything. We even dig into what George Lucas actually said about all this—spoiler: he was thinking about Vietnam, Nixon, and the way democracies don't get overthrown, they get given away. We're also connecting the dots between fictional servitude and the very real greed on display right now, complete with a deep dive into Walmart's electronic price tags that could—with existing tech—charge you a different price based on what the system thinks you can afford. On theme for this week, we're keeping our recommendations pop culture centric: The 'Family Guy' Star Wars parodies (Eric) and the 2009 film 'Fanboys' (Pam). In After Dark, we're getting personal with some lighter questions: What's your Roman Empire? Have you experienced a friendship breakup? What do you think you'll be like at 80? Join us as Pam and Eric get to know each other better. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Day one of the Prime Day event results are in, Amazon accelerated dates, and more info on the EU low value shipment rules. These and more buzzing news on this episode! We're back with another episode of the Weekly Buzz with Helium 10's Manager of Education and Strategy, Carrie Miller. Every week, we cover the latest breaking news in the Amazon, TikTok Shop, Walmart, and E-commerce space, talk about Helium 10's newest features, and provide a training tip for the week for serious sellers of any level.   Amazon's Prime Day kickoff was the biggest online shopping day of 2026 https://www.retailbrew.com/stories/amazons-prime-day-kickoff-was-the-biggest-online-shopping-day-of-2026 New Feature Alert! Helium 10's MCP connector lets you pull data into Claude to build custom dashboards, analyze competitor keywords, and combine Cerebro, PPC, Profits, and Brand Analytics insights. More info on EU Import Rules: Starting July 1, 2026, the EU will remove the duty exemption for low-value imports, adding a mandatory €3 customs duty per item or tariff line for shipments under €150 entering the EU from outside Europe. Amazon says FBA remote fulfillment sellers will see this added at checkout, while FBM sellers should review pricing, approved carriers, IOSS details, and fulfillment options like Pan-European FBA to avoid surprises. Amazon Seller Central: Get instant freight quotes and book cross-border shipments in the new portal https://sellercentral.amazon.com/seller-news/articles/QVRWUERLSUtYMERFUiNHQ0haNEJNUlRWUENSU0pS Amazon Seller Central: Register to book Seller Café appointments for Seller Growth Summit https://sellercentral.amazon.com/seller-news/articles/QVRWUERLSUtYMERFUiNHWU41MjdYRE5FQ1lTWEhK Seller Growth Summit by Amazon on July 16, 2026 at New York Marriott Marquis, New York, NY https://www.sellergrowthsummit.amazon/event/741dcaae-344f-4c53-a324-bcf894bf9c64/about In episode 533 of the AM/PM Podcast and Weekly Buzz, Carrie covers: 00:00 - Introduction 00:42 - First Day of Prime Day Results are In 01:57 - New Feature Alert: Helium 10 MCP 04:43 - More info on EU Import Rules 07:28 - Automate PPC Bids Based on Keyword Rank 12:43 - Amazon Accelerate & Seller Cafe Registrations 14:00 - New Amazon Global Logistics Portal 14:38 - Seller Cafe Registrations at Seller Growth Summit Are open

Scott Monty, leadership advisor, communication strategist, keynote speaker, storyteller, and host of the Timeless Leadership podcast, joins me on this episode. Scott is the former Global Head of Social Media and Digital Communications at Ford Motor Company, where he helped lead some of the most groundbreaking digital communication and marketing initiatives of the early social media era. He has advised organizations including Ford, IBM, Walmart, Google, and Reebok, and has been recognized by The Economist as one of the world's leading social business thinkers. In this conversation, Scott shares lessons from his career journey, insights from working alongside legendary Ford CEO Alan Mulally, and why timeless leadership principles such as humility, reflection, communication, and servant leadership are more important than ever.

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Most Amazon operators treat TikTok and Walmart like a backup plan, but ignoring these platforms could cost you 119% growth. Neil Twa breaks down why relying solely on Amazon is a single point of failure. He shares insights from a company that's thriving by diversifying across all three platforms. Neil recalls a conversation with a community member who was making $30,000 a month on Amazon with eight SKUs and solid margins. The key takeaway? Expanding to Walmart Marketplace and using TikTok isn't optional if you want to keep up. Whether you're doing $5,000 or $500,000 a month, these moves are crucial. Ready to implement with us? Join the Voltage Business Builders cohort at voltagedm.com?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=show_notes&utm_campaign=ep304 Ready to implement with us? Join the Voltage Business Builders cohort at voltagedm.com: https://voltagedm.com?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=show_notes&utm_campaign=ep304

Why are you still putting all your eggs in the Amazon basket when Walmart's e-commerce just crossed $150 billion in sales? Neil Twa dives into the missed opportunities many operators face by treating Walmart like a consolation prize. He shares insights from a brand doing $40,000 a month on Amazon with strong reviews, exploring how they can use Walmart's platform effectively. Neil outlines three critical moves: auditing your catalog for Walmart fit, focusing on products with strong reviews and defensible price points, and developing a clear framework for scaling on Walmart without disrupting your current operations. This episode is packed with actionable strategies for sellers at every level, from those launching their first product to seasoned operators. Ready to implement with us? Join the Voltage Business Builders cohort at voltagedm.com?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=show_notes&utm_campaign=ep305 Ready to implement with us? Join the Voltage Business Builders cohort at voltagedm.com: https://voltagedm.com?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=show_notes&utm_campaign=ep305

Love island obsessed Kevin and his lady Marcelle try to make Whitney like something popular and it goes perfectly weirdly. Whitney tries to figure out the physiological profile of each contestant based on their photos alone, and we dissect this new form of emotion porn and that reality tv may just be mama for women Tickets for The Big Baby Tour https://www.whitneycummings.com SHOP: https://whitneycummings.com/index.html#store Thank you to our sponsors! Square #ad Get up to $200 off Square hardware when you sign up at https://square.com/go/WHITNEY! #squarepod Jones Road Beauty #ad Use code GOODFORYOU at https://www.jonesroadbeauty.com to get a Free Gift with your first purchase! #JonesRoadBeauty #ad OLIPOP #ad Get a free can of OLIPOP: buy any 2 cans of OLIPOP in store, and they'll pay you back for one. Works on single cans of any flavor, any retailer. Get yours at https://drinkolipop.com/WHITNEY. OLIPOP is available in the soda aisle and with the chilled beverages at thousands of retailers nationwide, including Walmart and Target. Hers #ad Ready to reach your goals? Visit https://www.forhers.com/whitney to get personalized, affordable care that gets you. That's F-O-R-H-E-R-S dot com slash whitney forhers.com slash whitney Weight Loss by Hers is not available in all 50 states. Wegovy® is the registered trademark of Novo Nordisk A S. To get started and learn more, including important safety information, Wegovy® clinical study information, and restrictions, visit https://www.forhers.com. Bellesa EVERYONE who signs up wins a FREE toy or gift card! https://www.shopbboutique.co/vibe/goodforyou-yt

What's up, everybody? It's Tom Bilyeu here:If you want my help...STARTING a business: join me here at ZERO TO FOUNDER: https://tombilyeu.com/zero-to-founder?utm_campaign=Podcast%20Offer&utm_source=podca[%E2%80%A6]d%20end%20of%20show&utm_content=podcast%20ad%20end%20of%20showSCALING a business: see if you qualify here.: https://tombilyeu.com/callGet my battle-tested strategies and insights delivered weekly to your inbox: sign up here.:https://tombilyeu.com/**********************************************************************If you're serious about leveling up your life, I urge you to check out my new podcast, Tom Bilyeu's Mindset Playbook —a goldmine of my most impactful episodes on mindset, business, and health. Trust me, your future self will thank you.**********************************************************************FOLLOW TOM:Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tombilyeu/Tik Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@tombilyeu?lang=enTwitter: https://twitter.com/tombilyeuYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TomBilyeuKetone IQ: Visit https://ketone.com/IMPACT for 30% OFF your subscription orderPaleovalley: 30 for $36 https://bit.ly/PaleovalleyITOpusClip: Explore Agent Opus at https://agent.opus.pro/exploreIncogni: Take your personal data back with Incogni! Use code IMPACT at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan: https://incogni.com/impactTruemed: Check your eligibility and start saving at https://truemed.com/impactEthos: Get a free quote at https://ethos.com/impactQuo: Try for free PLUS get 20% off your first 6 months at https://quo.com/impactNetsuite: Right now, get our free business guide, Demystifying AI, at https://NetSuite.com/TheoryPique: 20% off at https://piquelife.com/impactShopify: Sign up for your one-dollar-per-month trial period at https://shopify.com/impactWelcome to a no holds barred breakdown of the political and economic forces reshaping America right now. In this episode, Drew, Tom, and Ryan dig into the leftward lurch of the Democratic Party, unpacking the DSA wave behind Mamdani's New York sweep and what it means when self-described communists start winning the safest Democratic seats in the country. The conversation traces how populism is fueled by economic anxiety, why both parties keep racing to the extremes, and whether finding the way back to the middle is even possible anymore. From there, they get into the hard economics: why socialist and communist policies historically break the economy, the calorie-storage origin of the social contract, the freeloader problem that sinks societies, and the real fight over wages, corporations, and whether companies like Walmart and Amazon are the villains people think they are. They take on Trump's threat to sic the DOJ on big oil for price gouging, why government price controls always fail, and how the OPEC cartel and regulatory capture are the actual problems behind what you pay at the pump. The discussion turns global with a hard look at USAID, the claim that foreign aid has been quietly funding NGOs and destabilization movements abroad, Japan dumping US treasuries amid its liquidity crisis, and the financial repression playbook Washington may use to inflate its way out of a crushing national debt. They weigh in on Congress voting to curb hostilities with Iran and what it means for negotiating power. Finally, the episode goes deep on one of the most important debates of the next decade: a Michigan city council banning the pride flag, Muslim immigration and assimilation, whether Islam has had its reformation, separation of church and state, and the candid clash over whether America is truly a Christian nation or simply shaped by Christian values. Whether you're here for sharp political analysis, hard economic truth, or a deeper look at the values shaping society, this episode offers a nuanced, unflinching take on how today's choices will define tomorrow.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Summer road trips sound relaxing until somebody brings up Arkansas, somebody else starts pitching Michigan like it's the Caribbean, and then WalletHub comes in and tells Missouri it's basically a budget destination with terrible road safety.In this daily podcast, The Rizzuto Show asks the simple question: "Anybody taking a road trip this summer?" Naturally, that spirals into college visits to the University of Arkansas, debates over Michigan's crystal-clear water, and whether Walmart money is secretly funding one of the greatest business schools around.Then things take a turn.A new study ranks the best and worst states for summer road trips, and the gang cannot believe some of the results. Minnesota somehow takes the crown, Louisiana sneaks near the top, and poor Rhode Island gets crowned the absolute worst road trip destination. Delaware catches strays. California gets roasted for traffic and gas prices. Missouri lands squarely in the "could be worse…but also could be way better" category.And because no Rizz Show conversation stays on the rails, the crew ends up asking an even more important question: How much money would it take for you to spend the rest of your life trapped inside Rhode Island?Five million? Ten million? Twenty million? Half a billion?Suddenly everybody's planning seafood dinners, retirement parties, dividend income, and figuring out exactly how far into the ocean they're allowed to sail before violating the rules of their tiny state prison.It's the kind of completely normal conversation you'd expect from a daily podcast featuring road trip rankings, college recruiting pitches, geographic hypotheticals, and enough Rhode Island real estate planning to confuse an actual travel agent.If you're planning a summer getaway, thinking about a road trip, or simply enjoy hearing adults passionately debate states they've barely visited, this daily podcast has exactly the chaos you're looking for.Follow The Rizzuto Show → linktr.ee/rizzshow for more from your favorite daily comedy show.Connect with The Rizzuto Show Comedy Podcast online → 1057thepoint.com/RizzShow.Hear The Rizz Show daily on the radio at 105.7 The Point | Hubbard Radio in St. Louis, MO.Man used massage gun on his tired eyeballs. It went as well as you'd expect.Disney scare unfolds after teen exits log ride moments before 50-foot plungeWoman Killed in Rope Jump Tragedy Was Wearing a Camera That Mysteriously Vanished After Her Fatal 131-Foot FallJefferson County school bus driver accused of drinking beer before afternoon routesWorkers at South Carolina Wendy's accused of spitting in food, serving it from trashYes, This Is a 2026 Headline: Judge Issues Two-Year Jail Sentence for Burning and Selling CDsBest & Worst States for Summer Road Trips (2026)See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Episode Summary Wednesday's show serves up phone-based paranoia, a fresh crop of internet-brained lunatics, an Arby's herpes lawsuit, and a Walmart scream-fight powered almost entirely by racial tension and cat-piss accusations. Basically, another nutritious breakfast from Distorted View Daily. Episode Highlights Ongoing Freaks / Updates Opening Chaos ️ Distorted News Arby's has the meats, and […] The post Arby's Has the Meats and All the Herpes first appeared on Distorted View Daily.

Know bad to know good? "Be angry"? Freeway crash. NY Dems go socialist. Target store hero father. Chico library. TFS taping: Jake Munro!

6.23.2026 #RolandMartinUnfiltered: SCOTUS Rejects Black Rastafarian. Voting Rights Purge Blocked. Police Kill 1-Year-Old_ For free and unbiased Medicare help, dial (724) 264-8281 to speak with my trusted partner, Chapter, or go to https://askchapter.org/roland *Paid Partnership*_ The Supreme Court rules 6-3 against a Black Rastafarian man in Louisiana who had sued prison officials after they forcibly shaved off his dreadlocks, in what he said was a clear violation of his religious rights. Elie Mystal joins us to break down the latest from the high court. The MAGA Attack on voting rights faces a crucial setback as a federal judge intervenes to stop states from using software developed by immigration enforcement to review their voter rolls, which voting rights groups say would have resulted in unconstitutional voter purges. The family of Kohen Wiley, the one-year-old black boy shot and killed by police in a Walmart parking lot in Mississippi has announced funeral services will be held this coming weekend. The announcement comes as civil rights attorney Ben Crump demands video evidence in the case and has ordered an independent autopsy of the boy. The Senate passed a new, bi-partisan housing bill which makes it easier to construct new homes and helps ensure they can be purchased by families, not corporations. With the legislation now headed to the House of Representatives, the president of the National Association of Real Estate Brokers will join us to analyze what impact these measures could have for black homeowners nationwide. In Ohio, a police officer has been placed on leave after bystander and body camera video show him kneeling on top of a 15-year-old girl following an altercation at a Juneteenth Festival last weekend. We'll show you that video and let you decide for yourself. And in the latest installment of Crazy Ass White People -- a black man and his family tried to go fishing in Florida last weekend, only to have a white couple show up, demand they move and then start calling them the n-word. Wait until you see this video. Black Star Network Partner: ChapterChapter and its affiliates are not connected with or endorsed by any government entity or the federal Medicare program. Chapter Advisory, LLC represents Medicare Advantage HMO, PPO, and PFFS organizations and stand alone prescription drug plans that have a Medicare contract. Enrollment depends on the plan’s contract renewal. While we have a database of every Medicare plan nationwide and can help you to search among all plans, we have contracts with many but not all plans. As a result, we do not offer every plan available in your area. Currently we represent 50 organizations which offer 18,160 products nationwide. We search and recommend all plans, even those we don’t directly offer. You can contact a licensed Chapter agent to find out the number of products available in your specific area. Please contact Medicare.gov, 1-800-Medicare, or your local State Health Insurance Program (SHIP) to get information on all of your options.____Download the Black Star Network app at http://www.blackstarnetwork.com! We're on iOS, AppleTV, Android, AndroidTV, Roku, FireTV, XBox and SamsungTV. The #BlackStarNetwork is a news reporting platform covered under Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After Nancy Guthrie vanished from her Tucson home, the Jewelers' Security Alliance did something that got almost no attention. They issued a crime alert to the entire jewelry trade, offered a reward, and specifically named the Guthrie family's ties to the industry as the reason.Nancy's daughter Annie is a working jeweler in Tucson. She lives near her mother in the Catalina Foothills. She and her husband were the last people to see Nancy alive. And their neighborhood holds a connection to the gem world that goes back decades — one that the JSA clearly thought mattered enough to put money behind.Gem-show crime in this city has already escalated beyond theft. In one documented Pima County case, two dealers were tied up at gunpoint and more than a million dollars was taken — kidnapping charges included. The man allegedly seen at Nancy's door wore Walmart-exclusive gear and showed no professional training. The ransom notes have been widely discredited by investigators.And reportedly, nothing was taken from Nancy's home. This episode follows what the JSA saw, what was in the neighborhood, and whether the crew that allegedly came that night was ever there for Nancy Guthrie at all.END LINKS:Join Our SubStack For AD-FREE ADVANCE EPISODES & EXTRAS!: https://hiddenkillers.substack.com/Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8-vxmbhTxxG10sO1izODJg?sub_confirmation=1Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspodX Twitter https://x.com/TrueCrimePodDISCLAIMER:This publication contains commentary and opinion based on publicly available information. All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Nothing published here should be taken as a statement of fact, health or legal advice.HASHTAGS:#NancyGuthrie #SavannahGuthrie #HiddenKillers #TrueCrime #TucsonGemShow #MissingPerson #ColdCase #WrongTarget #CrimePodcast #JusticeForNancy

Nancy Guthrie's neighbor has held the same role at the largest gem and mineral event on the planet for decades. He lives in the same Catalina Foothills neighborhood. His event was running the week she reportedly vanished from her bed.The Jewelers' Security Alliance connected the abduction to the gem world publicly — citing the Guthrie family's own jewelry industry ties, offering a ten-thousand-dollar reward, and asking attendees from more than twenty countries to come forward. Nancy's daughter Annie is a Tucson-based jeweler who was the last family member to see her alive that night.Gem-show crime in Tucson is documented and escalating. Tucson police deploy extra officers every year. In one Pima County case, armed men tied up two dealers and walked out with more than a million dollars — kidnapping charges followed. The man allegedly captured on Nancy's camera wore gear traced to a single Walmart and showed no sign of professional training.Reportedly, nothing was taken from Nancy's home. This episode connects what the neighbor has been doing for decades, what was happening that week, and why an alleged crew may have walked out of that house empty-handed — then puts every hole in the theory on the table.END LINKS:Join Our SubStack For AD-FREE ADVANCE EPISODES & EXTRAS!: https://hiddenkillers.substack.com/Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8-vxmbhTxxG10sO1izODJg?sub_confirmation=1Instagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspodX Twitter https://x.com/TrueCrimePodDISCLAIMER:This publication contains commentary and opinion based on publicly available information. All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Nothing published here should be taken as a statement of fact, health or legal advice.HASHTAGS:#NancyGuthrie #SavannahGuthrie #HiddenKillers #TrueCrime #TucsonGemShow #MissingPerson #ColdCase #WrongTarget #CrimePodcast #JusticeForNancy

In this week's Omni Talk Retail Fast Five, sponsored by the A&M Consumer and Retail Group, Mirakl, Ocampo Capital, Quorso and Veloq, Chris Walton checked in from Vienna, Austria, one of the final stops on Walton World Tour 2, alongside recurring Fast Five favorite Jenn Hahn, Founder & CEO of J Recruiting Services, to discuss: • Ahold Delhaize naming former Amazon Worldwide Fresh executive Claire Peters as its next U.S. CEO, and whether hiring an outsider is the right move as the company navigates mounting pressure from Walmart and Amazon: https://www.grocerydive.com/news/ahold-delhaize-usa-ceo-nominee-former-amazon-fresh-veteran-claire-peters/823251/ • New Brick Meets Click data showing U.S. eGrocery sales surged 28% year-over-year in June, and why Chris thinks grocers should be paying close attention to what's happening in Sweden: https://www.brickmeetsclick.com/presses/june-2025-u-s-egrocery-sales-continue-to-surge-up-28-versus-year-ago • Kroger reporting that its e-commerce business turned a profit for the first time ever, and whether that milestone matters if the retailer is still struggling to keep pace in the broader digital grocery race: https://www.grocerydive.com/news/kroger-earnings-first-quarter-2026-ecommerce-pharmacy/823246/ • Bed Bath & Beyond's new "Legendary Coupon Hunt" promotion, and whether asking shoppers to dust off decades-old blue coupons is clever nostalgia marketing or pure retail gimmickry: https://www.retaildive.com/news/bed-bath-beyond-coupon-sweepstakes/823394/ • Target naming Isaac Mizrahi as its first-ever Creative Director at Large, and whether revisiting one of its most iconic design partnerships is the spark the retailer needs to recapture its "cheap chic" magic: https://corporate.target.com/press/release/2026/06/target-teams-up-with-isaac-mizrahi-to-shape-the-future-of-accessible-design And Rita Kerbaj, Chief Strategy Officer at the Rohlik Group, joins us for 5 Insightful Minutes to share lessons from one of Europe's most successful online grocers, explain what it really takes to make e-grocery profitable, and discuss why operational excellence remains the foundation of sustainable growth. There's all that, plus Chris' impending jury duty assignment, favorite economists, Amazon Prime Day shopping habits, Jersey Mike's surprising rise in Florida, Andrew Jackson's legendary "Old Hickory" nickname, and a few hints about the retail ideas Chris is bringing home from Europe. P.S. If you've enjoyed following along with the Walton World Tour 2, make sure to catch our livestreams and on-the-ground coverage from Europe on the OmniTalk YouTube channel: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLhlbTg57CFdAihPNZ04kRKCE7HS6wDdF3&si=GRwMaX3VP7C84acu P.P.S. Be sure to check out all our other podcasts from the past week here, too: https://omnitalk.blog/category/podcast/ Music by hooksounds.com

What does it mean when a seasoned CPO with experience at Disney, Apple, Airbnb, and Walmart.com walks away from the C-suite to go build products by himself? In this episode of the CPO Rising series hosted by Products That Count Resident CPO Renee Niemi, former Remix AI co-founder and CPO Kevin Swint speaks on why this moment in AI demanded that kind of move, what he learned building an agentic application in two weeks that would have taken a year and hundreds of thousands of dollars before, and why the feedback loop between domain expert and builder has collapsed in a way that changes everything. From tourist behavior in AI products to the fundamentals of stickiness that never change, Kevin brings 25 years of hard-won perspective to the most exciting moment in product history.

Plus: Walmart buys French advertising tech firm, Vibe.co. And Tesla's European monthly sales bounce back. Julie Chang hosts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Not responsible for others. Juneteenth vs love. Know evil to know good? Father & daughters in women's room. Walmart shoplifting: baby dies.

In today's episode, we present our reactions to the Rebirth Expansion DLC for Jurassic World Evolution 3. Tom Jurassic returns to help parse through the details of the latest DLC. Sit back, relax and ENJOY this episode of The Jurassic Park Podcast!A special thanks to Universal, Mattel, Walmart, Insight Editions and RSVLTS for the items sent to the studio this week!Colossal Clash at WalmartThe Very Sleepy Dinosaur bookRSVLTS Jurassic Park shirtsPlease check out my Newsletter featured on Substack! You can sign up for the newsletter featuring the latest from Jurassic Park Podcast and other shows I'm featured on - plus other thoughts and feelings towards film, theme parks and more!FOLLOW USWebsite: https://www.jurassicparkpodcast.com/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@JurassicParkPodcastInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/jurassicparkpodcast/Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/jurassicparkpod.bsky.socialThreads: https://www.threads.net/@jurassicparkpodcastFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/jurassicparkpodcastApple Podcasts: https://apple.co/2VAITXfSpotify:  https://spoti.fi/2Gfl41TDon't forget to give our voicemail line a call at 732-825-7763!Catch us on YouTube with Wednesday night LIVE STREAMS, Toy Hunts, Toy Unboxing and Reviews, Theme Park trips, Jurassic Discussion, Analysis and so much more.

Most "healthy" drinks aren't what they claim—and your body feels it long before you realize why. In this episode, Justine Reichman sits down with entrepreneur Bryan Appio, founder of Dry Water, to unpack what really happens when you start paying attention to what's inside your hydration. After losing everything during the pandemic, Bryan hit a breaking point that forced him to rethink his health from the ground up—leading to a product built on transparency, not shortcuts. They dive into the hidden truth behind "natural flavors," why most electrolyte drinks are loaded with sugar or unnecessary salt, and how the wellness industry often prioritizes profit over clarity. But more importantly, this conversation shifts how you think about everyday choices: what you drink, how you fuel your body, and why simplicity might be the most powerful upgrade you can make. This episode will change the way you read labels—and the way you take care of yourself. Key Takeaways: Why "natural flavors" can hide dozens of unknown ingredients The real problem with most electrolyte and hydration drinks How small daily habits impact long-term health Why clean, simple ingredients matter more than marketing claims The mindset shift that turns failure into your next breakthrough If you've ever felt tired without knowing why—or questioned what's really in your food and drinks—this conversation will hit home. Meet Bryan:  Bryan Appio is the founder and CEO of Dry Water, a next-generation hydration company committed to clean ingredients, transparency, and everyday wellness. A lifelong entrepreneur, Bryan previously built and exited an early staffing "gig economy" model, before redirecting his focus to health and sustainability after the pandemic exposed his own gaps in nutrition and hydration. Motivated by personal health challenges and a deep frustration with misleading "natural flavor" claims and sugar-laden sports drinks, Bryan spent years reverse-engineering the hydration category. He developed Dry Water as a daily wellness solution built on real fruit, plant-based ingredients, zero sugar, and no artificial additives, designed to support gut, brain, and metabolic health while minimizing reliance on pills and highly processed products. Under his leadership, Dry Water has grown from kitchen experiments to a national brand available in major retailers like Walmart, Walgreens, Target, and Kroger, reaching hundreds of thousands of customers largely through education-driven, word-of-mouth growth rather than heavy ad spend. Bryan's approach centers on regenerative business principles: investing in consumer education, prioritizing clean supply chains even when crops fail or costs rise, and refusing to compromise on non-negotiables around ingredient integrity. A strong advocate for women's sports and youth wellness, Bryan has partnered with League One Volleyball (LOVB) to bring cleaner hydration to thousands of young athletes and professional players, aligning performance with long-term health. Through Dry Water, he is demonstrating that it is possible to scale a profitable, high-growth CPG brand while honoring transparency, ethical sourcing, and the long-term well-being of people and planet. Website LinkedIn Instagram X TikTok Connect with NextGen Purpose: Website Facebook Instagram LinkedIn YouTube Chapters: 00:52 Building Dry Water: The Journey and Challenges  06:43 Natural Flavors and Transparency  11:50 The Impact of Dry Water on the Market  27:37 Regulations and Scaling Challenges  30:35 Building a Team and Customer Relationships  32:23 The Role of Education and Marketing  37:13 Investing in Female Sports and Empowerment  41:21 Balancing Growth and Personal Values  46:20 Advice for Aspiring Entrepreneurs:    Resources: Discount Get 30% off on your entire order + free gift when you shop at: https://drywater.com/    Use code: EI30 Podcast The "8 Glasses of Water A Day" Myth Debunked! with Gina Bria Water— The Ultimate Essential Ingredient— 100th Episode Celebration!! with Gina

Most jam brands are built on sugar. Good Good built a business by taking it out. In this episode, Good Good founder and CEO Gardar Stefansson discusses how the Icelandic brand evolved from a struggling stevia startup into a rapidly growing platform of no-added-sugar spreads now sold in approximately 10,000 U.S. stores and 30 countries worldwide.  He shares lessons from scaling across major retailers, navigating pricing and promotions, developing products consumers love, and building a premium brand in an increasingly competitive category. Gardar also explains why packaging is a company's most powerful marketing asset and why getting consumers to try your product remains the key to driving repeat purchases and long-term growth. Show notes: 0:20: Gardar Stefansson, Co-Founder & CEO, Good Good – Gardar discusses the origins of Good Good, which launched in 2016 as a stevia sweetener company before pivoting to a no-added-sugar jam recipe that ultimately became the foundation of the business. He explains how "No Added Sugar" evolved into the brand's core message and describes Good Good's growth strategy as it expanded across retail channels including Whole Foods, Costco, Walmart, and Amazon. Gardar emphasizes the importance of leveraging syndicated retail data, in-store merchandising, promotions, and digital marketing to build awareness and drive trial. He argues that packaging and messaging are a brand's most effective marketing tools, noting that shelf presence is its most valuable real estate. He also discusses Good Good's disciplined approach to innovation, explaining how the company balances consumer demand, retailer expectations, and product quality when developing new products, including peanut butter and chocolate spreads. Throughout the conversation, Gardar highlights a relentless focus on getting consumers to try the product – through sampling, events, and grassroots marketing initiatives – as a key driver of the brand's success. Brands in this episode: Good Good

The murder of infant Kohen Wiley by Mississippi police, called to arrest a woman accused of shoplifting a pack of diapers, is the catalyst for a segment detailing myriad reasons why I hate Walmart and what it has done to America. Then, looking into the reflecting pool to see dead ducklings, flapping polyurethane, and D.C. under cronyism. Also, updates on concepts of a plan for Iran, the poetic ends of pedo loyalists, crusade-era germ theory, and reviewing a new investigative report into who was really directing the Director of National Intelligence. Plus, a quick summary of why signing a treaty at Versailles has historical significance, and a reminder that what's happening at Delaney Detention Center in N.J., and all detention centers, will also be remembered throughout history. Check your voter registration, find your polling location, or contact your representatives via USA.GOV, VOTE.GOV, and/or the "5 Calls" app. All opinions are personal and not representative of any outside company, person, or agenda. This podcast is hosted by a United States citizen, born and raised in a military family that is proud of this country's commitment to free speech. Information shared is for entertainment purposes only and is cited via published articles, legal documents, press releases, government websites, executive orders, public videos, news reports, and/or direct quotes and statements, and all may be paraphrased for brevity, presented satirically, and in layman's terms.“I love America more than any other country in the world and, exactly for this reason, I insist on the right to criticize her perpetually.” - James BaldwinWanna support this independent pod? Links below:Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/cw/BBDBBuyMeACoffee - https://www.buymeacoffee.com/BBDBVenmo @TYBBDB Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A.I. spooky story... months away from A.I. taking down governments?London millionaire accused of being the 'Putney pusher'?Morons in the newsCan you pump gas while station tanks are being refilled?Anaheim's Disneyland ride facing a deadlineStanding on salt before bed?Be careful what you leave in the back seat for the kids to play with "Animal Kingdom" seriesThis is not how to use a massage gunFilm industry sees best year since covidRenewal of vows?Dear Flabby... with a twist!MJ's umbrella policy doubledCelebrities that tip well, or that tip poorlyData center considered for Pinellas ParkNoise from a data center in MichiganDid an Arby's worker pass along herpes from spitting on a sandwich?Update: Instagram video: Broken window at The FloridianMadonna's new albumSwiftie karma revenge over a Metallica musician's t-shirtNancy Guthrie story... TMZ refutes latest Jimmy Kimmel is taking a 2-month-long sabbatical, here are the guest hostsQuick Fester story2 Walmart stories... one good, one not-so-goodSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

DR1Our Tech OverlordsIn our 'Elon Musk's alibi to police was, "It couldn't be my fault; I haven't been at Tesla since they passed my pay package."' headline of the week. Tesla Under Fire After Car Smashes Into Texas Home and Kills 76-Year-Old Grandmother*************** In our 'Hello, my name is Jeff, I have a younger brother and sister, my favorite food is Betty Crocker pancakes, and I am a Coupon-ism major at Columbia University' headline of the week. Jeff Bezos Called Washington Post His Worst Investment and Staff He Laid Off ‘Terrible' People*************** LivingSocial (Written Down 2016): In 2010, Amazon poured $175 million into this daily-deals competitor to Groupon. The daily-deals craze fizzled out quickly, and six years later, LivingSocial was acquired by Groupon for effectively $0In our 'Just tell them it will make their Netflix better' headline of the week. Head of Microsoft Rages at His Fellow CEOs for Admitting What They're Actually Doing to Society With AI*************** “You can't say, hey, all white-collar jobs are gone and this could even be a weapon and we will use all the power to build data centers,” Nadella explained(Microsoft's own AI CEO Mustafa Suleyma, it's worth noting, very recently claimed that AI was on the verge of performing most “professional tasks.”)Nadella is now pushing an approach that factors in the common worker, criticizing those who get excited to announce AI-driven layoffs. “No, how about we think about reorganizing the jobs?”In our 'Mark has super-duper pinky-promised to stop using his $150,000 Patek Philippe watch to time exactly how long it takes a developer to cry' headline of the week. Meta CTO Admits Mark Zuckerberg Has Completely Crushed Employee Spirits*************** In our 'Hey Ma, every time I click on this ad it wipes my butt, buys a dozen frozen turkey burgers, and breaks up with my girlfriend, tell Dad!' headline of the week. These new Amazon ads don't just recommend products—they can make your purchases for you***************MM1In our 'What if I replace the Oreo knockoff brand Kroger Chocolate Lovers Kid-O's with Hydrox in the vending machines? Will you like working here again?' headline of the week. Meta Floats Bigger Snack Budget After AI Shakeup Tanks Employee MoraleIn our 'What if I make it LOOK LIKE your job isn't harming children, so you can tell your Mom at Thanksgiving, "no, we don't hurt children, that's ridiculous!"? Will you like working here again?' headline of the week. Meta lobbies Congress for immunity from lawsuits alleging online harm to childrenIn our 'OK, what if I replace the HYDROX with ACTUAL OREOS in the vending machines? Not even Elon Musk would do that - would you like working here again?' headline of the week. X tells 'neglected' Meta employees that it is hiring and will 'exceed any snack budget offer'In our 'I should have gotten the worst possible grade for GOVERNANCE, not ENVIRONMENT... don't you people read?' headline of the week. Musk Furious After SpaceX Stock Get Worst Possible Environmental GradeIn our 'Free Float data already created influence metrics, says, "make your own ESG data, jerk"' headline of the week. Inside Peter Thiel's Invite-Only Dialog Network: Secret A-B-C Grading System for Billionaires and PoliticiansGrades are assigned based on factors including fame, wealth, influence and political fit: C ratings go to the most prominent figures, A to those who are established but less high-profile, and B to most othersDR2The StupidIn our 'Target screams, you're supposed to fake fire your CEO and make him Executive Chair and promote the COO in times of internal crisis!' headline of the week. Lucid Motors Fires 18% of Workforce and Axes COO Marc Winterhoff as EV Market Slowdown Hits Hard*************** In our 'Target screams, yes exactly!' headline of the week. Domino's names COO Joe Jordan as new CEO amid slowing sales***************Outgoing CEO Russell Weiner will transition to executive chairmanIn our 'Group of experts suggest painting the pool blue to get rid of the problem' headline of the week. ‘ESG Hasn't Gone Away': Group Urges Trump, SEC to Rein In ‘Big Three' Asset Managers' Voting Power Long Term*************** Bull Moose Institute: 8 men, 0 women: ran by Aiden Buzzetti, President | 1776 Project Foundation & Bull Moose ProjectIn our 'Soccer 1, Child Care 0' headline of the week. After forcing workers back to the office, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase are now letting their staff work remotely—but only for the World Cup*************** In our 'Board members include Kimbal Musk, O.J. Simpson, Dana White, Rebekah Neumann, Elizabeth Holmes, Richard Sackler, John R. Tyson, and John T. Walton' headline of the week. Trump Forms UFO Board to Investigate 'Mothership' Orb Threat Over Sensitive National Security SiteJohn T. Walton (1992-2005), the billionaire son of Walmart founder Sam Walton, died in 2005, when the home-built experimental ultralight aircraft he was piloting crashedUnlike siblings Rob and Jim Walton, who took executive roles, John's involvement emphasized oversight without deep immersion in merchandising or supply chain functionsMM2In our 'Blackrock announces funding a reboot of the movie The Highlander called The Gay Highlander: There Can Be Only One' headline of the week. With the exits of Apple's Tim Cook and Dow's Jim Fitterling, the Fortune 500 is losing two groundbreaking gay CEOs—leaving just one In our 'Lying sociopath is 100% excited about making money, 74% excited about taking a bath, 29% excited to go home to his baby, and 12% excited to eat Hydrox' headline of the week. Sam Altman was ‘0%' excited to be a CEO of a public company—but OpenAI is taking steps to compete in the AI IPO blitz anywayIn our 'Lying sociopath hires man accused of aiding suicide to build product that will destroy humanity' headline of the week. OpenAI Just Hired a Guy Accused of Terrible ThingsNoam Shazeer, cofounder of Character.AI who has been accused of having an AI chatbot that rooted for their customer's suicidesIn our 'Lying sociopath who hired man accused of aiding suicides for product designed to destroy humanity thinks the product will be able to do it by next Christmas' headline of the week. Sam Altman thinks AI will surpass human intelligence by 2030. His rival AI billionaires say it'll be even soonerIn our 'Man who owns everything and has all the money suggests you try out whittling or become a cobbler' headline of the week. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang says electricians and plumbers will be needed by the hundreds of thousands in the new working world

Hurricane season is underway, and this replay is your permission slip to prep without the panic. Wendi breaks hurricane readiness into a 12-week countdown to calm — a little at a time, on a real-life budget, tailored to your actual family. Whether you're prepping for a hurricane, a winter ice storm, or just the power going out, these baby steps train your brain to be ready before you need to be. What you'll learn in this episode: Why a 12-week plan beats a frantic six-month scramble (and beats the Walmart parking lot every time) The four categories that organize all your prep: Food & Water, Gear & Gadgets, Organization & Personal Prep, and Home & Comfort How to build your Preparedness Profile so you prep for your family — allergies, medications, oxygen, refrigeration, pets, babies, and elderly parents Water first, always — how much to store and why Wendi doubles FEMA's recommendation Getting your generator, flashlights, and emergency radio tested before the storm Building a go-bag / 72-hour kit, spare keys, and copies of important documents Keeping kids (and grown-ups) sane during an outage with boredom busters Bonus: bathroom backup when the plumbing stops, and fridge/freezer strategy to keep food safe longer The brain science of emergencies — why we freeze or grab the wrong thing, and how prep fixes it Chapters / Timestamps: 00:00 — Welcome to Joyfully Prepared 00:35 — Hurricane season's already here (and why there's still time) 01:05 — Why 12 weeks? (Works for winter storms & power outages too) 01:40 — The Walmart parking lot problem 02:10 — The four categories of prep 02:30 — Your Preparedness Profile: prep for your family 03:35 — Food & Water: start with water (Week 1) 04:30 — The FEMA water rule — and why to double it 05:25 — Gear & Gadgets: flashlights, radio & generator 06:25 — Organization: spare keys, documents & your go-bag 07:05 — Home & Comfort: bug spray to boredom busters 07:40 — Bonus: bathroom backup & fridge/freezer tips 08:10 — Why your brain works against you in an emergency 09:30 — The toaster story 11:00 — Baby steps: 3 meals, inventory & a butane stove 12:40 — Confidence, capability & serving others 13:35 — Wrap-up Mentioned / Linked Resources:

The Department of Justice announced Tuesday that 455 people were charged in a nationwide healthcare fraud crackdown. The schemes allegedly involved $6.5 billion in false claims and, in some cases, may have put patients' lives at risk.A federal appeals court ruled that the Trump administration can fast-track deportations of illegal immigrants across the nation. It allows immigration authorities to remove illegal immigrants who entered the country without valid documentation or through fraud, who had not been paroled, or who cannot prove they lived in the country continuously for two years or more.California consumers sued gas station operators including BP, 7-Eleven, Walmart, Marathon, Circle K, and Albertsons over allegedly using artificial intelligence to hike prices. Drivers said gas prices have risen as much as 30 cents a gallon in some areas. This led gas prices to reach "astronomical" levels, at times reaching $7 a gallon, according to the complaint.More Breaking News, Special Reports, and Live Coverage on NTD: https://ept.ms/NTD_LIVE

In this episode of SheMD, hosts Mary Alice Haney and Dr. A sit down with Hannah Brown to unpack her long and complex health journey with PMOS, fertility challenges, and a recently discovered uterine septum.Hannah shares how years of irregular periods, cystic acne, weight fluctuations, and anxiety were repeatedly overlooked before she finally received a clear diagnosis. She opens up about navigating public life while silently struggling with her health, and how getting the right medical support completely changed her trajectory.Dr. A breaks down the science behind PMOS, insulin resistance, and hormone disruption, explaining how metabolic health impacts ovulation, fertility, and long-term well-being. The conversation also explores uterine anomalies, surgical treatment options, and why early diagnosis is critical for reproductive health.The episode also highlights Hannah's mental health journey, including therapy and EMDR, and how addressing trauma and inflammation helped her rebuild both her physical and emotional health.Subscribe to SHE MD Podcast for expert tips on PMOS, endometriosis, fertility, hormonal balance, mental health, and more. Share with friends and visit SHE MD website and Ovii for research-backed resources, holistic health strategies, and expert guidance on women's health and well-being.SponsorsSera: To learn more you can visit PreTRM.com.Talk with your provider about whether the PreTRM Test might be right for you.Midi: Ready to feel your best and write your second act script? Visit JoinMidi.com today to book your personalized, insurance-covered virtual visit. Alaya Naturals: Visit alayanaturals.com/shemd and enter code SheMD at checkout for 20% off your order.Gusto: Three months of free payroll at Gusto.com/shemdDavid Protein: David: Buy 4 cartons of Protein Bars and get the 5th free when you go to davidprotein.com/SHEMD.Olly: Shop Olly Precise Probiotics with Skin, Stress Response or Metabolism Support at a Walmart near you.What You'll LearnWhy PMOS is often missed or misdiagnosed for yearsHow insulin resistance drives hormonal imbalance and symptomsThe connection between PMOS, inflammation, and fertility challengesWhat a uterine septum is and how it affects pregnancy outcomesTreatment options including metformin, GLP-1s, and surgical correctionWhy mental health and trauma can amplify physical symptomsHow to advocate for proper diagnostic testing and careKey Timestamps00:00 Why Most Women With PMOS Are Never Properly Diagnosed02:24 Hannah Brown Opens Up About Her PMOS Journey03:48 How It All Started With Her Very First Period05:01 The Moment A Dermatologist Changed Everything07:16 Finally Getting Real Answers About PMOS10:30 What Hannah Did To Start Feeling Better13:37 What Is PMOS And How Common Is It14:41 The Brain Ovary Loop Nobody Explains To You16:19 Why Your Ovaries Stop Releasing Eggs17:18 The Insulin Resistance Loop Making Everything Worse19:00 How High Insulin Destroys Your Hormones20:24 How Metformin And GLP1s Actually Fix The Root Cause25:37 Why GLP1s Gave Hannah Her Period Back Every 30 Days27:13 How Hannah Became Her Own Health Advocate29:06 The Uterine Septum Nobody Warned Her About31:12 What A Septate Uterus Is And Why It Matters33:30 The Fertility Risks Of An Untreated Septum36:28 Hannah's Full Treatment Plan Before Trying To Conceive41:11 Why You Must Always Get A 3D Ultrasound43:47 Septate vs Bicornuate Uterus What Every Woman Should Know47:22 The Surgical Technique That Changes Everything53:02 Why Hannah Is Sharing Her Story Publicly55:00 Always Ask For A 3D Ultrasound At Your Appointment1:00:07 How PMOS Affected Hannah During The Bachelorette And DWTS1:03:42 Hannah's Experience With EMDR Therapy1:05:28 How EMDR Actually Works In Simple Terms1:07:43 The Moment Hannah Knew She Had To Change Everything1:11:05 How Hannah Completely Transformed Her Health1:13:18 Hannah's Advice For Every Woman Struggling Right Now1:15:10 Take The Free PMOS Quiz And Find Your AnswersKey TakeawaysPMOS is a metabolic and hormonal condition, not just a reproductive oneInsulin resistance plays a central role in worsening symptoms and fertility issuesMany women go years without proper diagnosis despite clear symptomsUterine septums can significantly increase miscarriage risk but are often treatableProper diagnosis and intervention can dramatically improve ovulation and fertility outcomesMental health, stress, and trauma can intensify physical inflammation and symptomsSelf-advocacy and persistence in seeking care can change long-term health outcomesGuest BioHannah Brown is a television personality, bestselling author, and former lead of The Bachelorette. She first gained national recognition as a contestant on The Bachelor before starring in The Bachelorette, winning Dancing with the Stars, and later competing on Special Forces: World's Toughest Test.In addition to her television career, Hannah is a New York Times bestselling author. Her books include the memoir God Bless This Mess and the romance novels Mistakes We Never Made, The Four Engagement Rings of Sybil Rain, and Reasons to Be Loved by You.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Upcoming Events Snowfighters Institute Webinars: Join us live for monthly webinars built to help snow pros run stronger, more profitable operations. All sessions run 10:00 to 11:00 AM. Pricing & Estimating Review | Tuesday, July 7, 2026 Are you pricing for profit or just hoping to break even? Finding & Managing Subcontractors | Tuesday, August 11, 2026 How do you find subcontractors who actually show up when it snows? Capacity Planning | Tuesday, September 8, 2026 How do you determine your true operational capacity? Recruiting | Tuesday, October 13, 2026 Why can't you find good people to hire, and what can you do about it? Incentive Compensation & Rewards | Tuesday, November 10, 2026 Are your bonuses and rewards actually driving the results you want? Client & Employee Appreciation | Tuesday, December 8, 2026 Are you truly appreciating your clients and employees, or just going through the motions? See the full webinar list → In-Person Event GROW! Snow | September 22 to 23, 2026 An in-person event built for snow leaders and their teams. Two days of snow-specific breakout sessions, a facility tour, and content designed to drive real change at your business. Details coming soon. Episode #57Matt Delborrello, Commercial Insurance Consultant with Alera Group and an Accredited Professional in Risk and Insurance, joins Phil to demystify the world of business insurance for snow and ice contractors. From understanding how umbrella liability provides broader protection than raising general liability limits, to why being rated on payroll instead of sales can dramatically lower your premiums, to navigating the excess and surplus marketplace, Matt shares why responsiveness and relationships drive his work, how site selection affects insurability, and what every contractor needs to know before the next slip and fall claim hits. Key Learnings Umbrella Liability Beats Raising General Liability Limits - Umbrella coverage isn't auditable like general liability, so it gives you broader protection over auto and employer's liability without driving up your audit exposure. Sales vs Payroll Rating Changes Everything - Being rated on snow payroll instead of total snow sales gives carriers a more accurate picture of your true exposure and can dramatically lower your premiums. Guaranteed Cost Contracts Distort Sales Numbers - When clients pay $500,000 whether it snows 2 inches or 200, sales doesn't reflect actual risk exposure, which is why the payroll rating shift matters so much. Choose Your Clients Wisely - You can run a flawless snow operation, but if your client list is heavy on gas stations and big box retail, insurance carriers may decline to write the account because of slip and fall frequency. Site Type Matters More Than Industry Label - A local bank and a Walmart are both retail, but they carry completely different risk profiles, so generic application categories without conversation create real problems. Camera Footage Defends Against Bogus Claims - Forward-facing, rear-facing, and driver-facing cameras give carriers the evidence they need to fight inflated or fraudulent claims rather than just settling them. You Can Be Involved... Chapters (00:00:20) - Welcome and Introductions(00:01:55) - Inside Alera Group(00:05:49) - Insurance 101 for Contractors(00:07:47) - Why Umbrella Beats Higher GL Limits(00:10:24) - A Day in the Life of an Agent(00:14:54) - Why Carriers Don't Get Snow(00:20:18) - The Sales vs Payroll Shift(00:24:24) - The Clients Carriers Hate(00:28:15) - The Bogus Slip and Fall Story(00:31:29) - Who Really Decides Your Claim(00:38:32) - The Excess and Surplus Trap(00:43:16) - One Entity or Two(00:45:01) - How to Reach Matt

In February of 2007, 27-year-old Junaliza Chappell was preparing to leave Georgia and begin a new life in California with her 3-year-old daughter, Ashley. Juna had accepted a new job, traveled to Florida for training, placed some of her belongings in storage, and arranged for Ashley to stay with trusted friends on the West Coast while she completed the final steps of her move.Juna planned to fly back to Atlanta, retrieve her car, and drive west. Juna never showed up for her new job on the day she was scheduled to begin, she never returned to pick up Ashley, and she's never been seen or heard from again.Juna's husband, Timothy Chappell, claimed he picked her up at the Atlanta airport and took her to Walmart to pick up a prescription. According to Timothy, Juna went inside the store and never came back out. From the beginning, that story did not sit right with the people who knew her.In Part 1 of this series, we will begin with Juna's life, what she was trying to leave behind, the plan she had made, and the first questions that emerged after Juna disappeared.If you have any information about the disappearance of Junaliza Chappell, please contact the Atlanta Police Department Missing Persons Unit at 404-546-4235.Ashley has also created an email address for tips. If you have information but do not feel comfortable contacting law enforcement directly, you can email bringjunalizahome@gmail.com. Tips can be sent anonymously.If you have a missing loved one that you would like to have featured on the show, please fill out our case submission form.Follow The Vanished on social media at:FacebookInstagramPatreonSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

If you've felt squeezed every time you shop for groceries, there may finally be some good news. Kroger is cutting prices on thousands of items as competition heats up with Walmart, Costco, Aldi and Lidl. Clark explains why grocery stores are fighting harder than ever for your business, why private label products are becoming the best value in the store, and how inflation continues to affect everyday staples like tomatoes. Then, Clark looks at a new way to cut one of your biggest monthly bills. AT&T has launched a new "Build-a-Plan" option starting at just $15 per month. Clark explains who this plan works for, how much data most people actually need, and why so many consumers are paying for unlimited plans they rarely use. If you've been hesitant to leave one of the major wireless carriers but want to spend less every month, this new offering could be exactly the kind of competition that helps put money back in your pocket. Plus, Christa shares your #AskClark questions and Clark gives his take. All this and more on the June 22, 2026, episode of The Clark Howard Show. Submit your questions: Ask Clark. Save More On Groceries: Segment 1 Ask Clark: Segment 2 Save More On Your Phone Plan: Segment 3 Ask Clark: Segment 4 Mentioned on the show: Grocery Prices Are Forcing a Major Change How to Save Money on Groceries: 22 Clever Ways Citi Stops Issuing Oft-Recommended Cash Back Credit Card Best Credit Cards for Groceries in 2026 Cash Back Credit Card Calculator Understanding Home Equity Agreements AT&T's New “Build-A-Plan” Starts at $15/Month With Data The Best Phone Plan For You – Compare Phone Plans Best Cell Phone Plans & Deals (2026): Find the Cheapest Option for Your Needs Clark.com resources: Episode transcripts Community.Clark.com  /  Ask Clark Clark.com daily money newsletter Consumer Action Center Free Helpline: 636-492-5275 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What started as a confrontation between two teenagers at a Texas track meet has become one of the most divisive criminal cases in recent memory. Dive into everything that led up to the fatal stabbing of 17-year-old Austin Metcalf, the competing narratives surrounding Karmelo Anthony, and the trial testimony that had people talking nationwide. From explosive witness accounts and claims that Karmelo was already holding a knife before the confrontation began, to the medical examiner's devastating testimony about Austin's final moments, we cover every major development from the courtroom….If you're new here, don't forget to follow the show for weekly deep dives into the darkest true crime cases! To watch the video version of this episode, head over to youtube.com/@annieelise. .

Rod and Karen banter about restaurant rewards, renewing a passport, a billboard advertisement and the answer to the “when they go low” question. Gender Wars, Jay-Z ‘s Target collab, Rep. Wesley Hunt on all 4 Black House Republicans leaving Congress, Lead Foot Lands "Love Island" Fan Behind Bars, Walmart cashier hid winning lottery ticket from elderly customer, Woman Says She Got Herpes From Arby's Food and sword ratchetness. Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/theblackguywhotips Twitter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@rodimusprime⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@SayDatAgain⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@TBGWT⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@TheBlackGuyWhoTips⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Email: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠theblackguywhotips@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Blog: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.theblackguywhotips.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Teepublic Store⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠- https://the-black-guy-who-tips-podcast.dashery.com/ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Amazon Wishlist⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ – https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/1PDD9JUQUNVY5?ref_=wl_share ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Crowdcast⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ – https://www.crowdcast.io/theblackguywhotips Voicemail: ‪(980) 500-9034Go Premium: https://www.theblackguywhotips.com/premium/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What if the real secret to a lasting writing career isn't talent or luck, but learning to thrive in the mess? Why are in-person events worthwhile even if the maths doesn't add up? How do you protect your creativity when the machines never sleep and the community is at one another's throats? With Mark Leslie Lefebvre In the intro, Has AI Already Killed Non-Fiction [Tim Ferriss]; 9 ways that AI would disrupt authors and the publishing industry over the next decade; Pivoting towards The Transformation Economy; and Who do you serve? This podcast is sponsored by Kobo Writing Life, which helps authors self-publish and reach readers in global markets through the Kobo eco-system. You can also subscribe to the Kobo Writing Life podcast for interviews with successful indie authors. This show is also supported by my Patrons. Join my Community at Patreon.com/thecreativepenn Mark Leslie Lefebvre is the author of horror and paranormal fiction, as well as non-fiction travel and books for authors. He's also an editor, professional speaker, and the Director of Business Development at Draft2Digital. His latest book is Stark Realities: Stacked Up Lessons Every Writer Needs to Know About the Business of Writing and Publishing. You can listen above or on your favorite podcast app or read the notes and links below. Here are the highlights and the full transcript is below. Show Notes Why print and in-person events are making a comeback for indie authors The case for (and against) licensing your voice clone through ElevenLabs Why we keep selling books in person when the numbers rarely add up Measuring success by creative satisfaction rather than money Being honest about author earnings and the fear of being truly seen Managing stress, divisiveness, and the noise around AI You can find Mark at MarkLeslie.ca. Transcript of the interview with Mark Leslie Lefebvre Jo: Mark Leslie Lefebvre is the author of horror and paranormal fiction, as well as non-fiction travel and books for authors. He's also an editor, professional speaker, and the Director of Business Development at Draft2Digital. His latest book is Stark Realities: Stacked Up Lessons Every Writer Needs to Know About the Business of Writing and Publishing. Welcome back to the show, Mark. Mark: Oh, hey, Jo. It's always an awesome time chatting with you. Jo: You've been on the show lots of times over the years, but the last time was in September 2024, when we talked about selling books in person. So give us a bit of an update. What does your writing and publishing business look like at the moment? How do you manage it alongside the day job and everything else you do? Mark: Oh my God. Well, sleep is—no rest for the wicked, maybe. I'll sleep when I'm dead. It's so funny, it was just this last weekend in Waterloo. I was at Waterloo Book Fest, and somebody came up to my table—another author from one of the other tables—and said, “I heard you on the The Creative Penn Podcast. And then when you mentioned something about Waterloo, I said, ‘He can't be from Waterloo.' And then when you mentioned the skeleton, I said, ‘I know where he lives.'” Jo: That's scary. Mark: So I love the fact that there are so many of your listeners all over the world, and that's usually how people know me. No matter what else I've done, it's like, “Oh, you've been on Joanna Penn's podcast.” I'll say, “Yes, I have.” You know what's really funny? The last time I was on the podcast, we were talking about A Book in Hand, which I was supposed to release that year. Jo: Yes. Mark: I just added another 5,000 words to it this morning. Jo: Wait, it's still not published? Mark: No, and it's so funny. I actually have the first 60,000 words of it with an editor right now, and I told her I'd get her the rest of it, which I thought would be another 20,000 words, by the end of June. But I think it's going to hit 100,000. Here's the weird thing that happened with this. This is trying to accumulate my life of book selling, as well as doubling down on doing in-person events in the last several years. I thought I was going to have the book done in 2024. I ran into some issues where I didn't back it up properly. It was an old version, and I accidentally overwrote the only version I had. Jo: So, for everyone listening, Mark—how many decades have you been an author and a publisher? How come you're still missing deadlines and still not backing up your work properly? Mark: Yes, this is a lesson: no matter how long you've been doing something, you can still make boneheaded errors. So if you, dear listener, have made mistakes, just know that this old guy who's been doing this since the mid-'80s still makes mistakes like that. Don't beat yourself up. I probably did something worse. Anyway, that book I thought was going to be maybe 40, 45,000 words, it's going to be bigger than Wide for the Win—close to 100,000 words. Here's a really important lesson I learned in that, Jo. I thought the book would be something. It became something else. Through my own experiences of doing more in-person events, book signings, and library event. Also in talking to awesome folks like Johnny B. Truant, Katie Cross, Todd Fahnestock, and so many other authors I know, and seeing what Ben Wolf is up to, and a whole bunch of different people who are doing in-person events. In creating case studies for how they interact specifically with a bookstore or library, or how they do in-person selling—I really think the book wasn't ready then. It's like the recipe wasn't ready. I still needed to play with some things. I do sincerely have faith, since I got it into the editorial process, that this will be the year the book actually gets released. Jo: As you said, there are some really good lessons there around sometimes the book not being quite ready. I'd bought an early version from the StoryBundle, which is how I got this book as well, actually. Mark: Yes. Jo: That's another tip for people—storybundle.com. You can go and find some great bundles there. I was also thinking, as you were talking, that maybe one of the reasons this book about in-person events has got so big is because that's a real trend in the community. It feels like indies, we've moved… Back in the day, I said, “I'm not doing print. No way.” This was the early days of digital, because print was really hard back then. So I was like, “Oh, and we've got all the advantages doing digital, so I'm just going to focus on that.” It feels like the pendulum has swung, perhaps even more with the ease of mass production of digital with AI. The focus on print and in person is getting stronger and stronger. Do you think that's happening? Mark: Oh, yes, 100%. I did print in 2004. It was really hard back then, so that's gotten easier. I think there are a few reasons. One of the reasons is, yes, digital made it so much easier for indie authors to get out there and break into the community. But the reality is that print books still outsell e-books in general—overall—despite the fact that indie authors can make six and seven figures a year from selling e-books alone on a single platform. So print has never really gone away. It was just never something indie authors attended to. They were in a different business than traditional publishers were in. And second, obviously I've got these gorgeous books that you've created on Kickstarter, because I like the beautiful books. I've never stopped buying print books. I actually buy more print books. I read more because of audiobooks and e-books, but I buy more print books, especially when I can get a nice signed copy. Then the other reason comes back, again, to your advice—something I've been following for the longest time, and you've long been saying. I do repeat this, and I try my best to offer attribution to you every time I use it: to double down on your humanity, particularly in this age of digital generation and the ability for even non-writers to leverage tools to create content. I think it's so much more important for me, as a creative who will never be able to catch up with the machines, to exploit my humanity. I mean, we both have digital voices of ourselves, right? There's a digital Mark Leslie Lefebvre voice that people can use, and I'm making money off it because people are able to license it through ElevenLabs. But when I'm there in person, so far the holograms aren't good enough to fool people. I think I'm not just selling a book to somebody; I want to create an experience where, “Oh, I'm talking to the author, and we're signing a book together, and we're taking a selfie together.” For me, there's that tactile experience that's really enriching. And it may not be something that lines my pockets as easily, because the investment is more significant. For every $10 I make, it costs me six or seven dollars, as opposed to an e-book, where the cost is amortised in the most beautiful way over millions of copies. Jo: There are a few things there. First of all, let's talk about that ElevenLabs voice licensing, because, as you say, I also have a voice clone. Bones of the Deep, the latest book, that's my voice clone. I haven't gone with the licensing, partly because you don't have control over what someone can do with it. So, for example, someone could create Nazi content, or content that I might not agree with, in my voice. So how have you got over that? Because part of me really does want to license my voice, and the other part doesn't. Mark: This is a great question, Jo, and I'm glad you asked it. It's the same reason I don't worry about people stealing my books—adding DRM onto my e-books and things like that. I may as well make some money off it, because let's be honest: you and I, our voices are out there. Thousands of hours of our voices, right? In your podcast, my podcast, in various interviews we've done over the years. The technology exists for someone to make a copy of my voice themselves anyway. The tools exist. They can do it easily, so why not do it myself and at least make money? I'm actually getting money deposited into my account. Not a lot—maybe $30, $18, something like that every week. Again, I've taken a lot of my non-fiction books that I haven't had the time to record myself, as I like to do, and I can at least load those to ElevenLabs and make my voice the default voice. But wouldn't it be great to be able to listen to my book in your voice? It would sound so much better. Because you can do that. When you listen to a book on that platform, you can choose my voice if you'd rather hear it in my voice, or you can choose Burt Reynolds' voice, or some other folks who've licensed theirs. Again, for me, the whole concept of wide publishing has always been important. It's another small revenue stream that's adding to my numerous revenue streams. So I guess that's how I've justified just licensing the voice. If someone's going to do something with my voice that I can't control, they can do it regardless of whether or not I put it out there myself. Jo: I agree with you. That could happen, and neither of us is famous enough that it's likely to happen anyway. I do quite like the idea of people using our voices, say, for other books for authors, because that would make sense—that's where we fit in the niche. I will rethink that, because I think it's interesting. I wanted to come back to print books. You said sometimes there are easier ways to line your pockets, and I think that's funny. So, getting into the book, this leapt out at me quite near the beginning: Why do we keep doing this when the maths almost never adds up? Mark: Oh, I have a perfect example of that from an event I did a couple of weekends ago in Burlington, Ontario. I think it was a $60 table fee. It was a new event. I believe I made $90 or $95 in sales. So even after the costs of printing and all that stuff, I really didn't make money. I made my table back, which is always a good thing. There were a few encounters I had with people who were really excited to find my Canadian Werewolf series of books, and just so thrilled to get started. Among the four of them, they bought one copy, but they were going to pass it amongst each other. You know what? Okay, they bought a single copy, and I was like, “Well, the e-book is permanently free online. You don't even have to buy a copy”—which is anti-selling. I just want them to read the book and enjoy it. But if they read it and pass it along and start talking about it, they could become readers for a long time. It's an eight-book series, with the ninth book coming out later this year. There was another encounter I had that day. A woman and her teenage daughter came in, and they were looking at my traditionally published books that I buy at a reduced price from a local bookstore and resell. They were looking at these true ghost story books I had, and they were pointing: “Do you have that one?” “Yes, I have this one, I have that one.” And the mother's like, “Well, she collects all your books, and she wants to make sure she has them.” We had this conversation, and she was so excited to meet me in person and to get a signed copy of the book. That experience was such a vanity moment for me as an author. We're lonely. I'm a big loser. Nobody's buying my books. We're always down on ourselves. So that investment of time and energy, in order to get that little pat on the back or that feeling of, “Wow, I really connected with someone who likes my stuff”—those moments are really precious. They're difficult to explain if you only look at the world in a financial way. I guess I'm fortunate enough that I do have enough income from numerous streams, including the consulting I do part-time, that it's okay if not every bookish endeavour leads to more money in my pocket at the end of the day. I can still have these authentic connections with people, which I think is one of the reasons I'm a storyteller. Yes, it's the stories I have to tell, but it's also putting the story into somebody else's hands and eyes and heart and mind. Jo: You're very giving like that. You have that sense about you, whereas I'm just a curmudgeon in the corner. Mark: That is not true. Jo: It is, generally. I don't do events like you do for readers. Mark: But that's because it takes a lot out of you. Jo: Yes, but that doesn't matter. Why do I write? I write for me. Mark: Ah, very good. Jo: At the end of the day—just being entirely selfish about this—when people say, “Oh, if you won the lottery, what would you do?” I'm like, “Well, I'd do pretty much what I'm doing now.” Mark: Yes, I'd just do the same. Of course, I'd write more books. Jo: I'd write more books. So this is where I'm trying to get to for people as well: measuring success in a different way. You were talking about measuring success by how that girl loved your books, and how you feel when someone says they love your books. With Bones of the Deep, this thriller I've just done, I feel like I had the benefit of that book before anyone even read it. As soon as it was finished, I made a nice proof copy from BookVault, and I held it in my hand and said, “I made this. I'm proud of the story, I wrote the story, and it's outside my head now.” I feel like I'm creatively satisfied in that moment. Then, of course, the Kickstarter was great, and I love that the books are going out around the world, but— I think the happiest I felt was that moment of finishing—that creative satisfaction of holding the book in my hand. You know what I mean? Mark: 100%, Jo. I cannot agree with you enough. I love so many aspects of writing. Yes, the connection with people is amazing. But I often say this when I'm doing my one-on-one consulting with authors: focus on the projects that mean the most to you, those passion projects. The process of writing, and the painful rewriting and editing and all the things you go through—when you finish that book, like you said, you hold it in your hands and it is a thing of beauty. It's a huge achievement. You've won. Whether or not you sell a single copy, you've won by doing it. Everything else is gravy: the sales, the money in your pocket or not, the reviews, positive or not, the people who say, “Oh my God, Bones of the Deep, thank you for writing this book. I'm so glad you introduced this into the world and into my life.” Anything beyond the creation itself, which is a pure joy—I love it so much. It's just why I get up at 5:30 every morning and write for hours before the rest of my day begins. I try to get stuff done before the rest of the world wakes up. I want to get the writing done first, when I have the most energy to give myself to the page. Then the rest of the day is kind of gravy for me too. Jo: You talk there about giving yourself to the page, but in Stark Realities— You talk about the fear of truly being seen. What do you mean by that, and how do you manage that feeling? Mark: For anyone who has written anything—fiction, non-fiction, memoir in particular, since it's a bit more closely tied to reality—it's exposing yourself to the world. I'll never forget an interview I did with Canadian science fiction author Julie E. Czerneda, who, before being a fiction writer, was writing biology textbooks, but her real passion was science fiction and fiction. When her first novel came out, she said, “It's like standing naked on the front lawn.” When you release a book, even a novel, people look at it and they're going to judge you and rate you. I remember early on, Jo—we knew each other through Twitter, I think, where we initially met, and then interacted with and finally met in person at London Book Fair. I think you and I have a very similar reaction. When people know us as positive and upbeat and out there helping authors in the community, and then they read our fiction, they go, “Well, Jo, you burned a nun alive on page one.” Or, “Mark, what kind of… they're drinking from the skulls of dead people? What the heck is going on with you two?” We are exposing parts of ourselves in our fiction and non-fiction. That's a fear I embrace, but also never get over, if that makes any sense. I write scary stories because I'm a big chicken. So maybe the entire process is just cheap therapy for me. Or not cheap, because it's an expensive pastime, isn't it? Jo: It certainly can be, but I agree. I struggle with fear of judgment still. I think it's also because we do this in public, which comes back to the financial side of things. We do a lot of this in public, and then people judge us on our author businesses too. You could look at Bones of the Deep, which was just on Kickstarter, and compare my Kickstarter to another author's Kickstarter for a fiction book, and judge one or the other person based on numbers. I feel like this is because you and I have done so much in public—for me, almost 20 years, and for you, like 40 years or whatever. Maybe 30 years. You look that old. Mark: Listen there, dearie. Get off my lawn. Jo: Yes, get off my lawn—with those skeletons you have on your lawn. Mark: Yes. They're no longer in my closet. Jo: They're not in your closet. I wonder if that also plays a part of it—the pros and cons of doing this business in public. Mark: Yes, that is a part of it. One thing I try to be very clear about, because there's so much FOMO and so much out there about people thinking that everyone else is making a million dollars from their books and “I'm the only loser who's not”—I try to be clear that I have never made more than a mid-five figures as an author from my author earnings, ever. I haven't yet hit six figures. One of the reasons I try to be transparent in sharing that is I don't want people to think that everyone else is a six- and seven-figure success story, and they're the only one who's only made $100 last year on their books. The reality is, 90 to 99% of the people who are writing and publishing are not going to earn a significant amount of money. I realise I'm also very, very lucky that I've earned this much, and it's taken a long time. I just shared this in a Substack post I posted yesterday: it was 10 years of rejections before I got $5 for my first short story that was published in '92. It wasn't until 2001 that I finally made pro rate, six cents US a word, for a short story that, ironically, Julie Czerneda bought from me back in the day. For me, I've been lucky that it's always been a long, slow slog. It's been a marathon, and I've never instantly sprinted across any dramatic finish line. I've had some really phenomenal moments—doing a book signing in a Costco, walking into Walmart and seeing my books there. Even last night at the Burlington Public Library, going, “Wow, they have eight of my books here—four of my self-published books and four of my traditionally published books, in two different sections.” I was like, “That's kind of cool.” So I've had these amazing moments as a writer, but I've never had the blockbuster—the Brandon Sanderson, or even the Dungeon Crawler Carl, Matt Dinniman, kind of moments. I still think I've had a very fortunate and lucky journey. Even if I wasn't making the money I'm making, I'd still be writing, and I'm sure you would be too. Jo: Oh, yes, for sure. I actually think the thing most of us would probably let go is the marketing. If we won the lottery, we'd carry on with all the creative stuff, the writing, the community stuff, and we'd just literally do no marketing at all. Mark: Well, yes, of course. Or potentially say, “Oh, here, ad agency, here's some money. You just run it, whatever. Let me know if it works or not. I don't care.” Jo: That's a much better idea. Mark: At least I've got the extra disposable income, so I may as well, because I'm helping the world when my books are out there. I know my books will help people. I really honestly think that as storytellers—whether it's fiction or non-fiction, we're still storytellers—what we do in writing and podcasting and all the things we do, the re-sharing on social media, is really helping connect people. I think that is one of the most profound things we can do as writers. And I mean that the writing, in and of itself, is a reward. Jo: Like you said, we met on Twitter when Twitter was what it was back in the day. I do very, very little social media now. But you just mentioned your Substack, and you also have your podcast, Stark Reflections. So how are you balancing what you put on each? I only do this podcast now. I don't even blog. I write books, obviously, and then I do the podcast. So what are you doing differently on Substack to the podcast, and what part do they play in income and marketing? Mark: Great question. I realise most people have never heard of me, or read or listened to the things I put out into the world. And I've been a longtime fan of “reduce, reuse, recycle my IP.” My podcast is not as long-running as yours, but I'm in my ninth year, and I've not missed a single Friday in the full eight years, or eight and a half by now, that I've been doing this. Every week I reflect on what I learned from an interview, or I'll reflect on something you've posted and say, “This episode is not an interview, but Jo said this last week, and I'm going to talk about it.” The podcast itself takes a lot of work. I still do all of it myself, and I know I probably shouldn't, but I like doing it, so it's one of those tasks I enjoy. I also have reflections that aren't going to come out vocally but might come out in writing. Sometimes in the morning I'm not in the mood to write the novel or the non-fiction book I'm writing, but I'm writing some tangent. I just let the creative monster go. I find that re-sharing… I might have reflected on something for a couple of minutes at the end of an interview, but I really want to expand upon it, so I write the Substack article. I try to reuse some of that content. Someone's going to enjoy seeing it on a short video clip I share on YouTube, or whatever the platform is. Someone else is going to listen to it on a podcast, wherever they listen to podcasts, and someone else is going to want to read it. It could be the same information, just shared in a slightly different way, to potentially get it out to other people. So for me, it's part of that wide publishing mentality. I'm trying not to completely duplicate the work, although I am duplicating some of it. I'll give you an example. Hey, Canadian listeners—if you have not registered for Public Lending Right in Canada, please put something in your calendar for February 2027, because the deadline's over. It was May 1st of 2026. Put it in your calendar for next year. I even had somebody at this writers' event I was at this last weekend say, “You mentioned something in a presentation you did for the Canadian Authors Association about Public Lending Right, and thank you, because now I get thousands of dollars a year from this.” So just look up Public Lending Right. I've been saying stuff about Public Lending Right for at least 10 years now. Every time I get my beautiful multi-four-figure cheque from them in February every year, I post on social media and remind authors to check it out. I know it exists in the UK, and it exists in 36 countries in the world—just not the US. Jo: Not the US. Mark: They don't have a programme like this, probably because the big publishers—and probably one of the authors' associations—think that libraries are cannibalising book sales, which is not true. It's been proven time and time again, and that lobbying has prevented it from happening. Whereas here in Canada, the Canada Council for the Arts and the Writers' Union of Canada worked hard to make this happen. Anyway, I talk about something like Public Lending Right and I feel like I must have said this so much that people are sick of it, but every single time I mention it, someone goes, “Oh my God, thanks for saying that. I never heard it.” That's a good reminder, especially for folks like you and me. We know the basics. We know what an ISBN is. We know KDP Select means you can't put the e-book on any other retailer, or even sell it on your own website. We know all these things, but it's hard for us to remember that there are folks coming to this for the very first time who've never heard it, even though we feel like, “Oh my God, I've said this till I'm blue in the face.” I think I got that from retail. When I worked in retail, I recognised that somebody's going to come in and ask for “that blue book that Reese Witherspoon was talking about,” or Oprah was talking about, or whatever. And you do your darn best to help them figure it out rather than mock them. I try to take the same approach when people ask me those questions, because I'm trying to remember what it was like when I honestly did not know the answer, and having someone take the time to help me. I've been very, very lucky that I've had a lot of people take the time to help me. I'll never forget—God rest her soul—Nancy Kilpatrick, a horror writer here from Canada who passed away a few years ago. She gave me a blurb for my very first book in 2004 because she'd acquired one of my short stories for an anthology she'd edited. I was trying to call my short story collection an anthology, and she very kindly took me aside and said, “It's not an anthology if it's a single author. An anthology is a…” Jo: I didn't know that until, like, last year. I got that wrong as well. There are lots of words like that. I want to circle back, because you didn't really answer earlier about the time management. You just mentioned YouTube, on top of Substack and all the things you do. You also have a day job at Draft2Digital—it's part-time, right? You also do part-time at the university, teaching publishing, right? You do all kinds of things. How do you manage your time with all of that? Mark: Well, I mismanage my time more than I manage it, Jo. That's the God's honest truth. Fortunately, most of the things I have that aren't scheduled—like, scheduled to do this lecture at this time, or scheduled to have this meeting at this particular time with Draft2Digital—most of my work is very flexible. I do not work a regular 9:00 to 5:00, Monday to Friday. Well, I never did. I always worked way more. But I have a very flexible schedule. Every single day is a work day, and every single day is a play day for me. So I'm very, very lucky. I do schedule in the very important things, particularly where somebody else is reliant upon me—meetings and connections and stuff like that. Then I make the time first thing in the morning to get the writing done. Everything else is not as important, and it's part of… I guess it's part of playing. You know, like the social media sharing. I don't look at social media as marketing. I just look at it as another way to connect with people, with other creatives, and with readers potentially, all six people who read my stuff. I probably could do a better job of managing my time. I've tried several times over the years to adapt processes to make it better, but I consistently default back to what I do, and so far I guess I've been getting away with it. So I was like, “Do I want to waste more time trying to come up with a process, or do I just want to roll with it?” Because so far I haven't killed myself doing it, and I've been enjoying the journey. So, if it ain't broke… Jo: I think that's the point, if it doesn't feel like it's broken. Having known you for a long time now, and we work together—obviously we co-wrote The Relaxed Author—you do work very, very differently to me. You definitely are a little bit more chaotic. I'm chaotic in some ways too. Mark: Oh, you're very generous. “A little bit chaotic.” Thanks. That was generous, Jo. Jo: You're chaotic in your work practices and scheduling and all that, which I couldn't cope with very well. Even though I feel like a part of my brain is very chaotic—the creative side, I guess, can be quite chaotic—I think I'm actually quite controlling and very scheduled in my work practices. As you say, for someone else on the outside, it might feel to me like you have too many balls in the air. But if you don't feel that, then that's the way of working that works for you. So this is another important thing, isn't it? You can't adapt to what other people say your life should look like. It's what feels good to you. Mark: Oh, for sure. One thing I know about my procrastination tendency is that panic and fear motivate me. So, a deadline—”I have to get this into a publisher by this date, I have to get this manuscript to an editor by that date”—I'm motivated by fear. And I'm afraid of everything, so I guess I'm always motivated. Jo: But I also know that when you hear the word “deadline”—and I know a lot of people who do this—the deadline means you get it in on the deadline, or the day before the deadline. To me, a deadline means I have it ready a month earlier. Mark: I love that. I've done that a few times and shocked myself. I actually had a pre-order up—with the audiobook, the print, and the e-book—a month in advance, and I didn't know what to do with myself. I was like, “Well, what am I going to do now in the next month?” Jo: Work on the next thing. Mark: But I'm so used to working on it up to the last second that I was kind of like, “What do I do?” That actually caught me by surprise, and I honestly felt weird. I was like, “I've never felt this before.” I'm really lucky. I know you have a very supportive and amazing partner, and so do I. My partner, scarily enough, is maybe a bigger procrastinator than me, so she never gives me a hard time. She supports me, and I do the same thing with her own work. I'm up all night with her at the last minute so we can get something turned in. So, fortunately, we really understand one another, and we don't give each other a hard time. We just go, “Well, got away with it again. I guess I'm not going to change my ways.” Jo: We made it. And again, that's the point. You and I could stand up in front of people, both hold up the last book we wrote, and say, “We made this,” and our processes are completely different. Our brains are completely different. We come from different countries. There are lots of things that are different, and yet we both made a book. So hopefully that encourages people. You don't have to do anything that we're telling you, or anyone else tells you. But if you want to be an author, at some point you have to produce a book. Mark: Exactly. As Brian in the classic Monty Python film gets them to say: “Yes, we are all different.” Embrace that difference. I think that's such a powerful reminder that there is no one process for getting anything done. Jo: Given that we co-wrote The Relaxed Author back in 2021—and we did that because we had another show, and we were talking, and we said, “Oh, everyone's stressed and the anxiety levels are really high, and we think there's a better path”—we co-wrote that book, which I think is still a very good book. Definitely people should get it. Interestingly, I think the stress and anxiety might actually be higher now than it was. So what do you think the main stresses are in the community now? You also see a lot with Draft2Digital, I guess, as well. Mark: Oh, for sure. Honestly, Jo, I'm so glad we wrote that book, because I actually pick it up every once in a while to remind myself of the things we tried to help others with. Again, it's therapy for me as well, so I'm so glad we did it. I think we're 10, if not 100, times more stressed. The world events and things going on, the divisiveness—not just in the world in general, in politics and everything else, but the divisiveness in the author community. The witch-hunting that happens, people trying to tear down other authors either because they're successful, or because, “Oh my God, you dared use a new technology.” All of these things are happening, and everyone's at one another's throats. I need to pick that book up and reread it. I'm a lot more stressed than I was. I'm just getting over shingles, which is… Jo: Oh. Which is actually related to stress as well, isn't it? Mark: It is, yes. I was in LA for Writers of the Future—I'm a judge for that science fiction and fantasy conference. I went right from LA, like a week in LA, which was a phenomenal experience getting to mentor the winners. And I mean, come on, it's a free trip to Hollywood, hanging out with Kevin Anderson, having beers and stuff like that. Then I came back to the Toronto Indie Author Conference, run by Tao Wong, here in Toronto. I went right from the airport—didn't even go home—straight to the hotel, because I kicked into another conference. We did a display on how to set up an in-person booth, so I ended up having to hand-bomb boxes, blocks down the street from where I was parked. My chest was really sore when I got home on the Monday, and I thought it was because I hadn't used these muscles, because I'm not in the best shape. Then I took my shirt off and went, “Oh, there's a rash there.” Liz goes, “You have shingles.” Because the pain in my chest, which I thought was the muscle, was actually underneath. I'm one of those lucky people that it's taken the full five weeks, and I'm still in pain even afterwards. So, again, public notice: if you're an older person like me, and there's a vaccine available for shingles, you may want to consider it. Jo: Yep, get it. Mark: Oh my God, it hurts. But, yes, the stress, I think, is higher—even though I didn't know I was feeling it. It was happy stress, right? I was stressed out because I'm there in Hollywood, helping people and doing some good things, and then I'm doing the same thing, interacting with some amazing authors at the Toronto Indie Author Conference. I didn't feel anxious stress. I was happy stress. Is that a thing? Jo: I think possibly… your physical body masks stress, physical stress, because you enjoy all of that stuff. Whereas someone like me, I'll feel it quicker and withdraw. Although I say that, back probably a decade ago, Jonathan would say to me, “You're going too fast, and you're going to hit the wall. And when you hit the wall, it's not going to be fun.” And I did hit the wall. Then, probably in 2021—I mean, that was when I just started going into menopause, and obviously we had the pandemic, and I wrote Pilgrimage, and I was doing all those walks, which I think really helped me. I learned a lot about maybe stopping that before it happened. Becca Syme obviously talks a lot about this too. But I find it interesting with you, because I think you're so positively happy with these events you do that it might mask your physical symptoms in a different way. That's really hard to watch out for. I'll give a tip to you and everyone else listening: schedule the calendar, and look at your calendar and go, “I can't go back-to-back-to-back. I have to put in some rest days.” Mark: Well, thank you. You know, Jo, you and Becca Syme are two of my best unpaid therapists. I appreciate that. Jo: You just don't listen, Mark. Mark: Or sometimes I do. Jo: Just coming back to the community, and the divisiveness there is primarily over AI at the moment, I think that's one of the biggest things. And the arbitrary lines as to what you're allowed to use it for and what you're not allowed to use it for, which is just kind of crazy. Obviously, you know I've opted out of that whole discussion now. How do you think we can move through this [divisiveness over AI], move on? We remember when it was trad versus indie, and then it was wide versus KU. So this will pass—it's just hard, when you're in it, to know when it might pass. Mark: Yes. I think the more generic advice—for whatever may come, whatever has come—is: why are you doing this? Why are you a writer? Heads down, focus on what gives you pleasure, and do that, because everything else is noise. All the marketing tactics and strategies, and all the people yelling at one another. Write your books. Do the things that motivate you. Do the things that give you that intrinsic reward. It's hard to ignore. I get it, it is hard to ignore. I have difficulty ignoring the haters and the yelling and the screaming that happens, but I do my best. Like this morning, when I was in the throes of my manuscript and I looked up and went, “Oh my God, I've got to shower. I'm going to be talking to Jo soon, I should comb my hair”—which I have none of. Because I was so in my book that everything else melted away. That, for me as a storyteller, as a writer, is one of the most beautiful places to be. Jo: I think you're absolutely right. I have a little thing that pops up in my calendar sometimes which says, “If you're feeling all of these things, just go create something.” The moment you refocus on creation—whatever that means to you—things change. It changes the energy. That, or go for a walk. That's my other tip. Mark: Outside. And I have to say, Jo, Pilgrimage is still one of the most profound and powerful books you've written, and you've written a lot of amazing ones. Jo: Oh, you're very sweet. Mark: That one really resonates, not just for me, but with Liz. Because one of the things we often do when we get stressed is go for a walk, ideally in nature. The vitamin N. I think there's something really profound in that, and it really helps me a lot. And again, sometimes going for a walk listening to your podcast, or an audiobook, or sometimes just attending to the environment. A tip I picked up years ago from Brooklyn author Denis Hamill was: go for a walk with your character. Listen to what they see. What do they comment on? How do they approach this environment that you've seen a million times? How do they see it? What do they notice that you don't notice? That's such an incredible experience of creativity—when you're not writing, but writing. That really helps me a lot. Jo: Oh, nice one. Okay, so your latest book is Stark Realities, but you have so many more. Where can people find you and your books and your podcast online? Mark: Jo, you can find everything you want to know about me—and stuff you don't want to know about me—over at MarkLeslie.ca. It links to all the other places from there. Jo: Brilliant. Thanks again for your time, Mark. That was great. Mark: Thanks so much, Jo. Bye-bye. The post Creative Satisfaction, In Person Print Book Sales, And Author Mindset With Mark Leslie Lefebvre first appeared on The Creative Penn.

On this episode, Clay is joined in studio by Shelter Insurance agent Jamie Creel and recently retired Clinton Police Officer Creston Berch. The conversation centers on the officer-involved shooting in Senatobia, Mississippi, where a one-year-old child was killed after his mother allegedly attempted to run over police officers following a shoplifting incident at Walmart. Clay pushes back hard against the narrative being pushed by Ben Crump and activists, arguing that the officer was justified in firing and that the blame lies with the adults who chose to flee and put the child in danger. He calls it a tragic but clear-cut case of FAFO, pointing out the hypocrisy of those quick to riot over this incident while remaining silent about the much higher number of black children killed in black-on-black violence. The discussion also touches on the importance of accountability, the dangers of politicizing every police shooting, and why law enforcement officers are often forced to make split-second decisions with life-altering consequences. Jamie Creel also breaks down insurance issues related to flooding and wind/hail claims in Mississippi. It's another unfiltered conversation about culture, consequences, and the refusal to accept personal responsibility.

Retail sales are rising, but retail stocks are struggling. What gives? Join Barron's Live for a deep dive into the consumer economy and retailing business, and a discussion of retail stocks. Senior Managing Editor Lauren R. Rublin speaks with Dana Telsey, an award-winning retail analyst and founder of Telsey Advisory Group, and Senior Writer Teresa Rivas, who covers Walmart, Costco, Tapestry, and other retail industry leaders. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

America has lost the war and got nothing out the deal. A shooting at Walmart kills one year old boy. Also Teens are having a hard time finding their first job. Join us as we discuss these topics and more on this episode of Same Cast Different Day Podcast.SocialsFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/samecastdifferentdaypodcast/Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/scddpodcast/Youtubehttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZA-Ib8DmQwG4o9wAFvpBDw

This week on The Necessary Conversation, Chad (who just turned 50!

The Knicks just won their first championship in over 50 years, Freddie from Germany went from 16k to 600k followers on X just by posting his American road trip reactions, and a military mom selling cookies from a hot pink driveway stand did $27,000 in a single week. Krysta and Paige break down exactly why these stories went viral — and what every business owner needs to steal from the playbook. In this episode we dive into:• Why current events are the most underused content strategy hiding in plain sight• How "Freddie from Germany" cracked virality without a single face-on-camera moment• The Austin's Cookies case study: from a few hundred dollars a week to $27k in one day• The one content shift that makes posting frictionless — and actually gets doneThe Opportunity You're Scrolling Past• Your feed is mining current events for you — but you're using it wrong• The Knicks win created a content wave that's still live, and most business owners slept on it• A local artist under 10k followers posted herself painting in the West Village mid-game and watched her likes jump from 50 to hundreds — instantly• You don't need to be in the action. You need a POV about the action.The Authentic Content Formula (It's Simpler Than You Think)• Freddie from Germany never planned to go viral — he just tweeted "this Walmart is insane" and J.J. Watt ended up booking him a penthouse suite• The farm stand family posted for seven years before the $27k week. Consistency compounds.• Showing the "shut down the stand" moment — counting cash, reading customer notes, packing the car — is more compelling than any polished post• When you stop performing for the camera and start documenting what's actually happening, people feel the difference immediatelyStop Majoring in the Minors• The best time to post is when you'll actually do it. Every single day. (Same logic applies everywhere else in life.)• "I work on the YouTube team and I still haven't started posting" — knowledge is not the blocker• High-quality content isn't expensive: a window for lighting, a $20 mic, and a personal baseline you refuse to drop below• What do you want to be known for? That answer should direct every single content decision you makeThis conversation is proof that the formula was never about going viral. It was always about showing up as yourself, with a genuine POV, in a world that is absolutely starving for something real. Whether you're a business owner who keeps asking "what should I post?" or a creator who's been tweaking your strategy for years and still can't figure out why nothing's landing, this episode will reset your entire approach.Send Krysta and Paige what you're seeing — content that's performing, case studies worth reacting to, or your own reel for a live audit. DMs are open at ⁠@thekrystahuber⁠⁠ and ⁠@thespreadmktg ⁠.Follow Krysta on IG:@thekrystahuber⁠⁠⁠⁠@thefitnessfyx⁠⁠⁠@thespreadmktg ⁠

Welcome back to The Viall Files: Reality Recap!  So… that Summer House bonus episode was… certainly filled with a lot of words! Any of them true? We'll get to it. Before that discussion, however, the one and only Beatriz stops by to get into EVERYTHING Love Island USA Season 8. How was her time at the villa? What's up with Melanie and Sincere? Does she know she's beloved? All that, and more!  "You know what? He knows where to find me." Nick is on Substack! Subscribe here: https://nickviall.substack.com/subscribe  HEY! YOU! DO YOU NEED DATING AND RELATIONSHIP ADVICE? Email asknick@theviallfiles.com and be a part of future Ask Nick episodes! Want ad free episodes and incredible bonus content? Start your 7 Day Free Trial of Viall Files + here: https://viallfiles.supportingcast.fm/  Subscribe to The ENVY Media Newsletter Today: https://www.viallfiles.com/newsletter  To Order Nick's Book and/or learn more about the show, go to: https://viallfiles.com THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS: Helix Sleep: Go to https://helixsleep.com/viall for 20% off Sitewide, 25% off Luxe Mattresses, and 30% off Elite Mattresses. Nutrafol: Right now, when you buy any Nutrafol Men hair growth supplement subscription, you get two free gifts — a full-size 2-in-1 shampoo and conditioner plus a hair serum, a $93 value — plus 20% off a subscription. Take advantage of this great deal at https://nutrafol.com  Minky Couture: Visit https://minkycouture.com and use code VIALL at checkout for 50% off all full priced blankets. Shipstation: The sooner you switch, the sooner you start saving time and money. Get started with ShipStation today and get sixty days free at https://shipstation.com, with code viall. Rakuten: Join for free at https://rakuten.com or download the Rakuten app to start saving money today. David Protein: Head to Walmart today to try a bar or stock up on 4CTs of your favorite flavors, like Blueberry Pie and Salted Peanut Butter, sold exclusively at Walmart. To advertise on this podcast please email: ad-sales@libsyn.com or go to: https://advertising.libsyn.com/theviallfiles   Timestamps: 00:00 - Intro 05:00 - Bea Joins 22:19 - Love Island 58:54 - Summer House 01:14:42 - Outro Episode Socials: @viallfiles @nickviall @nnataliejjoy    @bhatz_track @ciaracrobinson @susiecevans @justinkaphillips @baybaeee

Trump’s deal to end the war with Iran includes MAJOR concessions. The U.S. lost the war and we have receipts for just how much it’s going to cost. The Internet is outraged after Jay-Z and Roc Nation allegedly struck a deal with Target. Here’s the thing, that deal never happened... Join hosts Angela Rye, Bakari Sellers, and Andrew Gillum for episode 136 of Native Land Pod. FYSA HEADLINES 1. Trump’s bday week: the reflecting pool turns green, transphobe fighters at his UFC event, and Iran gets reparations. 2. Ivanka Trump and Meta announce a plan to give every blind American vet a free pair of Ray Ban Meta AI glasses. 3. Austin Metcalf’s dad calls Karmelo Anthony “watermelon felon” during a long, racist rant after Karmelo’s trial. 4. A Federal Judge has ordered the reinstatement of exhibits and signs related to slavery and climate change. 5. Ahead of Juneteenth, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear has posthumously pardoned 43 people convicted for helping enslaved Black Americans escape to freedom. Meanwhile, a North Carolina commissioner says Juneteenth is “based on a lie.” 6. J.D. Vance gaslights the hosts of The View like a pro, after they ask him about the Trump administration's erasure of Black Americans. 7. A 1-year-old child is dead after police officers in Senatobia, Mississippi opened fire on a vehicle in a crowded Walmart parking lot. The police arrived after being called about a woman allegedly stealing diapers. LINKS AND RESOURCES 14-Point ‘Memorandum of Understanding with IRAN: https://www.cnn.com/2026/06/17/middleeast/us-iran-war-mou-text-intl?cid=ios_app Jay-Z/Target Controversy: https://spencercolbert.substack.com/p/the-jay-z-target-controversy-reveals?r=2czcqh&utm_medium=ios&utm_id=97760_v0_s00_e0_tv4&triedRedirect=true SUBMIT A QUESTION Have a question for our hosts? Send a 60-second video to @nativelandpod and they may answer it on the show! Tutorial video for submitting questions: http://www.instagram.com/reel/C5j_oBXLIg0/ We are 138 days away from the midterm elections. Welcome home y’all! —--------- We want to hear from you! Send us a video @nativelandpod and we may feature you on the podcast. Instagram X/Twitter Facebook NativeLandPod.com Watch full episodes of Native Land Pod here on YouTube. Native Land Pod is brought to you by Reasoned Choice Media. Thank you to the Native Land Pod team: Angela Rye as host, executive producer, and cofounder of Reasoned Choice Media; Andrew Gillum as host and producer, Bakari Sellers as host and producer, and Lauren Hansen as executive producer; LoLo Smith is our research producer, and Nikolas Harter is our editor and producer. Special thanks to Chris Morrow and Lenard McKelvey, co-founders of Reasoned Choice Media. Theme music created by Daniel Laurent.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Scott Galloway breaks down why Anthropic is worth more than Walmart, whether we're in an AI bubble, and why traditional advertising careers are in freefall. Want to be featured in a future episode? Send a voice recording to officehours@profgmedia.com, or drop your question in the r/ScottGalloway subreddit. Plus, you can now call or text Scott a question at our new Office Hours hotline: ‪(201) 472-3656‬. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Cameron Whitcomb and Evan Honer come by the kitchen while I attempt crab Rangoon burritos and we chat about everything from American Idol to Travis Barker, pipeline jobs, diving and Canadian coffee lore. We also touch on sobriety and how two young alt-country guys are figuring out fame without completely losing their minds. Follow Cameron: https://www.instagram.com/thecamwhitcomb Evan: https://www.instagram.com/evanhoner Sponsors: Mountain Dew - Look for American Dew limited-time packaging or find it in stores near you at https://mountaindew.com. Magic Spoon - You can get $5 off your next order, including the Protein Pastries, at at https://MagicSpoon.com/BURNING. BetterHelp (Assemble Partners) - Sign up and get 10% off at https://betterhelp.com/bert Helix Sleep - Go to https://helixsleep.com/bert for 20% off Sitewide | 25% off Luxe Mattresses | 30% off Elite Mattresses. Cigars International - Use my code BURNING at checkout for 20% off your order of $50 or more OR visit www.cigarsinternational.com/BURNING and the discount will automatically apply. Some exclusions apply. GOODLES - Find the new Wild Wild Pesto flavor online at https://goodles.com. Also available at Target, Walmart, and other major grocery stores. #CameronWhitcomb #EvanHoner #SomethingBurning #CrabRangoonBurritos #AmericanIdol #BertKreischer SUBSCRIBE so you never miss a video https://bit.ly/3DC1ICg Stream FREE BERT on Netflix: https://www.netflix.com/title/81696123 PERMISSION TO PARTY WORLD TOUR is on sale now: http://www.bertbertbert.com/tour Subscribe to Berty Boy Clips: https://www.youtube.com/@BertyBoyClips For all things BERTY BOY PRODUCTIONS: https://bertyboyproductions.com For MERCH: https://store.bertbertbert.com/ Follow Me! Facebook: http://www.Facebook.com/BertKreischer Instagram: http://www.Instagram.com/bertkreischer YouTube: http://www.YouTube.com/user/Akreischer TikTok: http://www.TikTok.com/@bertkreischer Threads: https://www.threads.net/@bertkreischer X: http://www.Twitter.com/bertkreischer Text Me: https://my.community.com/bertkreischer Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices