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Still using Yoast for SEO on your WordPress site? In this episode of Search Smarts, host Bob Brennan discusses Rank Math, the powerful plugin that's quickly becoming the go-to for WordPress optimization. From setup and schema to redirections and rich results, Bob breaks down everything you need to know to make the switch and boost your rankings. Whether you're launching a new site or refining an existing one, this episode is packed with actionable insights to help you optimize smarter. Enjoyed this episode? Subscribe, leave a review, and send us your questions and we might feature them in an upcoming episode! Ask a question Free SEO Audit SEO Resources Hire Us
On the podcast today we have Adam Silverstein. He's here to discuss how new browser APIs and web technologies are transforming the WordPress experience. Adam explains advancements like the Popover API, Scroll Animations, CSS carousels, customisable selects, view transitions, and speculative loading, many of which reduce reliance on heavy JavaScript and improve accessibility, performance, and user experience. He also touches upon modern image formats, browser-based image processing, and running AI directly in the browser. Adam highlights the growing collaboration among browser vendors and encourages developers to engage in shaping browser standards for the open web. Whether you're a theme designer, plugin developer, or site owner simply curious about what's next, this episode is for you.
Try Fellow's AI Meeting Copilot - 90 days FREE - fellow.app/cooGuest: Lance Willett, Chief Quality Officer at AutomatticTopics Covered:How Automattic's open source culture evolved over 20 yearsWhat a Chief Quality Officer actually does—and why it mattersQuality = Craft × Context, and how that feedback loop scalesAutomattic's AI strategy: support bots, contextual UI, and site generationThe importance of tools like Linear and Storybook in enforcing qualityHow Automattic balances speed, risk, and governance with AI experimentationLessons from stabilizing Tumblr during its post-acquisition rebootPrioritization and the dangers of unbounded optimismLeadership takeaways from working closely with Matt Mullenweg
Donatello, SharePoint, CrushFTP, WordPress, Replit, AllaKore, Rob Allen, and more on the Security Weekly News. Segment Resources: https://www.darkreading.com/threat-intelligence/matanbuchus-loader-ransomware-infections This segment is sponsored by ThreatLocker. Visit https://securityweekly.com/threatlocker to learn more about them! Visit https://www.securityweekly.com/swn for all the latest episodes! Show Notes: https://securityweekly.com/swn-496
In episode #341 of "This Week in WordPress," Nathan Wrigley is joined by Michelle Frechette, Tim Nash, and Tammie Lister to discuss the latest WordPress and tech news. Key topics include WordPress's new AI integration roadmap, advancements in AI for healthcare, a recent security issue with Gravity Forms, and the push for a decentralised plugin repository. They also review recent and upcoming WordPress events, talk about plugins and core updates, and reflect on community stories. The episode balances technical discussion, community highlights, fun banter, and a touch of “doomsaying” about web security and browser competition. Check it out!
Donatello, SharePoint, CrushFTP, WordPress, Replit, AllaKore, Rob Allen, and more on the Security Weekly News. Segment Resources: https://www.darkreading.com/threat-intelligence/matanbuchus-loader-ransomware-infections This segment is sponsored by ThreatLocker. Visit https://securityweekly.com/threatlocker to learn more about them! Visit https://www.securityweekly.com/swn for all the latest episodes! Show Notes: https://securityweekly.com/swn-496
Donatello, SharePoint, CrushFTP, WordPress, Replit, AllaKore, Rob Allen, and more on the Security Weekly News. Segment Resources: https://www.darkreading.com/threat-intelligence/matanbuchus-loader-ransomware-infections This segment is sponsored by ThreatLocker. Visit https://securityweekly.com/threatlocker to learn more about them! Show Notes: https://securityweekly.com/swn-496
The whole crew is back! Justin, Jeremy and B-Ratty sit down to talk the brand new Know What You Did Last Summer. Is this the requel we've all been waiting for? Listen in to hear our verdict. Find us: Apple Podcasts: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/epic-film-guys- Official Fan Group : https://www.facebook.com/groups/epicfilmguys Feed URL: https://epicfilmguys.podbean.com/feed/ Wordpress: http://epicfilmguys.wordpress.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/epicfilmguysny/live You can also catch us on most every podcatcher under the sun! Search for us on BluBrry, Stitcher, Spreaker, Google Podcasts, Overcast, and many others. Search and you will find us! There has never been a better time to join up with the elites at https://www.patreon.com/epicfilmguys! You can get access to pre-roll and outtakes from the show, exclusive episodes, free swag, and so much more. Tiers start as low as $1/month! Please consider supporting the show, and thank you for being one of the EFG faithful!
It appears InfinityFree may be a bit more powerful than I gave it credit for. Check out Youtuber "Digicitor." His video entitled "How to Create a Free Website with InfinityFree (Live Step-by-Step Tutorial)"shows you how to use InfinityFree with WordPress and Kadence AI website templates and editor. Check out his link.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LZG3RSyHL-k&t=923sIn my old podcast episode earlier this year I reviewed InfinityFree. I was not at all satisfied or impressed by their free Website Builder in their control panel. I was disappointed, found it frustrating, ugly, and honestly quite useless. In efforts to save on hosting expenses I had migrated a website from Godaddy (using their domain name at a purchased fee as well as a monthly hosting subscription up to $21). As the rates kept increasing, and I needed to save where I could due to the LA fires limiting my work flow, I sought InfinityFree as an alternative as my go-to of Hostinger was no longer free, as has been the case over the years. Many hosting sites are not free these days. You might at best get a lengthy trial with Shopify for 90 days at a nice discount, but still not totally free. See related episode here: https://open.spotify.com/episode/17YiKDvOTVZmSqN87Xx5iN?si=YFomYwKUQKCPlgUREpLTKg
In today's episode, host Melanie Johnson sits down with the legendary Paul Colligan—a true pioneer in the world of content creation, podcasting, and YouTube. Paul is known for bridging the gap between technology and business, and he brings decades of experience to the table, having started his online journey back in the early days of the internet. Together, Melanie and Paul dive deep into the realities of podcast distribution, content automation, and harnessing the latest AI tools to grow your brand and business. Paul shares his insights on how being “everywhere” online is more accessible than ever, why you shouldn't overcomplicate your tech stack, and what it really takes to leverage automation and AI to streamline your workflow. You'll hear candid advice about content repurposing, distribution strategies, and the new wave of virtual influencers—including Paul's own “Virtual Paul” experiments.
Jess Berman is the Chief Brand Officer and co-owner of BodyBio, a family-owned supplement brand redefining cellular health through premium, science-backed formulations. Built at the intersection of clinical credibility and modern digital commerce, BodyBio is helping bridge the gap between practitioner-trusted products and direct-to-consumer wellness, making elite cellular health accessible to more people than ever before.After spending years deeply connected to BodyBio's practitioner roots, Jess stepped into a leadership role during a pivotal shift: moving the business from B2B-only to a thriving DTC brand. What began as a family legacy focused on scientific excellence evolved into a broader mission of education, access, and brand storytelling, bringing cellular health out of the doctor's office and into everyday routines.Though she didn't come from a traditional DTC background, Jess brings strategic clarity to every stage of growth, navigating channel tradeoffs, building dual B2B and DTC ecosystems, and balancing hyper-targeted paid media with high-trust organic growth.Whether discussing how BodyBio fixed its reliance on branded traffic, why affiliate funnels outperformed typical influencer playbooks, or how brand guidelines helped unify internal teams and external agencies, Jess offers a transparent and tactical perspective on scaling a modern wellness brand without sacrificing trust.In This Conversation We Discuss:[00:43] Intro[01:52] Rebuilding websites to unlock conversions[03:16] Growing brand awareness through omnichannel[04:26] Bootstrapping marketing with a two-person team[05:40] Managing fulfillment while scaling DTC[07:18] Finding new customers through authority partners[09:31] Testing creative angles to convert cold traffic[11:34] Leading growth through transparency and story[12:21] Episode Sponsors: Electric Eye, Reach & Zamp[15:52] Defining brand guidelines before scaling online[17:52] Testing incrementality before scaling Amazon[18:48] Skipping short-term wins for long-term brand health[20:48] Preparing for shoppable AI disrupting searchResources:Subscribe to Honest Ecommerce on YoutubeSupplements Made From Science https://bodybio.com/Follow Jess Berman https://www.linkedin.com/in/jesshkaneSchedule an intro call with one of our experts electriceye.io/connectLevel up your global sales withreach.com/honest Fully managed sales tax solution for Ecommerce brands zamp.com/honestIf you're enjoying the show, we'd love it if you left Honest Ecommerce a review on Apple Podcasts. It makes a huge impact on the success of the podcast, and we love reading every one of your reviews!
This week I Talk About The Death & Rebirth Of The HomePage [powerpress]
Movie Miss takes a look back at previous episodes (from Seasons 1 and 2) and shares never before heard mistakes, bloopers and unused clips from some previous episodes, as well as revisits a few good laughs and favorite episodes. With commentary from former co-host Drive-in Dave.We're also on YouTube, Apple, Goodpods, Pandora, Amazon & Audible and ko-fi.com/letstalkturkeysA proud member of the Prescribed Film Podcast network #PFPNPlease take a moment to rate & review the show! Be part of our fun bad movie conversations (We Want To Interact With You and Hear Your Thoughts!) by following both our facebook discussion group and our official page Let's Talk Turkeys, on Instagram at letstalkturkeys (all one word), email us directly at letstalkturkeys@yahoo.com, we're on X (Twitter) @gobblepodcast, Bluesky @letstalkturkeys and check us out on Wordpress at https://letstalkturkeys150469722.wordpress.com/Find Movie Miss on IG at movie_miss & Slasher*COVER ART by: Dave Carruthers*
⚙️ Replace 10 tools. Raise millions. Scale on autopilot. This system does it all. Vinney Chopra and Beau Eckstein share how Go High Level became their business backbone—replacing platforms like Kajabi, ClickFunnels, WordPress, and more. Vinney walks through how $700K was raised just from social media and follow-ups—all automated, all while he slept. Talk about ROI and ROT (Return on Time)!
Thanks to my dad, Vic, for suggesting I invest in re branding the website! Turns out THIS NETWORK OWNS THE DOMAIN ONELEGUPALEX.COM
In this podcast episode, Michelle Frechette interviews Natalie MacLee and Nathan Tyler, co-founders of NSquared. They discuss their journey from developing popular WordPress plugins to launching SaaS products like Aaardvark, an accessibility platform, and Blink Metrics, a data management tool for small businesses. The conversation covers the challenges of fragmented business data, the importance of web accessibility, and the differences between WordPress plugins and SaaS solutions, highlighting N Squared's commitment to innovation and supporting both the WordPress community and broader digital needs.Top Takeaways:From WordPress Roots to SaaS Expansion: Natalie MacLees and Nathan Tyler started with successful WordPress plugins like Simply Schedule Appointments and Draw Attention. Realizing some challenges couldn't be solved within WordPress alone, they expanded into SaaS to build scalable tools that work both inside and outside the WordPress ecosystem.Introducing Aaardvark and Blink Metrics: Their new tools—Aaardvark and Blink Metrics—tackle accessibility and data overwhelm. Aaardvark offers automated and manual accessibility testing, with WordPress integration. Blink Metrics pulls data from multiple sources into a centralized, easy-to-read dashboard for small businesses, simplifying decision-making.Prioritizing Accessibility and Innovation:Accessibility is a major focus. Aaardvark is developing an AI tool to check color contrast in complex designs and supports multilingual websites. They're also launching Aaardvark Circle, a community to help professionals improve accessibility in their work.The Marketing Challenge of SaaS vs. WordPress: Marketing SaaS is harder than WordPress plugins, which get exposure through WordPress.org. SaaS tools require outreach and education to build awareness. Natalie and Nathan are leaning into this challenge to grow beyond the WordPress bubble.Coexistence of Platforms and a Broader Mission: Though they're expanding into SaaS, Natalie and Nathan still actively support their WordPress products. They believe in building tools that work across platforms, aiming to improve accessibility and usability for the entire web—not just WordPress users.Mentioned In The Show:N SquaredDraw AttentionSimply Schedule AppointmentsCalendlyAAArdvarkBlink MetricsSimple Client Dashboard
Stephanie O'Brien formed her company, Coach Client Connection, 13 years ago to help coaches and experts connect with the people who need their services. She grew up in Manitoba Canada. She says that as a child she had great difficulties in developing relationships with her fellow children. As she said during our conversation, she tended to be too clingy among other things. She began writing at an early age and wrote her first full-length novel at the age of twelve. She has written 14 books, four of which she self-published. As she matured, she began connecting with writers online and found that she could create relationships with them. She then learned how to make others around her feel interesting and thus also began learning how to establish real relationships with others. As she tells us, she also began meeting with coaches and others to improve herself and her self-esteem. We talk quite a bit during this episode about coaching and how Stephanie has created a program to help coaches better interact with clients and others. She even gives us a free gift to help us learn how to choose and interact with coaches. About the Guest: Stephanie O'Brien, founder of Coach Client Connection, has been helping coaches and experts to connect with the people who need them since 2013. Throughout her childhood, she struggled to make connections with others. As the kid who was always sending invitations to the other kids, and seldom being invited herself, she knows what it's like to feel invisible and unwanted. She immersed herself in her writing, and completed her first full-length novel at the age of 12. She went on to write 14 novels, four of which she self-published as ebooks (she calls the rest “teenage practice”). As she began to connect with other writers online, she gradually honed the art of building relationships by making the people around her feel interesting, wanted, and understood. She also sought healing through coaching and therapy, and experienced firsthand the transformations coaching can bring. This gave her a passion for helping coaches to share those transformations with more people, so those people can enjoy the same freedom, joy, and recovery from old wounds that she did. Since then, Stephanie has spent over 10 years helping coaches to get noticed, connect with the people who need them, and turn their expertise into coaching programs that their clients can easily understand, implement, and turn into real results. When serving clients, she draws on her decades of practice in writing fiction and nonfiction, her ability to see both the big picture and the little details, and her experience as a client of both great coaches and coaches who left her discouraged and disappointed. She also uses the relationship principles she discovered to help set coaches at ease, draw out more of their expertise than they even knew they had, and make the process of creating their programs easy and fun. Ways to connect with Stephanie: https://www.coachclientconnection.com/ https://www.instagram.com/stephanieobriencoaching/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephanie-obrien-program-design/ https://www.facebook.com/StephanieOBrienCoaching Free Gift: https://www.coachclientconnection.com/How-to-Pick-a-Coaching-Topic-that-SELLS/ About the Host: Michael Hingson is a New York Times best-selling author, international lecturer, and Chief Vision Officer for accessiBe. Michael, blind since birth, survived the 9/11 attacks with the help of his guide dog Roselle. This story is the subject of his best-selling book, Thunder Dog. Michael gives over 100 presentations around the world each year speaking to influential groups such as Exxon Mobile, AT&T, Federal Express, Scripps College, Rutgers University, Children's Hospital, and the American Red Cross just to name a few. He is Ambassador for the National Braille Literacy Campaign for the National Federation of the Blind and also serves as Ambassador for the American Humane Association's 2012 Hero Dog Awards. https://michaelhingson.com https://www.facebook.com/michael.hingson.author.speaker/ https://twitter.com/mhingson https://www.youtube.com/user/mhingson https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelhingson/ accessiBe Links https://accessibe.com/ https://www.youtube.com/c/accessiBe https://www.linkedin.com/company/accessibe/mycompany/ https://www.facebook.com/accessibe/ Thanks for listening! Thanks so much for listening to our podcast! If you enjoyed this episode and think that others could benefit from listening, please share it using the social media buttons on this page. Do you have some feedback or questions about this episode? Leave a comment in the section below! Subscribe to the podcast If you would like to get automatic updates of new podcast episodes, you can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or Stitcher. You can subscribe in your favorite podcast app. You can also support our podcast through our tip jar https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/unstoppable-mindset . Leave us an Apple Podcasts review Ratings and reviews from our listeners are extremely valuable to us and greatly appreciated. They help our podcast rank higher on Apple Podcasts, which exposes our show to more awesome listeners like you. If you have a minute, please leave an honest review on Apple Podcasts. Transcription Notes: Michael Hingson ** 00:00 Access Cast and accessiBe Initiative presents Unstoppable Mindset. The podcast where inclusion, diversity and the unexpected meet. Hi, I'm Michael Hingson, Chief Vision Officer for accessiBe and the author of the number one New York Times bestselling book, Thunder dog, the story of a blind man, his guide dog and the triumph of trust. Thanks for joining me on my podcast as we explore our own blinding fears of inclusion unacceptance and our resistance to change. We will discover the idea that no matter the situation, or the people we encounter, our own fears, and prejudices often are our strongest barriers to moving forward. The unstoppable mindset podcast is sponsored by accessiBe, that's a c c e s s i capital B e. Visit www.accessibe.com to learn how you can make your website accessible for persons with disabilities. And to help make the internet fully inclusive by the year 2025. Glad you dropped by we're happy to meet you and to have you here with us. Michael Hingson ** 01:21 Well, hello everyone. Welcome to another episode of unstoppable mindset. We're going to try to be unstoppable today as much as much as we can. Our guest is Stephanie O'Brien. O'Brien, good Swedish name Stephanie. I couldn't resist. It's a it's pleasure to have you here, and it's a pleasure to have all of you listening. Stephanie has been involved in coaching and connecting coaches and clients for 13 years now, my gosh, a long time, and we're going to learn all about that. And I know that Stephanie's got a lot of words of wisdom to talk about. So without further ado, as it were, let's get into all of this. So Stephanie, welcome to unstoppable mindset. We're really glad you're here. Stephanie O'Brien ** 02:03 Thank you so much. I really appreciate you having me here. I'm looking forward to this, Michael Hingson ** 02:07 and as I told Stephanie earlier, the rule of the podcast is you got to have fun. So, you know, we do our best. But anyway, let's start out with kind of the early Stephanie, growing up and all that. And you know, just to learn a little bit about you if we can Stephanie O'Brien ** 02:22 sure, a big part of the reason why later came to have a focus on helping coaches connect with people was because for me, connecting people was connecting with people was really difficult. When I was young, I'd be the kid who on Saturday morning, I'd get on the phone at a call each of my friends one by one, only to be told that they didn't want to hang out. And I was seldom the one who got a call in return. So I had a really hard time connecting with people. Admittedly, I could be a bit clingy and boring, so I have to recognize my own faults and where I had to grow from there, but at the time, I didn't really know how to fix that. So yeah, I had a hard time connecting with people. Eventually, I started connecting with people through writing. I was a pretty prolific novelist. I finished my first novel when I was 12 years old. Terrible novel. Mom told me, Steph, don't delete it. And I tell her, no, no, it's so bad I'll never want to see it again. Mother knew best. I shouldn't have deleted it. But I went on to write 14 novels, four of which were good enough by adult needs standards, to Self Publish. And while I was doing all this writing, I started connecting with other writers, talking with them about their stories. I got very good at building relationships and asking the right questions to keep the conversation going, but I just kind of learned how to connect with people through trial and error. Though I've been still worked with some mentors to get better at it still. So now I use that experience, the writing experience, the ability to phrase things in a way that's easy to understand and connect with that experience. With building relationships, I help coaches to connect with more of their ideal clients now. Michael Hingson ** 03:49 So have you always been in Manitoba? Yeah, Stephanie O'Brien ** 03:53 I've always lived in Manitoba. Sometimes vacations are traveled outside if it always lived here, oh Michael Hingson ** 03:58 yeah, lot of snow in the winter, oh Stephanie O'Brien ** 04:01 yeah, it's been less severe lately, like it's in the last few years, we've had more 30 degree days in summer, fewer 40 degree below days in winter. But it still can get pretty cold. Michael Hingson ** 04:14 Isn't that crazy? Well, but, and of course, some people say there's no such thing as climate change. So what do you do? Stephanie O'Brien ** 04:20 You put out the pictures of me trick or treating as a kid versus me at Halloween this year, like I went from trick or treating in blizzards to walking on grass in November one. There's a difference. Michael Hingson ** 04:33 Well, so you you went to school? Did you go to university? Or any of that? I Stephanie O'Brien ** 04:38 was actually homeschooled, and I went to Athabasca University online, but I didn't take a full formal university education. Instead, I learned. I took courses from various coaches and business owners to learn how to run an online business. Wow, Peter, if you're gonna do a secondary education, you may as well learn from someone who's doing what you want to do, and to teach you how to do it Michael Hingson ** 04:57 well. And as long as that, we're. For you that that's a good thing to do. Stephanie O'Brien ** 05:01 Yeah, you've got to choose your education based on what you're trying to learn and what you're trying to accomplish. I don't like the cookie cutter model, or you got to get a college education because, yeah, learn what's relevant. Michael Hingson ** 05:13 Well, I think there's value in college and or university, absolutely. And I went, I went to to the university, and I think for me, probably it was the best thing to do, because back in well, in 68 to 76 when I was at the University of California at Irvine, there weren't a lot of alternatives other than college for getting access to material, accessible stuff wasn't there. In fact, majoring in physics, my books had to be transcribed into Braille and and that that was a challenge, because professors didn't always want to provide information about what books they were going to use until as late in the process as they could, just in case a new book came out. And that that didn't work for me, and so one of the things that I learned was how to work with professors, and when necessary, use higher authorities than professors at the university to get them to provide what needed to be done. So that was that was useful, but the material wasn't accessible without me making a major effort. So probably college was would have been, anyway, for me, the way to do it. But obviously what you did worked for you. And so, you know, I figure it's important to Stephanie O'Brien ** 06:29 just go to figure out what you want to do with your life, figure out what information or courses you need on that, and then, you know, pick the source that is most appropriate to provide it. It's there's no one size fits all, Michael Hingson ** 06:41 no, and I agree. What do you do with people who say I don't know what I want to do with my life? Stephanie O'Brien ** 06:48 Those generally don't tend to be our target audience, but I can help them in a few ways. I can give them a few questions that they can answer. You know, they can look at what is something that they really love to talk about can't get enough of talking about so they could study this forever. Is it something that they could you know, an area where they can help get results for people. Let's say they are really into relationships. They're fascinated by human relationships. Can they help people to communicate better? Can they help people to find better, healthier partners? Can they help them to avoid common conflicts with other people? Or, you know, what's a problem that they've solved for themselves, that they've healed in their own life. You know, maybe they had a really rough cancer journey and found out, you know, what went wrong, what went right, what could have gone right more to make it easier for them. Now, I know one person who she got through breast cancer and now teaches other people how to navigate that journey a lot more smoothly than what she experienced. Yeah. So, yeah, I encourage people to, you know, look at their lives. Look at what you do for free, if you had the option, if money wasn't an object, what fascinate? See what you're passionate about, and just see, is there a way you can use that to make other people's lives better? Michael Hingson ** 07:54 Well? And that makes a lot of sense. And we, we all should do a whole lot more introspection and analyze what we do and and even ask ourselves why we do it, because we we tend to just move ahead and do stuff and we don't think about it. And the other part of what happens as a result of that is that we try to control everything that we do, we don't think about what we're doing, and we're a lot more afraid than we should be, and then we need to be, if we would only take the time to really be introspective and learn what is it that really is going on? Why do I feel this way? And as you're pointing out, what can I do about it? But if we really take the time to analyze. Then we figure out somewhere along the line, you don't need to worry about what you can't control, just focus on the things that you can and your life is a whole lot better anyway. Oh yeah, Stephanie O'Brien ** 08:54 yeah, at Holyoke, give me the strength to control, our strength to change what I can the grace to accept what I can't, and the wisdom to know the difference, yeah, Michael Hingson ** 09:02 well, and the reality is that one of the things that I talk about a lot is the mind's a muscle, and you need to develop it whoever you are, and the best way to do that is to think about what you do. I've learned that I'm not my own worst critic, I'm my own best teacher, and that's the way it should be. But I have to be open to learning and letting me and my inner voice teach. But if I do that, then I'm oftentimes, as I think back on it, very amazed at what I suddenly discovered that I didn't know before because I wouldn't take the time to think about it and study it. Stephanie O'Brien ** 09:40 Yeah, we can get so busy, so caught up in our day to day lives, so ingrained in our routine. Sometimes it can be challenging to rattle ourselves out of that, and sometimes we need another set of eyes, or someone asking the right questions, Michael Hingson ** 09:53 yeah, and then, and we need to take that time so. So for you. You, you studied, you worked with people. And so you what? Well, what kind of jobs did you have early in your your job world? Or did you always coach? Stephanie O'Brien ** 10:12 Um, my first jobs, that was actually a waitress for a restaurant my mom owned, along with a couple other people. They were going to run the restaurant along with us. They were going to be the main ones owning the restaurant, and then they just kind of ditched us and left us with a restaurant we didn't know what to do with. So I was a waitress there for a bit before we sold the building and moved on. Then we tried owning rental properties for a bit, and honestly, no, never again. We were not cut out for that. It Michael Hingson ** 10:34 was terrible, scary thing. Yeah, Stephanie O'Brien ** 10:37 yeah, it's done. I can still lose like I'm fine with being responsible for me. I don't need theory to be responsible for me and all the tenants who call me during supper to mediate between their fights. Yeah, Michael Hingson ** 10:50 this only so many hours in a day, and people need to take responsibility for themselves. So I hear you. So what did you do after that? That Stephanie O'Brien ** 10:57 was after that that we started getting into coaching. You I'd been writing novels for pretty much as long as I could write, and I was going with mom. She was becoming a coach. She was studying under Mary Morrissey, so I went with her to learn how to use my fiction writing skills for business. And I started studying under Brendan Norman and then Ted McGrath. And yeah, they it was actually Brenda Norman who introduced me to the world of writing for marketing, and, you know, knowing how to focus on the results that people care about instead of the process that they don't really care about, how to phrase things in terms of the actual experiences that they long for, instead of just giving dry, vague descriptions issues kind of my gateway To the world of marketing. Michael Hingson ** 11:37 So you you really, essentially came by the whole concept of coaching pretty naturally, by by just the the evolution of of what you did, which is pretty cool. How about your books, though, are, are any of them still available for people to get? Stephanie O'Brien ** 11:56 Yeah, got four novels on my website. It's Stephanie O'Brien books.com where I host my novels, my short stories, my comics, my art, basically all my creative stuff that isn't coaching. And I've also got one non fiction book, one month program builder up on my website. I have written another one tell people with their marketing message, but that one needs to be updated. I'm planning to update and republish it eventually, but it just hasn't been Michael Hingson ** 12:20 a top priority. So have you published all of your own books? Or have you worked at all with traditional Stephanie O'Brien ** 12:26 publishers? It's all been self published. A lot of the traditional publishing route just seems like too much of a pain for them, still expecting me to do Mark most of the marketing. Yeah, Michael Hingson ** 12:35 that's one of the things that has happened, is that publishers tend to not do nearly the marketing that they used to, which is, which is fine for those who really do know how to market, but there is also value in publishers doing a lot more to help than I think probably a lot of them do, but it's the way the world is going that we've we are so steeped in social media and everything now, people think that's the only way to market and it's not. Stephanie O'Brien ** 13:06 Yeah. Anytime someone says their way is the only way, I immediately get suspicious, like they instantly lose credibility. There are so many different ways to market yourself and grow a business. The important thing is finding a way that works for you. Yeah. Michael Hingson ** 13:21 And ultimately, one of the tests of whether it works for you is whether you see results or not. But, but true, it is still there is not just one way to market or sell for that matter, Stephanie O'Brien ** 13:32 yeah, and if you're not having fun doing it, you know, it's kind of like your podcast, if you're not having fun doing it, especially because, yeah, I found that if I try and commit to a marketing method that I just really hate doing, I will struggle every day to get it done. I'll wind up procrastinating, I won't do it as consistently as I should, and I won't get results. So yeah, when you're choosing your marketing method, you gotta pick something that even if you're not totally ecstatic about it, you at least enjoy it enough that you can do it consistently Michael Hingson ** 14:00 well, and you may discover later that you really do enjoy it, and that's that's part of it. We don't always necessarily know everything in our own minds the way we ought to. But if we, if we keep looking and we keep trying things and we find something, well, this is working. I'm not a great fan of it, but 10 years from now, you may discover that you learned a lot and you really love it. Stephanie O'Brien ** 14:23 Yeah, you can always just experiment with it. You'll give it a 90 day shot it, don't. You don't want to just poke at it and then go, Oh, it didn't work instantly. But, you know, give it a be a good old college try. Give it a 90 day genuine try. And if you're really hating it, if it's not getting results, be willing to let it go. If it's getting results, if you're enjoying it, keep on going, working on refining it Michael Hingson ** 14:42 well. And if you're getting results and you don't enjoy it, then it's probably worth exploring. Why don't you enjoy it? Yeah, that might be very telling also. Stephanie O'Brien ** 14:53 And if it's something that can be outsourced, then you might want to look at outsourcing. Actually, it depends on the nature of what it is you. Michael Hingson ** 15:00 Yeah, there is that. But if it's working that that, in of itself, is something right off the bat. Yeah, you Stephanie O'Brien ** 15:06 don't want to ditch what's working unless you got something better to replace this. Michael Hingson ** 15:10 That's that is always true. Well, so anyway, so you started studying, and eventually, when did you start your your business, and start coaching, seriously. Stephanie O'Brien ** 15:24 Um, see, I kind of, I was kind of half probably coaching, partly writing for people, as early as 2013 that's where I got my start. And then just kind of gradually got more and more into coaching, as opposed to writing for people. So of course, even the other process of writing for people still involves a certain amount of coaching, because you have to help them understand, Okay, here's why I'm doing it this way. Here's what we need to communicate. Here's what you need to communicate as a follow up afterward. So there's a certain amount of coaching involved in that too, but it's been the last few years that I've shifted my focus more fully to helping people create their coaching programs, as opposed to, you know, writing marketing materials for the programs they already have. Now, Michael Hingson ** 16:00 you've written a number of fiction books, right? Tell me about that that I'm still trying to figure out how to write a fiction book Stephanie O'Brien ** 16:10 for me. Most of the time. It starts with me having a few ideas for scenes or relationships, etc, and then spending the rest of the time trying to justify their existence. Like here are a few really great scenes, and now I need to figure out all the other plot points that lead to this moment the books I've published so far. One of them is called cat girl roommate. It takes the concept of a cat girl, except that instead of being the stereotypical sexy cat girl, she's a cat girl who actually acts like a cat and thinks like a cat. I've owned cats pretty much as long as I can remember, so I just took a whole bunch of their ridiculous shenanigans, and put them into this one cat girl, like, how she'll, you know, the her roommate who's taking care of her, he'll make the same meal for both of them. But she doesn't want her. She wants his. It's the exact same thing, but she's sure that his is better. Such a cat thing to do another it's called a heroic lies. It's, um, kind of a dark twist on the superhero genre, where you've got this villain who keeps on kidnapping people, keeps on trying to fight the hero, except that there seems to be nothing in it for him. It kind of explores that whole Why is the villain putting so much into the fighting the hero instead of making his own life better with his own genius, and kind of puts dark twists on it? Oh, shoot. That's why. Michael Hingson ** 17:20 Cute. Well, and speaking of cats, see who I have on the back of my desk chair here. Yeah, Stephanie O'Brien ** 17:28 I noticed him moving around. But enough, I got one sitting in a chair right over there. Michael Hingson ** 17:32 Well, stitch usually isn't in with me, but our house is being cleaned, and so her bed is is under attack, as far as she's concerned. So, so she came in here, which she usually does, and she'll just stay up on the chair. She's fine, Stephanie O'Brien ** 17:48 yeah? My cat tape laundry day sometimes I finished, you know, laundering the sheets and making the bed. Okay, Brandy, your bed is ready. Michael Hingson ** 17:56 Yeah? Well, stitch, stitch copes pretty well. And then there's my guide dog, Alamo, who's down on the floor. You can't see him, but he's he's down there and quite content. But stitch seems to be pretty well. She moves around a little bit, but she's planted herself on the back of the chair. And I didn't even think about it when I bought this desk chair to get something wide enough so that she could be on it, but it's worked out really well. Stephanie O'Brien ** 18:23 And yeah, she seems very cozy and Michael Hingson ** 18:25 content she is. And for those who don't know, stitch is my, my main coon rescue cat. We've had her now for 10 years, over 10 years. So since the bed is is being made and washed and all that. Then she's in here and she's fine. She'll get bored eventually, Stephanie O'Brien ** 18:47 Hey, as long as she isn't wandering around screaming, as mine sometimes does. Michael Hingson ** 18:50 Yeah, yeah, that's the big issue. Well, so you you got into this whole business of of coaching, and how did you start or working with her? How did you decide to start working with other coaches and coaching them in terms of dealing with clients and so on. While Stephanie O'Brien ** 19:11 I was accompanying my mom to all these the training events, I just started falling in love with coaches and coaching. I saw all these amazing people who are trying to be their best selves, live their best lives, break free from their old patterns and beliefs and ways of being, instead of just being ruled by them their whole lives, and trying to help others to do the same. I just fell in love with it, of the idea of the ripple effect I could make by helping these people. I also became a client of some coaches, and I found it was really it really changed my life in a lot of ways, like helping me to overcome the emotional difficulties from that childhood I described, where people didn't want to be around me, where I couldn't make friends seeing the change it made in myself. I wanted to help more people to experience those transformations, and I wanted to help the amazing coaches who were making such a change to have more success and joy in their own lives, too. Yeah. But you know, as I was interacting with them, I found that I think they were in some ways, kind of too educated for their own good, because they say stuff like, I help you shift your paradigms. And I think I might have mentioned that earlier, but yeah, they they didn't realize that these things that had so much meaning for them wouldn't have the same meaning for someone who didn't have their training. So, you know, they here shift your paradigms, and they can instantly mentally connect it with a result, whereas the lay person here is that they can kind of speculate about the result that they don't immediately look up and say, Yes, that's the exact change I need in my life. But I was kind of the universal translator from Star Trek, helping them translate their coach speak jargon into layperson's terms and into the terms of here's what the people actually want. Michael Hingson ** 20:42 If you were to define it, what would you say is the definition of a coach? What is a coach? Stephanie O'Brien ** 20:50 I'd say it's somebody who that works. Doesn't just put a training program for someone to go through on their own pace. It actually works directly with the person. You're helping that person find the answers that they need, helping them to work through their own minds, their own circumstances, their own desires, and helps them ask the right questions is someone who helped them to figure out their own life or some specific aspect of their own life. They don't just give education. They also receive what the client has to say, and help the clients to work through it and understand it. Michael Hingson ** 21:21 Yeah, I once heard a definition the difference between a coach and a therapist, mainly is that a therapist helps you find the answers, but the therapist knows the answers and can give you the answers, but a coach guide you, because you're the one who really has to discover the answers and figure out what it is that you need to deal with. So the coach will guide you and help you discover, but you have to be the one to do with the coach doesn't necessarily know nor provide the answers. Stephanie O'Brien ** 21:56 Yeah, and when I'm working with coaches, that's definitely the case where you know they're the subject matter expert on whatever they're trying to teach on. I'm just the person who knows which questions to ask to draw out their expertise and help them to share it in a more effective way and to come up with it. Or you could draw it out of hiding in a more efficient way, instead of spending weeks trying to figure out what to say. Yeah. Michael Hingson ** 22:19 So in general, what I you've talked about a little bit, but what are some of the challenges that you first saw in dealing with coaches when you first started? Stephanie O'Brien ** 22:29 Well, there was the one I mentioned, where they didn't really know how to explain their services in a way that resonated with people. You know, they talked about the process they took them through, or the amount of content they were going to give them, or the amount of time they were going to spend with the person. Thing is, you're asking for a bunch of a person's time. That's not a selling point. That's a chore. You're you're going to spend five hours of your weekend on this. That's an anti selling point by helping if they one of those challenges then was, you know, not knowing what it is that their clients really want and addressing that. Another is time. Is a huge issue, I think, in the business world in general. So a lot of people struggle to find the time to create their coaching programs, or what time they have they don't use it officially, because they don't have a system for quickly and easily drawing out all that content and organizing it. Another is money. A lot of coaches are having trouble finding the right clients, connecting with them, conveying the value of their products and services to them, so that they actually go get those clients and get the money. So those I find, are three of the big challenges that coaches run into. Michael Hingson ** 23:31 Yeah, I can say, having observed a lot about it, that a lot of people seriously undervalue or don't recognize the value that they bring, and so as a result, when they're creating courses or coaching or whatever, they undersell and don't charge what they're necessarily really worth. And there are reasons to avoid that and really charge what you're worth, but you also have to learn how to do that and learn how to figure that out. But people do tend to sell themselves short way too often. Stephanie O'Brien ** 24:13 Yeah, when you're really immersed in your own expertise, can be so easy to start feeling like what you know is common knowledge, when in reality, it's stuff that a lot of people don't know. And even if they know some of the surface stuff, they don't know the same kind of depth as they don't know it in the same kind of depth as you do. Now, I've actually got exercises I take my clients through so they can kind of remind themselves of the depth of their own expertise and how much they know that their clients don't know. I'd be happy to share that if you want. Sure. Yeah. And for those of you who are listening, I hope you've got something to write this down and record this so I'm going to walk you through this exercise. Not only does it help you to really boost your confidence in your own expertise, it'll also help you come up with a ton of content for your coaching programs, your training programs, your content marketing, podcasts, newsletters, social media, posts. So, so yeah, definitely be ready to take notes on this. So your first step is to figure out what are the things that you can help people with. You know, just write it down in broad categories. Maybe you could say, I help them with marketing, with JVs, with getting referrals. So you put those broad categories, kind of break them down by the results. What are the results that you can help people get then pick one of those results. I like to use the example of a relationship coach who helps a single men to meet and marry the woman of their dreams. So the result is that this person has a loving marriage with the woman of his dreams, but right now he's single and lonely and doesn't know how to approach women. So then for step two, what you do is you'd write down the steps that you take your clients through, preferably in chronological order. I know not everyone can do chronological order, because some processes just don't happen in a specific timeline or a specific sequence, but if you can do it in chronological order, it's best to do so. So the steps that you'd write down say you're this coach you could write down, helping him to figure out what kind of woman he wants to meet, helping him to figure out where these types of women might hang out, how to approach her, how to have a conversation, how to get a first date, how to see if, how to conduct himself on that first date, and see if she's the kind of person he wants to keep dating. How to get a second date, if he wants and so forth. So once you've written down all these steps in chronological order, pick one of those steps and break it down further, this is where you really start to see the depth of the expertise that you have. So step one was figure out what kind of woman you want to meet. So you could ask questions like, what kinds of experiences do you want to have with your partner, and what kind of person would want to have those experiences with you? What kind of experiences do you not want to have, and what kind of person would give you those bad experiences? What kind of positive experiences have you had in the past that you want more of you if you need help to figure out what you want? Does Do you want a partner who wants to be a homemaker or a career woman or a business owner? Do you want a partner who wants to have kids with you, or who I'd rather stay childless? Does give them really specific questions that they can ask themselves to better understand you know what they wanted to better understand how they can go about this. And if you want to give them instructions for how to do something, make those instructions so specific that if an alien never even heard of your subject of expertise before were to read the instructions, the alien would know exactly how to do it. You don't feel like those software developers who go, okay, just click on this tab, this tab and this tab, okay, but how do I get to that tab in the first place? Don't assume that your clients know how to do the first few steps. Some of them will some of them won't. You don't want to leave that second category behind. And you can also look at what are the best practices they can use while doing this. What are some common mistakes? What are some examples you can give them of people actually doing this. And by doing going through this exercise, you can really get a clear view of just how much depth and detail you know about every single step in this entire process. And when you really break it down, every single step that goes into the process has so much nuance, so much detail, so many things that you could teach them, so many nuggets of wisdom you probably have that you might have even forgotten since it's become so second nature. I encourage you to do that exercise and remind yourself what an expert you are and come up with a huge amount of content at the same time. Michael Hingson ** 28:22 Right? And then what happens? So Stephanie O'Brien ** 28:27 what happens next? Of course, depends on what you're trying to accomplish. You know, if you once you've done this exercise, if you're trying to create a coaching program, you still need to figure out how you're going to deliver it, whether it's in group coaching calls one on one, a hybrid, or if you want to make a training program as opposed to a coaching program, you need to figure out how to price it, how what kind of posting software you want to use to deliver it. Those are some of the steps that come after. And of course, you need to figure out how to sell it, how to market it in a way that works for you Michael Hingson ** 28:59 well. So coaches are human, like, like everyone else, at least, that's, that's the theory. And so you observed coaches having challenges. You've observed people not necessarily dealing with discovering the things that they should discover in order to be able to coach or to to progress. How do you find or how do they overcome those challenges? What do you do to help them overcome those challenges? Stephanie O'Brien ** 29:31 It kind of depends what the situation is that's preventing them from progressing. So yeah, my first step would be, of course, to talk with them and figure out, Okay, what's stopping you from progressing? Is it that you feel you don't know enough to create a coaching program? In that case, let's see how we can draw out more information from you. Is it that you have too much information and you don't know which information to put in each offer because you don't want to try and shove it all in the same offer? It's just going to get cluttered, and people will feel it ripped off if they're paying for information they don't need. That might help them figure out if they. How many offers Do you want to make? What information goes into each offer if they're having trouble with time in my program, creation Made Easy. Course, the first thing I do with people is actually look at their schedule and figure out, okay, what are your priorities? What needs to be in your schedule, what can be paired out? Where can we make time to actually create your coaching program? So those are some examples of how I help people with some common challenges. Michael Hingson ** 30:24 Do you find a lot of resistance people don't want to, or think they don't want to overcome the challenges because they don't really exist? Do you see a lot of that kind of challenge and that people just resist because they're really not thinking in as I put it, being introspective. Stephanie O'Brien ** 30:44 I'd say one of the biggest challenges I find people run into that stops them from working with me is they want to do it on their own. And some people can do it on their own, but others wind up working on it for weeks on end. You say, Oh yeah, I'm working on figuring out this content. Then weeks later, I follow up, hey, how are you doing? I'm still working on it. We could have had it done in 60 to 90 minutes. Here, just one call with me, 60 to 90 minutes, and that could have been done. Yeah, Michael Hingson ** 31:10 well, that's your expertise that brings that. And the result is that, again, people aren't thinking it through, and so the result is that they they continue to go in circles and not necessarily move to where they ought to be as quickly as they should. But at the same time, there's only so much you can do, because you can't force people to listen. Stephanie O'Brien ** 31:39 Yeah, all I can do is, as with any business owner, work on getting better and better at communicating my value and helping people see why they're better off working with me. Michael Hingson ** 31:47 Well, that's an interesting point. It's as much a learning experience for you, isn't it? Stephanie O'Brien ** 31:55 Yeah, absolutely. Anytime you're finding that people aren't really responding here to your messaging, you need to look at your messaging or the way you're presenting it, and see, okay, Where can this be improved, and even if your messaging has been working, you know, things can shift to trends can shift. People can get overloaded on a certain amount of certain type of messaging. So you need to be prepared to adapt and to listen to people and see how their needs and their preferences are evolving. Michael Hingson ** 32:19 Yeah, and I you, you bring up a really good point that I like a lot, and that is that things may be working. You may be doing something well, the question is, can you do it better? And I think that's a question that we should always be asking ourselves, can I even improve what I'm doing that takes humility to be able to ask that question. But it is still true. It's something that we should do, and that is really look at by doing this the best way I can. Can I improve it? And of course, that is something that you as a coach brings to it as well, because sometimes, if they consult with you, they can find out that you may approve of what they're doing, you may like what they're doing, but you can come up with other solutions that are even better. I love the whole idea of collaboration, and we don't. We don't see nearly as much of it as we should, and I think way too often, as you point out, people just want to do things on their own, but none of us are really an island. Stephanie O'Brien ** 33:27 Yeah, I've had lots of mentors who helped me to get where I am, and I'm still learning from other people as I go, it Michael Hingson ** 33:35 gets to be a real challenge. And again, you can't force people to do things that never is going to work. So you can't necessarily do that. And Stephanie O'Brien ** 33:45 I hate that sales tactic where you try and force or bully someone into it, go run to the bathroom room and buy my stuff, or else you're going to be a failure in business forever. I am so over that, and if someone tries to pressure me into it, that tells me that they care more about their agenda than they care about me, and then they don't respect my boundaries in that point, their odds of making a sale pretty much hit the floor and start digging. Michael Hingson ** 34:06 Yeah, you know, I learned a long time ago that people who really sell and do it well recognize that what they truly are are educators or counselors. You don't force people to do things. You need to really look at what a person needs and wants, and if you've got something to help them, then you you bring that into the conversation, but you don't, and you shouldn't force people. I've had so many situations where I sold a product and the product that I well, I should say I wanted to sell a product, but my product wouldn't necessarily do what the customer really needed. There were issues, whatever they are. So what am I to do? I could try to just continue to push our product on them, but I know that in the end, that's going to backfire. It's. Not going to work, people are then going to hate me or resent me, and they're never going to want to do business with me. So it's important to not push something that doesn't work. But I also took it a step further, more than once, which is to say, here's what will work, even though my company doesn't happen to have it, and when you really develop that level of trust by being honest with someone and pointing out this is what really works in the long run, that's going to earn you a whole lot more than you would have ever gotten any other way. Stephanie O'Brien ** 35:34 Absolutely, it can make you more of a go to authority. I mean, people need something. They can come to you, even if it's not what you offer, you may not be the provider, but you know the provider, and it helps to foster good relationships with other business owners. If you have people that you know is trust and can refer to, I recently sought out a grant a person who's an expert in Grant. I've noticed her on a networking event, and I'm not really looking for a grant myself. Don't have much interest in grants at the moment, but I've had a few people for some reason, approach me and ask me, Hey, can you help me get a grant? No, not remotely. And you know, the first few times I had nobody I could even refer to, I tried to find some people who I could refer to, but couldn't really find anyone appropriate. So I finally find this one just, Oh, thank goodness you actually help people to find grants. Like these people wanted me to help them find a grant. Never mind, apply for it. Find one in first place, and I can't do that like I could learn, but I don't want to. But then here's this person who specifically teaches people how to do it, though, even though it wasn't my expertise or even something I needed, I sought her out just so I'd have that ability to refer people next time. Michael Hingson ** 36:36 Well, that's pretty important to be able to do. I in my case, I'm thinking of a particular incident where we, I and a sales guy, one of my sales people, who had set up an appointment to go see a customer, and they wanted his manager to come, which was me, and we went. And I'm unusual anyway. I mean, how often do you see a blind sales guy coming in, holding a laptop projector and doing other things like that. And I actually did the presentation, and I also happened to be very technical, and so I asked a lot of questions, and learned that our product wasn't going to do what these people needed. But by the time we were done with the whole presentation, I said, and you can probably see our product won't do what you need, and here's why. But then I did, and that's the first time I really did it. I took the next step and said, but here's a company, and here's what product really will do exactly what you need, and here's why. The result of that was that two weeks later, we got a call from the same company saying we really took what you said to heart, and now we have another project. And because of everything you taught us, we know that what you have to offer is exactly what we need. Just tell us what it's going to cost, and we will order it today. We're not even going to put it on for bid, and that's what trust is all about, 37:59 absolutely, Michael Hingson ** 38:01 and it's, and it's so exciting, but it's, it's unfortunate that all too often, people don't really look at the whole value of developing that trusting relationship, and that's got to be a volitional part of whatever you do in coaching, or anything that we do in business, or anything in our lives? Stephanie O'Brien ** 38:21 Yeah, I've had too many people try and pitch me without first, building that trusted. And even if it's a free thing, like a free webinar, there's no such thing as free, yeah, even a free webinar still costs time that I won't get back. So it's like and see when COVID just comes crashing into my inbox. Pitch first that tells me they care a lot more about their agenda than they do about me, especially if it's something that's clearly in applicable, like, No, I am not going to join your group for single mothers. I've never had a kid. I mean, granted, I have this cat, and she is kind of a toddler, but I've never had the kind of kids you teach people to work with. Michael Hingson ** 38:54 Yeah? So you've, you've never had kids yet. Stephanie O'Brien ** 38:58 I'm not really planning to have already got cats. Michael Hingson ** 39:00 Yeah? Have you gotten married? No, so you're not even in that but you've got cats. Well, that's fine. Now, when my when my wife and I got married, we decided that we were going to have kids. She was in a wheelchair her whole life, and she said that she was concerned it would have too much of a bad effect on our body. And what we decided to do, in addition to having dogs and cats, was to welcome nieces and nephews into the house, because we could kick them out at the end of the day, and that worked out Stephanie O'Brien ** 39:31 really well, yeah, just hop them up on sugar and send them back. Yeah, that's what my grandparents did, Michael Hingson ** 39:37 yeah. Well, worked for them, right? Yep, you seem to be surviving as a result. Well, I didn't die. Yeah, you're still you're still coaching. So that's pretty cool. Well, let me ask you this, if I can, if someone is thinking about being a coach or selling their expertise, how do they determine. Or how can you help them determine whether they're really qualified? Or how can they decide that they're qualified? Stephanie O'Brien ** 40:07 I'd say the big thing is just to ask yourself, can I consistently get people results in this area? Now, obviously that depends on the other person actually doing the work to get the results. But do you know how people can get results in a specific area in a repeatable, reliable way. It could be anything from your relationships, improving your relationships, improving your health, improving your business, and it doesn't even have to be the whole journey. As long as you can help people take one significant step, you can help improve their lives, like even if you can't help a person go from single to married, if you can, say, Help married couples to stop having a specific type of argument. And for that matter, the more specific the problem you solve, the more people who have that problem. I want to see, oh, that's exactly what I need you. I don't need this generic relationship advice. I need relationship advice. I want this thing in particular, like, think about when you're, say, having a technical issue, and you want to say, let's say last night, I was looking for how to widen the navigation bar in a WordPress site, and I see all these results for you, how to improve your navigation bar, how to make a navigation bar, how to change a navigation bar. No, I just want it wider. The only result I'm interested in clicking on is how to make it wider. It's the same thing with your customers. You know, the more specific the result you can help them to get, the more the people looking for it are going to say that's exactly what I need. So don't assume that you're disqualified if you can't help them with their entire journey. Just focus on what is one big result that I can help people get. If you know how to get that, help them get that result, then you can help them to do that, Michael Hingson ** 41:42 and it might also be that you do what you can do. But again, like you said about the lady who you've met who does grants, you can also get people in touch with other people who may be able to augment the successes or the results that you've already achieved, who may be able to do it better than you? So that you create essentially a teaming approach, even though each of you are working individually to help this individual? Yeah, Stephanie O'Brien ** 42:10 absolutely. And you can do it kind of sequentially or concurrently. You could have someone be offer a guest module in your coaching course, if you say, you help people with nine steps out of 10, but it's one step in the middle. Isn't your expertise that you can have a guest expert come in and present in your course. Or if you help them with one step of the journey, but not the subsequent step, once they're done working with you, you can refer them to somebody else. Or if they're not ready to work with you, let's say you help people get on stages and present, but they that only really works and can be monetized if the person has something worth selling to sell. So if you meet someone who wants to get on stages but has nothing worth selling, though, you could refer them back to me, and I could get them ready for your services, Michael Hingson ** 42:52 right? It's a process. And again, a lot of people don't think they're they're capable of selling. They they don't have the self worth, or don't think they have the self worth. And even the whole concept of this podcast, as I've said to many people, one of the main reasons that I love doing this is I get to show our audience members that they're more unstoppable than unstoppable than they think they are. And whenever I hear someone say, I learned this from this particular podcast, and it really showed me how I can be better than I thought I was. That doesn't get better than that. Oh yeah. And even Stephanie O'Brien ** 43:35 if you're just starting out, just starting out, can actually be kind of a superpower, as I was mentioning earlier in this interview, people can get so ingrained in their own expertise, it can become so second nature. They forget what other people don't know, which can result in overly broad or vague explanations. Like I've seen some mindset coaches saying stuff like, notice what stories you're telling about the telling yourself about this situation, or notice what limiting beliefs you have well, if not, unless you're trained for that, you're not going to notice what the story or what's a limiting belief versus what's just a fact. You don't know how to tell the difference. So that's an example of how a coach who's really in their own expertise can totally forget that other people don't know how to do what they do. For someone who's just starting out and who remembers the very vividly what it's like not to know these things. It's less likely to make that mistake, more likely to be able to put themselves in the client's shoes, understand what the client does and does not know, and explain it in ways that a person who's new to this can understand. I thought to say a more seasoned coach can't do that, but there is that risk that they'll forget. So if you're just starting out, it can be just easier to relate to people who are also starting out and who are just a step behind you. Michael Hingson ** 44:44 How do you teach people who are clearly experts in what they do, but who have forgotten that they weren't always experts in the people they're dealing with aren't experts? How do you teach them to go back and recognize. Recognize that and remember those things that they've clearly forgotten that would make them so much better, because they could then relate better to other people, Stephanie O'Brien ** 45:08 mostly by asking questions. Do I kind of come at it from the standpoint as if I was their client? Okay, you just told me to do this, but how exactly do I do it? What are the exact steps I need to take, or what questions can you ask me to help me to figure this out. Now I basically act like I was there. We don't necessarily role play, but I do ask questions as if I was their client and didn't know how to do this thing. Michael Hingson ** 45:30 Yeah. What do you do to help the person who's say, fairly new to coaching and doesn't think that they're good enough? And how do you teach them to recognize that really maybe they are or or maybe they'll discover that they're really not. But how do you how do you deal with that? Stephanie O'Brien ** 45:50 Um, I take one of the things I do is I take them through that exercise I did earlier with you. Write out the list of steps you take. Break it down into sub steps. I often remind them how being new can be a superpower. I also invite them to look at the results they've gotten for themselves and other people in the past. Have you healed this issue in yourself? Have you helped yourself to lose weight? Have you helped yourself to raise your kids better? Have you helped yourself to improve your health? Or have you helped other people? Is this something that other people come to you for advice, and have those other people gotten results from working with you. Now, if you've never really gotten results for yourself or for other people, then you might want to make sure that you're able to actually get those results before try to teach people, because if you don't know how to get the result, then you're really not qualified to coach but if you can get the result, then you know how you got the result and can replicate that process with other people, then you are ready to coach people. You are ready to help them to do what you know how to do. One of Michael Hingson ** 46:46 the things that I have always done when I hire new sales people, or even today, when I'm talking to people who are fairly new and something that they've decided to explore, take at least a year and be a student. You should always be a student, but especially for the first year, play the student card. Don't hesitate to ask questions. Don't hesitate even to ask your customer questions, because the more you ask, the more you'll learn. Because mostly people really want you to succeed, and they want to succeed, and you're bringing something to the party, you may need to figure out what it is, but if you start by being a student, then you're really at least half the way there to figuring it all out. Stephanie O'Brien ** 47:35 Yeah, absolutely. And you know, having a podcast can be good for that. You can interview people and get there to share all this free information, and they get exposure. You get free information, you get content to share with your audience. It's a great way to open doors. Michael Hingson ** 47:49 Well, it's true, and you know, in the it works both ways, because hopefully, for example, when I ask questions or we're talking about different subjects, hopefully you get something out of it too, and that's, that's what makes it really fair, Speaker 1 ** 48:05 that's important to have win wins, yeah, Michael Hingson ** 48:08 well, so clearly, you know, we're dealing with a lot of different kinds of environments, and you're dealing With a lot of people. What about the person who doesn't think they have the expertise and so they're reluctant to charge more or charge what they should be charging? I think I probably know the answer to this, but I'm going to, you know, ask anyway, what do you how do you help those people recognize, let's assume, that they do have the expertise to expertise, but they don't think they do. Stephanie O'Brien ** 48:44 One thing I can help them to do is look at the results they get and see just how valuable it is for their clients. So for example, let's say you help somebody to sleep better at night and have more energy. Obviously, there are health benefits for that. Here, you are less likely to have diseases. You're less likely to get into a car crash because you were groggy. You're probably going to have a better immune system the breakdown. I could break it down by the various categories of life. What are the benefits in their health, of course, in their relationships, if they have more energy, if they're less cranky, if they're in a better mood, they'll be more pleasant to be around people who want to be around them more they'll probably have better relationships with their kid, their friends, their spouse, their boss, their clients, their coworkers, and understand relationships that's healthy. And also look at time. How much time are they wasting on doing things slow, hard way because they're groggy and brain foggy and unable to work well? Yeah, I encourage you to look at every different area of your life that it the client's problem is affecting and that would be affected positively by the solution you give. I think this will help remind you just how valuable your solution really is. And if you're not completely sure that you can help people to get results, you know, look at the results you've gotten for yourself. Look at the results you've gotten for others. If you. Do have a good track record of getting results, then you know that's the site that you already have proof that you can if you don't have a history of getting results, then you need to work on developing your skill set learning systems that can get results consistently, or look at some other area of your life where you've already gotten results. But yeah, the important thing is that you need to be able to get results. And of course, you do have to also be realistic about okay, you can teach people how to get these results. You can also do things with them to help maximize the chances that they actually do the things you're teaching them and thus get results. But you do have to recognize that some people are going to choose not to do the things, and they will therefore not get the results. So as long as you know that if your system is followed and will get results, you've done your part, the rest is also on them. Michael Hingson ** 50:47 Yeah, and a lot of times they may not get results, and who knows specifically why, but it's really important that they understand why they're not getting results. And maybe it is only, and I don't want to mitigate it, but it's only they don't have the confidence to ask, or they don't have the confidence to to reach out to help somebody get the results, which is also part of what they need to work on. Stephanie O'Brien ** 51:14 Yeah, one thing coach that I like did, instead of just asking, do you hold He did ask, Do you have any questions? But if the people on he was coaching with didn't in his group called, didn't have any questions, he'd ask them to give an update. You know, what were you working on this week? What results were you trying to get? What results did you get? And this often resulted in him finding things to coach on that the person hadn't thought to ask. So, yeah, it's important to check in with your clients to see what kind of results they're getting, what kind of results they're not getting, and if they're not getting results, then explore that with them. You know, why are you not getting results? What did you do the action steps? Okay, if so, did you do them right? Did you do them wrong? If they didn't do the action steps, why not? And how can we adjust your schedule so that you actually can fit them in? What kind of resistance is there against doing these action steps, and how can we clear that resistance? That's really important to stay in touch with your clients and to get consistent updates on what milestones they are or are not hitting and why they are not are not hitting them, and be be prepared to address those underlying issues. Because often, while you're working on doing something, questions will come up that you didn't think you had earlier. You you discover nuances to it that you didn't know about, or you'll meet mental resistance that you didn't realize you were going to have. Michael Hingson ** 52:29 Part of it, though, is also the art of asking questions and the art of asking the right questions. I, for example, really don't like to ask yes or no questions, closed ended questions, if you will, because you don't learn much that way. And so that was also one of the things that I did with the customer we mentioned earlier. I'll always ask open ended questions, because I really want to get not only the information that they they have that I feel is important for me to have, but I also get to know them a lot better. When I ask open ended questions and get them to really give me a detailed response, I'll learn a lot about them as well, and I think that's extremely important. 53:12 Now that makes total sense, Michael Hingson ** 53:15 yeah, because it's it's so important to be able to ask tell me more about this. Or what is it that you find doesn't really work here? Or why do you like that? And really get questions that will make people think that also helps keep me alert when I when I keep thinking of questions. So it works both ways. Stephanie O'Brien ** 53:43 Yeah, I'd say the ability to ask the right questions is one of the most important things for a coach. Michael Hingson ** 53:47 Yeah, and if you don't necessarily know the right question, again, asking some open ended questions, and sometimes you might even want to say, what else is there that you want to tell me about this, or tell me more about this, so that you get people to offer information? And I've been in situations where I wasn't sure what to ask, but I can always ask something that will get people to offer more, that will help me think about, oh, I need to ask about this. Yeah. Stephanie O'Brien ** 54:18 And you could kind of write a list of the pieces of information that you need to know about your clients you know, like, say, going back to that relationship coach, example, the piece of things that you need to know in order to help someone
Contractor Success Map with Randal DeHart | Contractor Bookkeeping And Accounting Services
This Podcast Is Episode 637, And It's About Pillar 1: Marketing - Attracting The Right Construction Jobs A Guide for Small Construction Business Owners (from Your Bookkeeper's Point of View) As construction bookkeeping specialists, we spend a significant amount of time analyzing the numbers behind small construction businesses—everything from job costs to cash flow to profit margins. However, here's the truth most contractors don't hear enough: Your profitability starts before the job even begins. Yes, it starts with the jobs you say yes to—and more importantly, the ones you should start saying no to. In this post, we'll break down what it means to attract the right jobs, how doing so can transform your business, and what practical steps you can take today to stop chasing work that doesn't serve you. First, Why Most Contractors Struggle to Attract the Right Clients Small contractors often accept every job that comes their way, especially when they're just starting or concerned about cash flow. But this creates several problems: Low-paying work that barely covers your costs Clients who delay payment or constantly push scope boundaries Traveling too far for small, unprofitable jobs A lack of consistency in your portfolio and referrals If this sounds familiar, you're not alone. But this cycle drains your energy and your bank account. And it makes your bookkeeping a mess—because when job costs are unclear or inconsistent, it's hard to see which jobs made money and which didn't. The Right Job: What Does That Actually Mean? The "right" job looks a little different for every contractor, but here's a basic framework: You're qualified and equipped to do it well You can complete it profitably (based on your costs and ideal margin) It fits within your service area It aligns with the type of work you want to be known for The client respects your time and process When all five of these boxes are checked, it becomes easier to plan, price, and deliver the work, and you'll often get paid faster and with fewer headaches. Why Your Bookkeeper Cares About the Jobs You Choose From our side of the books, here's what we see when you start attracting better jobs: Cleaner job costing data, because each project has a clear scope and budget Healthier margins, because the client isn't nickel-and-diming you Improved cash flow, because payments come in on time More predictable expenses, so budgeting and forecasting become easier That provides a solid financial foundation to build upon. So, how do we make that shift? 6 Ways to Start Attracting Better Jobs 1. Define Your Niche Clearly Clients won't know what to hire you for unless you tell them—clearly and often. Specializing doesn't limit your options; it sharpens your value. Do you focus on bathrooms, decks, additions, or full remodels? Do you serve residential, commercial, or both types of clients? Are your ideal jobs $5,000 or $50,000? Once you define your sweet spot, you can market smarter and spend less time chasing the wrong leads. 2. Price Your Work with Confidence (Not Emotion) One of the biggest mistakes we see is pricing based on "what you think the client can afford" instead of what the job costs you. That's how good contractors end up underpaid and overworked. With proper job costing and an understanding of your overhead, you can create bids that are both competitive and profitable. And here's the kicker: high-quality clients don't just want the cheapest quote—they want clarity and professionalism. Pricing with confidence attracts better clients. 3. Professional Estimates and Invoicing = Trust Want to stand out from the competition without spending a dime on ads? Use detailed, easy-to-read estimates with clear line items Include terms, timelines, and payment schedules Send professional invoices on time, every time This builds trust right away—and clients are more likely to choose you over "Chuck in a truck," who scribbles an estimate on a notepad. 4. Use Photos, Reviews, and Referrals to Tell Your Story People hire those they trust. And in construction, trust is often built through: Before-and-after photos Client testimonials Word-of-mouth referrals If you're not already collecting these, make it part of your post-job checklist. Ask happy clients for a quick review or permission to take a photo of them. Share success stories on social media and your website. Your work speaks for itself—but only if people can see it. 5. Simplify Your Online Presence You don't need a fancy website to get found—you need: A Google Business Profile (with updated contact info and service area) A few recent photos and reviews A clear description of your services This makes it easy for local clients to find and trust you. We've seen contractors double their inquiries just from a well-maintained Google listing. 6. Pre-Qualify Your Leads Your time is valuable. Before driving out for a quote, ask a few key questions: What's the project timeline? What's your rough budget? Have you worked with contractors before? Is the property ready for work to begin? These questions help you avoid tire-kickers and focus on serious leads. How Bookkeeping Supports Better Marketing Decisions Once you've improved your lead quality and project fit, your bookkeeping data becomes a valuable asset. You'll start to see: Which types of projects are your most profitable Which areas or clients tend to pay faster What marketing sources bring the best leads This allows you to double down on what works—and stop wasting time and money on what doesn't. The Payoff: Less Stress, Better Clients, Stronger Business When you start attracting the right jobs: You waste less time quoting projects that go nowhere You gain consistency in your income and schedule Your financial reports become easier to understand and use You build a brand that clients want to refer and return to It's not about doing more—it's about doing smarter. Need Help Getting Clear on Your Numbers? If you're unsure what your ideal job actually costs—or how to price it for profit—we can help. As construction bookkeeping specialists, we don't just categorize expenses; we also ensure that they are accurately recorded and accounted for. We help you understand: Job costing Profit margins Overhead Cash flow So you can build with confidence and say yes only to the jobs that grow your business, not drain it. Do you need help setting up your job costing system or reviewing your project margins? Book a free consultation, and let's ensure your books are aligned with the type of work you want to do. About The Author: Norhalma Verzosa is a Certified Construction Marketing Professional and works as the Web Admin of Fast Easy Accounting located in Lynnwood, WA. She has a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology and a Certified Internet Web Professional with a Site Development Associate, Google AdWords Search Advertising, and HubSpot Academy certifications. She manages the entire web presence of Fast Easy Accounting using a variety of SaaS tools including HubSpot, Teachable, Shopify, and WordPress.
In this episode, Nathan Wrigley interviews Aurélien Denis about MailerPress, an upcoming WordPress plugin for sending email campaigns directly from your site. Aurélien explains how MailerPress mimics the Gutenberg UI, uses custom blocks for email creation, and integrates features like branding with theme JSON and querying WordPress content (including WooCommerce products). The plugin stores contacts in custom tables and allows flexible email delivery via popular services. They're seeking beta testers and hint at future AI and automation features.
Send us a textThings come up! Freak outs happen!What's your 'why'? Is it bigger than yourself? Your 'why' can act as your most valuable asset during these overwhelming periods. Alex and Carol discuss strategies for overcoming challenging periods and emerging stronger than ever!
In this episode, Nathan Wrigley talks with Charlotte Bax at WordCamp Europe about making websites more environmentally sustainable. Charlotte shares her journey into sustainable web design, offers practical advice on reducing a website's carbon footprint, like choosing green web hosting, optimising images, improving UX, applying caching, and managing visitor traffic, and introduces advanced concepts like grid-aware websites. The conversation also touches on WordPress's role in digital sustainability and recent efforts to revive its sustainability team. Charlotte offers resources and invites listeners to connect for further advice on building greener websites. If you've ever wondered how digital choices impact the planet, and what steps you can take today to help, this episode is for you.
You have heard about AI everywhere, and now it is being used within EMR services. If you feel unsure about this topic or you want to learn more, then definitely play this episode and join us for the conversation! In this podcast episode, Catharine from Jane App and I discuss how Jane App incorporates AI into their EMR, including some general best practice guidelines about how you can use to use Jane's AI Script services ethically and safely in your practice. MEET CATHARINE Catharine Martin is the Privacy and Compliance Manager at Jane App, where she plays a key leadership role in shaping and overseeing the company's privacy and regulatory strategies. With a strong background in data protection and compliance, she works closely with healthcare practitioners to ensure their practices meet evolving privacy requirements while also finding practical ways to reduce administrative burden. Beyond her work at Jane, Catharine is also a dedicated Pilates instructor, bringing the same focus and discipline to her teaching as she does to her professional work. Learn more about Catharine on her LinkedIn profile. In this episode: Working with Jane App AI Scribe AI in client diagnostics It is all up to you Jane's appearance in The Globe and Mail Working with Jane App Catharine, 20 years ago, after giving birth, had a radical and unexpected medical event that left her in a brief coma, experiencing multiple organ failure. However, due to her incredible doctors, her strength, and a lot of luck, she survived and kept all her organs, without needing any transplants, and went on to make a full recovery. How did this bring her to work for Jane App? After what Catharine went through, she felt so drawn to Jane App's vision to “Help the helpers”, that she started working for the company to further their mission. AI Scribe Jane App offers an AI scribe feature. It essentially charts notes from your sessions with clients in your own voice. Jane secured a third-party vendor who is known for their robust privacy practices, which are all compliant with the required ethical laws and privacy legislation, to help them integrate the AI tool. AI in client diagnostics ‘As part of using Jane's AI Scribe, therapy notes are included, but not diagnostic suggestions. As in, diagnostic suggestions are not coming from any AI-powered tool. Diagnostic suggestions are coming from a human, providing care to another human.' - Catharine Martin Even though Jane App makes use of AI in some of their service offerings, they are critical of making sure that it is being used ethically and appropriately, and only for admin-related tasks. The care suggestions and client diagnostics will still only come from you, the client's therapist, based on your sessions together. It is all up to you With your Jane App subscription, when it comes to AI, it is all up to you. You don't have to make sure of it, even though it is being offered to you. You can easily opt in or out of using it within your Jane App subscription, hassle-free. Also, consider the risk of any tool that you use when you are weighing up whether to use it or not. Jane's appearance in The Globe and Mail Jane App made great headlines in one of The Globe and Mail's articles for reaching a $1.8-billion valuation. Jane App is looking to adopt AI on a grand scale by continuing to explore its benefits ethically to help more helpers. Connect with me: Instagram Website Resources mentioned and useful links: Ep 169: Rachel Brennan: Keeping Connection in an Online Group Practice | EP 169 Learn more about the tools and deals that I love and use for my Canadian private practice Sign up for my free e-course on How to Start an Online Canadian Private Practice Jane App (use code FEARLESS for one month free) Get some help and freebies on your website with WordPress! Learn more about Catharine on her LinkedIn profile Rate, review, and subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon, and TuneIn
In this episode, Nathan Wrigley talks with Charlotte Bax at WordCamp Europe about making websites more environmentally sustainable. Charlotte shares her journey into sustainable web design, offers practical advice on reducing a website's carbon footprint, like choosing green web hosting, optimising images, improving UX, applying caching, and managing visitor traffic, and introduces advanced concepts like grid-aware websites. The conversation also touches on WordPress's role in digital sustainability and recent efforts to revive its sustainability team. Charlotte offers resources and invites listeners to connect for further advice on building greener websites. If you've ever wondered how digital choices impact the planet, and what steps you can take today to help, this episode is for you.
pWotD Episode 2996: Fourteen Words Welcome to popular Wiki of the Day, spotlighting Wikipedia's most visited pages, giving you a peek into what the world is curious about today.With 314,220 views on Tuesday, 15 July 2025 our article of the day is Fourteen Words."The Fourteen Words" (also abbreviated 14 or 1488) is a reference to two slogans originated by the American domestic terrorist David Eden Lane, one of nine founding members of the defunct white supremacist terrorist organization The Order, and are accompanied by Lane's "88 Precepts". The slogans have served as a rallying cry for militant white nationalists internationally.The primary slogan in the Fourteen Words is,We must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children, Followed by the secondary slogan,because the beauty of the White Aryan woman must not perish from the Earth.The two slogans were coined prior to Lane being sentenced to 190 years in federal prison for planning and abetting the assassination of the Jewish talk show host Alan Berg, who was murdered by another member of the group in June 1984. They were popularized heavily after Lane's imprisonment. The slogans were publicized through print company 14 Word Press, founded in St. Maries, Idaho, in 1995 by Lane's wife, Katja, to disseminate her husband's writings, along with Ron McVan who later moved his operation to Butte, Montana, after a falling-out with Katja.Lane used the 14-88 numerical coding extensively throughout his spiritual, political, religious, esoteric, and philosophical tracts and notably in his "88 Precepts" manifesto. According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, inspiration for the Fourteen Words "are derived from a passage in Adolf Hitler's autobiographical book Mein Kampf". The Fourteen Words have been prominently used by neo-Nazis, white power skinheads and certain white nationalists and the alt-right. "88" is used by some as a shorthand for "Heil Hitler", 'H' being the 8th letter of the alphabet, though Lane viewed Nazism along with America as being part of the "Zionist conspiracy".Lane's ideology was anti-American, white separatist, and insurrectionist; he considered loyalty to the United States to be "racial treason" and upheld the acronym "Our Race Is Our Nation" ("ORION"), viewing the United States as committing genocide against white people and as having been founded as a New World Order to finalize a global Zionist government.Being bitterly opposed to the continued existence of the United States as a political entity, and labeling it the "murderer of the White race", Lane further advocated domestic terrorism as a tool to carve out a "white homeland" in the Northern Mountain States. To that end, Lane issued a declaration called "Moral Authority", published through now-defunct 14 Word Press and shared through the publications of Aryan Nations, World Church of the Creator, and other white separatist groups, in which he referred to the United States as a "Red, White and Blue traveling mass murder machine", while asserting that "true moral authority belongs to those who resist genocide".This recording reflects the Wikipedia text as of 03:07 UTC on Wednesday, 16 July 2025.For the full current version of the article, see Fourteen Words on Wikipedia.This podcast uses content from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.Visit our archives at wikioftheday.com and subscribe to stay updated on new episodes.Follow us on Mastodon at @wikioftheday@masto.ai.Also check out Curmudgeon's Corner, a current events podcast.Until next time, I'm standard Kendra.
In this episode of "This Week in WordPress" #340, Nathan Wrigley, Michelle Frechette, Tammie Lister, and Piccia Neri discuss community news and updates, including the gamification of WP World, a new accessibility podcast, and the maintaine.rs open-source story collection. They cover WordPress project news, calls for contributors for versions 6.9 and 6.8.2, responses to the Matt Mullenweg / WP Engine controversy, and the launch of a WordPress contribution internship program. The panel also highlights independent WordPress events, a proposal for phased plugin updates, and growth in block-based themes like Ollie, along with broader tech and community reflections.
In this episode, Steven and Shaun revisit their skepticism about the WeWalk smart cane and how the second-generation model has changed their minds. Steven details real-world use cases including avoiding tree branches, navigating around parked vehicles, and controlling navigation via the cane's handle—all while keeping his phone in his pocket.They also discuss the accessibility challenges of video editing for blind users, the pros and cons of Windows and Mac, and their continued struggle to master Reaper. Plus, there's a deep dive into cane tips like the Pathfinder 360 and spring-loaded NoJab, and a look at the potential of AI voice assistants in mobility tech.Chapters00:00 - Start00:39 - Steven likes the PC (again)04:29 - Using Reaper for video editing?11:09 - A question for the Wordpress users out there17:01 - More WeWalk talk!44:49 - Get in touch with the Double Tappers45:12 - More WeWalk talking Find Double Tap online: YouTube, Double Tap Website---Follow on:YouTube: https://www.doubletaponair.com/youtubeX (formerly Twitter): https://www.doubletaponair.com/xInstagram: https://www.doubletaponair.com/instagramTikTok: https://www.doubletaponair.com/tiktokThreads: https://www.doubletaponair.com/threadsFacebook: https://www.doubletaponair.com/facebookLinkedIn: https://www.doubletaponair.com/linkedin Subscribe to the Podcast:Apple: https://www.doubletaponair.com/appleSpotify: https://www.doubletaponair.com/spotifyRSS: https://www.doubletaponair.com/podcastiHeadRadio: https://www.doubletaponair.com/iheart About Double TapHosted by the insightful duo, Steven Scott and Shaun Preece, Double Tap is a treasure trove of information for anyone who's blind or partially sighted and has a passion for tech. Steven and Shaun not only demystify tech, but they also regularly feature interviews and welcome guests from the community, fostering an interactive and engaging environment. Tune in every day of the week, and you'll discover how technology can seamlessly integrate into your life, enhancing daily tasks and experiences, even if your sight is limited. "Double Tap" is a registered trademark of Double Tap Productions Inc.
After designing dozens and dozens of websites over the years, I made the switch from WordPress to Showit back in 2020—and I haven't looked back. In this episode, I'm breaking down the real reasons behind the switch (and no, it's not just because it's “pretty”). From ditching plugin updates to freeing up design control, I'm sharing the behind-the-scenes of how this move made life easier for both me and my clients—and how it helped me grow my business, too. If you've ever felt overwhelmed by WordPress, stuck in rigid design limitations, or want a simpler way to launch a beautiful and strategic site—this one's for you. HERE'S WHAT I'M SHARING: - Why I got tired of constant plugin updates and tech fires - The stress-free maintenance experience with Showit - How Showit gives total creative freedom—without needing to code - Why the WordPress blog integration still plays a role in my website strategy - How switching to Showit made selling website templates 10x easier - The hidden perks that made it a no-brainer for my creative, travel-based clients RESOURCES MENTIONED: → Try Showit (my affiliate link): https://showit.com/r/inflow → Explore our travel-inspired Showit website templates: inflowdesignco.com/shop → Need help choosing the right platform or template? Book a consult: inflowdesignco.com/contact
You've probably heard of VIP days or Website in a Day packages…but if you've yet to crack the code on how to do them effectively, DO NOT MISS this episode.Bailey Collins and her Honey Wave Creative team have landed over 400+ website in a day projects and are now charging $3,800 (addons available) for each design day client.Now, I had some questions…How do you fight scope creep?How do you sell these?Is it truly a day or is it more of a week?How do you balance delivering these and running the business?Do you offer maintenance plans after they go live?Well, all of that (and much more) is answered here because Bailey held absolutely nothing back. So if you're ready to launch your design day offer…this is an audio pile of GOLD!!P.S. Bailey has put her entire system and process into a brand new course to help you do the same!Because I don't teach on design days, I'm happy to partner up with Bailey on this and recommend that you just steal everything she does to save you time.Head here to jump into her new Design Day Blueprint course!Head to the show notes to get all links and resources we mentioned along with a full transcription of this episode at joshhall.co/387
In this episode, host Jenn Foster dives deep into the world of digital marketing and web design with Shailesh Ghimire of New Wine Digital. Shailesh is an experienced digital marketing expert who specializes in custom web design, pay-per-click advertising, SEO, and the ever-evolving influence of AI on the industry. Together, they explore the complexities of building a strong online presence for small businesses, the pros and cons of platforms like Wix, Squarespace, and WordPress, and why staying updated on design trends and website functionality is crucial for keeping your brand competitive. They also discuss the rise of AI in marketing—from content creation to analytics—unpacking its current limitations (think "AI hallucinations") and practical uses within industry-specific tools.
This week I Talk About Having An Affiliate Program [powerpress]
Audio Disclaimer: We apologize for some audio glitches in this episode. They should not take away from your enjoyment of the episode. Movie Miss is joined by special guest and Weird Al superfan Darren, to discuss the 1989 "turkey" UHF starring Weird Al Yankovic, David Bowe and Kevin McCarthy. *SPOILERS DUH!* At the time this episode was recorded, you can WATCH UHF HERE: free on Tubi, Pluto TV and YouTube.We're also on YouTube, Apple, Goodpods, Pandora, Amazon & Audible and ko-fi.com/letstalkturkeysA proud member of the Prescribed Film Podcast network #PFPNPlease take a moment to rate & review the show! Be part of our fun bad movie conversations (We Want To Interact With You and Hear Your Thoughts!) by following both our facebook discussion group and our official page Let's Talk Turkeys, on Instagram at letstalkturkeys (all one word), email us directly at letstalkturkeys@yahoo.com, we're on X (Twitter) @gobblepodcast, Bluesky @letstalkturkeys and check us out on Wordpress at https://letstalkturkeys150469722.wordpress.com/Find Movie Miss on IG at movie_miss & Slasher*COVER ART by: Dave Carruthers*
In this episode of The WP Minute+ podcast, Matt is joined by veteran writer Maddy Osman to discuss the evolving landscape of content creation in the age of AI. Maddy shares her journey, including her recent book and course launch, and reflects on the impact of AI on writing and content marketing. They explore the balance between leveraging AI tools and maintaining human creativity, the importance of personal experiences in writing, and the need for businesses to adapt to changing audience behaviors. The discussion also focuses on building trust and community in a digital world, as well as the future of WordPress in the context of AI advancements. Key Takeaways:Maddy discusses how becoming a parent has changed her career.She launched a LinkedIn Learning course based on her book, Writing for Humans and Robots: The New Rules of Content Style.AI is a tool that can't replicate everything yet.Content creators are among the first affected by AI.AI can enhance workflows, but shouldn't replace human thought.Human experience is crucial in writing and content creation.AI can create efficiencies, but may lead to a toxic hustle culture.Brands need to guide users through new technologies.Content marketing is evolving in response to shifting audience preferences.Building trust and human connections is essential in business. Important Links:Maddy Osman on LinkedInThe BlogsmithWriting for Humans and Robots: The New Rules of Content Style ★ Support this podcast ★
In this LMScast, Founder Karen Wisch of Graphics by Design talks about how she transitioned from traditional graphic design to web development. She began her profession in design when computers were widely used, and once a customer requested a website, she progressively moved into web programming. Karen finally started using WordPress after learning it on […] The post How Missouri Credentialing Board Built a Continuing Education Platform With LifterLMS appeared first on LMScast.
David Heinemeier Hansson (aka DHH) is a legendary programmer, creator of Ruby on Rails, co-owner & CTO of 37signals that created Basecamp, HEY, & ONCE, and is a NYT-best-selling author (with Jason Fried) of 4 books: REWORK, REMOTE, Getting Real, and It Doesn't Have To Be Crazy At Work. He is also a race car driver, including a class-winning performance at the 24 hour Le Mans race. Thank you for listening ❤ Check out our sponsors: https://lexfridman.com/sponsors/ep474-sc See below for timestamps, transcript, and to give feedback, submit questions, contact Lex, etc. Transcript: https://lexfridman.com/dhh-david-heinemeier-hansson-transcript CONTACT LEX: Feedback - give feedback to Lex: https://lexfridman.com/survey AMA - submit questions, videos or call-in: https://lexfridman.com/ama Hiring - join our team: https://lexfridman.com/hiring Other - other ways to get in touch: https://lexfridman.com/contact EPISODE LINKS: DHH's X: https://x.com/dhh DHH's Website: https://dhh.dk/ Ruby on Rails: https://rubyonrails.org/ 37signals: https://37signals.com/ DHH's books: Rework: https://amzn.to/44rSKob Remote: https://amzn.to/44GFJ91 It Doesn't Have to Be Crazy at Work: https://amzn.to/46bzuwx Getting Real: https://amzn.to/4kzoMDg SPONSORS: To support this podcast, check out our sponsors & get discounts: UPLIFT Desk: Standing desks and office ergonomics. Go to https://upliftdesk.com/lex Lindy: No-code AI agent builder. Go to https://go.lindy.ai/lex LMNT: Zero-sugar electrolyte drink mix. Go to https://drinkLMNT.com/lex Shopify: Sell stuff online. Go to https://shopify.com/lex NetSuite: Business management software. Go to http://netsuite.com/lex OUTLINE: (00:00) - Introduction (00:58) - Sponsors, Comments, and Reflections (08:48) - Programming - early days (26:13) - JavaScript (36:32) - Google Chrome and DOJ (44:19) - Ruby programming language (51:30) - Beautiful code (1:09:31) - Metaprogramming (1:12:52) - Dynamic typing (1:20:10) - Scaling (1:33:03) - Future of programming (1:50:34) - Future of AI (1:56:29) - Vibe coding (2:05:01) - Rails manifesto: Principles of a great programming language (2:29:27) - Why managers are useless (2:38:48) - Small teams (2:44:55) - Jeff Bezos (3:00:13) - Why meetings are toxic (3:07:58) - Case against retirement (3:15:15) - Hard work (3:20:53) - Why we left the cloud (3:24:04) - AWS (3:33:22) - Owning your own servers (3:39:35) - Elon Musk (3:49:17) - Apple (4:01:03) - Tim Sweeney (4:12:37) - Fatherhood (4:38:19) - Racing (5:05:23) - Cars (5:10:41) - Programming setup (5:25:51) - Programming language for beginners (5:39:09) - Open source (5:48:01) - WordPress drama (5:59:18) - Money and happiness (6:08:11) - Hope
This week, we discuss the return of command line tools, Kubernetes embracing VMs, and the steady march of Windows. Plus, thoughts on TSA, boots, and the “old country." Watch the YouTube Live Recording of Episode (https://www.youtube.com/live/W0_6hPybAsQ?si=QfWLvts-ueyATxtz) 528 (https://www.youtube.com/live/W0_6hPybAsQ?si=QfWLvts-ueyATxtz) Runner-up Titles Pool Problems Stockholm Pool Syndrome The Old Country VMs aren't going anywhere Vaya con Dios This is why we have milk Why's he talking about forks? Commander Claude The Columbia Music House business plan Beat this horse into glue Reinvent Command Line “Man falls in love with CLI” Windows is always giving you the middle button CBT - Claude Behavioral Therapy. Rundown TSA tests security lines allowing passengers to keep their shoes on (https://www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2025/07/08/tsa-shoe-policy-airport-security/) KubeCon Is Starting To Sound a Lot Like VMCon (https://thenewstack.io/kubecon-is-starting-to-sound-a-lot-like-vmcon/?link_source=ta_bluesky_link&taid=6866ce8d6b59ab0001f28d23&utm_campaign=trueanthem&utm_medium=social&utm_source=bluesky) Claude Code and the CLI Gemini CLI: your open-source AI agent (https://blog.google/technology/developers/introducing-gemini-cli-open-source-ai-agent/) Cursor launches a web app to manage AI coding agents (https://techcrunch.com/2025/06/30/cursor-launches-a-web-app-to-manage-ai-coding-agents/) AI Tooling, Evolution and The Promiscuity of Modern Developers (https://redmonk.com/sogrady/2025/07/09/promiscuity-of-modern-developers/) Introducing OpenCLI (https://patriksvensson.se/posts/2025/07/introducing-open-cli) Windows Windows 11 has finally overtaken Windows 10 as the most used desktop OS (https://www.theverge.com/news/699161/microsoft-windows-11-usage-milestone-windows-10) Microsoft quietly implies Windows has LOST millions of users since Windows 11 debut — are people really abandoning ship? [UPDATE] (https://www.windowscentral.com/software-apps/windows-11/windows-11-10-lost-400-million-users-3-years) Relevant to your Interests Public cloud becomes a commodity (https://www.infoworld.com/article/4011196/public-cloud-becomes-a-commodity.html?utm_date=20250625131623&utm_campaign=InfoWorld%20US%20%20All%20Things%20Cloud&utm_content=slotno-1-title-Public%20cloud%20becomes%20a%20commodity&utm_term=Infoworld%20US%20Editorial%20Newsletters&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Adestra&aid=29276237&huid=) Nvidia Ruffles Tech Giants With Move Into Cloud Computing (https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/nvidia-dgx-cloud-computing-28c49748?mod=hp_lead_pos11) Which Coding Assistants Retain Their Customers and Which Ones Don't (https://www.theinformation.com/articles/coding-assistants-retain-customers-ones?utm_source=ti_app&rc=giqjaz) Anthropic destroyed millions of print books to build its AI models (https://arstechnica.com/ai/2025/06/anthropic-destroyed-millions-of-print-books-to-build-its-ai-models/) Sam Altman upstages the critics (https://www.platformer.news/sam-altman-hard-fork-live/?ref=platformer-newsletter) The Ultimate Cloud Security Championship | 12 Months × 12 Challenges (https://cloudsecuritychampionship.com/) Denmark to tackle deepfakes by giving people copyright to their own features (https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/jun/27/deepfakes-denmark-copyright-law-artificial-intelligence) Why Automattic CEO Matt Mullenweg went to war over WordPress (https://overcast.fm/+AAQLdsK48uM) How Nintendo locked down the Switch 2's USB-C port and broke third-party docking (https://www.theverge.com/report/695915/switch-2-usb-c-third-party-docks-dont-work-authentication-encryption) CoreWeave to acquire Core Scientific in $9 billion all-stock deal (https://www.cnbc.com/2025/07/07/coreweave-core-scientific-stock-acquisition.html) Valve conquered PC gaming. What comes next? (https://www.ft.com/content/f4a13716-838a-43da-853b-7c31ac17192c) Datadog stock jumps 10% on tech company's inclusion in S&P 500 index (https://www.cnbc.com/2025/07/02/datadog-stock-jumps-sp-500-index-inclusion.html) Jack Dorsey just released a Bluetooth messaging app that doesn't need the internet (https://www.engadget.com/apps/jack-dorsey-just-released-a-bluetooth-messaging-app-that-doesnt-need-the-internet-191023870.html) Unlock the Full Chainguard Containers Catalog – Now with a Catalog Pricing Option (https://www.chainguard.dev/unchained/unlock-the-full-chainguard-containers-catalog-now-with-a-catalog-pricing-option) Oracle stock jumps after $30 billion annual cloud deal revealed in filing (https://www.cnbc.com/2025/06/30/oracle-orcl-stock-cloud-deal.html) Docker State of App Dev: AI (https://www.docker.com/blog/docker-state-of-app-dev-ai/) X Chief Says She Is Leaving the Social Media Platform (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/09/technology/linda-yaccarino-x-steps-down.html) Meta's recruiting blitz claims three OpenAI researchers (https://techcrunch.com/2025/06/25/metas-recruiting-blitz-claims-three-openai-researchers/) OpenAI Reportedly Shuts Down for a Week as Zuck Poaches Its Top Talent (https://gizmodo.com/openai-reportedly-shuts-down-for-a-week-as-zuck-poaches-its-top-talent-2000622145?utm_source=tldrnewsletter) OpenAI Leadership Responds to Meta Offers: ‘Someone Has Broken Into Our Home' (https://www.wired.com/story/openai-meta-leadership-talent-rivalry/) Sam Altman Slams Meta's AI Talent-Poaching Spree: ‘Missionaries Will Beat Mercenaries' (https://www.wired.com/story/sam-altman-meta-ai-talent-poaching-spree-leaked-messages/) Report: Apple looked into building its own AWS competitor (https://9to5mac.com/2025/07/03/report-apple-looked-into-building-its-own-aws-competitor/) Cloudflare launches a marketplace that lets websites charge AI bots for scraping (https://techcrunch.com/2025/07/01/cloudflare-launches-a-marketplace-that-lets-websites-charge-ai-bots-for-scraping/) The Open-Source Software Saving the Internet From AI Bot Scrapers (https://www.404media.co/the-open-source-software-saving-the-internet-from-ai-bot-scrapers/) Nonsense After 8 years of playing D&D nonstop, I've finally tried its biggest alternative (https://www.polygon.com/tabletop-games/610875/dnd-alternative-dungeon-crawl-classics-old-school) TSA tests security lines allowing passengers to keep their shoes on (https://www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2025/07/08/tsa-shoe-policy-airport-security/) Conferences Sydney Wizdom Meet-Up (https://www.wiz.io/events/sydney-wizdom-meet-up-aug-2025), Sydney, August 7. Matt will be there. SpringOne (https://www.vmware.com/explore/us/springone?utm_source=organic&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=cote), Las Vegas, August 25th to 28th, 2025. See Coté's pitch (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_xOudsmUmk). Explore 2025 US (https://www.vmware.com/explore/us?utm_source=organic&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=cote), Las Vegas, August 25th to 28th, 2025. See Coté's pitch (https://www.youtube.com/shorts/-COoeIJcFN4). SREDay London (https://sreday.com/2025-london-q3/), Coté speaking, September 18th and 19th. Civo Navigate London (https://www.civo.com/navigate/london/2025), Coté speaking, September 30th. Texas Linux Fest (https://2025.texaslinuxfest.org), Austin, October 3rd to 4th. CFP closes August 3rd (https://www.papercall.io/txlf2025). CF Day EU (https://events.linuxfoundation.org/cloud-foundry-day-europe/), Frankfurt, October 7th, 2025. AI for the Rest of Us (https://aifortherestofus.live/london-2025), Coté speaking, October 15th to 16th, London. SDT News & Community Join our Slack community (https://softwaredefinedtalk.slack.com/join/shared_invite/zt-1hn55iv5d-UTfN7mVX1D9D5ExRt3ZJYQ#/shared-invite/email) Email the show: questions@softwaredefinedtalk.com (mailto:questions@softwaredefinedtalk.com) Free stickers: Email your address to stickers@softwaredefinedtalk.com (mailto:stickers@softwaredefinedtalk.com) Follow us on social media: Twitter (https://twitter.com/softwaredeftalk), Threads (https://www.threads.net/@softwaredefinedtalk), Mastodon (https://hachyderm.io/@softwaredefinedtalk), LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/company/software-defined-talk/), BlueSky (https://bsky.app/profile/softwaredefinedtalk.com) Watch us on: Twitch (https://www.twitch.tv/sdtpodcast), YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCi3OJPV6h9tp-hbsGBLGsDQ/featured), Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/softwaredefinedtalk/), TikTok (https://www.tiktok.com/@softwaredefinedtalk) Book offer: Use code SDT for $20 off "Digital WTF" by Coté (https://leanpub.com/digitalwtf/c/sdt) Sponsor the show (https://www.softwaredefinedtalk.com/ads): ads@softwaredefinedtalk.com (mailto:ads@softwaredefinedtalk.com) Recommendations Brandon: Park ATX Free Parking Codes (https://www.austintexas.gov/page/park-atx): FREE15ATX1 and FREE15ATX2 Matt: Careless People (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Careless_People) Coté: Wizard Zines bundle (https://wizardzines.com/zines/all-the-zines/), Julia Evans. Photo Credits Header (https://unsplash.com/photos/grayscale-photo-of-airplane-on-airport-OxJ6RftLbEA)
In this podcast episode, host Michelle Frechette and guest Sam Waines from Barn 2 Plugins dive into the world of video content creation within the WordPress community. They discuss practical tips on equipment, editing software, and the importance of audio quality. Both share personal experiences, challenges, and lessons learned, emphasizing storytelling and authenticity as keys to audience engagement. The conversation also covers adapting to trends like short-form video and balancing technical skills with creativity. The episode offers actionable advice and inspiration for aspiring content creators looking to improve their video production and connect with viewers.Top TakeawaysContent Is King—Even with Imperfect Production: Across the discussion, Michelle and Sam stress that storytelling, relevance, and usefulness matter more than having flawless lighting, audio, or editing. Viewers are drawn to authentic, valuable stories, not just polished visuals. Imperfection is not a deal-breaker if the message resonates.You Don't Need Expensive Gear to Get Started: Michelle began her podcast with just her built-in Mac mic; Sam started with a $12 lav mic. Both reinforced that starting with what you have—whether it's free software like Audacity, basic webcams, or a phone—is more than enough. You can upgrade incrementally as your content and skills grow.Audio Setup and Environment Make a Big Difference: Simple adjustments like mic placement, soundproofing with rugs or curtains, and checking input levels (especially after software updates) can dramatically improve audio quality. Sam recommends keeping recording levels around 25–50% and watching for clipping using tools like OBS or native Mac settings.Mentioned In The Show:Barn 2 PluginsNomad With UsDaVinci ResolveBlue YetiSony a6400WordPress.orgElementorStreamYardZoom Adobe RushAudacityDescript GarageBand iMovie Screen StudioMira teleprompter software
Today's guest is Matt Mullenweg, Co-founder of WordPress, which powers over 43% of all websites on the internet, and founder of Automattic.Our conversation explores the 2000's internet, the early days of Automattic, and the decisions and philosophies that set them up for success 20 years later.We talk open source software, why Matt's such a big proponent of it, how Automattic built its business model as one of the first SaaS companies (that now owns companies like Tumblr and WooCommerce), and how AI is changing engineering.Matt also shares how to build a community around your product, “Conscious Capitalism”, what he learned running one of the first distributed teams, and lessons on optimism from Walt Disney.Thanks to Ramp for supporting this episode. It's the corporate card and expense management platform used by over 40,000 companies, like Shopify, CBRE and Stripe. Time is money. Save both with Ramp. Get your $250 here.Timestamps:(3:48) WordPress: Powering 43% of the internet(8:30) Outcompeting Reid Hoffman's startup in the early days(14:03) Why open source wins over the long-term(16:21) Business models in open source(21:12) Starting Automattic in 2005, one of the first SaaS companies(28:45) Spending most of Automattic's Seed round on servers(33:36) How to use Community + Word of Mouth for early growth(38:38) Matt's current situation with WP Engine(43:30) How to give back in open source(53:55) Best practices from 20 years of a remote company(59:59) Lessons on optimism from Walt Disney(1:12:33) How AI is changing coding(1:16:09) How Automattic created an internal employee secondary market(1:23:51) How open source increases longevity (1:26:08) Matt's favorite classical thinkersReferenced:AutomatticWordpressMatt's BlogBay Lights in SFInnocence ProjectVesuvius ChallengePlastic ListThe Giving PledgeDAFFYPessimist ArchiveMatt's favorite quote from Rudy FranciscoMaintenance by Stuart BrandWe are as Gods by Stuart BrandMarginal Revolution by Tyler CohenFollow MattTwitterLinkedInFollow TurnerTwitterLinkedInSubscribe to my newsletter to get every episode + the transcript in your inbox every week.
In this episode of WP Builds, Nathan Wrigley talks with Katie Keith, founder and CEO of Barn2 Plugins, about their new partnership with Setary, a SaaS bulk editing tool for WooCommerce products. Katie shares the story behind the partnership, how Setary streamlines bulk product edits through a spreadsheet interface, and its time-saving benefits for both technical and non-technical users. They also discuss plans for a Shopify version and upcoming features like scheduling. Katie touches on integration with custom fields, pricing, and special offers for existing Barn2 customers.
Send us a textThe Mirror Test: When You Look at Yourself, What Do You Really See?From intimacy and energy to leadership and parenting, your body touches everything—and it might be time to look at that, differently.In this eye-opening conversation, we're joined by Coach Esteban Lutz, Elite Transformation Physique and Hormone Strategist and creator of the K7 METHOD. With over 30 years of experience, Esteban's guided everyone from NFL Super Bowl champions to 9-figure entrepreneurs through powerful transformations—without sacrificing their family life or personal joy.This isn't about calorie counting or cardio marathons. It's about identity. It's about your environment. And it's about the unconscious patterns shaping your decisions (and your results), whether you're aware of them or not.We dive into: ✨ What really keeps us stuck in health loops—and why willpower isn't the answer ✨ The 7 variables that determine your results (hint: most programs only focus on 2) ✨ Why your environment shapes your outcomes more than your goals ✨ How inflammation, hormones, and even your tribe are impacting your results ✨ The emotional cost of not feeling at home in your body—and how it ripples into relationships, parenting, and leadershipThis episode isn't just for the woman ready to feel strong again. It's for the high-achiever who's tired of chasing results with systems that don't feel sustainable.Esteban shares vulnerably about his own journey through stress, weight gain, identity loss—and the uncomfortable mirror moment that changed everything. He also breaks down how his K7 METHOD helps clients eliminate brain fog, belly fat, and burnout through strategic mastery of sleep, hydration, movement, nutrition, supplementation, and hormone rebalancing.
Tune in to WELSTech 754 for tips and tricks related to church photography. There's also discussion regarding finding an icon for any need and the effect of AI on mission outreach. Plus the WELSTech Google Group is in the spotlight with lots of great input on the topic of cyber security training. The discussion Click, […]
On the podcast today Nathan Wrigley talks with Héctor de Prada, co-founder of Modular DS and an organiser of the WordPress Meetup in León, Spain. Héctor shares his motivations for fostering local WordPress communities, details how the team organises popular, well-attended Meetups, and explains their strategies for inclusive topics, sponsorship, and creating a welcoming atmosphere. They also discuss the importance of variety in event formats, supporting new organisers, and the positive impact Meetups have on networking and opportunities within their local tech ecosystem. If you've ever thought about starting a WordPress Meetup in your city, or want to bring new energy to an existing group, this episode is for you.
Send us a textIn this episode, Danny chats with Santi Schamberger, passionate and dedicated web developer at Optidge. They dive into the foundational elements of successful websites, the evolution of WordPress, and why UX matters more than flashy design. Santi opens up about his self-taught journey, agency life, and how real impact comes from aligning websites with actual business goals. This episode provides a roadmap for creating digital experiences that not only look professional but actually drive business results. An Optidge "Office Hours" EpisodeOur Office Hours episodes are your go-to for details, how-to's, and advice on specific marketing topics. Join our fellow Optidge team members, and sometimes even 1:1 teachings from Danny himself, in these shorter, marketing-focused episodes every few weeks. Get ready to get marketing!Episode Highlights:Santi breaks down why good, optimized websites convert — and pretty ones often don't.He shares how learning SEO, design, and development together creates a complete skill set for developers and his tips along his self-taught journey in web development. Discover through Santi's experience why collaboration between designers and developers is key in preventing digital disasters.Learn how WordPress, Elementor, and Hello Theme make life easier for devs and clients.A 30% lift in conversions? Santi proves data-led redesigns actually work.Episode Links:
Do you run a Canadian group private practice? Are you mostly (or all) online? It can be tricky to maintain the community feeling of an online group practice, especially with a few therapists and employees, and especially if community is one of your business values. However, it doesn't mean it's impossible! My guest today, Rachel, and I discuss how to incorporate different systems in private practice to maintain a sense of community and connection, as well as how to be authentic in your marketing and in the work your practice puts out into the community. MEET RACHEL Rachel Brennan is an Ontario-based Registered Psychotherapist and the founder of Eras Therapy & Wellness, a Canadian virtual group private practice. She has a clinical focus on childhood and relational trauma, as well as anxiety, self-esteem, and body image issues. Based in Toronto, Rachel is passionate about offering high-quality, authentic, and human-centered therapy that prioritizes genuine connection and emotional safety. Outside the therapy room, she can often be found adventuring with her two rescue dogs or planning her next trip across the globe. Learn more about Rachel on her practice website, Psychology Today, and Instagram profiles. In this episode: Why Rachel became a therapist Starting her private practice Turning the practice into a group Maintaining the connection in an online group practice Advice to listeners Why Rachel became a therapist Rachel first completed two years of medical school, because it was her first plan. However, due to developing a brain injury and chronic illnesses, she decided to pivot her life. Starting her private practice Rachel was dedicated to opening up her Canadian private practice even while she was still completing her Master's degree. After graduating, Rachel jumped into private practice and has not looked back since! Her private practice is currently totally virtual, and even though it works very well for her and her team now, she may open up a physical office space in the future. Turning the practice into a group Rachel hired her first associate, who still works within her practice, and registered her practice as a practicum site so that she can take in students as well. She collaborates with supervisors who work with her and the students. Rachel is taking it slow and checking in with herself and her team to make sure the practice is growing sustainably. Maintaining the connection in an online group practice There are a few things that Rachel and her team do to make sure that the sense of community within the group practice is nourished and maintained, especially since they all work online. There are: Monthly team meetings Continuous peer consultation groups Group chats for daily and weekly connections Two in-person events every year for the staff Rachel's group practice also uses Jane App for their bookings, and it's a lifesaver. ‘I feel like I could not do this without Jane, honestly! It makes everything so easy … They're always making improvements too, I've had no issues with video call quality or anything like that.' - Rachel Brennan Advice to listeners Do what feels authentic and organic for you when it comes to marketing to put your best foot forward. Also, immerse yourself in what you want! For example, surround yourself with people who have private practices when you want to build one yourself. Connect with me: Instagram Website Resources mentioned and useful links: Ep 168: Dakota Grass: Life as a New Canadian Private Practice Owner | EP 168 Learn more about the tools and deals that I love and use for my Canadian private practice Sign up for my free e-course on How to Start an Online Canadian Private Practice Jane App (use code FEARLESS for one month free) Get some help and freebies on your website with WordPress! Learn more about Rachel on her practice website, Psychology Today, and Instagram profiles Rate, review, and subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon, and TuneIn
Find us: Apple Podcasts: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/epic-film-guys- Official Fan Group : https://www.facebook.com/groups/epicfilmguys Feed URL: https://epicfilmguys.podbean.com/feed/ Wordpress: http://epicfilmguys.wordpress.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/epicfilmguysny/live You can also catch us on most every podcatcher under the sun! Search for us on BluBrry, Stitcher, Spreaker, Google Podcasts, Overcast, and many others. Search and you will find us! There has never been a better time to join up with the elites at https://www.patreon.com/epicfilmguys! You can get access to pre-roll and outtakes from the show, exclusive episodes, free swag, and so much more. Tiers start as low as $1/month! Please consider supporting the show, and thank you for being one of the EFG faithful!
In "This Week in WordPress #339," Nathan Wrigley is joined by Zach Stepek, Tim Nash, and Remkus de Vries to discuss new educational WordPress courses on security and performance, as well as Nathan's new Podcaster Plus plugin seeking beta testers. The panel covers the upcoming WP Awards, lower-than-expected WordCamp US ticket sales, and the paused Tumblr-to-WordPress migration. They highlight updates to the WordPress developer blog, a new plugin called Better Loops, and whether default themes should be paused. We also have a lively debate on event sponsorships, AI's impact on content, and practical WordPress community updates.
I'm not currently active on LinkedIn but ironically, if I was starting a web design business today, it's the place I'd spend most of my social media/online connection time.Why? Well, mainly because I know it's geared towards connecting professionals rather than social media algorithm entertainment. If you're interested in what's working well for getting clients on LinkedIn today, my chat with LinkedIn expert Joe McKay is a great guide to follow.Joe knows the platform, knows the ins and outs and how to practically set yourself up for success rather than burnout if you're going to commit to making LinkedIn a large part of your social strategy.Head to the show notes to get all links and resources we mentioned along with a full transcription of this episode at joshhall.co/386
This week I Share 10 Reasons Why There Is Power of Showing Up In Person [powerpresss]
In this podcast episode, host Michelle Frechette welcomes Felix Arntz, a senior software engineer at Google, about his decade of contributions to the WordPress community. Felix shares insights on effective communication, persistence, and attention to detail in open-source collaboration. He highlights the importance of building relationships, learning from others, and embracing the welcoming nature of the WordPress community. The episode also introduces Felix's new "View Transitions" plugin, designed to enhance user experience. Listeners are encouraged to engage, contribute, and build connections within the WordPress ecosystem.Top Takeaways:Attention to Detail Is a Key Marker of ProfessionalismFelix and Michelle emphasized that small details—like capitalizing the "P" in WordPress—may seem trivial but are taken seriously by seasoned professionals. This attention to detail reflects pride in one's work and often becomes a litmus test for developers and marketers alike when assessing quality and seriousness.Thinking at Scale and Growing Gradually Are Crucial in Open Source Contribution: Felix discussed the importance of thinking at scale, especially when contributing to WordPress core. A feature might work well for a blog with 80 posts but break down on a site with tens of thousands. Additionally, contributors are encouraged to increase scope gradually, starting with bug fixes, so they can build trust, demonstrate commitment, and avoid burnout or disappointment when larger proposals stall.Personal Motivation Can Guide Your Niche in Open Source Work: Felix shared how his contributions to WordPress core initially grew out of real-world problems he encountered during freelance work. This insight reinforces the idea that contributors should follow their authentic interests and pain points when selecting where to focus their energy, making their efforts more sustainable and impactful.Relationships and Community Are the Heart of the WordPress Project: Michelle and Felix agreed that building personal relationships—whether at WordCamps, online, or through collaborative work—is not just rewarding personally, but also essential for project momentum. Felix shared how meeting someone briefly in person changes how online collaboration feels. Michelle told a moving story about how her community connections helped her navigate an inaccessible travel situation, underscoring the tangible power of WordPress friendships.Mentioned in the Show:This Week in WordPressFelix-Arntz.me
#483 What if your next income stream came from a quiet little corner of the internet — website hosting? In this episode, host Kirsten Tyrrel sits down with Link Moser, a 30-year veteran in the service-based business world, who built a recurring revenue machine by maintaining and hosting websites for hundreds of small businesses. Link shares how a $25/month upsell turned into a career, why he prefers acquisition over ads, and how “boring” services like hosting, domain management, and WordPress maintenance can be both profitable and sustainable. You'll hear how Link uses micro-acquisitions to scale, what to look for when buying a service-based business, and why staying in your zone of genius is the key to long-term success — especially in a fast-changing, AI-powered world. Whether you're looking for a new side hustle or dreaming of buying your first business, this episode is full of down-to-earth wisdom and actionable takeaways! What we discuss with Link: + Building websites since 1995 + Turning hosting into recurring revenue + Buying server space and reselling + Micro-acquisitions to scale fast + Pros and cons of owning hosting + Why service beats price competition + Adding value with maintenance plans + Buying vs. starting a business + Structuring earn-outs with minimal risk + AI's role in future service businesses Thank you, Link! Check out Link Moser at LinkMoser.com. Check out Windhill Design at Windhill.com. Follow Link on LinkedIn. To get access to our FREE Business Training course go to MillionaireUniversity.com/training. And follow us on: Instagram Facebook Tik Tok Youtube Twitter To get exclusive offers mentioned in this episode and to support the show, visit millionaireuniversity.com/sponsors. Want to hear from more incredible entrepreneurs? Check out all of our interviews here! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Today, I'm talking with Matt Mullenweg, the founder and CEO of Automattic and the public face of WordPress. Last year, Matt essentially went to war, publicly and in the courts, against a hosting company called WP Engine, and there's been significant fallout at Automattic and the broader WordPress community. It's been a long, drawn-out saga. That said, Matt was willing to come on the show and talk through some of this thinking here, why he made some of the decisions he did, and also what he regrets about how some of this went down. Links: The messy WordPress drama, explained | Verge Celebrating 20 Years of Automattic | Automattic Matt Mullenweg: ‘WordPress.org just belongs to me' | Verge Automattic offered employees another chance to quit over | Verge WordPress owner Automattic is laying off 16 percent of workers | Verge Tumblr will move all of its blogs to WordPress | Verge Beeper was just acquired by Automattic | Verge Automattic acquires relationship manager Clay | TechCrunch How WordPress and Tumblr are keeping the internet weird | Decoder How to buy a social network, with Tumblr CEO Matt Mullenweg | Decoder Credits: Decoder is a production of The Verge and part of the Vox Media Podcast Network. Our producers are Kate Cox and Nick Statt. Our editor is Ursa Wright. The Decoder music is by Breakmaster Cylinder. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices