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Every stage of business breaks you in a different way, and nobody warns you which thing is about to break. So it always feels like you are the only one who cannot figure it out. You are not. The game just changed and nobody told you. Here is the pattern I have seen after building Foundr for over a decade and interviewing 700 founders: the person who gets you to $1 million is not the same person who gets you to $10 million. Each milestone demands you become someone new, and the hardest part is never the strategy. It is the identity shift. In this episode, I break down the three revenue walls, the million dollar wall, the five million wall, and the ten million wall, and exactly what changes and what breaks at each one. Here's what you'll take away: • The million dollar wall: why revenue plateaus because there is only one of you, and why letting go is emotionally brutal • The five million wall: the boring systems nobody wants to build, and why culture becomes a choice you make every day or it decays • The hire I tolerated for 18 months because I wanted to be liked, and how "what you walk past, you endorse" poisoned the whole team • The ten million wall: why the thing that breaks is not the business, it is your identity, and the transition from founder to CEO • Why imposter syndrome gets louder at eight figures, not quieter, and the cruel paradox that growing faster means doing less • The one piece of advice from a founder at peace with his business: only sell if you have something else you actually want to do If you are hitting a ceiling right now and cannot work out why, this episode will help you identify which wall you are approaching and who you need to become to get through it. If you're loving this solo series, I'd love to hear your feedback. Email me directly at nathan@foundr.com — I read every reply. Hope you enjoy it. SAVE 50% ON OMNISEND FOR 3 MONTHS Get 50% off your first 3 months of email and SMS marketing with Omnisend using the code FOUNDR50. Start here → https://your.omnisend.com/foundr SAVE 95% ON XERO FOR 6 MONTHS Simplify your business finances with 95% off Xero for your first 6 months. Start here → https://foundr.com/xero WANT TO GROW YOUR BRAND WITH META ADS? Join the Foundr Operators Waitlist → https://foundr.com/operators HOW WE CAN HELP YOU SCALE YOUR BUSINESS FASTER Learn directly from 7, 8 & 9-figure founders inside Foundr+ Start your $1 trial → https://www.foundr.com/startdollartrial PREFER A CUSTOM ROADMAP AND 1-ON-1 COACHING? → Starting from scratch? Apply here → https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-start-application → Already have a store? Apply here → https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-growth-application CONNECT WITH NATHAN CHAN Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/nathanchan LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanhchan/ FOLLOW FOUNDR FOR MORE BUSINESS GROWTH STRATEGIES YouTube → https://bit.ly/2uyvzdt Website → https://www.foundr.com Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/foundr/ Facebook → https://www.facebook.com/foundr Twitter → https://www.twitter.com/foundr LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/company/foundr/ Podcast → https://www.foundr.com/podcast
The map says oasis; the aisles say Doritos. This Skeptical Sunday, Jessica Wynn explains why grocery stores failed to fix how low-income neighborhoods eat.Welcome to Skeptical Sunday, a special edition of The Jordan Harbinger Show where Jordan and a guest break down a topic that you may have never thought about, open things up, and debunk common misconceptions. This time around, we're joined by writer and researcher Jessica Wynn!Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/1385On This Week's Skeptical Sunday:A 'food desert' is the USDA's label for a low-income neighborhood where hundreds of people live over a mile from a large grocery store — too far, the theory goes, so they eat worse. Build a store and diets improve. Yet billions of dollars later, most residents were already driving past one to shop elsewhere.Distance was never the driver — equalizing access and prices closes just nine to ten percent of the diet gap. The rest is preference, and preference isn't fixed taste; it's learned from culture, marketing, price, and stress. West Harlem got a great supermarket 15 years ago, yet obesity stayed high.The same government building stores to fix diets spends roughly $9 billion a year subsidizing crops like corn and soy — the raw material for syrup, seed oils, and cheap meat. Fresh produce gets under ten percent. No wonder a pint of blueberries costs more than a family-size bag of Blue Takis.The sharper problem isn't the desert but the swamp — neighborhoods saturated with fast food, dollar stores, and junk promotions. Counties with the worst swamp scores saw 77% higher obesity-related cancer deaths. A store can even be a mirage: it's there, but the shelves are mostly Doritos.You can't buy health by proximity, but you can build it through knowledge. Don't abandon the food you love; adjust it. Swap corn oil for olive, tweak a method, make one familiar dish a little healthier. Preference is learned, which means it can be relearned, starting now.Connect with Jordan on Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. If you have something you'd like us to tackle here on Skeptical Sunday, drop Jordan a line at jordan@jordanharbinger.com and let him know!Connect with Jessica Wynn at Instagram (and Instagram!), and subscribe to her newsletters: Between the Lines and Where the Shadows Linger!And if you're still game to support us, please leave a review here — even one sentence helps! Sign up for Six-Minute Networking — our free networking and relationship development mini course — at jordanharbinger.com/course!Subscribe to our once-a-week Wee Bit Wiser newsletter today and start filling your Wednesdays with wisdom!Do you even Reddit, bro? Join us at r/JordanHarbinger!This Episode Is Brought To You By Our Fine Sponsors: Xero: One month of Xero for free: xero.comOrion: 15% off: orionsleep.com/jordanCastbox: Find, organize, and subscribe to the world's best podcasts: castbox.fmFlyKitt: 15% off: flykitt.com, code JORDANSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
You found a profound love late and fast, then lost it to distance and duty. Did you try everything, or let fear end it? It's Feedback Friday!And in case you didn't already know it, Jordan Harbinger (@JordanHarbinger) and Gabriel Mizrahi (@GabeMizrahi) banter and take your comments and questions for Feedback Friday right here every week! If you want us to answer your question, register your feedback, or tell your story on one of our upcoming weekly Feedback Friday episodes, drop us a line at friday@jordanharbinger.com. Now let's dive in!Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/1384On This Week's Feedback Friday:At 42, a British dad with a young daughter, you fell hard and fast for an incredible American woman — hours of video calls, a magical weekend in London, whole futures sketched out. Then her dream job landed and her aging parents' pull won out, and she ended it. You cut off all contact. Did fear decide too soon?Your daughter arrived a couple months ago, and so did a familiar problem: your overbearing mother, who kisses the baby after you begged her not to, drops by unannounced, and insists "there are no boundaries." A book finally named the childhood wound behind it. Now how do you set limits that actually stick?You became a committed Christian and joined a tiny, tight-knit church — half of them one family — but the sexual double entendres, lap-sitting, and playful kissing leave you uneasy in a house of worship. Leadership just says show grace. Is this a culture clash, or a sign your values no longer fit?Recommendation of the Week: No Country for Old Men — Jordan rewatched the Coen brothers' Cormac McCarthy adaptation and was floored all over again by their restraint, ambiguity, and mastery. His broader rec is basically the whole Coen catalog, from Fargo to Inside Llewyn Davis. These dudes rarely miss.At 35, single, an embryologist with a shrimp tank and a stable career, you took a trip to Costa Rica and cried on the plane home, never feeling more at home anywhere. Now you're eyeing visas, a possible PhD, a whole new life. Is it too late, or are you just trading comfort for something braver?Have any questions, comments, or stories you'd like to share with us? Drop us a line at friday@jordanharbinger.com!Connect with Jordan on Twitter at @JordanHarbinger and Instagram at @jordanharbinger.Connect with Gabriel on Twitter at @GabeMizrahi and Instagram @gabrielmizrahi.And if you're still game to support us, please leave a review here — even one sentence helps! Sign up for Six-Minute Networking — our free networking and relationship development mini course — at jordanharbinger.com/course!Subscribe to our once-a-week Wee Bit Wiser newsletter today and start filling your Wednesdays with wisdom!Do you even Reddit, bro? Join us at r/JordanHarbinger!This Episode Is Brought To You By Our Fine Sponsors: Article: Visit article.com/jordan for $50 off your first purchase of $100 or moreXero: One month of Xero for free: xero.comChime: Open an account in two minutes: chime.com/jhsAG1: Welcome kit: drinkag1.com/jordanSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Is AI the real threat to accounting firms, or is it the client experience? Blake and David unpack a KPMG-linked Polymarket insider-trading investigation, AI-powered fraud, Xero's influencer backlash, and a tax startup founder charged with defrauding investors. They also share their own experiments using Claude and ChatGPT to prepare tax returns, making the case that firms must eliminate frustrating back-and-forth if they want to keep clients.SponsorsCloud Accountant Staffing - http://accountingpodcast.promo/casOnPay - http://accountingpodcast.promo/onpayThomson Reuters - http://accountingpodcast.promo/taxautomationSavant Labs - http://accountingpodcast.promo/savantChapters(00:00) - Client Experience Threat (00:30) - Podcast Welcome Banter (02:05) - Week's News Rundown (04:17) - KPMG Polymarket Probe (11:46) - KPMG TaxSim Training (13:40) - KPMG OpenAI Headless UI (17:13) - Deepfake Defense Stakes (18:31) - Revolut Social Engineering (20:33) - Compliant CEO Fraud Case (25:31) - Xero Influencer Backlash (25:41) - Xero Claude Ad Backlash (28:57) - Apology and AI Framing (29:59) - DIY Taxes With AI (34:05) - Client Experience Problem (40:15) - IRS AI Fee Guidance (43:00) - PwC Leaves Downtown LA (44:48) - Wrap Up and CPE Show NotesPolymarket Trader Won 41 of 42 Earnings Bets on Companies KPMG Auditshttps://www.financemagnates.com/forex/polymarket-trader-won-41-of-42-earnings-bets-on-companies-kpmg-audits/SEC Charges Startup Founder with Fraud (Shiloh Luckey / ComplYant)https://www.sec.gov/enforcement-litigation/litigation-releases/lr-26424KPMG Is Testing a New AI-Powered Tax Simulation Toolhttps://goodfest.westfield.com/2026/05/kpmg-is-testing-a-new-ai-powered-tax-simulation-tool/KPMG working with OpenAI to advance new "headless" enterprise tech modelhttps://www.accountingtoday.com/news/kpmg-working-with-openai-to-advance-new-headless-enterprise-tech-modelKPMG LLP Takes Minority Stake in Deepfake Detection Leader Reality Defenderhttps://kpmg.com/us/en/media/news/kpmg-llp-takes-minority-stake-in-deepfake-detection-leader-reality-defender.htmlCybercriminals using AI for fraud are making far more profit, Interpol claimshttps://www.techradar.com/pro/security/cybercriminals-using-ai-for-fraud-are-making-4-5x-more-profit-interpol-saysRevolut confirms customer data breach after fake government requestshttps://fstech.co.uk/fst/Revolut_Confirms_Customer_Data_Breach_After_Fake_Government_Requests.phpXero issues new apology to accountants, days after controversial social media posthttps://www.smartcompany.com.au/?p=344586To our accountant and bookkeeper communityhttps://blog.xero.com/uk/accountants-bookkeepers/to-our-accountant-and-bookkeeper-community/AICPA seeks IRS clarity on AI guidelines, CPA feeshttps://www.thetaxadviser.com/news/2026/sep/aicpa-seeks-irs-clarity-on-ai-guidelines-cpa-fees/Downtown L.A. Fixture PwC Will Move to Century Cityhttps://www.cpapracticeadvisor.com/2026/07/08/downtown-l-a-fixture-pwc-will-move-to-century-city/186368/Need CPE?Get CPE for listening to podcasts with Earmark: https://earmarkcpe.comSubscribe to the Earmark Podcast: https://podcast.earmarkcpe.comGet in TouchThanks for listening and the great reviews! We appreciate you! Follow and tweet @BlakeTOliver and @DavidLeary. Find us on Facebook and Instagram. If you like what you hear, please do us a favor and write a review on Apple Podcasts or Podchaser. Call us and leave a voicemail; maybe we'll play it on the show. DIAL (202) 695-1040.SponsorshipsAre you interested in sponsoring The Accounting Podcast? For details, read the prospectus.Need Accounting Conference Info? Check out our new website - accountingconferences.comLimited edition shirts, stickers, and other necessitiesTeePublic Store: http://cloudacctpod.link/merchSubscribeApple Podcasts: http://cloudacctpod.link/ApplePodcastsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheAccountingPodcastSpotify: http://cloudacctpod.link/SpotifyPodchaser: http://cloudacctpod.link/podchaserStitcher: http://cloudacctpod.link/StitcherOvercast: http://cloudacctpod.link/OvercastClassifieds Fearless Foundry - www.advisoryamplified.comExpense Bot - https://www.expensebot.ai/accountantProfitRoot - https://tryprofitroot.com/Want to get the word out about your newsletter, webinar, party, Facebook group, podcast, e-book, job post...
Kevin demonstrates ways you can adopt AI in the next 100 daysSummary of the PodcastOverviewEpisode 2 of a mini-series within The Next 100 Days Podcast where Kevin Appleby and Graham Arrowsmith discuss how AI is influencing their workPre-recording conversation touched on football transfers (Nick Pope, James Trafford) before the formal recording beganKevin identified four or five distinct areas of AI usage he wanted to coverClaude as a Personal AI Assistant (Pre-Call Preparation)Kevin's primary personal AI tool is Claude Cowork, which he connects to email, Notion, HubSpot, calendar, Dropbox, and Google DriveUse case: 10 minutes before a client call, ask Claude to summarise all recent interactions across those sources — it surfaces outstanding promises, discussion topics, and what to raiseClaude can also draft emails into Gmail drafts (not sent), giving a ~90% ready version the user can refineGraham noted concern about integrating a Synology server; Kevin noted most personal data lives in Dropbox or Google Drive and Claude can connect to bothAI Agents Running AutomaticallyKevin runs two scheduled agents without manual triggeringAgent 1 (daily): Scans calendar 30 days out and checks whether each diary entry has a corresponding task in Notion; creates missing tasks automatically, including a Notion page for notesAgent 2 (weekly): Scans upcoming 30 days for GrowCFO Show or Next 100 Days podcast recordings, researches the guest online, and appends notes (bio, website links, suggested questions) to the relevant Notion taskKevin deliberately ignores AI-suggested questions to preserve natural curiosity in conversation, but acknowledges suggested questions are useful for solo-host formatsThe same agent concept applies to client/partner meetings: an agent could automatically pull last interaction notes before any key meetingAdopt AI in Finance Operations (GrowCFO Context)GrowCFO's current quarterly theme is Intelligent Finance Operations — covering the end-to-end finance cycle from purchase orders to final accountsThree-way matching: AI can match purchase orders, goods receipt notes, and invoices automatically; if all match, the invoice is paid without human interventionFraud detection: AI spots anomalies far more effectively than manual reviewReporting: AI can generate board reports and dashboards from accounting systems; demonstrated in a GrowCFO webinar with tech partner Round Treasury using ClaudeKey value: AI removes grunt work so finance professionals can focus on what the numbers mean, not just crunching themAI's Impact on Finance JobsSignificant job displacement expected in transactional/lower-level finance roles; less so for senior finance business partners whose work is relationship-basedChallenge: AI often saves portions of multiple people's jobs rather than eliminating whole roles, making headcount reduction difficult — a pattern observed in shared services projects long before AISupply of finance professionals is falling, particularly FP&A specialists in the US; AI may initially ease recruitment pressure rather than cut headcountMost finance teams are still at the "chatting with ChatGPT" stage, not yet using agentic or Cowork-style toolsA live example of a fully agentic debt-chasing system: an AI agent that checks the debtors ledger, identifies overdue accounts, calls customers, and holds an intelligent conversation about outstanding invoicesAI Connectivity LimitationsClaude's current integration with Xero is poor — only capable of producing basic debtor reports rather than actionable overdue listsCopilot and Gemini do not support Dropbox connectivity, limiting their use in Kevin's personal setupHallucination risk is reduced when AI operates within a well-defined, high-quality data "cocoon" — the importance of a single source of truthFaster Close and Rolling Forecasts"Faster close" — producing monthly accounts quickly rather than 10–15 days after month-end — has been a finance aspiration for 20+ years and AI now makes it achievableRolling forecasts with multiple scenarios (e.g., 0%, 25%, 50% tariff scenarios) can be modelled and run instantly by AI rather than taking weeks to buildAI Governance in FinanceSegregation of duties must be replicated in AI workflows: different agents or human approvers for setting up suppliers, authorising accounts, and making paymentsA single "super AI agent" handling everything end-to-end is not yet appropriate or auditableUsing AI for Research & White PapersKevin used ChatGPT Deep Research to read ~30 published documents from major consultancies (PwC, Deloitte, EY, Accenture, BCG, Forrester, etc.) on AI in finance ops in 15–20 minutes — work that previously would have taken two graduate trainees a fortnightHe gave both ChatGPT and Claude the same prompt and found ChatGPT produced a better overall result, though Claude surfaced some content ChatGPT missed; he combined bothAI is excellent at generating and researching text but structuring the final document, choosing diagrams, and making it consumable remains a human taskVirtual Board / AI AvatarsA GrowCFO partner CFO used AI avatars of their board members to anticipate board reactions to finance reports before presentingKevin tested a "virtual advisory board" in AI, including public figures like Michael Heppell, and received useful diverse perspectivesThe deeper goal: frame board materials to open up discussion rather than trigger defensive reactionsKAIOS — Kevin's AI Operating System (Personal Project)Started from a ChatGPT conversation: "What if everything you've been taught about time management is a lie?" — leading to the insight that most productivity systems just create more tasks rather than freedomEvolved into KAIOS (Kevin's AI Operating System): a Dropbox-based knowledge structure containing Kevin's values, StrengthsFinder profile, career history, stories, and frameworks — accessible by any AI model via instructions stored within the structureA book outline, introduction, and chapter frameworks have been drafted with ChatGPT's help; the project paused in favour of building KAIOS first so the book has genuine personal stories and IP embeddedGraham suggested this could be Kevin's biggest career opportunity — analogous to how MeclabsAI has built a multi-million pound business around systematised marketing knowledgeKevin noted he prefers positioning himself as an expert using AI in finance rather than as an AI expert per se, given how fast the field movesCareer Reflection & Future DirectionBoth hosts reflected on the retirement vs. continued work question; Kevin expressed enthusiasm for staying engaged with AI developments and not wanting to reach the point where technology no longer makes senseKevin acknowledged competitors in the AI-for-finance space (e.g., Nicholas Boucher's AI Finance Club) but sees his differentiation in applying deep finance and personal IP rather than competing directlyGrowCFO Show is approaching episodeThe Next 100 Days Podcast Co-HostsGraham ArrowsmithGraham founded Finely Fettled in 2014 to provide data from The UK High Net Worth Database to marketers targeting affluent and high-net-worth customers. He's the founder of MicroYES, a Partner for MeclabsAI, creating lead generation AI Agents & Workflows and introducing the MeclabsAI Platform. Graham is an inCruises Independent Partner, and is building up interest from people around the world in the World's Largest Travel Membership - inCruises. You can sign up and access 21,000+ cruises, hotels and tours by clicking HEREKevin ApplebyKevin specialises in finance transformation and implementing business change. He's the COO of GrowCFO, which provides both community and CPD-accredited training designed to grow the next generation of finance leaders. You can find Kevin on LinkedIn and at kevinappleby.com
This episode is supported by Xero, helping businesses use AI with more control through JAX, its in-platform AI finance partner. Get 90% off your plan for your first 6 months at xero.com/highflyers. ________Mike Vernal is a General Partner at Conviction and one of Silicon Valley's most respected operator-turned-investors. He joined Facebook very early, spent eight years there working closely with Mark Zuckerberg and ultimately became VP of Product and Engineering, before becoming a partner at storied venture capital firm Sequoia Capital, where he backed companies including Notion, Rippling, Clay and Statsig.In this conversation, Mike joins Vidit to unpack the journey from Microsoft to joining Facebook when it was still only a few hundred people, helping scale it through one of the most important periods in technology, and later becoming a partner at Sequoia before joining Conviction. He shares what he learned working closely with Mark Zuckerberg, why Facebook's obsession with speed became such an advantage, how he learned to spot exceptional founders, and why ambition remains one of the traits he values most.They also explore why Mike believes people risk “overfitting” to a job after seven years, what Sequoia taught him about great businesses, why he came back to venture after some of the most enjoyable years of his life with his family, and what changes when the cost of creating software starts approaching zero. Along the way, Mike shares the habits, quirks and principles behind his reputation as a “nerd's nerd”, from obsessive curiosity and inbox zero to the belief that the best leaders make the people around them better.Please enjoy exploring your curiosity._______Get in touch with us via email at contact@curiositycentre.comJoin our stable of commercial partners including the Australian Government, Google, KPMG,, Allens, Macquarie Capital, Xero, JP Morgan and more. Show notes and more episodes hereFollow us on LinkedIn, Twitter and InstagramGet in touch with our Founder and Host, Vidit Agarwal directly hereContact us via our websiteThis episode is supported by Xero, helping businesses use AI with more control through JAX, its in-platform AI finance partner. Get 90% off your plan for your first 6 months at xero.com/highflyers. ________TIMESTAMPS00:00 — The Nerd's Nerd04:00 — Growing Up in New York08:00 — Power, Internet and Caffeine13:00 — Working at a Startup in High School14:00 — Why Harvard Became the Goal18:00 — Meeting His Wife24:00 — What Microsoft Taught Him31:00 — Why Strategy Can Go Wrong33:00 — How Facebook Built High-Impact Teams37:00 — The Moment Facebook Felt Different43:00 — Facebook's Speed Advantage49:00 — Why Mike Left Facebook54:00 — Why Sequoia56:00 — Learning What Makes a Great Business59:00 — Why He Doesn't Take Notes01:01:00 — What Mike Looks for in Founders01:07:00 — Leaving Sequoia01:09:00 — Why He Joined Conviction01:14:00 — How Mike Spots What's Next01:16:00 — When Software Costs Approach Zero01:18:00 — What Makes Products Go Viral01:20:00 — Coaching His Kids01:22:00 — Inbox Zero and Productivity01:25:00 — What Mike Is Experimenting With01:27:00 — The Advice That Changed His Career________The High Flyers Podcast features in-depth interviews with the world's most influential figures in business, tech, finance, government and sport. Launched in 2020, it has ranked in the global top ten for past three years, with listeners in 27 countries and over 200+ episodes released, and featured in Forbes, Daily Telegraph, and at SXSW.Our guests include -- Malcolm Turnbull (Prime Minister of Australia), Keith Rabois (Managing Director, Khosla Ventures), Jason Collins (Head of BlackRock, Asia Pacific), Brad Banducci (CEO, Woolworths), Michael Schneider (CEO, Bunnings), David Eckstein (CFO, Legora), Kevin Hartz (Partner, A*; Founder, Eventbrite), Shiv Rao (CEO, Abridge), Jesse Zhang (CEO, Decagon), Vandita Pant (CFO, BHP), Elena Verna (Head of Growth, Lovable), David Haber (a16z Partner), Jodie Auster (Uber's Global Head of Travel), Rob Giglio (CCO, Canva), Jean-Michel Limieux (CTO, Shopify and Atlassian), Stevie Case (CRO, Vanta), Cristina Cordova (COO, Linear), Gautam Chari (Head of Capital Commitments, Bank of America), John Haddock (CBO, Harvey), Mark Suster (Partner, Upfront Ventures), Niki Scevak (Partner, Blackbird), Craig Tiley (CEO, USA Tennis), Jeanne DeWitt Grosser (COO, Vercel), Paul Bassat (Partner, Square Peg), Bowen Pan (Creator, Facebook Marketplace), Peter Varghese (Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Australian Government), Sam Sicilia (CIO, Hostplus), Jack Zhang (CEO, Airwallex), Tim Doyle (CEO, Eucalyptus), Sukhinder Singh Cassidy (CEO, Xero), Sanjeev Gandhi (CEO, Orica) and Philip Green (Australia's Ambassador/High Commissioner to India).
Athan Didaskalou had bet everything on a one-year-old suitcase brand called July. Then Covid wiped out travel and nearly took the business with it. What happened next turned it into a nine-figure global company. Athan came from the agency world and sold out of two businesses to go all in; his co-founder Richard Li brought the manufacturing and supply chain muscle. They chose luggage precisely because it was hard to make and dominated by a single global player. They survived lockdown on drink bottles, kept every team member, and came out the other side with a two-year head start no competitor dared to challenge. Today July has 15 tier-one retail stores in Australia, is the official luggage of the Australian Olympic Team, and is pushing into Asia, the US and beyond. In this interview, Athan breaks down his theory of why founder-led brands beat private-equity ones, the "irrational spend" that built July's brand equity from day one, and the counterintuitive reason physical retail became their cheapest customer acquisition channel. What you'll learn in this interview: • Why July was their "15th race" - and how years of prior businesses made them lethal from day one • The irrational spend theory: why founder-led brands beat PE brands by overspending in emotional areas • How they landed the four-letter July domain and sub-five-letter social handles - and why it signals trust • Why luggage is a trust business - and how brand became their moat against the dominant global player • How drink bottles and personalization kept the wheels turning when Covid wiped out travel overnight • Why the two-year Covid shutdown handed them a head start no competitor was willing to challenge • The investor who wrote a cheque with zero due diligence - after they drove out to fix a customer's lock • Why retail became their cheapest customer acquisition channel - and the rent-to-revenue math behind it • Why the US rewards short-domain, free-returns DTC brands - and why the UK has been so much harder to crack • Why staying deliberately small is getting harder - and the first year they stopped knowing every employee's name If you're building a DTC or consumer brand, trying to compete against a dominant incumbent, or rethinking whether retail belongs in your growth plan, this conversation will fundamentally change how you think about brand equity, resilience, and building something people actually trust. SAVE 50% ON OMNISEND FOR 3 MONTHS Get 50% off your first 3 months of email and SMS marketing with Omnisend using the code FOUNDR50. Start here → https://your.omnisend.com/foundr SAVE 95% ON XERO FOR 6 MONTHS Simplify your business finances with 95% off Xero for your first 6 months. Start here → https://foundr.com/xero WANT TO GROW YOUR BRAND WITH META ADS? Join the Foundr Operators Waitlist → https://foundr.com/operators HOW WE CAN HELP YOU SCALE YOUR BUSINESS FASTER Learn directly from 7, 8 & 9-figure founders inside Foundr+ Start your $1 trial → https://www.foundr.com/startdollartrial PREFER A CUSTOM ROADMAP AND 1-ON-1 COACHING? → Starting from scratch? Apply here → https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-start-application → Already have a store? Apply here → https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-growth-application CONNECT WITH NATHAN CHAN Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/nathanchan LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanhchan/ CONNECT WITH ATHAN DIDASKALOU Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/july/ LinkedIn → https://au.linkedin.com/in/athand Website → https://july.com/ FOLLOW FOUNDR FOR MORE BUSINESS GROWTH STRATEGIES YouTube → https://bit.ly/2uyvzdt Website → https://www.foundr.com Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/foundr/ Facebook → https://www.facebook.com/foundr Twitter → https://www.twitter.com/foundr LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/company/foundr/ Podcast → https://www.foundr.com/podcast
Jacob Margulies is the Co-Founder at Reah, a financial operating system that unifies fiat banking, digital assets and AI-powered execution in one platform.It provides global bank accounts, payments, treasury, cards and invoicing for businesses worldwide, all governed by one programmable policy engine.And Reah describes itself as non-custodial. Customers have complete control of their assets, and Reah says it cannot access, freeze, or move their funds.This episode also includes a live demo, where Jacob shares his screen and walks through the platform.✅ OUR RESOURCES
Jay Haddad hated being a plumber. He lived for the weekends - free diving, waterfalls, surfing, the beach - and when he and his wife had their first daughter at 23, the outdoor life they'd promised each other suddenly got hard. On his first Father's Day, they bought some fabric from Spotlight, watched a YouTube tutorial on how to thread his mother-in-law's dusty sewing machine, and made a waterproof beach pool so their daughter had somewhere safe to play. Strangers on the beach kept stopping to ask where they could buy one. That was the moment Sunny Seekers began - with zero e-commerce experience and a first sewing attempt Jay describes as shocking. In this episode, Jay is unusually raw about the whole grind: a year of failed fabric testing, three supplier disasters in a row, the brutal reality of a seasonal product, and the personal toll of three hours of sleep a night that nearly broke him before he learned to build sustainably. What you'll learn in this interview: How the product idea came straight from Jay and his wife's own friction as new parents - and why being your own target customer can be its own form of validation The scrappiest possible start: a first prototype sewn on a borrowed machine, tested at the beach, validated by strangers walking past asking where to buy one Why sewing in a circle nearly defeated them - and how the DIY version proved the concept before a single dollar went to a factory The year lost to fabric testing: sourcing waterproof fabric on Alibaba, missing an entire summer season, and why Jay is still glad they waited to get it right How he used Alibaba's "request for quotation" feature to find a manufacturer for a product nobody had made before - and didn't even know what search terms to use The unit economics that made it a real business: fabric alone cost $130+ per pool in Australia, but a finished unit from overseas landed at ~$25 and sold for $115 Selling out the first 200 units in a month before Christmas 2024 - and the nagging question that haunted the whole next year: do people buy this after the holidays, or only as gifts? Three separate supplier nightmares - loose threads on 200 units, a botched print at the wrong scale, leaking carry bags ironed shut by hand - and how he pushed through each one right before peak season The Black Friday scaling playbook: starting at $10/day on meta, doubling ad spend as orders doubled, reaching $1,000/day, and hitting a record $50K month in December 2025 The hardest lesson of a seasonal brand: how post-Christmas ads got expensive fast, why he was left holding stock and no cash through winter, and what he changed about looking after himself mentally to survive the off-season If you've boxed yourself into an identity - your trade, your job title, the industry you happen to be in - and quietly wonder whether you could build something of your own, this episode is for you. Jay had no network, no experience, and no idea how to sew. His story is a grounded reminder that the unglamorous grind of prototypes, supplier failures, and slow seasons is exactly what turns someone from "a guy sewing in the back of the house" into a founder. SAVE 50% ON OMNISEND FOR 3 MONTHS Get 50% off your first 3 months of email and SMS marketing with Omnisend using the code FOUNDR50. Start here → https://your.omnisend.com/foundr SAVE 95% ON XERO FOR 6 MONTHS Simplify your business finances with 95% off Xero for your first 6 months. Start here → https://foundr.com/xero WANT TO GROW YOUR BRAND WITH META ADS? Join the Foundr Operators Waitlist → https://foundr.com/operators HOW WE CAN HELP YOU SCALE YOUR BUSINESS FASTER Learn directly from 7, 8 & 9-figure founders inside Foundr+ Start your $1 trial → https://www.foundr.com/startdollartrial PREFER A CUSTOM ROADMAP AND 1-ON-1 COACHING? → Starting from scratch? Apply here → https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-start-application → Already have a store? Apply here → https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-growth-application CONNECT WITH BY JAY HADDAD Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/sunnyseekers_/ Website → https://sunnyseekers.com.au/ FOLLOW FOUNDR FOR MORE BUSINESS GROWTH STRATEGIES YouTube → https://bit.ly/2uyvzdt Website → https://www.foundr.com Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/foundr/ Facebook → https://www.facebook.com/foundr Twitter → https://www.twitter.com/foundr LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/company/foundr/ Podcast → https://www.foundr.com/podcast
What if the tool you've been waiting for, the one that finally makes Xero as efficient as QuickBooks with Right Tool, already exists, and it's being built by a former bookkeeper who accidentally fell into coding? In this episode, Serena sits down with Mark Corum, the developer behind X2Uno and Right Tool, to talk about building Chrome extensions for accounting software, the surprising parallels between bookkeeping and programming, and why the tech world's pricing model might be completely backwards. Whether you're a Xero loyalist, a QuickBooks refugee, or just curious about what happens when an accountant teaches themselves to code, then this conversation has something for you.In this episode you'll hear about:X2Uno - What it is, how it differs from Right Tool, and why Mark felt a moral obligation to build something for Xero usersRight Tool & MonkbeeHow Chrome extensions actually workXero vs. QuickBooksThe cost of switching platformsAI and the future of accountingProgramming, bookkeeping, and musicCleanup work as a nicheX2Uno availability — How to get it now (free beta on the Chrome Web Store), the MailChimp discount path, and the Facebook community for feature requestsResources mentioned in this episode:X2Uno → sign up for beta her: https://mailchi.mp/x2uno/ambitiousMeet Mark CorumI am Mark Corum. I went to college for accounting and decided to make my own bookkeeping company in my Junior year. Realized I like accounting, but I am not an accountant and transitioned out of it and stumbled into programming in late 2019 - vowing never to touch QuickBooks again.2021 comes around and I am working on a chrome extension for QuickBooks called "MonkBe" that is discovered by Hector Garcia and remade into RightTool. Now that is used by about 50,000 people and I want the additional fun of working on Xero!Connect with MarkLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markcorum/Thanks for listening. If this episode inspired you in some way, take a screenshot of you listening on your device and post it to your Instagram stories and tag me @ambitiousbookkeeperFor more information about the Ambitious Bookkeeper Podcast or interest in our programs or mentoring visit our resources below:Visit our website: https://www.ambitiousbookkeeper.comFollow the Blog: https://www.ambitiousbookkeeper.com/blogConnect on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ambitiousbookkeeperConnect on Threads: https://www.threads.net/@ambitiousbookkeeperConnect on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/serenashoupcpaThank you for your support of our show. If you haven't left a review yet it's super simple. Please go to ambitiousbookkeeper.com/podcast and leave your review.Podcast Publishing Tools we use:Editing → Sabr Media LLC: https://www.iangilliam.com/sabr-media-llcDescript: https://get.descript.com/u7lubkx09073 (affiliate link)Buzzsprout: https://www.buzzsprout.com/?referrer_id=1753696 (affiliate link)
In this episode Dan discusses when (and IF) you need accounting software for your business. He chats about how to choose the right one, whether you can switch, MTD For Income Tax, Making Tax Digital, VAT, Xero, getting paid…. all this and more on today's HeelanHub! www.heelanassociates.co.uk/podcast - the show for UK small business owners. info@heelanassociates.co.uk 02392 240040
QuickBooks expert Aaron Patrick issues a candid apology to Xero and outlines five features QuickBooks should adopt. Aaron and Johann also unpack Capium's big updates, call out clickbait in industry media, share frustrations with MTD for ITSA auto-enrolment, and debate whether Apple's new folding phone and watch AI note-taking can truly boost accountants' productivity.
Welcome to the 14th episode in our special series with the Australian Government and their Centre for Australia–India Relations (CAIR), spotlighting the growing Australia–India relationship across technology, business, media, culture and sport.Other guests in this series include BHP's CFO Vandita Pant, Bank of America's Head of Capital Commitments Gautam Chari, Austrade's GM for South Asia Mukund Narayanamurti, Renowned Music Composer Tushar Apte, Australia's High Commissioner to India Philip Green, MUFG's CEO Vivek Bhatia, Australia's Secretary of Foreign Affairs Peter Varghese, NAB's EGM Sweta Mehra, Deputy Secretary of Australia's Home Affairs Brendan Dowling, Orica's CEO Sanjeev Gandhi, Sports Journalist Bharat Sundaresan, Cricket Legend Lisa Sthalekar and CAIR's CEO, Ryan Neelam, reflecting the breadth of Indian-Australian leaders at the most senior levels.________This episode is supported by Xero, helping businesses use AI with more control through JAX, its in-platform AI finance partner. Get 90% off your plan for your first 6 months at xero.com/highflyers. Get in touch with us via email at contact@curiositycentre.comJoin our stable of commercial partners including the Australian Government, Google, KPMG,, Allens, Macquarie Capital, Xero, JP Morgan and more.________Amit Singh is Managing Partner of Mandala, a global economics, data and policy research firm. He has advised three Australian Prime Ministers, served as Uber's Global Head of Economic Policy in San Francisco, and more. Today, he leads Mandala and serves on several prominent government and public-policy boards.In this conversation with Vidit, Amit shares his journey from growing up amid political instability in Fiji and moving to Australia as a teenager, to running a $20 million organisation with 200 employees at just 21 — before going on to work at the highest levels of Australian government. He reflects on going from Freehills to Kevin Rudd's office in the space of two days, subsequently working for Julia Gillard and briefly Anthony Albanese, and the experience of technically losing his job five times during his political career. Amit also shares the equal-pay decision he is proudest of, which delivered a 23–45% pay increase for 150,000 predominantly female care workers. Amit also explains why he left government for technology, what moving to San Francisco and working at Uber taught him about ambition and taking risks, and how those experiences ultimately led to building Mandala as a globally focused economics and policy firm. They also explore Amit's Fijian-Indian identity, why he believes the Australia–India economic relationship remains underdone despite decades of intent, the opportunity across technology, AI and services, and why changing Australians' understanding of modern India could unlock a much deeper relationship. Please enjoy exploring your curiosity.______Get in touch with us via email at contact@curiositycentre.comJoin our stable of commercial partners including the Australian Government, Google, KPMG,, Allens, Macquarie Capital, Xero, JP Morgan and more. Show notes and more episodes hereFollow us on LinkedIn, Twitter and InstagramGet in touch with our Founder and Host, Vidit Agarwal directly hereContact us via our websiteThis episode is supported by Xero, helping businesses use AI with more control through JAX, its in-platform AI finance partner. Get 90% off your plan for your first 6 months at xero.com/highflyers. ________TIMESTAMPS00:00 Who is Amit Singh01:28 From selling limes in Fiji to building Mandala03:43 Growing up Fijian-Indian amid political instability04:31 His parents' sacrifice — and the values they passed down08:11 Navigating identity after moving to Australia11:42 Finishing high school at 16 — by accident13:12 Running a $20M organisation at 2116:13 Law, Freehills & an unexpected career path17:52 From lawyer to Kevin Rudd's office in two days21:51 What working closely with Prime Ministers taught him23:21 The decision that changed pay for 150,000 workers26:10 Leaving government for Uber and Silicon Valley28:57 From playing it safe to “shoot your shot”31:38 The hardest parts of Amit's career33:36 What Uber taught him about managing exceptional people35:22 Building Mandala37:22 Why Australia–India remains underdone42:13 Why no one is truly self-made43:24 Rapid fire________The High Flyers Podcast features in-depth interviews with the world's most influential figures in business, tech, finance, government and sport. Launched in 2020, it has ranked in the global top ten for past three years, with listeners in 27 countries and over 200+ episodes released, and featured in Forbes, Daily Telegraph, and at SXSW.Our guests include -- Malcolm Turnbull (Prime Minister of Australia), Keith Rabois (Managing Director, Khosla Ventures), Jason Collins (Head of BlackRock, Asia Pacific), Brad Banducci (CEO, Woolworths), Michael Schneider (CEO, Bunnings), David Eckstein (CFO, Legora), Kevin Hartz (Partner, A*; Founder, Eventbrite), Shiv Rao (CEO, Abridge), Jesse Zhang (CEO, Decagon), Vandita Pant (CFO, BHP), Elena Verna (Head of Growth, Lovable), David Haber (a16z Partner), Jodie Auster (Uber's Global Head of Travel), Rob Giglio (CCO, Canva), Jean-Michel Limieux (CTO, Shopify and Atlassian), Stevie Case (CRO, Vanta), Cristina Cordova (COO, Linear), Gautam Chari (Head of Capital Commitments, Bank of America), John Haddock (CBO, Harvey), Mark Suster (Partner, Upfront Ventures), Niki Scevak (Partner, Blackbird), Craig Tiley (CEO, USA Tennis), Jeanne DeWitt Grosser (COO, Vercel), Paul Bassat (Partner, Square Peg), Bowen Pan (Creator, Facebook Marketplace), Peter Varghese (Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Australian Government), Sam Sicilia (CIO, Hostplus), Jack Zhang (CEO, Airwallex), Tim Doyle (CEO, Eucalyptus), Sukhinder Singh Cassidy (CEO, Xero), Sanjeev Gandhi (CEO, Orica) and Philip Green (Australia's Ambassador/High Commissioner to India).
I am going to tell you about the dumbest thing I have done in 12 years of building Foundr. It is not a bad hire or a failed launch. It is something far more dangerous, because I did not even realise I was doing it. For four years I took my eye off the thing that built this entire business, and by the time I noticed, I had left years of growth on the table. Here is the trap: when your monetisation engine is printing money, it gives you permission to be complacent about the thing that is actually feeding it. The better the downstream business performed, the less attention we gave the upstream asset driving all of it. In this episode, I get honest about how our podcast drifted into autopilot for years, the signals that told me my core was neglected, and the aggressive refocus that brought it back. Here's what you'll take away: • Why "fine" can be the most dangerous word in business, and how success itself makes you complacent about what got you there • The four warning signs your core product is drifting, from flattening growth to customer feedback getting generic • Why your best people gravitate to the new shiny thing and your core quietly gets the B team • What Gary Vaynerchuk told me about never being complacent when one channel is winning, and why I resisted it at first • The packaging lesson that blew my mind: how two identical-quality episodes got wildly different results based on title and thumbnail alone • The three question test I now run on every new initiative to tell a real opportunity from a distraction in disguise If things in your business are going "fine" right now, this episode is a warning worth heeding. Ask yourself when you last personally touched your core product and obsessed over making it better, because if it is not recent, you might already be on autopilot. If you're loving this solo series, I'd love to hear your feedback. Email me directly at nathan@foundr.com — I read every reply. Hope you enjoy it. SAVE 50% ON OMNISEND FOR 3 MONTHS Get 50% off your first 3 months of email and SMS marketing with Omnisend using the code FOUNDR50. Start here → https://your.omnisend.com/foundr SAVE 95% ON XERO FOR 6 MONTHS Simplify your business finances with 95% off Xero for your first 6 months. Start here → https://foundr.com/xero WANT TO GROW YOUR BRAND WITH META ADS? Join the Foundr Operators Waitlist → https://foundr.com/operators HOW WE CAN HELP YOU SCALE YOUR BUSINESS FASTER Learn directly from 7, 8 & 9-figure founders inside Foundr+ Start your $1 trial → https://www.foundr.com/startdollartrial PREFER A CUSTOM ROADMAP AND 1-ON-1 COACHING? → Starting from scratch? Apply here → https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-start-application → Already have a store? Apply here → https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-growth-application CONNECT WITH NATHAN CHAN Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/nathanchan LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanhchan/ FOLLOW FOUNDR FOR MORE BUSINESS GROWTH STRATEGIES YouTube → https://bit.ly/2uyvzdt Website → https://www.foundr.com Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/foundr/ Facebook → https://www.facebook.com/foundr Twitter → https://www.twitter.com/foundr LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/company/foundr/ Podcast → https://www.foundr.com/podcast
Ryan Pearcy is back in the chair, joined by Heather Smith and Indi Tatla for a bumper news episode, most of it about Xero and none of it comfortable. It starts with the reel. A paid influencer told her followers she had fed her Xero data into Claude and no longer needed the 800 pounds a month she spent on an accountant, and the community went off. Indi Tatla walks through the responses: Rachel Harris on how tightly brand partnerships are actually controlled, Alex Falcon arguing the profession should level up rather than take it personally, and Damon Anderson on the capability, accountability and trust clocks all running at different speeds. Ryan Pearcy has no sympathy for the influencer, then argues the thing that has really annoyed firms is not the advert. It is auto bank rec, and every vendor promising a business owner they can automate everything, leaving the firm to unpick it at the year end and charge more for the privilege. It was not a one-off week. Aaron Patrick found Syft Analytics reports going out under his practice's name without his approval, since switched off. Xero built accounts and tax filing into the product after Companies House closed the free route in March, then marketed it straight at business owners without telling the firms holding those clients. The panel keeps coming back to Ben Richmond on stage in New Orleans, promising Xero would never sell directly to your clients. Heather Smith brings in a long post from a former Xero employee arguing the board swallowed the Rule of 40 and built an executive incentive structure around it that cost them the customer. That runs into the AGM, where 70 per cent of shareholders voted against the remuneration report following an increase to Sukhinder Singh Cassidy's target pay. Ryan Pearcy thinks the restructure is defensible and the timing is what stings. Indi Tatla asks whether the conversation would be happening at all if the chief executive were a man. Xero gave the show its position directly, and it is read out in full. Elsewhere, Sage launched Salary Payments, so Sage Payroll customers can pay staff from their own bank account with no wallet and no second login, powered by Crezco, who now sit behind Xero, iplicit and Sage alike. Ryan Pearcy wonders what has happened to Modulr. Indi Tatla runs the employment law timetable, with the tribunal window doubling on 1 October, the duty to prevent third party harassment landing on 30 October and the unfair dismissal changes arriving in January 2027, and flags the Employment Hero webinar on it. Also covered: Heather Smith's ask of conference organisers to publish a harassment policy. Accrual acquiring Puzzle's accounting firm business on the same day as everything else, and almost nobody noticing. Private equity buying accounting firms alongside the software it already funds. And how a profession without a podcast is meant to make itself heard by the vendors. Chapters 00:00 Intro 02:45 Employment Hero 03:25 Influencer Gate: the Xero reel that blew up LinkedIn 08:52 Rachel Harris, Alex Falcon and Damon Anderson on being a paid partner 14:29 Why auto bank rec annoys firms more than the advert did 16:39 Heather Smith on who actually counts as an influencer 18:07 Syft Analytics reports sent to clients without approval 19:35 Xero markets accounts and tax filing direct to business owners 21:01 "We will never sell directly to your clients" 24:15 The Rule of 40 post from a former Xero employee 27:10 CEO pay and the 70 per cent shareholder vote 32:10 Xero's official position 35:41 Joiin 36:49 Sage Payroll Salary Payments, powered by Crezco 38:27 Employment law: October, and then January 2027 42:33 Harassment policies at accounting conferences 44:25 Accrual acquires Puzzle 47:06 Private equity moving into accounting firms 49:19 How should the community influence the vendors? 52:14 Disruptor Awards and outro
This episode is supported by Xero, helping businesses use AI with more control through JAX, its in-platform AI finance partner. Get 90% off your plan for your first 6 months at xero.com/highflyers. ________Ryan Beiermeister is a Partner at Founders Fund, one of the world's leading venture capital firms. Before becoming an investor, she held senior roles at three of the most consequential technology companies of the past decade: VP at OpenAI leading AI safety work, Product Director at Meta across election integrity and social issues, and VP at Palantir, where she helped lead development of Gotham. At College, Ryan was the #1 ranked college policy debater in the US and won top speaker at the 2012 national championship, becoming only the fourth woman since 1946 to do so.In this conversation, Ryan joins Vidit to unpack the unconventional path from Houston and elite college debate to Palantir, Meta, OpenAI and now Founders Fund, including why Palantir took a chance on her at 22, what she learned building products for governments and billions of users, and why she believes there is still “no replacement for human judgement” in the age of AI.They also explore the risks of building technology and simply “throwing it over the wall”, the developmental impact of AI on young people, what makes humans uniquely valuable in an increasingly automated world, and Ryan's early lessons from making the leap from operator to venture capitalist.Please enjoy exploring your curiosity._______Get in touch with us via email at contact@curiositycentre.comJoin our stable of commercial partners including the Australian Government, Google, KPMG,, Allens, Macquarie Capital, Xero, JP Morgan and more. Show notes and more episodes hereFollow us on LinkedIn, Twitter and InstagramGet in touch with our Founder and Host, Vidit Agarwal directly hereContact us via our websiteThis episode is supported by Xero, helping businesses use AI with more control through JAX, its in-platform AI finance partner. Get 90% off your plan for your first 6 months at xero.com/highflyers. ________TIMESTAMPS01:28 From Palantir to Founders Fund04:00 The mentor who changed everything07:05 Growing up in Houston10:00 Feeling different at an elite school12:00 Why high-performing women are different14:00 Nolan Ryan17:00 When debate became her superpower20:00 Why Meta used her whole brain22:00 Books, empathy & social justice25:00 No master plan 27:00 How Palantir bet on a debate champion32:00 From user empathy to building Gotham34:00 Learning to double down on strengths37:00 Trae Stephens41:00 Breaking the VC pattern-recognition playbook41:40 Can AI replace human judgement?44:00 What AI could do to young minds47:00 Why human imperfection matters51:00 Leaving Palantir for Meta56:00 When products meet the real world59:00 Why Ryan finally became a VC1:02:00 Why OpenAI felt impossible to ignore1:04:00 Building safety systems for AI1:05:00 The operator-to-investor mindset shift1:10:00 Her first deal at Founders Fund1:12:00 Why authenticity is an investing edge1:19:00 Ryan's one-hour reading habits1:24:00 Ryan's favourite interview questions________The High Flyers Podcast features in-depth interviews with the world's most influential figures in business, tech, finance, government and sport. Launched in 2020, it has ranked in the global top ten for past three years, with listeners in 27 countries and over 200+ episodes released, and featured in Forbes, Daily Telegraph, and at SXSW.Our guests include -- Malcolm Turnbull (Prime Minister of Australia), Keith Rabois (Managing Director, Khosla Ventures), Jason Collins (Head of BlackRock, Asia Pacific), Brad Banducci (CEO, Woolworths), Michael Schneider (CEO, Bunnings), David Eckstein (CFO, Legora), Kevin Hartz (Partner, A*; Founder, Eventbrite), Shiv Rao (CEO, Abridge), Jesse Zhang (CEO, Decagon), Vandita Pant (CFO, BHP), Elena Verna (Head of Growth, Lovable), David Haber (a16z Partner), Jodie Auster (Uber's Global Head of Travel), Rob Giglio (CCO, Canva), Jean-Michel Limieux (CTO, Shopify and Atlassian), Stevie Case (CRO, Vanta), Cristina Cordova (COO, Linear), Gautam Chari (Head of Capital Commitments, Bank of America), John Haddock (CBO, Harvey), Mark Suster (Partner, Upfront Ventures), Niki Scevak (Partner, Blackbird), Craig Tiley (CEO, USA Tennis), Jeanne DeWitt Grosser (COO, Vercel), Paul Bassat (Partner, Square Peg), Bowen Pan (Creator, Facebook Marketplace), Peter Varghese (Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Australian Government), Sam Sicilia (CIO, Hostplus), Jack Zhang (CEO, Airwallex), Tim Doyle (CEO, Eucalyptus), Sukhinder Singh Cassidy (CEO, Xero), Sanjeev Gandhi (CEO, Orica) and Philip Green (Australia's Ambassador/High Commissioner to India).
This episode is supported by Xero, helping businesses use AI with more control through JAX, its in-platform AI finance partner. Get 90% off your plan for your first 6 months at xero.com/highflyers. ________Ellen DaSilva is the Founder and CEO of Summer Health, the pediatric healthcare company that served 30,000+ families before being acquired by Doctronic in 2026. Earlier, she was employee #8 at Hims & Hers and worked at Twitter during its hyper growth years. She is an active angel investor and Sequoia Scout, and earned her MBA with Distinction from Harvard Business School.In this conversation, Ellen joins Vidit to unpack the ambition behind her extraordinary career, the leap from Wall Street to scaling Twitter during its hyper gowth years, why she nearly became a Hims competitor before joining as employee #8, and what happened when she finally took the founder leap with Summer Health.They also explore how consumer software has changed, what makes great companies feel “inevitable”, why Ellen is “incapable of turning off founder mode”, and the philosophy behind living life on “maximum mode” and lots more. Please enjoy exploring your curiosity._______Get in touch with us via email at contact@curiositycentre.comJoin our stable of commercial partners including the Australian Government, Google, KPMG,, Allens, Macquarie Capital, Xero, JP Morgan and more. Show notes and more episodes hereFollow us on LinkedIn, Twitter and InstagramGet in touch with our Founder and Host, Vidit Agarwal directly hereContact us via our websiteThis episode is supported by Xero, helping businesses use AI with more control through JAX, its in-platform AI finance partner. Get 90% off your plan for your first 6 months at xero.com/highflyers. ________TIMESTAMPS00:00 Ellen's “hot take” on consumer AI02:00 From Barclays to selling Summer Health05:00 Growing up ambitious in New York09:00 The family behind Ellen's drive11:00 “CEO of Coca-Cola” at age five13:00 Politics, Bloomberg & an early obsession with change15:00 Why Ellen studied English literature18:00 Raising three intensely curious kids19:00 China vs Wall Street23:00 “I knew I was going to marry him”26:00 Discovering tech from a Wall Street desk29:00 The 10-day leap from Barclays to Twitter31:00 Scaling Twitter during hypergrowth33:00 Why “every job becomes sales”35:00 How Twitter shaped Summer Health38:00 HBS, ambition & “colouring outside the lines”42:00 How Ellen spots exceptional companies early45:00 The startup she nearly built before Hims47:00 employee #8 at Hims to IPO48:00 Building healthcare like consumer software49:00 Why Summer Health removed the interface51:00 Why text-based products may win52:00 What Ellen would build next54:00 Why Summer Health sold to Doctronic57:00 Ellen's fundraising playbook01:02:00 The 5 people in her "hall of fame" room01:08:00 The hardest period of her career01:11:00 “I'm incapable of turning off founder mode”01:13:00 Parenting without slowing down01:14:00 Living life on “maximum mode”01:17:00 Food, health & learning Mandarin01:18:00 Vibe coding, robotics & what Ellen wants to learn next01:19:00 “Where are you an outlier?”01:20:00 Ellen's pet peeve________The High Flyers Podcast features in-depth interviews with the world's most influential figures in business, tech, finance, government and sport. Launched in 2020, it has ranked in the global top ten for past three years, with listeners in 27 countries and over 200+ episodes released, and featured in Forbes, Daily Telegraph, and at SXSW.Our guests include -- Malcolm Turnbull (Prime Minister of Australia), Keith Rabois (Managing Director, Khosla Ventures), Jason Collins (Head of BlackRock, Asia Pacific), Brad Banducci (CEO, Woolworths), Michael Schneider (CEO, Bunnings), David Eckstein (CFO, Legora), Kevin Hartz (Partner, A*; Founder, Eventbrite), Shiv Rao (CEO, Abridge), Jesse Zhang (CEO, Decagon), Vandita Pant (CFO, BHP), Elena Verna (Head of Growth, Lovable), David Haber (a16z Partner), Jodie Auster (Uber's Global Head of Travel), Rob Giglio (CCO, Canva), Jean-Michel Limieux (CTO, Shopify and Atlassian), Stevie Case (CRO, Vanta), Cristina Cordova (COO, Linear), Gautam Chari (Head of Capital Commitments, Bank of America), John Haddock (CBO, Harvey), Mark Suster (Partner, Upfront Ventures), Niki Scevak (Partner, Blackbird), Craig Tiley (CEO, USA Tennis), Jeanne DeWitt Grosser (COO, Vercel), Paul Bassat (Partner, Square Peg), Bowen Pan (Creator, Facebook Marketplace), Peter Varghese (Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Australian Government), Sam Sicilia (CIO, Hostplus), Jack Zhang (CEO, Airwallex), Tim Doyle (CEO, Eucalyptus), Sukhinder Singh Cassidy (CEO, Xero), Sanjeev Gandhi (CEO, Orica) and Philip Green (Australia's Ambassador/High Commissioner to India).
Mariam Naficy sold her first company for over $100 million in cash - two weeks before the Nasdaq crashed in 2000. Then she did something harder. She built Minted, a crowdsourced design marketplace her own investors thought was weird, watched it generate zero sales for its first month, and was one day away from shutting it down when it turned the corner and took off like a rocket ship. Today Minted does around $300 million a year, and she's now chairwoman while building her third company, Arcade, an AI-to-physical-product marketplace that's already raised $42 million. In this interview, Mariam breaks down why she handed product decisions entirely over to the crowd, how she survived the 2008 financial crisis by going premium, and the viral loop she deliberately engineers into every business she starts. What you'll learn in this interview: • How she landed the Eve.com domain with 1% equity, a board seat, and a Disneyland trip - for a five-year-old • Why color cosmetics flying off the shelves revealed a market nobody thought existed online • How a low-budget crowdsourced design contest saved Minted from bankruptcy after a month of zero sales • Why she trusted the crowd over industry experts - and invented the photo Save the Date in the process • How going premium let Minted grow straight through the 2008 financial crisis • The virality principle: why she won't start a business without a built-in product-driven loop • Why every hire - even designers - had to pass a financial modeling test • How she scaled greeting cards into Target and Whole Foods - and why home decor didn't work • The exact mindset that got her through nearly shutting down: stop caring what anyone thinks • Why Arcade is built to protect artists' livelihoods in the age of AI If you're building a marketplace, wrestling with whether to trust your gut or your customers, or trying to grow through a downturn without burning cash, this conversation will fundamentally change how you think about virality, community, and persisting through the moments that break most founders. SAVE 95% ON XERO FOR 6 MONTHS Simplify your business finances with 95% off Xero for your first 6 months. Start here → https://foundr.com/xero SAVE 50% ON OMNISEND FOR 3 MONTHS Get 50% off your first 3 months of email and SMS marketing with Omnisend using the code FOUNDR50. Start here → https://your.omnisend.com/foundr SAVE 95% ON XERO FOR 6 MONTHS Simplify your business finances with 95% off Xero for your first 6 months. Start here → https://foundr.com/xero WANT TO GROW YOUR BRAND WITH META ADS? Join the Foundr Operators Waitlist → https://foundr.com/operators HOW WE CAN HELP YOU SCALE YOUR BUSINESS FASTER Learn directly from 7, 8 & 9-figure founders inside Foundr+ Start your $1 trial → https://www.foundr.com/startdollartrial PREFER A CUSTOM ROADMAP AND 1-ON-1 COACHING? → Starting from scratch? Apply here → https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-start-application → Already have a store? Apply here → https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-growth-application CONNECT WITH NATHAN CHAN Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/nathanchan LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanhchan/ CONNECT WITH MARIAM NAFICY Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/mnaficy/ LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/mariam-naficy Website → https://www.minted.com/ Website → https://tonic.xyz/ FOLLOW FOUNDR FOR MORE BUSINESS GROWTH STRATEGIES YouTube → https://bit.ly/2uyvzdt Website → https://www.foundr.com Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/foundr/ Facebook → https://www.facebook.com/foundr Twitter → https://www.twitter.com/foundr LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/company/foundr/ Podcast → https://www.foundr.com/podcast
- Join David's email list, RECEIVE 7 FREE GIFTS!!- https://www.DavidCBarnettList.com Find Michael on Linkedin here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaeljkerr-small-business-adviser/ Kerr Capital: https://www.kerrcapital.com.au/ **** Who's going to own your small business New guest – Michael Kerr I'm joined by Michael Kerr, founder of Kerr Capital and an Australian business broker and small business adviser, to explore why selling a business is far more complex than selling a house. Tune in as we discuss business succession planning, realistic valuations, employee buyouts, community ownership, preparing a business for sale, and why key employees may be the most natural buyers. We also examine the “silver tsunami,” the risk of vital local businesses closing, and how owners can create better exit options before time runs out. This is a must-see event for business owners, buyers, brokers, advisers, and anyone planning a small business exit. Join us live to ask questions. A replay will be available. It will be going live Thursday September 10, 2026 at 2:30 PM Atlantic Time and 1:30 PM Eastern Time **** Do Business with David using these incredible internet links... - David's Blog where you can find hundreds of free videos and articles, https://www.DavidCBarnett.com - Book a call with David and let him help you with your project, https://www.CallDavidCBarnett.com - Learn how to buy a successful and profitable business in a risk-controlled way https://www.BusinessBuyerAdvantage.com - Get help selling your business, https://www.HowToSellMyOwnBusiness.com ----- #SmallBusiness #BusinessOwner #Entrepreneur #ExitPlanning #SuccessionPlanning #SellingABusiness #EmployeeOwnership #BusinessValuation #BusinessBroker #BusinessSuccession #SmallBusinessTips #LocalBusiness #BusinessGrowth #Dealmaking #Entrepreneurship Special Xero offer: Get 90% off for 6 months using this link: https://referrals.xero.com/DavidCBarnett_xero . Terms & Conditions apply.* See the video of my Xero story here: https://youtu.be/LfaGUfwStqo Youtube music licensing code: 5PJWQOE5ZZHTQSRY
This episode is supported by Xero, helping businesses use AI with more control through JAX, its in-platform AI finance partner. Get 90% off your plan for your first 6 months at xero.com/highflyers. ________Dr. Shiv Rao is the Co-Founder and CEO of Abridge, one of the world's leading healthcare AI companies, turning clinician-patient conversations into clinical intelligence across 300+ health systems and 100M+ conversations annually. A practising cardiologist, Shiv previously worked across healthcare technology and investing at UPMC before founding Abridge in 2018.In this rare in-depth conversation, Shiv joins Vidit to unpack his unconventional path: moving from Pittsburgh to India at nine, skateboarding, programming synthesizers, selling records in Japan and nearly quitting medical school before becoming a cardiologist.He shares how a seemingly perfect career across medicine, technology and investing left him “incredibly restless”, eventually leading to Abridge. But success was far from immediate: Shiv spent nearly four years as a “languishing founder” before generative AI arrived, “the sky just opened up”, and Abridge made its pivotal move into enterprise healthcare.They also explore why “pressure makes diamonds”, the family sacrifices behind building when “every minute matters”, what changes when a company passes 500 people, why Shiv still practises medicine, and what he's learned from unlikely influences including Jensen Huang and Rick Rubin.Please enjoy exploring your curiosity.________Get in touch with us via email at contact@curiositycentre.comJoin our stable of commercial partners including the Australian Government, Google, KPMG,, Allens, Macquarie Capital, Xero, JP Morgan and more. Show notes and more episodes hereFollow us on LinkedIn, Twitter and InstagramGet in touch with our Founder and Host, Vidit Agarwal directly hereContact us via our websiteThis episode is supported by Xero, helping businesses use AI with more control through JAX, its in-platform AI finance partner. Get 90% off your plan for your first 6 months at xero.com/highflyers. ________TIMESTAMPS00:00 Meet Shiv Rao02:00 Living on planes 04:55 Xero07:00 Pittsburgh and India12:00 Identity, India & belonging17:00 Skateboarding, music & creativity19:00 The moment that led Shiv to medicine23:00 Selling records in Japan25:00 Nearly quitting medical school28:00 Medicine's complicated relationship with technology30:00 Teaching himself to code & early product-market fit35:00 Why “pressure makes diamonds”39:00 Medicine → healthcare investing44:00 Leaving the “dream job” to build Abridge48:00 Family sacrifice & the reality of building50:00 Why “every minute matters” in AI54:00 Abridge's years as a “languishing” startup59:00 When “the sky just opened up”1:01:00 Abridge's YOLO move into enterprise1:03:00 The first customer “Love Stories”1:10:00 Why enterprise healthcare is so defensible1:15:00 Building AI that enterprises can't replicate1:21:00 Hiring, loyalty & scaling the team1:23:00 Leading 500+ people1:26:00 Lessons from Jensen Huang & Rick Rubin1:30:00 What everyone is missing about AI1:32:00 Rapid fire________The High Flyers Podcast features in-depth interviews with the world's most influential figures in business, tech, finance, government and sport. Launched in 2020, it has ranked in the global top ten for past three years, with listeners in 27 countries and over 200+ episodes released, and featured in Forbes, Daily Telegraph, and at SXSW.Our guests include -- Malcolm Turnbull (Prime Minister of Australia), Keith Rabois (Managing Director, Khosla Ventures), Jason Collins (Head of BlackRock, Asia Pacific), Brad Banducci (CEO, Woolworths), Michael Schneider (CEO, Bunnings), David Eckstein (CFO, Legora), Kevin Hartz (Partner, A*; Founder, Eventbrite), Jesse Zhang (CEO, Decagon), Vandita Pant (CFO, BHP), Elena Verna (Head of Growth, Lovable), David Haber (a16z Partner), Jodie Auster (Uber's Global Head of Travel), Rob Giglio (CCO, Canva), Jean-Michel Limieux (CTO, Shopify and Atlassian), Stevie Case (CRO, Vanta), Cristina Cordova (COO, Linear), Gautam Chari (Head of Capital Commitments, Bank of America), John Haddock (CBO, Harvey), Mark Suster (Partner, Upfront Ventures), Niki Scevak (Partner, Blackbird), Craig Tiley (CEO, USA Tennis), Jeanne DeWitt Grosser (COO, Vercel), Paul Bassat (Partner, Square Peg), Bowen Pan (Creator, Facebook Marketplace), Peter Varghese (Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Australian Government), Sam Sicilia (CIO, Hostplus), Jack Zhang (CEO, Airwallex), Tim Doyle (CEO, Eucalyptus), Sukhinder Singh Cassidy (CEO, Xero), Sanjeev Gandhi (CEO, Orica) and Philip Green (Australia's Ambassador/High Commissioner to India).
This week on Tech Labs, Aaron Patrick is joined by Charlie Khan (QuickBooks ProAdvisor, Facebook Group) and Simon Williams (Software Advisory Manager, Walton Smith) to unpack the biggest accounting tech stories of the month.Xero has had one of its roughest weeks in memory — a viral influencer post claiming you can "replace your accountant with Xero and AI" sparked a backlash across the profession, followed swiftly by the rollout of DIY company accounts filing straight to end clients, and then an auto-sent management report pack that went out to clients without warning (Aaron owns up to getting some of the details wrong in his own viral post about it).Elsewhere: Capium's new pricing structure gets compared favourably against some of the industry's less generous price rises, the QuickBooks mobile app gets a long-overdue overhaul, Apron payments lands natively inside QuickBooks, and Aaron gives a big shout-out to Sage Embedded Services with Tide as one to watch. Plus: should accountants be offering more consultancy services, and a look at new CIS invoicing tools in TaxSolo.Timestamps below.Tech Labs airs live on the second Wednesday of every month at 12:30 — join us live to get involved in the chat. Subscribe for more from Ask the Accountant, and check out The QuickBooks Chap for weekly QuickBooks content.#AccountingTech #Xero #QuickBooks #MakingTaxDigital #AccountingSoftware #Bookkeeping
This round of Live Q&A we got into some really good stuff: how to navigate starting your firm while you're still employed, why book to tax differences are completely normal and not something to lose sleep over, and how I approach the "can I afford to hire" conversation with clients (spoiler: it's rarely just about the numbers). I also pulled back the curtain on my monthly client newsletter, walked through my PTO and benefits setup for a part-time team, and gave a real update on the new version of Elevate that's dripping out in early September.Grab a notebook and your favorite drink and let's go.In this episode you'll hear:How to approach telling your current employer you're starting a firmMy take on where clients really come from and what to focus on first when you're trying to grow.A full walkthrough of my client newsletter strategyAnd how I do my part-time team's employee benefitsResources mentioned in this episode:Elevate https://www.ambitiousbookkeeper.com/elevateBookkeeping Business Accelerator (BBA): https://www.ambitiousbookkeeper.com/bbaTake Command (medical expense reimbursement program for the team)Xero: https://xeroamericas.partnerlinks.io/79afz10exu7dQuickBooks Online: https://www.referquickbooks.com/s/Serena4Squarespace: https://squarespace.syuh.net/AgROVNGoCardless: https://manage.gocardless.com/refer/us/serena/ygvg9o-amzGusto : https://gusto.com/partners/i/serena591Liz Wilcox's Email Marketing Membership: https://serenashoup--lizwilcox.thrivecart.com/list-building-live/Alyssa Lang / Workflow Queen's Breakthrough: https://serenashoup.krtra.com/t/IKUxtNZoz7lFKajabi: https://app.kajabi.com/r/SLFEMUL4/t/uiptq7nuMax Emery / GoPro Bookkeeping: https://www.skool.com/go-pro-bookkeeping/about?ref=216fd17bf3b64591bbd1f284f72ae8b7Thanks for listening. If this episode inspired you in some way, take a screenshot of you listening on your device and post it to your Instagram stories and tag me @ambitiousbookkeeperFor more information about the Ambitious Bookkeeper Podcast or interest in our programs or mentoring visit our resources below:Visit our website: https://www.ambitiousbookkeeper.comFollow me on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ambitiousbookkeeperConnect on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ambitiousbookkeeperConnect on Threads: https://www.threads.net/@ambitiousbookkeeperConnect on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/serenashoupcpaThank you for your support of our show. If you haven't left a review yet it's super simple. Please go to ambitiousbookkeeper.com/podcast and leave your review.Podcast Publishing Tools we use:Editing → Sabr Media LLC: https://www.iangilliam.com/sabr-media-llcDescript: https://get.descript.com/u7lubkx09073 (affiliate link)Buzzsprout: https://www.buzzsprout.com/?referrer_id=1753696 (affiliate link)
If I lost everything tomorrow, the team, the audience, the network, here's the exact tactical playbook I'd use to build back to $1 million from scratch. If I lost everything tomorrow, the team, the audience, the brand, the 13 years of relationships and network I have built, and I had to make $1 million from zero, here is exactly what I would do. This is not a motivational pep talk. It is the real, tactical, step by step playbook with no fluff. Here is the thing most founders get backwards: they build the product, then go looking for customers. You need to flip it. Find the customers first, then build the product. In this episode, I walk through the whole 0 to $1 million playbook, from how I would validate a physical product before spending a dollar on inventory to why founder-led content is the one thing I would do differently if I started over. Here's what you'll take away: • The exact three step validation process I would run before ordering a single unit, including why three star reviews are where the gold is • Why you need somewhere for your money to go before you make your first dollar, and how flying blind on cash flow nearly cost me early on • The one product, one channel rule and why trying to be everywhere is the mistake I see founders make constantly • The product economics I would insist on: 70% margins minimum and an AOV above $60 so paid ads can actually work • The pricing mistake I made on Foundr's Kickstarter that cost us thousands, and how to avoid it • My single biggest regret with Foundr: hiding behind the brand for ten years, and why I would make my face the brand from day one If you are thinking about starting something, or you are stuck spinning your wheels on a brand that has not taken off, this episode gives you the clean, no-nonsense sequence I would follow to get to that first million. Quick heads up: this episode is brought to you in partnership with Xero, the accounting software I have used to run Foundr since day one, and they have put together a genuinely strong offer for listeners in the show notes. If you're loving this solo series, I'd love to hear your feedback. Email me directly at nathan@foundr.com — I read every reply. Hope you enjoy it. SAVE 50% ON OMNISEND FOR 3 MONTHS Get 50% off your first 3 months of email and SMS marketing with Omnisend using the code FOUNDR50. Start here → https://your.omnisend.com/foundr SAVE 95% ON XERO FOR 6 MONTHS Simplify your business finances with 95% off Xero for your first 6 months. Start here → https://foundr.com/xero WANT TO GROW YOUR BRAND WITH META ADS? Join the Foundr Operators Waitlist → https://foundr.com/operators HOW WE CAN HELP YOU SCALE YOUR BUSINESS FASTER Learn directly from 7, 8 & 9-figure founders inside Foundr+ Start your $1 trial → https://www.foundr.com/startdollartrial PREFER A CUSTOM ROADMAP AND 1-ON-1 COACHING? → Starting from scratch? Apply here → https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-start-application → Already have a store? Apply here → https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-growth-application CONNECT WITH NATHAN CHAN Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/nathanchan LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanhchan/ FOLLOW FOUNDR FOR MORE BUSINESS GROWTH STRATEGIES YouTube → https://bit.ly/2uyvzdt Website → https://www.foundr.com Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/foundr/ Facebook → https://www.facebook.com/foundr Twitter → https://www.twitter.com/foundr LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/company/foundr/ Podcast → https://www.foundr.com/podcast
Female genital mutilation (FGM) is happening right now to girls worldwide. Jessica Wynn explains why — and what stops it — on Skeptical Sunday.Welcome to Skeptical Sunday, a special edition of The Jordan Harbinger Show where Jordan and a guest break down a topic that you may have never thought about, open things up, and debunk common misconceptions. This time around, we're joined by writer and researcher Jessica Wynn!Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/1378On This Week's Skeptical Sunday:Female Genital Mutilation isn't a fringe practice — an estimated 230 million women and girls alive today have undergone FGM, and the number is climbing, up 15 percent in eight years. More than two million girls are cut each year, most before their fifth birthday, some within days of being born.FGM isn't Islamic — it predates Islam and appears among Christian and non-religious communities alike; the common thread is culture, not theology. "God requires this" is used as control, which is also why trusted religious leaders are among the strongest voices for ending it.The decision is overwhelmingly made by women — mothers, grandmothers, aunts — not fathers. But they act inside a system where marriage, status, and inheritance hinge on being cut, so it isn't simply men oppressing women. FGM and child marriage are two gears in one machine.The fastest-growing myth is that cutting is safer in a clinic — about one in four recent cases were done by healthcare workers, up to 75 percent in Egypt. There is no safe version. Medicalizing FGM doesn't reduce harm; it lends the practice a veil of legitimacy that helps it survive.Here's what actually works: change from the inside out. When communities talk their own way to abandoning FGM, as in Somaliland and Tostan's villages, it sticks. You can help: fund survivor-led groups, check whether your state bans FGM, back healthcare training, and keep the conversation alive.Connect with Jordan on Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. If you have something you'd like us to tackle here on Skeptical Sunday, drop Jordan a line at jordan@jordanharbinger.com and let him know!Connect with Jessica Wynn at Instagram (and Instagram!), and subscribe to her newsletters: Between the Lines and Where the Shadows Linger!And if you're still game to support us, please leave a review here — even one sentence helps! Sign up for Six-Minute Networking — our free networking and relationship development mini course — at jordanharbinger.com/course!Subscribe to our once-a-week Wee Bit Wiser newsletter today and start filling your Wednesdays with wisdom!Do you even Reddit, bro? Join us at r/JordanHarbinger!This Episode Is Brought To You By Our Fine Sponsors: Xero: One month of Xero for free: xero.comThe Cybersecurity Tapes: Listen here: thecybersecuritytapes.comQuince: Free shipping & 365-day returns: quince.com/jordan ConciergeMD: 20% off all services/memberships: conciergemdla.com/jordan, code JORDANProgressive Insurance: Free online quote: progressive.comSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
You carry an attraction you never chose and never acted on, but therapy could trigger a report that ruins you. Get help, or hide? It's Feedback Friday!And in case you didn't already know it, Jordan Harbinger (@JordanHarbinger) and Gabriel Mizrahi (@GabeMizrahi) banter and take your comments and questions for Feedback Friday right here every week! If you want us to answer your question, register your feedback, or tell your story on one of our upcoming weekly Feedback Friday episodes, drop us a line at friday@jordanharbinger.com. Now let's dive in!Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/1377On This Week's Feedback Friday:If you want to take a siesta on Gabe's Barcelona adventures and resident post-traumatic growth expert Arseny Thumb von Neuburg's thoughts on cognitive empathy vs. affective empathy, skip forward about 16 minutes and 30 seconds!You're a pedophile who's never acted on it and swears you never will — but the secret is crushing you. You want a therapist to help you rewire your brain, yet you're terrified that opening up triggers mandatory reporting and torches the life you've built. Where does someone in your position even find real help?Remember the lonely wife from episode 1365 — the one whose husband grinds 80-90 hours a week and never plans the date night or trip she keeps asking for? A sharp listener writes in to reframe the whole thing: maybe it was never about a vacation, but about who quietly carries everything else. So who's really right?You're a vegan wellness pro who buried your father, brother, and mother from heart disease — and now you're watching your partner of 20 years surrender to four medications, a widening waistline, and financial shame. You have the knowledge to help him; what you lack is the key to reaching him. How do you break through?Recommendation of the Week: My Dad Wrote a Porno — the podcast where a man discovers his mild-mannered retired dad secretly wrote a gloriously terrible erotic novel, then reads it aloud with two friends, chapter by chapter. Some of the finest comedy around!You've quietly become the person your kid self dreamed of — great job, a dog you adore, hobbies, real friends. Now an inheritance could bankroll the wild dream: a plot in northern England, your own planted forest, a hand-built cabin, food you grow yourself. Do you leap, or is that just skipping down delulu lane?Have any questions, comments, or stories you'd like to share with us? Drop us a line at friday@jordanharbinger.com!Connect with Jordan on Twitter at @JordanHarbinger and Instagram at @jordanharbinger.Connect with Gabriel on Twitter at @GabeMizrahi and Instagram @gabrielmizrahi.And if you're still game to support us, please leave a review here — even one sentence helps! Sign up for Six-Minute Networking — our free networking and relationship development mini course — at jordanharbinger.com/course!Subscribe to our once-a-week Wee Bit Wiser newsletter today and start filling your Wednesdays with wisdom!Do you even Reddit, bro? Join us at r/JordanHarbinger!This Episode Is Brought To You By Our Fine Sponsors: Xero: One month of Xero for free: xero.comBetterHelp: 10% off first month: betterhelp.com/jordanSimpliSafe Home Security: 50% off + 1st month free: simplisafe.com/jordanMint Mobile: Shop plans at mintmobile.com/jhsSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Four childhood friends pooled $30,000 in a Chicago apartment to make wet wipes for men. Everyone told them dudes would never use them. Thirteen years later, Dude Wipes does close to $220 million in retail sales, runs on a team of just over 20 people, and is Mark Cuban's best-ever Shark Tank investment. They bootstrapped almost the entire way, none of them had retail experience, and they built a nine-figure business in a category the legacy players weren't even watching. In this interview, Ryan Meegan breaks down how they carried a business to $40 million with just three people, the guerrilla news-jacking playbook that made Dude Wipes a worldwide Twitter trend for pennies, and why brand marketing they never tried to measure was the smartest bet they made. What you'll learn in this interview: • Why four founders with different skill sets and zero egos never clashed in 15 years • How they got their first national retail deal with Kroger through pure cold-calling hustle • The Shark Tank bidding war that landed Mark Cuban's check - and why he calls it his best investment • Why going viral and trending #3 worldwide on Twitter barely moved sales - and why they kept doing it anyway • The Isaiah Crowell NFL moment: how a $3,500 deal turned into ESPN, Howard Stern, and national press • The Amex float strategy: how putting every PO on a credit card funded growth without big raises • Why they refused the VC and Shopify-loan path most DTC brands take - and how they built bank credibility instead • The line-extension trap: why deodorant and body wash failed, and how Covid refocused them on flushable wipes • How three people ran the business to $40M before hiring 15 more • Why they took private equity from TSG while keeping control - and the billion-dollar goal behind it If you're bootstrapping a CPG brand, trying to build awareness without a war chest, or wrestling with whether to chase line extensions or go deeper in your core category, this conversation will fundamentally change how you think about brand, capital efficiency, and staying in the game long enough to win. SAVE 50% ON OMNISEND FOR 3 MONTHS Get 50% off your first 3 months of email and SMS marketing with Omnisend using the code FOUNDR50. Start here → https://your.omnisend.com/foundr SAVE 95% ON XERO FOR 6 MONTHS Simplify your business finances with 95% off Xero for your first 6 months. Start here → https://foundr.com/xero WANT TO GROW YOUR BRAND WITH META ADS? Join the Foundr Operators Waitlist → https://foundr.com/operators HOW WE CAN HELP YOU SCALE YOUR BUSINESS FASTER Learn directly from 7, 8 & 9-figure founders inside Foundr+ Start your $1 trial → https://www.foundr.com/startdollartrial PREFER A CUSTOM ROADMAP AND 1-ON-1 COACHING? → Starting from scratch? Apply here → https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-start-application → Already have a store? Apply here → https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-growth-application CONNECT WITH NATHAN CHAN Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/nathanchan LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanhchan/ CONNECT WITH DUDE WIPES Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/dudewipes/ Website → https://dudewipes.com/ Ryan's LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryan-meegan-07971859/ FOLLOW FOUNDR FOR MORE BUSINESS GROWTH STRATEGIES YouTube → https://bit.ly/2uyvzdt Website → https://www.foundr.com Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/foundr/ Facebook → https://www.facebook.com/foundr Twitter → https://www.twitter.com/foundr LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/company/foundr/ Podcast → https://www.foundr.com/podcast
- Join David's email list, RECEIVE 7 FREE GIFTS!!- https://www.DavidCBarnettList.com Your business may not be worth what you think. Business value depends on market demand, location, cash flow, risk, deal terms, financing, and whether a buyer can successfully take over. In this interview, veteran business broker Gregory Kovsky explains how buyers and sellers determine fair market value, why misleading comparables and unrealistic expectations kill deals, and how seller financing can increase confidence and support a successful transition. Learn: ✔ What truly determines business value ✔ Why comparable sales can mislead ✔ How location affects valuation ✔ Why seller financing matters ✔ Which financial numbers owners should track ✔ How to prepare a business for sale **** Do Business with David using these incredible internet links... - David's Blog where you can find hundreds of free videos and articles, https://www.DavidCBarnett.com - Book a call with David and let him help you with your project, https://www.CallDavidCBarnett.com - Learn how to buy a successful and profitable business in a risk-controlled way https://www.BusinessBuyerAdvantage.com - Get help selling your business, https://www.HowToSellMyOwnBusiness.com ----- #BusinessValuation #SellingABusiness #BusinessBroker #ExitPlanning #SmallBusiness Special Xero offer: Get 90% off for 6 months using this link: https://referrals.xero.com/DavidCBarnett_xero . Terms & Conditions apply.* See the video of my Xero story here: https://youtu.be/LfaGUfwStqo Youtube music licensing code: 5PJWQOE5ZZHTQSRY
For UNQBA's third anniversary, Alicia welcomes back the podcast's original co-host, Hector Garcia, to look at how the industry has shifted since they started, from the rise of AI-native ledger alternatives like Xero, Digits, and Puzzle to Intuit's course correction on QuickBooks Live and Intuit Experts after accountant backlash. They dig into what "nail the basics" actually means inside Intuit, why the human relationship in accounting still matters even as AI handles more of the busywork, and what they're each watching for out of Intuit Connect and the 2027 rollout of Intuit Accountant Suite.Sponsors:Intuit Accountants - http://uqb.promo/intuitPilot - http://uqb.promo/pilotKick.co - http://uqb.promo/kick(00:00) - Anniversary Kickoff (02:03) - Industry Shifts and New Rivals (03:38) - AI First Accounting Platforms (08:04) - Spite Switching and Multi Ledger (10:36) - QuickBooks Live Backlash (14:23) - Repositioning Experts and Value (19:59) - Markets Are Conversations (25:38) - Training and ProPartner Future (29:48) - Accountants Split on AI (36:47) - Human Value in an AI World (41:10) - Hector Updates Right Tool Reframe (45:51) - Alicia Courses and QBO Deep Dives (48:47) - Wrap Up and Next Episode LINKSAlicia's Fall classes! Attend the live webinar or watch the recording on-demand, all with CPE. Become a member of the OWLS for free automatic enrollment into all courses:Customizing QBO: http://royl.ws/CustomizingQBO?affiliate=5393907AI in QBO: http://royl.ws/AI?affiliate=5393907Intuit Accountant Suite: http://royl.ws/IAS?affiliate=5393907Come to Miami in Novemeber! Events.reframeaccounting.comCheck out Hector's RightTool: www.righttool.appWe want to hear from you!Send your questions and comments to us at unofficialquickbookspodcast@gmail.com.Join our LinkedIn community at https://www.linkedin.com/groups/14630719/Visit our YouTube Channel at https://www.youtube.com/@UnofficialQBOPodcastSign up to Earmark to earn free CPE for listening to this podcasthttps://www.earmark.app/onboarding
Trieu became a dentist because he liked working with his hands and helping people - he got into UCSF's dental school as the very last student accepted, number 81 in a class of 81. Then the job started breaking his body. Aching neck, aching back, and mentors around him retiring early from surgeries. So he tinkered with some prisms until he could sit up straight and see like he was looking through a microscope, filed a patent, and built Hero Loops - ergonomic loupes that do the job of a $20,000 wall-mounted unit. He launched it one month before the pandemic hit. He still practises dentistry full time while running the whole thing. In this episode, Trieu gets honest about the brutal timing of launching right before Covid, the years it took to crack marketing after nailing the product, and how he thinks about building - including a psychology framework he borrowed straight from dentistry. What you'll learn in this interview: The origin story: how his own neck and back pain, plus watching colleagues retire early from surgery, drove him to prototype an alternative to the bulky $20K microscopes on the market Why he left dentistry income on the table for product income - and the scaling logic behind it: a product has quality control and consistency, while a dental chair only makes money when you're in it The painful timing lesson: launching one month before the pandemic, doing $20K in the first month, then watching competitors use the downtime to copy his product - and why he still says launch before it's perfect The plateau most founders hit: stuck at $5-6K a month with a great product because "you can be the best dentist, but if nobody knows about you, they won't come" The single change that broke the plateau: a new website and platform that did $50K in its first month How defining what "success" actually looks like - and watching that target keep moving from $50K to $100K to $200K - helped him appreciate the milestones instead of always chasing the next one The core ads skill that drove the growth: learning when to turn ads off, when to turn them on, and when to increase budget - and building the confidence to do it The "five Ps" framework he uses to judge whether a product will sell - pain, profit, prestige, preservation, and pleasure - and how Hero Loops hits several at once Why static ads outperform video for his analytical, detail-oriented audience - and how live customer-reaction reels hook attention at the top of the funnel What's next: bringing manufacturing in-house for faster delivery and expanding worldwide beyond the US - and the licensing and distribution hurdles that come with it If you're a professional with deep expertise in a field, sitting on a product idea but unsure whether you can build something outside your day job - this episode is for you. Trieu's story is a grounded reminder that the product is only half the battle: learning to market it is the skill that actually compounds, and you don't have to quit everything to start. SAVE 50% ON OMNISEND FOR 3 MONTHS Get 50% off your first 3 months of email and SMS marketing with Omnisend using the code FOUNDR50. Start here → https://your.omnisend.com/foundr SAVE 95% ON XERO FOR 6 MONTHS Simplify your business finances with 95% off Xero for your first 6 months. Start here → https://foundr.com/xero WANT TO GROW YOUR BRAND WITH META ADS? Join the Foundr Operators Waitlist → https://foundr.com/operators HOW WE CAN HELP YOU SCALE YOUR BUSINESS FASTER Learn directly from 7, 8 & 9-figure founders inside Foundr+ Start your $1 trial → https://www.foundr.com/startdollartrial PREFER A CUSTOM ROADMAP AND 1-ON-1 COACHING? → Starting from scratch? Apply here → https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-start-application → Already have a store? Apply here → https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-growth-application CONNECT WITH BY TRIEU TON LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/trieu-ton-3b7055122/ Website → https://heroloupes.com/ FOLLOW FOUNDR FOR MORE BUSINESS GROWTH STRATEGIES YouTube → https://bit.ly/2uyvzdt Website → https://www.foundr.com Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/foundr/ Facebook → https://www.facebook.com/foundr Twitter → https://www.twitter.com/foundr LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/company/foundr/ Podcast → https://www.foundr.com/podcast
How does shame curdle into addiction? Ex-dealer and federal informant Sean Hemeon retraces his descent and the long climb back to sober.Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/1376What We Discuss with Sean Hemeon:Sean Hemeon was primed for addiction before he ever tried meth. Abandoned at four, taught by his church that being gay made him diseased, meth gave him the confidence and belonging shame had denied him. It didn't create the void, but filled one that was already there.Moral collapse is gradual, not sudden. A year without a sober breath is how a smart person ends up stuffing meth into a dying stranger's nose, hoping to restart his heart. Boundaries don't break all at once — they give way one rationalization at a time.The system meant to stop the harm made it worse. Agents saved in Sean's phone as 'yes' and 'no' pushed him back into dealing to gather intel. A judge charmed by his school's basketball team let him walk. The outcome had less to do with the crime than with luck.A grieving mother found Sean's number on her dead son's last phone bill and called, begging him not to hang up. He hung up. That choice broke his image of himself as a good person and left a debt he's still trying to pay.You can't undo the worst thing you've done, but you can stop running from it. 21 years sober, Sean tells the truth, stays reachable, and would fly to that mother tomorrow if she called. Accountability isn't feeling guilty, but facing the damage.And much more...And if you're still game to support us, please leave a review here — even one sentence helps! Sign up for Six-Minute Networking — our free networking and relationship development mini course — at jordanharbinger.com/course!Subscribe to our once-a-week Wee Bit Wiser newsletter today and start filling your Wednesdays with wisdom!Do you even Reddit, bro? Join us at r/JordanHarbinger!This Episode Is Brought To You By Our Fine Sponsors: BetterHelp: 10% off first month: betterhelp.com/jordanK12: Learn more at k12.com/jordanNorthwest Registered Agent: Get more at northwestregisteredagent.com/jordanXero: One month of Xero for free: xero.comSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
See what the team at The Successful Bookkeeper has on right now → Lara Manton has a gift for reframing panic as possibility. The founder of ACE-XL Ltd and a 15-year UK bookkeeping veteran, Lara delivered a talk at Accountex titled I've Watched Bookkeeping Die 3 Times — and in this episode she brings that same clear-eyed optimism to Michael Palmer. If you've been anxious about AI or wondering whether your role still matters, this conversation will shift your thinking. Chapters [00:00] Opening quote on client value [01:18] Welcome and guest introduction [03:30] The provocative LinkedIn article [06:30] Defining what bookkeeping really is [10:00] Three times bookkeeping 'died' [15:00] AI as shepherd, not replacement [18:30] Who thrived through each shift [23:00] Evaluating tech without chasing shiny objects [27:30] Rising professionalism and community [31:30] Biggest opportunity the profession must not miss Three "Deaths" That Were Actually Rebirths Lara's three moments of supposed bookkeeping extinction track neatly with major industry shifts: the cloud and OCR revolution, COVID forcing everyone to work remotely, and now the rise of AI agents. Each time, the prediction was the same — software will replace the bookkeeper. Each time, the profession adapted and came out doing more meaningful work. "Every time the software changes," Lara says, "it changes what bookkeepers do. It changes the nature of bookkeeping, maybe not what we do, but how we do it." The Core Job Has Never Changed Strip away the tools and the underlying mission is the same it has always been: get accurate data to help businesses make decisions. Lara argues that AI and automation simply speed up the data-gathering part, which frees bookkeepers to spend more time on the part that actually matters to clients. "The rewarding thing isn't entering data," she says. "The rewarding thing is understanding a business and helping a business owner. And that bit doesn't change." Humanity Is the Competitive Advantage The bookkeepers who thrived through every disruption shared one trait: they stayed curious about their clients. Lara makes the case that asking the right questions — specific to each business, not generic ones — is where the real value lives. "You can learn to ask the right questions, not the questions that everyone asks, but the right questions for that business. And then that's where you can start to add value. Because unless you actually relate those numbers back to the business itself and what they're trying to achieve, those numbers are gonna mean nothing to them." She warns that if you communicate like a robot, AI will eventually be able to replace you — but the innately human skills of listening, pattern recognition, and relationship-building are much harder to replicate. Thinking Clearly About AI Tools Lara draws a sharp line between AI accounting tools and accounting tools with AI built in. The former often lack foundational accounting knowledge; the latter layer intelligence on top of proven principles. She shared a real example: a client ran their VAT return through Claude and came back with a list of confused questions — because the AI didn't understand international reverse charge VAT. "It's about shepherding that information and reviewing the information rather than necessarily doing the data entry, but being aware of the other things that matter to a business owner." The lesson: use AI to augment your expertise, not to bypass the need for it. A Rising Tide for the Whole Profession Lara sees bookkeeping's public profile improving — driven partly by institutional efforts in the UK to bring bookkeeping into university curricula, and partly by accountants increasingly recognising bookkeepers as collaborative partners rather than a cheaper alternative. She also points to the bookkeeping community's culture of sharing as a quiet competitive strength. "Bookkeepers talk to one another. We don't gatekeep in the same way. We share information quite freely." That generosity of knowledge, she believes, is one of the things that will carry the profession forward — and attract software companies who want to build better products with practitioner input. Links Mentioned Lara Manton on LinkedIn — connect with Lara directly ACE-XL Ltd — Lara's finance process consultancy for larger businesses LJM Bookkeeping — Lara's UK bookkeeping practice PureBookkeeping.com — episode sponsor, proven system for growing your bookkeeping business thesuccessfulbookkeeper.com — free business-building resources About the Guest Lara Manton is the founder of ACE-XL Ltd and runs LJM Bookkeeping, a UK-based practice working with limited companies and service-based businesses. A two-time Xero Award winner — including Xero's first UK Bookkeeper / Small Firm of the Year — Lara sits on the ICB's Advisory Board and chairs their Tech Board. She has spoken at every major UK accounting event, including Accountex, and works with approximately 50 clients worldwide across outsourced finance and bookkeeping engagements.
Listen in to the podcast between Todd Rychecky, president of Gearlinx, and Don Witt of the Channel Daily News from Telecom Reseller. They discuss how GearLinx helps organizations maintain secure visibility and control of critical infrastructure during network outages, focusing on the “outage readiness gap.” Todd explains the company’s solutions, including the NR4400 Network Resilience Platform and the Xero cloud management tool. They cover five key questions for assessing a customer’s recovery risk, such as whether teams can still access equipment during an outage and the importance of independent recovery paths. Todd Rychecky
I interviewed the founder of HexClad about a year ago. Cookware, pots and pans, not the sexiest category in the world. But their ambassador is Gordon Ramsay, one of the most famous chefs on the planet. And when he holds up your pan, you do not need to explain anything else. So here is the question nobody asks: how does a cookware brand get Gordon Ramsay without a massive ad budget or a celebrity agency on retainer? Here is the answer: a genuinely great product and a strategy. The same strategy I have used to build Foundr for over a decade and that I apply to every brand I advise. In this episode, I break down the ambassador playbook step by step so you can get respected people in your market to endorse your brand, even if you are starting with zero audience and zero connections. Here's what you'll take away: • The three pillars of a brand that breaks through: a genuinely great product, next level design, and ambassadors • The "who's who in the zoo" framework for identifying the 10 to 30 people your customer already trusts • Why the gatekeeper is not an obstacle but your way through the door, and how to treat them accordingly • The follow up strategy that got me Barbara Corcoran after two years and how one question reframes "no" into "not right now" • The Amazon coming soon hack that lets you offer distribution instead of asking for a favour, and how it landed me Tim Ferriss and Tony Robbins • Why ambassadors are not a "later, once we're big enough" thing, and how each one you land makes the next one easier If you have been assuming that big-name endorsements are reserved for brands with big budgets, this episode will show you exactly why they are not, and give you a concrete list to start working through this week. If you're loving this solo series, I'd love to hear your feedback. Email me directly at nathan@foundr.com — I read every reply. Hope you enjoy it. SAVE 50% ON OMNISEND FOR 3 MONTHS Get 50% off your first 3 months of email and SMS marketing with Omnisend using the code FOUNDR50. Start here → https://your.omnisend.com/foundr SAVE 95% ON XERO FOR 6 MONTHS Simplify your business finances with 95% off Xero for your first 6 months. Start here → https://foundr.com/xero WANT TO GROW YOUR BRAND WITH META ADS? Join the Foundr Operators Waitlist → https://foundr.com/operators HOW WE CAN HELP YOU SCALE YOUR BUSINESS FASTER Learn directly from 7, 8 & 9-figure founders inside Foundr+ Start your $1 trial → https://www.foundr.com/startdollartrial PREFER A CUSTOM ROADMAP AND 1-ON-1 COACHING? → Starting from scratch? Apply here → https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-start-application → Already have a store? Apply here → https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-growth-application CONNECT WITH NATHAN CHAN Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/nathanchan LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanhchan/ FOLLOW FOUNDR FOR MORE BUSINESS GROWTH STRATEGIES YouTube → https://bit.ly/2uyvzdt Website → https://www.foundr.com Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/foundr/ Facebook → https://www.facebook.com/foundr Twitter → https://www.twitter.com/foundr LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/company/foundr/ Podcast → https://www.foundr.com/podcast
AI is about to replace bloated SaaS, and most businesses are still only playing with chatbotsSean G Muller says the next wave of AI is not about better prompts or prettier copilots. It is about rebuilding business around context, agents, and what actually creates value - before your software stack becomes the expensive middleman.Mark Smth and Sean unpack why the last six months have been a genuine shift: agentic loops are now good enough to handle real business work, not just experiments. Sean explains how he moved from traditional technical architecture into building full application pipelines, MCP servers, and background agents that review email, track social signals, draft responses, and keep business moving without adding more human overhead.You'll discover why context is the missing ingredient in almost every failed AI project, how Sean uses a simple meal-planning example to explain it, and why companies that scatter knowledge across laptops, SharePoint, Google Cloud, and people's heads are sitting on hidden risk. Sean also breaks down the difference between AI as a feature and AI as a business transformation engine, including the mistake many firms make when they bolt chat onto old workflows and call it progress.We also get into the coming SaaS pocalypse - the idea that tools like HubSpot, Salesforce, Xero, Slack, and Atlassian may face a serious reckoning as businesses realize they can build leaner, custom, agent-first systems for less than the cost of endless licenses and modules. Sean shares how he built a headless, agent-driven CRM and why he thinks greenfield builds will replace expensive transformation projects much sooner than most executives expect. This conversation matters if you lead a business, run operations, own a small or mid-sized company, or simply suspect your current software is forcing you to work the wrong way. If you want to understand where AI is actually delivering leverage right now - and how to avoid wasting money on shallow pilots - this episode is essential listening.Mark Smth hosts the conversation and brings the enterprise and product lens, pushing Sean to get specific about what success looks like for real businesses in New Zealand.Sean G Muller is an AI and enterprise architecture specialist based in New Zealand, known for helping organizations build practical AI systems, implement agentic workflows, and rethink business process from the ground up.Resources1. The Cuckoo's Egg: Tracking a Spy Through the Maze of Computer Espionage - https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/0385249462?ref_=mr_referred_us_au_nz2. Gemini: A Family of Highly Capable Multimodal Models — 2312.11805.pdf https://arxiv.org/abs/2312.118053. On the Measure of Intelligence — 1911.01547.pdf - https://arxiv.org/pdf/1911.01547Support the showIf you want to get in touch with me, you can message me here on Linkedin.Thanks for listening
SHARESIES · MARKET MOVEMENTS · Jacki Neumann, Head of Capital Markets at Sharesies Note: Filmed Monday 31 August ↑ WHAT'S UP — US indices edged higher, with the S&P 500 up 0.5% and the Nasdaq up 0.9%, while the ASX 200 added 0.4%, propelled by results including Qantas’ 4.8% jump on a $2.06 billion underlying profit, Coles rising 5%, and NEXTDC beating guidance with revenue up 16% on surging AI infrastructure demand. ↓ WHAT'S DOWN — The NZX 50 fell 1.5% in its worst week since May, snapping three weeks of gains. DroneShield sank 11% despite a 74% revenue jump as it swung to a $32.2 million loss, Air New Zealand posted a $336 million full-year pre-tax loss, and Xero drew a 70.6% protest vote against its remuneration report. ! BIGGEST SURPRISES — Australia's July CPI ran hotter than expected at 3.5%, with trimmed mean inflation at 3.6%, lifting the odds of an RBA hike by year-end to 78% from 67%. At Jackson Hole, Fed Chair Kevin Warsh’s tone was hawkish, pushing September US rate-rise odds from around 36% to nearly 60%. ◎ WHAT TO WATCH — The RBNZ meets Wednesday, with markets expecting a 25 basis point hike from 2.5%, and Australia's Q2 GDP lands the same day. In the US, the August employment report on Friday will be a key read ahead of the Fed's next decision on September 16. ◈ BIGGER PICTURE — Inflation is proving stickier than hoped, with a hot Australian CPI and a hawkish Warsh pushing rate-hike expectations sharply higher on both sides of the Pacific. The AI build-out still looks robust — Nvidia flagged hyperscaler capex near US$800 billion this year — but its warning on shrinking margins is a reminder that even the AI winners face cost pressure. Disclaimer: Sharesies Market Movements is brought to you by Sharesies Australia Limited (ABN 94 648 811 830; AFSL 529893) in Australia and Sharesies Limited (NZ) in New Zealand. This video is general market commentary and educational in nature. It is not financial advice and does not take into account your personal objectives, financial situation or needs. Information is current at the time of recording and may be subject to change. We do not provide recommendations and nothing in this video should be taken as a recommendation to buy or sell any financial product. Investing involves risk. You might lose the money you start with. Past performance is not indicative of future performance. If you require personal financial advice, you should consider speaking with a qualified financial adviser. Our disclosure documents and terms and conditions, including a Target Market Determination and IDPS Guide for Sharesies Australian customers, are available on our relevant Australian or NZ website.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Adam and Adir unpack the investor fight building around Canva, AirTree and the painful question of when early backers should finally get liquidity. They also dig into Xero’s shareholder revolt, Corporate Travel Management’s surprise rescue deal, Zoox’s lost upside, the return of hardware startups, and why Disney might be one of the rare businesses with almost every major competitive power. 00:00 - Defcon Merch and Tansu’s First Week07:14 - Zoox16:31 - Vanguard Smart Glasses23:05 - Leo Esaki's Five Don'ts27:47 - Disney's Hidden Powers35:53 - GTA VI43:13 - Eureka Pet Co.48:20 - Victoria's Crime Problem58:04 - Canva1:13:19 - Xero's Shareholder Revolt1:20:40 - CTM The first 20 listeners to use code "TCfirst20" at Tanssu.com will redeem the offer mentioned in this week's episode: https://www.tanssu.com/discount/TCfirst20. Add “The Set” to your cart in any colour. Then at checkout, the code will remove the cost of the tote. Join us on Substack for articles, news and more: https://www.thecontrarianspod.com/
Think you need to be an "alpha" to win? Nick Pell debunks the wolf-pack myth and reveals what actually earns respect here on Skeptical Sunday!Welcome to Skeptical Sunday, a special edition of The Jordan Harbinger Show where Jordan and a guest break down a topic that you may have never thought about, open things up, and debunk common misconceptions. This time around, we're joined by writer and researcher Nick Pell!Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/1375On This Week's Skeptical Sunday:An "alpha" is supposedly the dominant top dog — the leader who takes 90% of life's spoils while the lesser "betas" scrap for crumbs. But the whole pecking order traces back to a 1940s study of captive wolves crammed into a pen — the "wolf prison yard," not real pack life.The biologist who made "alpha" famous, L. David Mech, spent decades disavowing his own bestseller. The so-called alpha wolves aren't the toughest fighters who clawed their way up — they're just the parents. The pack defers to them because they bring the food.Humans didn't conquer the planet by bullying — we did it by cooperating. We're "obligate cooperators," self-domesticated apes who arguably bred aggression out of ourselves. Nobody builds a pencil, let alone a moon rocket, alone. Dominance is a liability, not a cheat code.Real influence runs on prestige, not dominance (a distinction from anthropologist Joseph Henrich). Fear makes people hide problems — think D-Day, when nobody dared wake Hitler, or Vietnam-era "fragging." Domineering bosses get avoided; competent ones get followed.Want to actually lead? Drop the dominance act and build competence instead. Lead by example, stay approachable so small problems reach you while they're still small, and treat people as collaborators rather than rivals. Prestige is freely given — and it's what makes people want to follow you.Connect with Jordan on Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. If you have something you'd like us to tackle here on Skeptical Sunday, drop Jordan a line at jordan@jordanharbinger.com and let him know!And if you're still game to support us, please leave a review here — even one sentence helps! Sign up for Six-Minute Networking — our free networking and relationship development mini course — at jordanharbinger.com/course!Subscribe to our once-a-week Wee Bit Wiser newsletter today and start filling your Wednesdays with wisdom!Do you even Reddit, bro? Join us at r/JordanHarbinger!This Episode Is Brought To You By Our Fine Sponsors: Zenni: 15% off your first order: zenni.com/podcast, code PODCAST15Xero: One month of Xero for free: xero.comNOBL: Up to 46% off: nobltravel.com, tell them we sent youCastbox: Find, organize, and subscribe to the world's best podcasts: castbox.fmSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
EPISODE DESCRIPTION I sit down with Berken, CMO of CoinTracking, the world's first crypto tax platform founded all the way back in 2012 when Bitcoin was under $100. We dig into how they bootstrapped their way to 2.2 million users, why authentic education beats paid placements every time, and how they're navigating AI in a space where a single wrong number could land you in trouble with the IRS. Berken shares what channels are actually moving the needle, why they turned down the idea of launching their own token, and what their upcoming MCP integration means for connecting your Claude or ChatGPT directly to your tax data. Whether you're a crypto trader trying to avoid overpaying taxes, a founder looking for growth lessons, or someone curious about how a SaaS company stays relevant in a fast-moving space, this episode is packed with practical insights. DISCLAIMERNothing mentioned in this podcast is investment advice and please do your own research. It would mean a lot if you can leave a review of this podcast on Apple Podcasts or Spotify and share this podcast with a friend. Be a guest on the podcast or contact us - https://www.web3pod.xyz/ CONNECT CoinTracking Website: https://cointracking.info/ CoinTracking Twitter/X:https://x.com/Coin_Tracking Berken LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/berken-mengesWeb3 with Sam Kamani: https://www.web3pod.xyz/ KEY POINTS WITH TIMESTAMPS • [00:01] Sam introduces Berken, CMO of CoinTracking, and frames the episode around crypto taxes, AI, and startup growth• [02:12] Berken shares his journey from personal crypto investor in 2019 to CMO, starting as an affiliate marketing manager• [03:56] CoinTracking overview: 2.2 million users, 400+ exchange integrations, portfolio tracking and one-click tax reports• [06:32] CoinTracking was the world's first crypto tax tool, founded in 2012 by Dario Kachel who built it for himself• [08:00] The bootstrapped, organic growth story: users gave feedback, helped translate, and shaped the product over 13 years• [10:20] Sam and Berken discuss how fragmented the crypto landscape is across DeFi wallets, CEXs, and blockchains• [13:11] Why CoinTracking is a SaaS and not a crypto asset service provider, and how that makes compliance and partnerships simpler• [14:58] How CoinTracking is approaching AI: an MCP integration coming soon to connect Claude or ChatGPT to your tax data• [17:27] Why they are not allowing AI to edit tax data yet , reproducibility and accuracy are non-negotiable for tax filings• [21:43] Berken's biggest CMO challenge: navigating daily shifts in regulation, exchange strategies, and market conditions• [23:07] Business model breakdown: mostly B2C, but growing B2B with CPAs, funds, and a new white-label solution for exchanges• [24:18] North star metrics: user growth and retention, with a focus on making CoinTracking a daily portfolio tool, not just a tax tool• [26:08] The most common mistake people make: filing taxes with missing wallets or transactions, which can result in overpaying• [29:08] What marketing channel works best: long-form YouTube content, authentic KOL partnerships, and connecting KOLs with CPAs• [34:58] CoinTracking has been profitable since day one and is not looking for funding, but actively seeking exchange partnerships• [36:09] Why they decided against launching their own token: sentiment risk, distraction, and wrong-type user acquisition• [39:00] Sam draws a parallel to Xero's accountant-led growth strategy and how CoinTracking could follow a similar path
The bookkeeper hiring model is changing. AI, rising employment costs and the disappearance of traditional entry-level work are making it harder for a bookkeeper practice to hire and train the next generation. In this episode, I explore why work experience matters, where qualifications fall short, and how every bookkeeper can rethink training in a world where new hires are expected to add value faster. Whether you're hiring, training or building your career as a bookkeeper, this is a problem the profession needs to solve. The future of the bookkeeper workforce starts with giving people the experience they need to succeed. Start your FREE Trial at HeyMonika ➡️ https://heymonika.com/ Find out about BDO's research into Social Mobility and read the Young Minds 2026 Report, here ➡️ https://www.bdo.co.uk/en-gb/about/social-mobility ----------------------------------------------- About us We're Jo and Zoe and we help bookkeepers find clients, make more money and build profitable businesses they love. Find out about working with us in The Bookkeepers' Collective, at: 6figurebookkeeper.com/collective ----------------------------------------------- About our Sponsor This episode of The Bookkeepers' Podcast is sponsored by Xero. Get 90% off your first 6 months by visiting: https://xero5440.partnerlinks.io/6figurebookkeeper ----------------------------------------------- Promotion This video contains paid promotion. ----------------------------------------------- Disclaimer The information contained in The Bookkeepers' Podcast is provided for information purposes only. The contents of The Bookkeepers' Podcast is not intended to amount to advice and you should not rely on any of the contents of the Bookkeepers' Podcast. Professional advice should be obtained before taking or refraining from taking any action as a result of the contents of the Bookkeepers' Podcast. The 6 Figure Bookkeeper Ltd disclaims all liability and responsibility arising from any reliance placed on any of the contents of the Bookkeepers' Podcast. Chapters: 00:00:00 - The Bookkeeper Hiring Crisis NOBODY Is Talking About 00:02:40 - The Unequal Access to Work Experience 00:04:58 - Careers Advice Is Being Replaced by AI and Social Media 00:07:05 - University, Apprenticeships, and Conflicting Career Messages 00:09:27 - My Route from University to Trainee Accountant 00:11:14 - Career Paths in Bookkeeping and Accountancy 00:14:13 - Why Professional Qualifications Still Matter 00:15:00 - Why Qualifications Alone Are Not Enough
AI agents are going rogue — deleting bookings, sending unauthorized emails, and lying about it — and Blake and David trace the trend into the $3 trillion of off-balance-sheet AI commitments hiding in Big Tech's footnotes (and why accountants will get blamed when the bubble pops). They also recap what stood out at XeroCon 2026. Then Hoover Institution fellow Ben Jaros runs the real numbers on California's Prop 40 billionaire wealth tax — why the $100 billion estimate is closer to $40 billion, and whether taxing 200 people is even constitutional.SponsorsCanopy - http://accountingpodcast.promo/canopyThomson Reuters - http://accountingpodcast.promo/taxautomationOnPay - http://accountingpodcast.promo/onpayCloud Accountant Staffing - http://accountingpodcast.promo/casChapters(00:00) - Welcome to The Accounting Podcast (03:00) - Rogue AI Agents Gone Wild (07:53) - Controlling Agent Permissions (12:08) - Microsoft AI Receivables Surge (14:49) - Three Trillion Off Book Commitments (17:09) - Meta Hyperion Lease Loopholes (21:33) - Bubble Risk and Circular Financing (28:24) - XeroCon Highlights and AI Agents (32:21) - Bank Reconciliation and Roadmap Gripes (34:10) - Conference Vaporware Rant (34:37) - Billionaire Tax Preview (36:33) - Prop 40 Basics (38:40) - Revenue Reality Check (42:44) - Residency Cutoff Drama (45:01) - Wealth Tax vs Income Tax (45:52) - One Time Or Not (46:34) - Healthcare Backfill Claims (51:42) - Better Ways To Tax (55:23) - Constitutional Challenges (58:01) - Why Voters Oppose It (01:02:09) - Trial Balloon And Wrap Up Show NotesComing soon!Need CPE?Get CPE for listening to podcasts with Earmark: https://earmarkcpe.comSubscribe to the Earmark Podcast: https://podcast.earmarkcpe.comGet in TouchThanks for listening and the great reviews! We appreciate you! Follow and tweet @BlakeTOliver and @DavidLeary. Find us on Facebook and Instagram. If you like what you hear, please do us a favor and write a review on Apple Podcasts or Podchaser. Call us and leave a voicemail; maybe we'll play it on the show. DIAL (202) 695-1040.SponsorshipsAre you interested in sponsoring The Accounting Podcast? For details, read the prospectus.Need Accounting Conference Info? Check out our new website - accountingconferences.comLimited edition shirts, stickers, and other necessitiesTeePublic Store: http://cloudacctpod.link/merchSubscribeApple Podcasts: http://cloudacctpod.link/ApplePodcastsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheAccountingPodcastSpotify: http://cloudacctpod.link/SpotifyPodchaser: http://cloudacctpod.link/podchaserStitcher: http://cloudacctpod.link/StitcherOvercast: http://cloudacctpod.link/OvercastClassifieds Flowglad - https://cal.com/team/flowglad/flowgladFearless Foundry - www.advisoryamplified.comExpense Bot - https://www.expensebot.ai/accountantProfitRoot - https://tryprofitroot.com/Want to get the word out about your newsletter, webinar, party, Facebook group, podcast, e-book, job posting, or that fancy Excel macro you just created? Let the listeners of The Accounting Podcast know by running a classified ad. Go here to create your classified ad: https://cloudacctpod.link/RunClassifiedAdTranscriptsThe full transcript for this episode is available by clicking on the Transcript tab at the top of this page
- Join David's email list, RECEIVE 7 FREE GIFTS!!- https://www.DavidCBarnettList.com In this "best-of" interview, I sit down with lending advisor Marshall Lebovitz to explore financing options for businesses that don't fit traditional bank lending criteria. We discuss why healthy and growing businesses can still be considered "unbankable," asset-based lending, working capital, accounts receivable and inventory financing, alternative lenders, and why the cheapest loan isn't necessarily the best financing solution. Marshall also explains how to evaluate the real cost of borrowing, recognize potentially dangerous loan structures, and understand your business from a lender's perspective before you start looking for capital. Watch the video and discover how to fund a business when traditional banks say no. **** Do Business with David using these incredible internet links... - David's Blog where you can find hundreds of free videos and articles, https://www.DavidCBarnett.com - Book a call with David and let him help you with your project, https://www.CallDavidCBarnett.com - Learn how to buy a successful and profitable business in a risk-controlled way https://www.BusinessBuyerAdvantage.com - Get help selling your business, https://www.HowToSellMyOwnBusiness.com ----- #BusinessFinancing #SmallBusiness #BusinessLoans #BusinessFunding #WorkingCapital #CashFlow #Entrepreneurship #BusinessGrowth Special Xero offer: Get 90% off for 6 months using this link: https://referrals.xero.com/DavidCBarnett_xero . Terms & Conditions apply.* See the video of my Xero story here: https://youtu.be/LfaGUfwStqo Youtube music licensing code: 5PJWQOE5ZZHTQSRY
Even though you know you shouldn't be mixing your personal and business funds together, we know it happens, and I totally understand that there are times when this may be happening in your business. I have seen many times when cash falls short, and the business owner needs to inject additional funds into the business. Where does this money come from? Well, to be honest, most often, it is the business owner using their personal funds to help increase the cash needed in the business. In today's episode, I am going to cover how you should be recording these personal funds you may be depositing into your business. It doesn't matter if you are using a computerized bookkeeping system like QuickBooks, Wave, Xero, or FreshBooks, or a manual system such as an Excel spreadsheet; you'll know exactly how to record these deposits you make into your business from your personal funds. Whether you are just getting ready to start your small business, you're a solopreneur, entrepreneur, small business owner, virtual online bookkeeper, or virtual assistant, making sure you are correctly recording any personal funds you put into your business will be extremely important. These amounts are not considered income or sales and should not be recorded as additional income in your business, so listen in so that you make sure you don't overstate the income in your business by recording these funds incorrectly… Join us in a community built specifically for accountants and high-stress professionals. You'll receive support, accountability, and a community that understands what you're going through. We focus on stress reduction, increasing productivity, time management, goal achievement, health, happiness, and desired lifestyle: https://www.financialadventure.com/community Schedule your Complimentary Stress Audit And Clarity Session, where we'll work together to create a clear and focused plan and overcome the obstacles that stand in your way so that you can move forward and immediately start enjoying your life with less stress, increased productivity, and more time to spend doing what you love with the people you care about: https://www.financialadventure.com/work-with-me Accountants, CPAs, Bookkeepers, Tax Preparers & Financial Professionals, sign up here to get updates on upcoming opportunities & grab the Audit Of Your Well-Being & Balance Guide here: https://www.financialadventure.com/accountant Ready to set up your business? I have a program to help you get your business set up so that you can start making money. Sign up for this program here: https://www.financialadventure.com/start Are you ready to try coaching? Schedule an Introductory Coaching Session today. You'll have the opportunity to see how you like coaching with an Introductory Coaching Session: https://www.financialadventure.com/intro Join us in the Mastering Your Small Business Finances PROFIT LAB if you are ready to take control of your business finances and create the profitable business you are striving for. Are you ready to generate revenues and increase the profit in your business: https://www.financialadventure.com/profit If You Are Ready To Choose, Start Or Grow Your Side Hustle, Get Your Free Checklist And Assessment Here: https://www.financialadventure.com/sidehustle Grab Your FREE guide: 5 Essential Strategies For Stress-Free Bookkeeping: https://www.financialadventure.com/5essentials Your FREE Online Virtual Bookkeeping Business Starter Guide & Success Path Is Waiting For You: https://www.financialadventure.com/starterguide Join Our Facebook Community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/womenbusinessownersultimatediybookkeepingboutique The Strategic Bookkeeping Academy, including Bookkeeping Basics, is open for registration! You can learn more and sign up here: https://www.financialadventure.com/sba Looking for a payroll solution for your business? You can get an exclusive 15% discount on your payroll services when you sign up here: https://www.financialadventure.com/adp QuickBooks Online - Save 30% Your First 6 Months: https://www.financialadventure.com/quickbooks Sign up for a virtual coffee chat to see if starting a Bookkeeping Business is right for you: https://www.financialadventure.com/discovery Show Notes: https://www.financialadventure.com This podcast is sponsored by Financial Adventure, LLC ~ visit https://www.financialadventure.com for additional information and free resources.
- Join David's email list, RECEIVE 7 FREE GIFTS!!- https://www.DavidCBarnettList.com Find Alisa online here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alisasparkslc/ or here: https://linden-creek.com/ **** Franchising a Creative Driven Business New guest – Alisa Sparks I'm joined by Alisa Sparks, Founder and CEO of Linden Creek, to talk about how she transformed a home staging and interior design business into a franchise model. Alisa came from a finance background, not interior design. That analytical mindset helped her break a seemingly creative business into systems that could be taught, measured, and eventually replicated by franchise owners. Tune in as we discuss how she systematized home staging, the investment required to build a franchise, managing furniture inventory for ROI, and why sales and marketing can be more important than creative talent when building the business. We'll also explore what makes a good franchisee, why Alisa has deliberately chosen to grow Linden Creek slowly, and the lessons business owners should consider before trying to franchise their own company. This is a ‘must see event' for business owners, entrepreneurs, prospective franchisees, and anyone interested in franchising a service-based or creative business. **** Do Business with David using these incredible internet links... - David's Blog where you can find hundreds of free videos and articles, https://www.DavidCBarnett.com - Book a call with David and let him help you with your project, https://www.CallDavidCBarnett.com - Learn how to buy a successful and profitable business in a risk-controlled way https://www.BusinessBuyerAdvantage.com - Get help selling your business, https://www.HowToSellMyOwnBusiness.com ----- Special Xero offer: Get 90% off for 6 months using this link: https://referrals.xero.com/DavidCBarnett_xero . Terms & Conditions apply.* See the video of my Xero story here: https://youtu.be/LfaGUfwStqo Youtube music licensing code: 5PJWQOE5ZZHTQSRY
Every bookkeeper learns lessons along the way, but some mistakes can cost you years. In this episode, we share real stories about building a business, overcoming challenges, managing money and creating more freedom. Whether you're a new bookkeeper or an experienced bookkeeper, these lessons will help you think differently about your business and your future. If you're a bookkeeper looking to grow with more confidence, add this episode to your watchlist! Connect with Olly ➡️ https://www.linkedin.com/in/ollywhitman/ Connect with Trudie ➡️ https://www.linkedin.com/in/trudie-howman/ Connect with Stuart ➡️ https://www.linkedin.com/in/stuart-hurst-cloud/ Connect with Bella ➡️ https://www.linkedin.com/in/financialplanninglady/ Connect with Will ➡️ https://www.linkedin.com/in/willpolston/ ----------------------------------------------- About us We're Jo and Zoe and we help bookkeepers find clients, make more money and build profitable businesses they love. Find out about working with us in The Bookkeepers' Collective, at: 6figurebookkeeper.com/collective ----------------------------------------------- About our Sponsor This episode of The Bookkeepers' Podcast is sponsored by Xero. Get 90% off your first 6 months by visiting: https://xero5440.partnerlinks.io/6figurebookkeeper ----------------------------------------------- Promotion This video contains paid promotion. ----------------------------------------------- Disclaimer The information contained in The Bookkeepers' Podcast is provided for information purposes only. The contents of The Bookkeepers' Podcast is not intended to amount to advice and you should not rely on any of the contents of the Bookkeepers' Podcast. Professional advice should be obtained before taking or refraining from taking any action as a result of the contents of the Bookkeepers' Podcast. The 6 Figure Bookkeeper Ltd disclaims all liability and responsibility arising from any reliance placed on any of the contents of the Bookkeepers' Podcast. Chapters: 00:00:00 - How Failure Shapes the Future 00:01:13 - Trudy Howman's Accidental Bookkeeping Business 00:04:24 - From Surviving to Becoming a Business Owner 00:06:07 - Stuart Hurst's Unconventional Route into Accounting 00:08:24 - How Retail Experience Builds Resilient Leaders 00:11:40 - The Personal Story Behind Stuart's Financial Mission 00:15:56 - Bella Clark on Making Financial Advice Approachable 00:19:26 - From the Financial Crash to Financial Adviser 00:21:09 - Building a Business Through Networking and Experimentation 00:23:31 - Ollie Whitman on Experience, Confidence, and Self-Employment 00:26:40 - How Cancer Transformed Ollie's Life and Career 00:30:44 - Creative Confidence and Believing in Your Value 00:32:34 - Will Poston on Thinking Bigger in Business 00:33:48 - How Childhood Shaped Will's Beliefs About Money 00:36:13 - The Secret and the Power of Visualization 00:37:12 - Using Goal-Setting to Expand What's Possible 00:40:07 - Taking Complete Responsibility for Your Life 00:41:49 - Join the Bookkeepers Collective #bookkeeper
We're back from summer break with a live Q&A with SO much good stuff in this one. This was one of those episodes where the questions kept getting better and better, and I got to go deep on the things that trip us all up: running an advisory firm, getting your pricing right, Xero integrations, closing out clients the right way, and knowing when to make your first hire. If you've ever felt awkward quoting a higher fee or weren't sure how to structure your revenue side when a client's processor data lives inside their CRM, this one's for you. And if advisory is even a tiny blip on your radar, I've got a free audio series you're going to want to grab before it disappears.In this episode you'll hear:Connecting Stripe and PayPal inside XeroIs $350 too much for basic bookkeeping?The right way to disengage with clientsWhen to make your first hireHow to support a team that's feeling overwhelmedResources mentioned in this episode:Elevate: https://www.ambitiousbookkeeper.com/elevateBBA: https://www.ambitiousbookkeeper.com/bbaXero: https://xeroamericas.partnerlinks.io/79afz10exu7dKajabi: https://app.kajabi.com/r/SLFEMUL4/t/uiptq7nuContent Snare: https://contentsnare.com/#_r_serena58Thanks for listening. If this episode inspired you in some way, take a screenshot of you listening on your device and post it to your Instagram stories and tag me @ambitiousbookkeeperFor more information about the Ambitious Bookkeeper Podcast or interest in our programs or mentoring visit our resources below:Visit our website: https://www.ambitiousbookkeeper.comFollow me on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ambitiousbookkeeperConnect on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ambitiousbookkeeperConnect on Threads: https://www.threads.net/@ambitiousbookkeeperConnect on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/serenashoupcpaThank you for your support of our show. If you haven't left a review yet it's super simple. Please go to ambitiousbookkeeper.com/podcast and leave your review.Podcast Publishing Tools we use:Editing → Sabr Media LLC: https://www.iangilliam.com/sabr-media-llcDescript: https://get.descript.com/u7lubkx09073 (affiliate link)Buzzsprout: https://www.buzzsprout.com/?referrer_id=1753696 (affiliate link)
- Join David's email list, RECEIVE 7 FREE GIFTS!!- https://www.DavidCBarnettList.com In this "best-of" interview, I sit down with financial expert Ed Patton to discuss the financial fundamentals every small business owner needs to understand. We explore the difference between accounting and finance, why focusing only on your profit and loss statement can create dangerous blind spots, how to understand liquidity, and why expenses like taxes, capital expenditures, debt payments, and working capital can catch business owners by surprise. We also discuss how to make smarter decisions about borrowing, investing, growth, and where to deploy your limited business capital. **** Do Business with David using these incredible internet links... - David's Blog where you can find hundreds of free videos and articles, https://www.DavidCBarnett.com - Book a call with David and let him help you with your project, https://www.CallDavidCBarnett.com - Learn how to buy a successful and profitable business in a risk-controlled way https://www.BusinessBuyerAdvantage.com - Get help selling your business, https://www.HowToSellMyOwnBusiness.com ----- #SmallBusiness #BusinessFinance #CashFlow #FinancialLiteracy #BusinessOwner #Entrepreneurship #BusinessGrowth #FinancialManagement Special Xero offer: Get 90% off for 6 months using this link: https://referrals.xero.com/DavidCBarnett_xero . Terms & Conditions apply.* See the video of my Xero story here: https://youtu.be/LfaGUfwStqo Youtube music licensing code: 5PJWQOE5ZZHTQSRY
Alicia and Matthew "Spot" Fulton break down the August pricing changes and the features behind them, from smarter bank feed matching and locked parent accounts to Bill Pay Elite now included in Advanced at no extra cost. Alicia also shares her own list of under-the-radar upgrades, like invoice deposits held as true liabilities and drag-and-drop bill capture, that she used to answer a Redditor questioning the price hike, plus a fraud warning on why bill approval workflows are worth turning on now.Sponsors:Intuit Accountants - http://uqb.promo/intuitPilot - http://uqb.promo/pilot(00:00) - Cold Open and Introductions (00:34) - Where's the Beef Pricing vs Features (01:48) - Interface Changes and Faster Fixes (03:03) - Canny Board and Feature Feedback (04:24) - How We Message Clients (05:59) - Pricing FAQ Article Walkthrough (06:26) - Bank Feeds Smarter Categorization (08:15) - PayPal Matching and Duplicates (09:15) - Docs Requests and Bank Feed Tweaks (09:59) - Lock Parent Accounts (10:25) - Invoicing Automation and Reminders (11:20) - Bulk Edits and Payment Alerts (11:46) - Intuit Experts and Expense Policies (14:08) - Modern Reports and Management Packs (14:37) - Intuit Assist Business Intelligence (15:57) - KPIs Dashboards for Essentials Plus (16:54) - What's New in QBO Advanced (17:03) - Advanced Reporting Suite Forecasting (17:41) - Bill Pay Elite Included in Advanced (18:28) - Construction and Project Features (19:30) - Continuously Clean Books Explained (20:54) - New Pricing Table Breakdown (21:47) - Which AI Features by Tier (24:07) - Intelligent Onboarding and Add Ons (25:06) - Bill Pay Basic vs Elite and ACH (26:12) - Affirm Buy Now Pay Later (27:27) - Autopilot Invoicing Beta (27:58) - Unprocessed Payments Warning (29:56) - Pricing Tiers Recap (31:12) - When Price Changes Hit (33:25) - Bill Pay Pricing Overhaul (35:11) - Fraud Prevention Workflows (36:56) - ProAdvisor Discounts Notes (37:50) - Features Justify Increase (38:47) - Customer Hub And Scheduling (39:57) - Deposits And Recurring Payments (41:46) - Inventory And Banking Feeds (43:23) - Drag And Drop Bill Capture (45:53) - Custom UI And Smart Search (47:18) - Modern Reports Resolution Center (49:23) - Wrap Up Classes And Projects LINKSNew QuickBooks Pricing: https://www.firmofthefuture.com/product-update/quickbooks-price-changes/August Product Updates: https://www.firmofthefuture.com/product-update/quickbooks-online-improvements-august-2026/#feedbackAlicia's upcoming classes:Intuit Enterprise Suite, Aug 19 but date might change: http://royl.ws/intuit-enterprise-suiteBattle of the Books - QBO vs. Xero, sponsored by Xero: https://xero.zoom.us/webinar/register/4717843154915/WN_jWTalQhPSka8DGL2mQerIA#/registrationAI in QBO: http://royl.ws/AIIntuit Accountant Suite in Sept: http://royl.ws/IASWe want to hear from you!Send your questions and comments to us at unofficialquickbookspodcast@gmail.com.Join our LinkedIn community at https://www.linkedin.com/groups/14630719/Visit our YouTube Channel at https://www.youtube.com/@UnofficialQBOPodcastSign up to Earmark to earn free CPE for listening to this podcasthttps://www.earmark.app/onboarding
In this episode of Run the Numbers, CJ Gustafson sits down with Xero CFO Claire Bramley to discuss how the CFO role is expanding beyond finance into strategy, operations, transformation, and technology. Claire also shares how she builds teams around her weaknesses, what small businesses actually want from AI, and why she views diversity as a business performance decision.—SPONSORS:Maximor is an autonomous finance platform that runs order-to-cash, procure-to-pay, the close, cash management, and reporting on self-learning agents instead of a dozen disconnected tools. One PE-backed customer posts 98% of transactions directly to its ERP, with the remaining 2% routed to a human for review. You pay for outcomes, not seats. See it at https://www.maximor.ai/Brex is an intelligent finance platform with AI-powered workflows that enforce expense policies at the point of sale, match receipts automatically, and reduce month-end close from weeks to hours. Thousands of companies, including Anthropic, Coinbase, and DoorDash, already run on Brex. Stop asking A-level finance talent to do B-level admin work. Learn more at https://www.brex.com/metricsAnrok is the sales tax platform that watches your exposure everywhere, automates compliance, and flags risk before it turns into a surprise back-tax letter from a state you've never set foot in. Companies like Anthropic, Notion, and Vanta already trust Anrok to stay ahead of rules that move faster than any spreadsheet can. Talk to a sales tax expert for a personalized exposure estimate at https://www.anrok.com/rtnRightRev is a revenue recognition platform built for the AI economy, helping finance support usage-based pricing, credits, hybrid contracts, seats plus consumption, and whatever commercial model comes next. It gives product teams the freedom to keep innovating without outdated revenue systems slowing them down. Learn how RightRev can help at https://rightrev.com/cjPulley is an equity management platform that lets you issue options, model dilution, and complete 409As without your cap table turning into a spreadsheet disaster. Founders raising, hiring, and scaling use Pulley to keep equity clean and stay focused on building. Learn more or request a demo at https://pulley.com/mostlymetricsRillet is an AI-native ERP built for modern finance teams that want to replace NetSuite and close faster. With revenue recognition, close management, multi-entity support, and native Stripe and Salesforce integrations, Rillet helps scaling companies run their finance stack in one place. Hundreds of teams, including Windsurf and Mercor, use Rillet to make the zero-day close real. Book a demo at https://www.rillet.com/cj—LINKS: Mostly Talent: https://mostlymetrics.typeform.com/to/cLTxtAsNGuest: https://www.linkedin.com/in/claire-bramley-133b7174/Company: https://www.xero.com/CJ: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cj-gustafson-13140948/Mostly metrics: https://www.mostlymetrics.com—TIMESTAMPS:0:00 Preview and Intro3:00 Xero and CJ's History With It4:12 Xero's Size and Scale Today5:10 The Expanding CFO Role7:06 Hiring Experts You're Not8:47 Imposter Syndrome11:00 Getting Better at Asking Questions15:04 Asking the "Stupid Question"16:21 Finance as the Corporate Junk Drawer17:48 The Trial Period Idea18:24 Tripwires: Leading Indicators for CFOs25:35 AI Hype vs. Main Street Reality26:44 What Small Business Owners Actually Want28:45 What Big Corps Underestimate31:10 Trust as a Competitive Moat33:45 Why the Line Is Thinner for Small Biz35:12 AI Inside Claire's Finance Team37:23 AI for Investor Relations39:28 Diversity as Capital Allocation42:07 A Decision Diversity Changed44:45 Lightning Round Begins46:06 Advice to Her Younger Self48:49 Craziest Expense Ever#RunTheNumbersPodcast #CFOLife #FinanceLeadership #AIinFinance #WomenInFinance
SponsorsCloud Accountant Staffing - http://accountingpodcast.promo/casOnPay - http://accountingpodcast.promo/onpayThomson Reuters - http://accountingpodcast.promo/taxautomationVeltrix - http://accountingpodcast.promo/veltrixChapters(00:00) - TAP 499 (02:17) - Livestream and CPE Plug (03:12) - Grant Thornton Buys CBIZ (04:35) - Stock Spike and Activists (09:06) - PE Strategy and IPO Exit (11:09) - Deal Size vs Big Four (13:21) - Trump Immunity and Nominee (16:39) - EY Hack Claim Explained (18:56) - Trump Deal Appeal Update (21:37) - Controller Hiring Crunch (23:21) - Senior Pay Flattening (26:24) - Corporate Hiring Demand (27:59) - AI Boosts Finance Judgment (29:38) - Claude Transforms Forecasting (30:43) - Gen Z AI Dependency Fears (34:32) - Xero Price Hike Backlash (36:45) - Lovable Connector Moat (40:38) - Agents Use Existing SaaS (45:29) - Tariff Refund Windfall (48:20) - NYC Pied-a-Terre Tax (51:44) - PwC UK Audit Failures (55:03) - Wrap Up and Episode 500 Show NotesGrant Thornton Advisors to acquire CBIZ in $5 billion transactionhttps://www.cpapracticeadvisor.com/2026/07/29/grant-thornton-set-to-buy-cbiz-for-5-billion-become-5th-largest-firm-in-u-s/187542/Accounting Firm CBIZ Urged by Activist Investor to Pursue M&Ahttps://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-07-07/accounting-firm-cbiz-urged-by-activist-investor-to-pursue-m-aTrump floats pulling Blanche's AG nomination until after GOP holdouts leave officehttps://www.cnbc.com/2026/07/30/trump-blanche-ag-doj-cornyn-tillis.htmlDonald Trump's tax audit immunity remains in place as Blanche's path to confirmation is clearedhttps://www.reviewjournal.com/news/politics-and-government/as-blanches-path-to-confirmation-is-cleared-trumps-tax-audit-immunity-remains-in-place-3858601/Ernst & Young data breach claimed by ShinyHunters extortion ganghttps://www.bleepingcomputer.com/news/security/ernst-and-young-data-breach-claimed-by-shinyhunters-extortion-gang/2026 Corporate Finance & Accounting Talent Research Studyhttps://controllerscouncil.org/2026-corporate-finance-accounting-talent-research-study/Accounting's missing middlehttps://www.accountingtoday.com/news/accountings-missing-middleA third of companies look to increase finance and accounting hireshttps://www.cfo.com/news/companies-look-to-boost-hiring-pay-for-finance-and-accounting-staff-controllers-council-report/824667/AI's top value for finance now lies in improving judgment, not efficiencyhttps://finance.yahoo.com/technology/ai/articles/ai-top-value-finance-now-085159658.htmlNearly Half of Gen Z Workers Say AI is Making Them Less Intelligenthttps://www.cpapracticeadvisor.com/2026/05/19/nearly-half-of-gen-z-workers-say-ai-is-making-them-less-intelligent/183621/Xero Announces U.S. Subscription Price Changeshttps://www.xero.com/us/pricing-plans/update/Introducing the Lovable Xero connector: build on your Xero data, no code requiredhttps://devblog.xero.com/introducing-the-lovable-xero-connector-build-on-your-xero-data-no-code-required-386873b591bcWe Peaked at 30 AI Agents. Now We're Coming Back Down to 20https://www.saastr.com/we-peaked-at-30-ai-agents-now-were-coming-back-down-to-20-heres-what-consolidation-actually-looks-like-the-agents-011-live/Amazon Got a $600 Million Tariff Refund, Some Going to Shoppershttps://www.cnbc.com/2026/07/30/amazon-trump-tariff-refunds.htmlNYC Extends Deadline for Pied-à-Terre Tax Exemption Applications to Sept. 18https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-08-01/nyc-extends-deadline-for-second-home-levy-exemption-requestsStaten Island Homeowners Say They Fear for Safety After Names, Addresses Published on NYC Tax Listhttps://www.cpapracticeadvisor.com/2026/07/31/staten-island-homeowners-say-they-fear-for-safety-after-names-addresses-published-on-nyc-tax-list/187775/PwC Fined $4.4 Million by UK Watchdog Over Babcock Audit Failureshttps://www.globalbankingandfinance.com/uk-financial-watchdog-fines-pwc-4-4-million-over-babcock/New York Governor Trolls LeBron James with Tax on Rumored NYC Homehttps://www.cpapracticeadvisor.com/2026/07/31/new-york-governor-trolls-lebron-james-with-tax-on-rumored-nyc-home/187765/Need CPE?Get CPE for listening to podcasts with Earmark: https://earmarkcpe.comSubscribe to the Earmark Podcast: https://podcast.earmarkcpe.comGet in TouchThanks for listening and the great reviews! We appreciate you! Follow and tweet @BlakeTOliver and @DavidLeary. Find us on