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Most people treat sleep like something that happens to them. Dr. Michael Breus, aka The Sleep Doctor, treats it like a system — one that can be built, optimized, and recovered no matter how badly you've abused it. In Part 2, Dwayne and Dr. Breus move from theory into full practice: the single morning habit that regulates your entire sleep schedule, the truth about supplements and peptides, and why a 78-year-old entrepreneur taking four different drugs to get through the day became drug-free in two weeks and now more productive than his staff can handle. In this episode: The one rule that regulates your entire sleep schedule The three-15s morning routine: 15 deep breaths, 15 ounces of water, and 15 minutes of direct sunlight within 20 minutes of waking — and why vitamin D is a circadian pacemaker The supplement framework most people get completely wrong Dr. Breus's unambiguous position on peptides: lab-use-only compounds are being injected by people who have no idea what the 10 or 20-year consequences are, and the only thing he's ever found that he cannot fix without medication or intervention is physical pain and major mental health issues How Dr. Breus accidentally became The Sleep Doctor: rejected from his first-choice sports psychology program, he sold himself into a sleep track, fell in love with clinical sleep medicine, and never looked back — "You change somebody's sleep, you change their life." Discover Your Chronotype - Take The Quiz: https://sleepdoctor.com/pages/dr-breus-podcast-dwayne-kerrigan Episode Highlights: 00:00 - Sleep Boosts Everything 00:22 - Podcast Welcome 01:24 - Wake Time Consistency 01:41 - Melatonin Timer Explained 03:12 - Minimum Sleep Safety 04:54 - Sleep Quality For Performance 06:41 - Exercise And Cooling Hacks 10:53 - Home Sleep Testing 14:51 - Sauna Timing And Cold Plunge 19:06 - Blue Light and Screen Stimulus 22:05 - Morning Sun Routine 23:51 - Supplements vs Bloodwork 27:50 - Magnesium Types And Research 30:24 - Avoid Over Supplementing 33:01 - Eight Hours Myth 34:42 - Modern Sleep Basics 35:40 - Kids and Teen Sleep 38:36 - What Good Sleep Feels Like 39:44 - Depression Meds and REM 45:29 - Entrepreneur Sleep Debt 49:39 - Peptides Sleep Shortcuts 54:36 - Sleeping Pills and Tapering 01:00:21 - Sleep Doctor Origin Story 01:04:03 - Sleep and Purpose 01:05:48 - Final Takeaways and Goodbye Resources mentioned: Take the Original Chronotype Quiz | SleepDoctor.com Sleep Doctor At Home Sleep Test (SleepDoctor.com) The Sleep Doctor At-Home Sleep Test provides clinical-level sleep analysis from the comfort of your own bed. Using two simple sensors and a connected app, users receive personalized results reviewed by a licensed provider in under a week. Orion Sleep — mattress topper for temperature regulation Eight Sleep — mattress topper referenced as comparable product ChiliPAD — referenced as comparable cooling product Full Script — Supplement Management & Lab Testing Platform Andrew Huberman — referenced in context of the apigenin/magnesium threonate sleep stack Dan Sullivan / Strategic Coach — case study referenced with permission Laird Hamilton and Gabby Reece — referenced in context of sauna/cold plunge performance camp Quotes: “ Everything you do, you do better with a good night's sleep. Everything. There's not a single biological function that you don't do better when you sleep.” - Dr. Michael Breus “ 25% of the people that show up on my doorstep, I have them go do blood work. As soon as we fix the deficiencies, they're done. They're gone. They don't need anything. But here's the funny part. Nobody has a deficiency in ashwagandha, right? Nobody has a deficiency in passionflower, right? Nobody.” - Dr. Michael Breus “ God's delays are not God's denials. You know, you thought you wanted to be this, and you were pursuing this expectation or this hope or this dream, but then what you really found was your true purpose.” - Dwayne Kerrigan “Wake up at the same time seven days a week. Notice I didn't say go to bed at the same time. I said wake up at the same time.” - Dr. Michael Breus “ Sleep is the currency of attention. You cannot pay attention to anything if you're not well-slept. ADD, ADHD gets worse when you're not well-slept. You can't focus. Everything depe- this is why sleep is so fundamental to life, is because it's, it literally dictates what you look at, what you focus on, and where you spend your time. It's all comes from whether or not you got a good night's rest.” - Dr. Michael Breus Dr. Michael Breus, Ph.D., is a double board-certified Clinical Psychologist and Clinical Sleep Specialist, and one of only 168 psychologists in the world to have passed the Sleep Medicine Boards without attending medical school. Known as The Sleep Doctor, he is the founder of sleepdoctor.com, was named the Top Sleep Specialist in California by Reader's Digest, and one of the 10 most influential people in sleep, and is the author of several books including The Power of When and Sleep, Drink, Breathe: Wellness is Too Complicated. He has appeared on Oprah, CNN, The Today Show, and The Dr. Oz Show more than 40 times, and lectures globally for organizations including YPO and Tony Robbins' Unleash the Power Within. Connect with Dr. Michael Breus: YouTube: Sleep Doctor Instagram: Sleep Doctor (@thesleepdoctor) Take the Original Chronotype Quiz | SleepDoctor.com Sleep Doctor At Home Sleep Test (SleepDoctor.com) The Sleep Doctor At-Home Sleep Test provides clinical-level sleep analysis from the comfort of your own bed. Using two simple sensors and a connected app, users receive personalized results reviewed by a licensed provider in under a week. Connect with Dwayne Kerrigan Facebook Instagram Linked In Website Disclaimer: The views, information, or opinions expressed by guests during The Dwayne Kerrigan Podcast are solely those of the individuals involved and do not necessarily represent those of Dwayne Kerrigan and his affiliates. Dwayne Kerrigan or The Dwayne Kerrigan Podcast is not responsible for and does not verify the accuracy of any of the information contained in the podcast series. The primary purpose of this podcast is to educate and inform. Listeners are advised to consult with a qualified professional or specialist before making any decisions based on the content of this podcast.
You've been told to get eight hours of sleep your whole life. Dr. Michael Breus — The Sleep Doctor — says that's not only wrong, it may be making things worse. In this conversation with Dwayne Kerrigan, one of the world's foremost sleep specialists breaks down the science of when to sleep, when to drink caffeine, when to workout, and why most people's sleep problems aren't about how much they sleep — they're about when. In this episode: The four chronotypes — Lion, Bear, Wolf, and Dolphin — and why knowing yours could reduce your total sleep while dramatically improving quality; plus why 55% of the population are Bears, and what that means for your nine-to-five schedule The 90-minute caffeine rule: how adrenaline and cortisol make caffeine useless for the first 90 minutes after waking, and when to stop caffeine entirely to protect your sleep The biology of the 1:00–3:00 AM wake-up: every human on Earth wakes up in this window due to a cortisol spike — and Dr. Breus's four-step protocol for getting back to sleep, including the four-seven-eight breathing technique developed by Dr. Andrew Weil for Navy snipers Why alcohol destroys Stage 3 and 4 deep sleep — the physical restoration stage where the brain's glymphatic system flushes beta amyloid and tau proteins linked to Alzheimer's disease — and the exact wine-with-dinner timing strategy that lets you drink without wrecking your sleep Sleep tracking devices: why none of them are accurate for measuring sleep stages, why rings outperform wristbands, why you should only review your tracker data once a week, and how to use trend analysis rather than nightly numbers Dr. Breus's personal disclosure: he has moderate obstructive sleep apnea and stops breathing 26 times an hour — and why he wants every listener to stop avoiding sleep testing out of fear Discover Your Chronotype - Take The Quiz: https://sleepdoctor.com/pages/dr-breus-podcast-dwayne-kerrigan Episode Highlights: 00:00 - Entrepreneurs Sleep Differently 00:33 - Welcome and Guest Introduction 01:06 - Tony Robbins Connection 03:17 - Meet Dr Michael Breus 05:05 - Middle of Night Awakenings 07:40 - Understanding Chronotypes 11:31 - The Lion Chronotype 12:47 - The Bear Chronotype 13:18 - The Wolf Chronotype 14:23 - The Dolphin Chronotype 18:07 - Bad Sleep Habits 20:39 - Morning Workouts and Cortisol 22:27 - Perfect Time for Sex 25:20 - Understanding Cortisol 26:37 - Why We Wake at 3AM 28:57 - Don't Go Pee 30:52 - Don't Look at the Clock 31:43 - Four Seven Eight Breathing 34:59 - Getting Out of Bed 36:28 - Stay Positive 38:06 - Breathing Technique Recap 38:51 - Breathing Techniques Really Work 42:50 - Alcohol and Sleep Quality 46:47 - Caffeine Timing Guidelines 49:49 - Cannabis and Sleep 51:39 - Understanding Sleep Stages 54:29 - Sleep Cycles Explained 56:11 - Sleep Tracking Devices 01:00:08 - Choosing the Right Tracker 01:04:18 - Heart Rate Variability 01:07:17 - Quality Over Quantity 01:08:46 - Sleep Apnea and Testing 01:12:12 - Finding Your Sleep Need 01:12:36 - Closing Thoughts and Stay Tuned for Part 2 Resources mentioned: Several of Dr. Michael Breus' books – The Power of When, Energize!, The Sleep Doctor's Diet Plan, Good Night, and Sleep, Drink, Breathe Four-seven-eight breathing technique — developed by Dr. Andrew Weil Muse headband — brainwave monitoring headband for sleep and meditation Oura Ring — sleep tracking ring Whoop Strap — activity and sleep tracker Apple Watch — sleep tracking The Happy Ring from Happy Sleep — FDA-approved ring for sleep studies Tony Robbins's book Unleash the Power Within Quotes: “Eight hours is a myth, man. So many people try to force themselves to get... The math doesn't even work. Like, the right number of cycles doesn't even end up at eight hours.” - Dr. Michael Breus “ I really, honestly, legitimately feel like I've dumbed myself down a little bit when it comes to, when it comes to my, like, abuse of sleep over the years.” - Dwayne Kerrigan “To be clear, dude, you are your best doctor. When you wake up in the morning, if you feel good, you feel good. Like, you slept well.” - Dr. Michael Breus “ The first liquid that crosses your lips every morning should not, I repeat, not be caffeinated.” - Dr. Michael Breus “ Stop thinking about hours. This is a quality game, not a quantity game. If you get six and a half hours of good quality sleep- As a sleep doctor, I am much more interested than if you get eight hours of crappy sleep.” - Dr. Michael Breus Dr. Michael Breus, Ph.D., is a double board-certified Clinical Psychologist and Clinical Sleep Specialist, and one of only 168 psychologists in the world to have passed the Sleep Medicine Boards without attending medical school. Known as The Sleep Doctor, he is the founder of sleepdoctor.com, was named the Top Sleep Specialist in California by Reader's Digest, and one of the 10 most influential people in sleep. He is the author of several books including The Power of When and Sleep, Drink, Breathe: Wellness is Too Complicated, and has appeared on Oprah, CNN, The Today Show, and The Dr. Oz Show more than 40 times, and lectures globally for organizations including YPO and Tony Robbins' Unleash the Power Within. Connect with Dr. Michael Breus: YouTube: Sleep Doctor Instagram: Sleep Doctor (@thesleepdoctor) Take the Original Chronotype Quiz | SleepDoctor.com Sleep Doctor At Home Sleep Test (SleepDoctor.com) The Sleep Doctor At-Home Sleep Test provides clinical-level sleep analysis from the comfort of your own bed. Using two simple sensors and a connected app, users receive personalized results reviewed by a licensed provider in under a week. Connect with Dwayne Kerrigan Facebook Instagram Linked In Website Disclaimer: The views, information, or opinions expressed by guests during The Dwayne Kerrigan Podcast are solely those of the individuals involved and do not necessarily represent those of Dwayne Kerrigan and his affiliates. Dwayne Kerrigan or The Dwayne Kerrigan Podcast is not responsible for and does not verify the accuracy of any of the information contained in the podcast series. The primary purpose of this podcast is to educate and inform. Listeners are advised to consult with a qualified professional or specialist before making any decisions based on the content of this podcast.
In "Is Organized Tech Destroying the Small Logistics Entrepreneur" Joe Lynch and Nicholas Antoine, Co-Founder, Co-CEO, and Managing Partner of Red Arts Capital, discuss how mid-market logistics companies can leverage emerging automation and strategic "moats" to successfully survive and compete against tech-heavy enterprise giants. About Nick Antoine Nicholas Antoine is the Co-Founder, Co-CEO, and Managing Partner of Red Arts Capital, a private equity firm he co-founded in 2015 - at age 26 - to invest exclusively in supply chain and logistics businesses. A Princeton graduate, Nick began his career as an equity research analyst at Princeton Global Asset Management before joining Ariel Investments in Chicago, where he served as Chief of Staff to the Chairman and CEO of the $17 billion asset manager. At Red Arts, he leads fundraising, research, and investment thesis development, building one of the few Black-founded and -led PE firms in the country and one of the top-performing, ranked #7 on Bloomberg's 2025 Best-Performing U.S. Buyout Funds. Nick is a member of YPO and a board trustee of The Studio Museum in Harlem and WTTW (PBS Chicago). About Red Arts Capital Red Arts Capital is a Chicago-based private equity firm focused exclusively on partnering with North American supply chain and logistics businesses. Founded in 2015 by Nick Antoine and Chad Strader, Red Arts is a 100% Black-owned firm investing across the "supply chain economy" - freight, transportation, warehousing, contract packaging, and related middle-market companies with strong growth potential. In 2023, the firm closed its latest fund oversubscribed at $270M, above its $225M target, backed by institutional LPs including Prudential Financial, the University of Chicago's Office of Investments, and funds managed by Neuberger Berman. Red Arts pairs a sector-focused thesis with a belief that diversity drives performance - women represent roughly half the firm. Key Takeaways: Is Organized Tech Destroying the Small Logistics Entrepreneur In "Is Organized Tech Destroying the Small Logistics Entrepreneur" Joe Lynch and Nicholas Antoine, Co-Founder, Co-CEO, and Managing Partner of Red Arts Capital, discuss how mid-market logistics companies can leverage emerging automation and strategic "moats" to successfully survive and compete against tech-heavy enterprise giants. Firm Profile & Focus: Founded in 2015, Red Arts Capital is a 100% Black-owned, Chicago-based private equity firm that focuses exclusively on North American supply chain, logistics, and middle-market infrastructure businesses. Target Investment Profile: Unlike venture capital firms that hunt for speculative "hockey stick" growth, Red Arts invests $50M to $100M+ into established, profitable middle-market companies (typically family-owned with $100M to $500M in revenue) to provide liquidity and operational scaling. Strong Institutional Backing: Validating their sector-focused thesis, the firm closed its 2023 fund oversubscribed at $270M (surpassing its $225M target) backed by premier LPs like Prudential Financial and the University of Chicago. The Concept of "Organized Tech": Nick defines "organized technology" as a modern third form of power alongside organized people and organized capital. Large enterprise players use their scale and massive resources to deploy tech—and partner with startups for free trials—giving them a distinct, systemic advantage. An Opportunity, Not a Death Sentence: Organized tech is not inherently destroying small logistics entrepreneurs; rather, the risk lies in a lack of adaptability. Because AI and automated tools are becoming rapidly commoditized and affordable, small business survival depends on an entrepreneurial willingness to experiment. Building Defensive "Moats": To avoid competing strictly on commoditized pricing, successful logistics companies must build defensible moats. This includes high-touch customer service, strong cultural values that lower driver turnover, or geographic asset density (like uniquely zoned cross-dock terminals) that competitors cannot easily replicate. Outsized Returns from Small Tech Investments: Technology adoption doesn't require a massive overhaul to significantly impact the bottom line. In one LTL case study, Red Arts introduced a simple automated software tool to capture missed, manual accessorial charges, plugging a major revenue leak and yielding massive profit returns. Learn More About Is Organized Tech Destroying the Small Logistics Entrepreneur Nicholas Antoine | Linkedin Red Arts Capital | Linkedin Red Arts Capital Bloomberg executive profile Investing in Supply Chain Solutions with Nick Antoine of Red Arts Capital | Impact Podcast Black Professionals in PE & Finance spotlight | McGuireWoods Fund close coverage | $270M, Business Wire Organized Technology: A New Power Defining The American Dream | Forbes The Logistics of Logistics Podcast If you enjoy the podcast, please leave a positive review, subscribe, and share it with your friends and colleagues. The Logistics of Logistics Podcast: Google, Apple, Castbox, Spotify, Stitcher, PlayerFM, Tunein, Podbean, Owltail, Libsyn, Overcast Check out The Logistics of Logistics on Youtube
No episódio #200 do YPOcast, recebemos um dos nomes mais respeitados da história do YPO Brasil e América Latina: Richard Barczinski Ao longo de mais de 25 anos de trajetória dentro do YPO, Richard ocupou 24 posições de liderança, recebeu alguns dos maiores reconhecimentos globais da organização e se tornou uma referência mundial quando o assunto é fórum, liderança servidora, construção de comunidade e desenvolvimento humano. Mas este episódio vai muito além de cargos e premiações. Richard compartilha reflexões profundas sobre: - liderança baseada em escuta e presença; - relações humanas e construção de vínculos duradouros; - família, legado e espiritualidade; - resiliência diante das maiores dores da vida; - a importância do give back; - os desafios da polarização e da superficialidade no mundo atual; - o poder transformador dos fóruns do YPO. Em uma conversa emocionante, Richard fala sobre carreira, perdas, propósito, comunidade, luxo, pessoas e sobre como construir uma vida que realmente faça diferença. Um episódio sobre liderança humana, sabedoria, humildade e legado. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Apresentadores: Ventura Alonso pires e Duani Reis Disponível nas principais plataformas de streaming ou no YouTube. Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/bd2utyph Google Podcast: https://tinyurl.com/3fvjv2rb Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/br/podcast/ypocast/id1603751025 Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@ypocastbrasil Siga as nossas redes sociais: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ypobrasil/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ypobrasiloficial/ LinkedIn: https://br.linkedin.com/company/ypobrasil Portal Exame: https://exame.com/canais-especiais/lideres-extraordinarios/#ypobrasil #liderança #sucessoprofissional #empreendedorismo #exame #ypo #VenturaAlonsopires #DuaniReis
Jeff Dudan's free digital copy of his book What does it take to turn business chaos into a repeatable formula for success? In this episode, Jeff Dudan sits down with Troy Hazard - global keynote speaker, bestselling author, entrepreneur, TV host, and former Global President of the Entrepreneurs' Organization (EO) - for a wide-ranging conversation on peer networks, business acquisitions, and the mindset shifts that separate good entrepreneurs from great ones. Troy shares the hilarious story of how three bottles of wine at a lunch in Brisbane launched a 15-year journey that took him to the top of EO's global leadership. He breaks down why he deliberately looks for 'unsexy' businesses most investors ignore, why he makes himself redundant as fast as possible after acquiring a company, and why leaving money on the table for the buyer is actually the strategy that creates premium exits. You'll also hear a powerful framework for evaluating distressed businesses - one that starts not with spreadsheets, but with candid conversations over coffee. Plus, Troy and Jeff explore the transformative power of EO, YPO, Vistage, and peer mastermind groups for entrepreneurs who didn't follow the traditional MBA path. Key topics covered: • How EO and YPO create life-changing peer networks for entrepreneurs • Why the best advice comes from people with nothing to gain from you • The 'unsexy business' acquisition strategy that creates outsized returns • How to evaluate a distressed business when the P&L tells you nothing • Why making yourself redundant is the fastest path to a profitable exit • The psychology of selling a business at a premium price • Vulnerability as a leadership superpower • Why confidentiality inside peer groups unlocks radical honesty Guest: TROY HAZARD Guest YouTube: https://vimeo.com/troyhazard Guest Business YouTube: Guest Website: https://troyhazard.com/ Guest Socials: https://www.linkedin.com/in/troyhazard/ #entrepreneurship #businessgrowth #TroyHazard #JeffDudan #EO #YPO #businessacquisition #peerlearning #leadershipmindset Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Jeff Dudan's free digital copy of his book What does it take to turn business chaos into a repeatable formula for success? In this episode, Jeff Dudan sits down with Troy Hazard - global keynote speaker, bestselling author, entrepreneur, TV host, and former Global President of the Entrepreneurs' Organization (EO) - for a wide-ranging conversation on peer networks, business acquisitions, and the mindset shifts that separate good entrepreneurs from great ones. Troy shares the hilarious story of how three bottles of wine at a lunch in Brisbane launched a 15-year journey that took him to the top of EO's global leadership. He breaks down why he deliberately looks for 'unsexy' businesses most investors ignore, why he makes himself redundant as fast as possible after acquiring a company, and why leaving money on the table for the buyer is actually the strategy that creates premium exits. You'll also hear a powerful framework for evaluating distressed businesses - one that starts not with spreadsheets, but with candid conversations over coffee. Plus, Troy and Jeff explore the transformative power of EO, YPO, Vistage, and peer mastermind groups for entrepreneurs who didn't follow the traditional MBA path. Key topics covered: • How EO and YPO create life-changing peer networks for entrepreneurs • Why the best advice comes from people with nothing to gain from you • The 'unsexy business' acquisition strategy that creates outsized returns • How to evaluate a distressed business when the P&L tells you nothing • Why making yourself redundant is the fastest path to a profitable exit • The psychology of selling a business at a premium price • Vulnerability as a leadership superpower • Why confidentiality inside peer groups unlocks radical honesty Guest: TROY HAZARD Guest YouTube: https://vimeo.com/troyhazard Guest Business YouTube: Guest Website: https://troyhazard.com/ Guest Socials: https://www.linkedin.com/in/troyhazard/ #entrepreneurship #businessgrowth #TroyHazard #JeffDudan #EO #YPO #businessacquisition #peerlearning #leadershipmindset Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Guest: Saahil Mehta, Success Coach, EO Dubai Member since 2014Host: Linh Podetti, EO Sydney Member since 2022 and Owner of Outsourcing AngelAt 36, Saahil Mehta had everything he thought success should look like: a seven-figure net worth, a Porsche, a beautiful home, a wife, kids, and the freedom to travel.But behind the success, he was burning out.After a near-fatal car accident and hearing his wife say, “I don't recognize you anymore,” Saahil began questioning what success really meant.In this episode of the EO Business Podcast, host Linh Podetti speaks with Saahil about redefining success, building businesses that do not depend on you, and creating a zero-regret life.They discuss burnout, business bottlenecks, family, health, purpose, and why true success must go beyond money and status.Subscribe for more real conversations with entrepreneurs from Entrepreneurs' Organization.ABOUT SAAHILSaahil Mehta is a conscious leadership coach, entrepreneur, speaker, and passionate mountaineer who helps ambitious leaders amplify their productivity, fulfillment, and impact without sacrificing their health, relationships, or personal wellbeing. Recognized as part of Dr. Marshall Goldsmith's 100 Coaches, Saahil has coached and addressed leaders across organizations including HP, Dell, Bank of America, P&G, TATA Group, EO, and YPO. Through his work, he helps entrepreneurs break free from the clutter holding them back, redefine success on their own terms, and build zero-regret lives. Having scaled some of the world's tallest mountains, including Mount Kilimanjaro, Mount Elbrus, Kala Patthar, and Chopicalqui, Saahil brings a unique perspective on resilience, clarity, and holistic success.CONNECT WITH SAAHILWebsite: www.saahilmehta.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/saahilmehta/IG: https://www.instagram.com/saahilmehtaofficial/--------------------ABOUT EO Entrepreneur's Organization (EO) is a global business network of 18,000 + influential business owners in over 220 chapters across 76 countries. We offer world-class events that encompass engaging entrepreneur and business stories, skills-specific workshops, and exciting social gatherings.Our mission is to drive both business and personal growth through peer-to-peer learning, providing support for the holistic entrepreneur experience covering business, family, community, and personal aspects. As a not-for-profit organization, all our funds directly contribute to member benefits.If you're a business owner with revenues ranging from US$250k to US$1m, you can join our Accelerator Program. If your revenues exceed US$1m, you can join the main EO Program in your nearest local chapter. To join or find out more about your nearest chapter, visit https://www.eonetwork.org/why-join/apply-for-membership-form.For further information, please contact:Podcast Host Linh Podetti: linh@outsourcingangel.com.au General Inquiries: support@eonetwork.org.au EO Sydney: www.eosydney.com.au EO Global: https://hub.eonetwork.org/
“We're in a world surrounded by so much data and AI we can get lost in the noise of it all, and I've found that throughout my year as a performer, the amount of times people say to me, you know, your content is great, but your energy, your essence, your presence is what really makes us attracted to connecting with you…” Sarah Rowan Top Five Tips For Staying Human, Creative and Connected In 2026 1. Choose presence over performance2. Create spaces where people feel safe, seen and connected3. Prioritize quiet...stillness is becoming a superpower4. Grow your tech skills... and your human skills... side by side5. Get your hands in the dirt TIME STAMP SUMMARY01:39 Human connection and presence are essential, 06:05 Creating a safe space for people to be creative, free from judgment and ridicule.12:48 Learning bit by bit to avoid burnout and stay present.18: 50 Finding small ways to connect with nature, even in urban environments, to improve their overall well-being. Where to find Sarah?Website https://artistsarahrowan.com/about/LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/artistsarahrowan/ Sarah Rowan Bio Sarah Rowan (who now goes by Rowan) is an artist and thought leader who empowers individuals and organizations to ignite a better future through creativity. As one of Australia's top Speed Painters, she has lived and breathed the dynamic process of transformation for over 20 years, turning blank walls and cavasses into thought-provoking pieces of art, with limited time and often in front of a live audience. Merging her artistic talent with her passion for public speaking, Rowan has reimagined the role of the artist, pushing the boundaries of a studio-based pursuit into a trail-blazing performance genre that challenges the limitations of time and space.After graduating from Converse College in 2003 with a BFA in Studio Art, Rowan started an art business in Greenville, South Carolina, USA before moving to Sydney to expand her horizons. It was here that she used the process of creative futurism to overcome depression, challenge chronic illness and create a new future for herself and her family. No longer shackled by societal norms, she has stepped into the full power of her truth personally and professionally.Rowan's strong emotional storytelling, along with her ability to paint fast and think fast has captivated hundreds of clients like Nestlé, ANZ, AMP, Ernst & Young, Woolworths, Sydney Airport, and Priceline. She has inspired audiences to embrace their own creativity which she believes is a “birthright to all” and to date has painted at over 600 events raising over $400,000 for charity.Other clients include: SAP, Netball World Cup, Salvation Army, Terry White Chemmart, YPO, City of Sydney, Commonwealth Bank, American Express, Doterra, Department of Defence, Mirvac, Australian College of Nursing, Liberty Finance, University of Sydney, NAB, ANZ, Dexus, Fastway Couriers, AUSCAM, Bombay Sapphire, International Canadian School Ho Chi Min City, etc.
Send us Fan MailIn this episode of Born Scrappy I sit down with Brett Ekart, Serial Entrepreneur, Owner of United Metals Recycling and the host of A Scrap Life podcast, for a masterclass in what it really means to grow. Not just bigger, but smarter, broader, and with the right people alongside you.Brett has built one of the most diversified operations in the scrap industry. From eight scrapyards in Idaho and Oregon to pipe supply, trucking, tire recycling, property development, and media.But this episode isn't just about the businesses he's built. It's about how he thinks, how he spots opportunities others miss, how he finds the right people to back, and why giving away equity is one of the best decisions he's ever made.Raw, honest, and full of hard-won lessons. This is Brett Ekart unfiltered.In this episode, we talk about:
No episódio de hoje do YPOcast, recebemos Richard Albanesi, fundador da The LED, a maior plataforma de painéis de LED da América Latina. Richard compartilha uma trajetória marcada por visão antecipada de mercado, capacidade de execução e reinvenção constante. Filho de Alcione Albanesi, ele cresceu dentro do universo empreendedor, acompanhando desde cedo as viagens à China e os bastidores da construção da FLC. Em 2010, apostou em um mercado que praticamente ainda não existia no Brasil: painéis de LED. Durante anos, construiu a The LED praticamente do zero, enfrentando um mercado imaturo, resistência tecnológica e inúmeros desafios operacionais. Até que, em março de 2020, a pandemia colocou a empresa diante da maior crise da sua história. Com 80% do faturamento travado, Richard tomou uma decisão radical: abandonar temporariamente o mercado de eventos e transformar a The LED em uma empresa focada em soluções para varejo físico, retail media e experiência do consumidor. Essa virada redefiniu completamente o futuro do negócio. Ao longo da conversa, Richard fala sobre: - empreendedorismo e sucessão familiar - aprendizados com a China e inovação tecnológica - construção de cultura e liderança - experiência do cliente como diferencial competitivo - retail media e o futuro do varejo físico - inteligência artificial aplicada ao varejo - propósito, legado e impacto social - sua relação com o YPO e os bastidores do Amigos do Bem, um dos maiores projetos sociais do Brasil. Uma conversa profunda sobre visão de longo prazo, execução, adaptação e propósito. Apresentadores: Priscila Rodrigues ----------------------------------------------------------------- Disponível nas principais plataformas de streaming ou no YouTube. Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/bd2utyph Google Podcast: https://tinyurl.com/3fvjv2rb Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/br/podcast/ypocast/id1603751025 Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@ypocastbrasil Siga as nossas redes sociais: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ypobrasil/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ypobrasiloficial/ LinkedIn: https://br.linkedin.com/company/ypobrasil Portal Exame: https://exame.com/canais-especiais/lideres-extraordinarios/ #ypobrasil #liderança #sucessoprofissional #empreendedorismo #PriscilaRodrigues #exame #ypo
Jeff Dudan's free digital copy of his book What does it actually take to walk away from a $450K career, build something meaningful, and perform at the highest level without burning out? In this episode of the Unemployable Podcast, host Jeff Dudan sits down with high performance coach Kristy Kuhl - former medical sales executive turned executive coach, speaker, and host of the Keep Rising Podcast. Kristy shares the exact moment Tony Robbins' phrase 'success without fulfillment' changed her life, why she Googled the word 'fulfillment' under a conference table, and how she walked away from a $450,000 income with no plan, no website, and no business cards - and built a thriving coaching practice from scratch. Together Jeff and Kristy unpack the most important frameworks for high performance, including: ✅ The Personal & Professional Scorecard system for daily clarity and decision-making ✅ Why 80% of coaching clients are working on the wrong problem entirely ✅ The Zone of Genius framework and how it eliminates burnout ✅ Why your environment is either fueling or draining your performance ✅ The 'Chicken List' strategy for doing your hardest calls at peak physiology ✅ What a death doula's research on 2,000 deaths reveals about regret and action ✅ How masterminds and peer rooms compress 12 years of learning into 12 hours ✅ The single trait that separates top 5% performers from everyone else ✅ Why radical honesty with yourself is the foundation of every business breakthrough ✅ How to use Human Design to understand how you make decisions Whether you're a franchise owner scaling your business, a corporate executive considering a leap, or an entrepreneur trying to get out of your own way - this conversation is packed with honest, actionable insight that will shift how you think about success, fulfillment, and performance. Guest: Kristy Kuhl Guest YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@kristy_kuhl Guest Website: https://kristykuhl.com/ Guest Socials: https://www.instagram.com/kristy_kuhl/ #HighPerformance #ExecutiveCoaching #BusinessGrowth #Entrepreneurship #Mindset #FranchiseBusiness #LifeCoaching #PersonalDevelopment #UnemployablePodcast #KeepRising Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Jeff Dudan's free digital copy of his book What does it actually take to walk away from a $450K career, build something meaningful, and perform at the highest level without burning out? In this episode of the Unemployable Podcast, host Jeff Dudan sits down with high performance coach Kristy Kuhl - former medical sales executive turned executive coach, speaker, and host of the Keep Rising Podcast. Kristy shares the exact moment Tony Robbins' phrase 'success without fulfillment' changed her life, why she Googled the word 'fulfillment' under a conference table, and how she walked away from a $450,000 income with no plan, no website, and no business cards - and built a thriving coaching practice from scratch. Together Jeff and Kristy unpack the most important frameworks for high performance, including: ✅ The Personal & Professional Scorecard system for daily clarity and decision-making ✅ Why 80% of coaching clients are working on the wrong problem entirely ✅ The Zone of Genius framework and how it eliminates burnout ✅ Why your environment is either fueling or draining your performance ✅ The 'Chicken List' strategy for doing your hardest calls at peak physiology ✅ What a death doula's research on 2,000 deaths reveals about regret and action ✅ How masterminds and peer rooms compress 12 years of learning into 12 hours ✅ The single trait that separates top 5% performers from everyone else ✅ Why radical honesty with yourself is the foundation of every business breakthrough ✅ How to use Human Design to understand how you make decisions Whether you're a franchise owner scaling your business, a corporate executive considering a leap, or an entrepreneur trying to get out of your own way - this conversation is packed with honest, actionable insight that will shift how you think about success, fulfillment, and performance. Guest: Kristy Kuhl Guest YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@kristy_kuhl Guest Website: https://kristykuhl.com/ Guest Socials: https://www.instagram.com/kristy_kuhl/ #HighPerformance #ExecutiveCoaching #BusinessGrowth #Entrepreneurship #Mindset #FranchiseBusiness #LifeCoaching #PersonalDevelopment #UnemployablePodcast #KeepRising Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Send us Fan MailIn this episode of Born Scrappy I sit down with Michael Lion, Former Owner of Philipp & Lion and Former Consultant & Chairman at Sims Metal Management, for a masterclass in what really happens when it all goes wrong and what you can learn from it.Michael's career is one of the industry's most extraordinary stories. He entered the business at 17, built Philipp & Lion into one of the world's largest non-ferrous scrap traders, pioneered copper trade routes into China in the late 1970s, and operated at a scale most traders only read about.Then in April 1991, it all came crashing down. What followed was years of rebuilding and the lessons he brought into an 18-year career at Sims Metal Management, where the controls he put in place got every penny back through the global financial crisis.This isn't theory. These are lessons bought at enormous personal cost, shared with the kind of honesty that only comes from someone with nothing left to prove.In this episode, we talk about:
Neste episódio do YPOcast, recebemos Gabriela Garcia, partner e advisor da NG Consulting, com uma trajetória que combina estratégia, execução e impacto real nos negócios. Engenheira pela Poli-USP, com passagem pela McKinsey e MBA em Harvard, Gabriela construiu uma carreira marcada por decisões difíceis e aprendizados práticos: liderou processos de M&A, participou de mais de 20 aquisições, enfrentou erros operacionais relevantes e chegou à posição de CEO. Neste episódio, ela compartilha: - Os bastidores reais de grandes operações de M&A - Por que a maioria das aquisições falha (e onde está o erro) - Como tomar decisões sem ter todas as respostas - O papel das pessoas na construção de grandes empresas - O impacto da inteligência artificial nos negócios - Os desafios e aprendizados de liderança ao longo da carreira - E como o YPO transformou sua visão de vida e carreira Mais do que uma trajetória de sucesso, este episódio é um mergulho honesto sobre erros, aprendizados e construção de impacto. Apresentadora: Sheynna Hakim ----------------------------------------------------------------- Disponível nas principais plataformas de streaming ou no YouTube. Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/bd2utyph Google Podcast: https://tinyurl.com/3fvjv2rb Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/br/podcast/ypocast/id1603751025 Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@ypocastbrasil Siga as nossas redes sociais: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ypobrasil/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ypobrasiloficial/ LinkedIn: https://br.linkedin.com/company/ypobrasil Portal Exame: https://exame.com/canais-especiais/lideres-extraordinarios/ #ypobrasil #liderança #sucessoprofissional #empreendedorismo #SheynnaHakim #exame #ypo
We are delighted to welcome Eddy Arriola, a rock-star entrepreneur from South Florida, as today's guest. Eddy has tons of experience building and scaling businesses, including founding Apollo Bank, and he recently published a book on relationships and the art of relational leadership. Stay tuned for Eddy's expert insights on how relationships shape leadership, business growth, and long-term success. Eddy's Journey Born and raised in Miami, Eddy is the son of Cuban immigrants who arrived in the USA after the 1960 revolution. Entrepreneurship is part of Eddy's DNA, shaped by his father, grandfathers, and community. He never even considered working for anyone else, and he has never experienced a traditional job interview. In 1997, Eddy co-founded Inktel with his brothers. He started Apollo Bank in 2008 by relying on his relationships and persistence, and learning as he went. Entrepreneurial Mindset Eddy explains that your mindset is built by what you see early in life. Eddy grew up surrounded by entrepreneurs, so starting a business felt natural. He believes that you improve the world by creating jobs, building a good work environment, and setting an example as a leader. Starting Apollo Bank Eddy launched Apollo Bank without fully understanding the challenges, which helped him move forward. He started just before the 2008 financial crisis, thinking it would be a short recession. His approach was simple- he just kept on going, and through his persistence, he built credibility and trust with investors, regulators, and clients. Relationships Your biggest wins and biggest problems always come down to relationships. Leadership is about getting things done through other people- by managing relationships within your team, building relationships with customers, and within the industry, your community, and your personal life. Building Teams Teams are built through trust and relationships. Eddy reached out to people who believed in him and shared his vision. He focused on finding the right mix, including an integrator to complement his visionary role. Customer Selection Be very specific about the customers you select. By focusing on the right customers, you can deliver an A-plus product. If you try to serve everyone, your quality will drop. Eddy focused on entrepreneurs and built strong relationships through one-on-one conversations. Communities Actively seek out the right communities. Joining EO was one of the most important decisions Eddy ever made. For over 24 years, he has been connecting daily with other members, building meaningful relationships that have shaped his growth- both as a leader and an individual. Writing a Book After selling Apollo Bank, writing a book became Eddy's goal. He wrote his book for his younger self (as a CEO of a growing business). The lessons he shares can be broadly applied, especially in a time when people tend to underestimate the value of relationships. Relational Leadership Framework Many leaders tend to focus solely on their customers or teams. However, long-term success comes from understanding and working across all your relationship areas, including your relationship with yourself. The CARPE Framework By structuring your approach to relationships using Eddy's CARPE framework- Connect, Align, Respond, Prioritize, and Evaluate- you will be able to manage your relationships intentionally instead of reacting to situations. Respond vs React Do not react immediately. Instead, take a moment to think about the right response. Quick reactions can create long-term problems, whereas a thoughtful response will help you scale. Evaluating Relationships Step back often and assess your relationships. Loyalty matters, but it can slow you down if it is misplaced. So, make sure your relationships support your goals. Empathy and Understanding Understanding what is going on with the other person helps you respond better. Empathy allows you to align with the other person's perspective and move forward more effectively. Misaligned Relationships You need to recognize when a relationship cannot be fixed. Some people have patterns or issues that will never change. You may even need to let someone who performs well go to protect the organization. Allocating Time Effectively Spend your time where it has the most impact. Holding on to low-value relationships out of habit or loyalty can slow your growth. Focus your time on relationships that can move your business forward. Building Relationships The best time to build relationships is when you do not need them. Waiting until a critical moment leads to poor decisions. Build connections early so they are in place when you need them. BIO: Eddy Arriola Eddy Arriola is a seasoned entrepreneur, CEO, board member, and advisor to CEOs, known for building successful companies and guiding leaders through moments of growth, transition, and transformation. He is the founder and former chairman and CEO of Apollo Bank, which launched during the great financial crisis and grew into one of the most respected banks in the Southeast, ultimately completing a successful exit to a publicly traded company. Under his leadership, Apollo Bank earned national recognition for innovation, corporate culture, and service to the community. In addition to founding multiple companies and advising high- growth startups, Eddy has served on the boards of private and public companies across sectors—from fintech and healthcare to banking and real estate. His experience includes board service with gMed (acquired by Modernizing Medicine), TotalBank (acquired by Banco Popular de España), and two SEC-registered institutions: Seacoast Bank (NASDAQ: SBCF) and the Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta, as well as Linkvest and Plug&Lend. He also served two terms on the board of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta (Miami Branch) and was appointed by President Barack Obama—confirmed by the US Senate—as chairman of the Inter-American Foundation, a position he continued to hold under the Trump and Biden administrations. Eddy is a nationally recognized speaker, author, a longtime member of YPO and EO, and a trusted advisor to private equity firms and executive teams. His leadership reflects a lifelong commitment to learning, integrity, and helping others grow. Today, he is an active advisor to companies and CEOs who want to become better leaders, scale their businesses, and lead with greater clarity and confidence. Through his firm, Arriola & Co., he advises CEOs and executive teams on leadership, strategy, and culture. He also serves as a trusted coach, helping leaders navigate complex decisions and high-stakes relationships. He was born and raised in Miami, Florida, and is a graduate of Boston College and Christopher Columbus High School. Connect with Eric Rozenberg On LinkedIn Facebook Instagram Website Listen to The Business of Meetings podcast Subscribe to The Business of Meetings newsletter Connect with Eddy Arriola On his website LinkedIn
El éxito rápido suele verse impresionante desde afuera. Lo que casi nadie habla es de lo que implica sostenerlo cuando tu vida empieza a crecer más rápido que tú.Anuar El Jeitani construyó empresas, fondos y proyectos de alto impacto antes de los 30 años. Entró a YPO como el miembro self-made más joven del país, llevó su cuerpo al límite completando un Ironman y empezó a moverse en espacios donde las conversaciones ya no giran alrededor de “cómo hacer dinero”, sino de cómo construir una vida que tenga sentido mientras todo sigue creciendo.Durante años, su identidad estuvo basada en avanzar, resistir y no bajar el ritmo. Hoy, su perspectiva cambió. Porque llega un punto donde el verdadero reto ya no es crecer una empresa. Es crecer sin perderte a ti mismo en el proceso.Hablamos sobre disciplina, alto rendimiento, liderazgo, presión, deporte, ambición y la diferencia entre perseguir resultados y aprender a sostenerlos.Este episodio no romantiza el éxito joven. Lo cuestiona. Lo aterriza. Y muestra el lado del crecimiento que casi nadie enseña cuando todo parece ir bien.Conecta con Anuar El Jeitani:https://www.instagram.com/anuar_el_jeitaniSuscríbete a nuestro canal en SpotifyVe la entrevista completa en YouTubeSigue negocioscool en todas nuestras redes Conecta con nosotros a través de LinkedIn
America is about to turn 250 years old. My guest today believes this moment is asking something from all of us. Not a celebration or parade, but a reckoning, a chance to find our way back to each other. Brandon Peele is a bestselling author of 6 books on purpose and civic leadership, is Executive Director of the National Pilgrimage, and a trusted keynote speaker and consultant. His work sits at the intersection of purpose, democracy, and what it means to be a nation. On June 9th, 2026, a caravan of diverse Americans will set out on the National Pilgrimage — driving through the heart of this nation, sitting with people along the way, and asking the questions our political system never asks: What values should guide us? What would it take for this to be a great place for all of us to raise children? What kind of country do we want to leave for the next generation? The journey culminates in the National Assembly — a virtual gathering open to everyone on July 6th and 7th, 2026, from 5 to 8 pm PDT, where your voice will be heard and counted. Six storytellers will then travel to Chicago, and on July 9th — the anniversary of the 14th Amendment — they will read aloud a new national covenant. PBS documentarians are capturing every mile.You'll learn more details and how to get involved. We discuss why empathy is the core mechanism of e pluribus unum — out of many, one — and why, just like any organization, we need a shared moral vision to know where we're going and who we want to be. Brandon shares the three layers of democracy and why our nation's problems are as much moral, psychological, and spiritual as they are political.To access the episode transcript, go to www.TheEmpathyEdge.com, search by episode title.Listen in for…The purpose of government and how we have forgotten the core vision of our democracyHow the founding beliefs of spirituality and Natural Law shaped the countryA shared vision of what we can all be as diverse AmericansWays you can join in or support the pilgrimage and virtual assembly "This is not about politics. This is about a shared moral vision that includes all of us, and so I don't care how you voted or if you voted. I don't care how you make love. I don't care how much melanin is in your skin. You're an American, and you belong in this conversation." — Brandon Peele References:The Empathy Edge:Dr. Claire Yorke: Can Empathy Fix Broken Politics?Sam Daley-Harris: Reclaiming Our DemocracyJames Coan: Closing the Perception Gap that Tears Us ApartAbout Brandon Peele: Executive Director, National PilgrimageBrandon Peele is a best-selling author and the Executive Director of the National Pilgrimage. He's trusted as a keynote speaker, consultant, and program leader by organizations such as Google, Harvard Business School, Johnson & Johnson, Stanford University, JDRF, Morgan Stanley, U.S. Marine Corps, YPO, University of California - Berkeley, Vistage, Forum for Workplace Inclusion, LinkedIn, the U.S. Navy, Slalom Consulting, the U.S. Coast Guard, and the University of Minnesota.He is the author of Bison Medicine (2025), Purpose Work Nation (2022), The Purpose Field Guide (2019), and Planet on Purpose (2018), and co-author of Purpose Rising (2017) and The Purpose Blueprint (2015). His work has been featured by news organizations such as USA Today, U.S. News & World Report, the US Business Journal, and Forbes.Connect with Brandon:Brandon Peele: nationalpilgrimage.usLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/bpeeleInstagram: instagram.com/natnlpilgrimageThe National Pilgrimage and Assembly: chuffed.org/project/nationalpilgrimageSynanim (platform enabling the Assembly's virtual collaboration): synanim.comConnect with Maria:Books: Red-Slice.com/booksSpeaking: Red-Slice.com/Speaker-Maria-RossLinkedIn Learning Courses! Leading with Empathy and Balancing Empathy, Accountability, and Results as a LeaderLinkedIn: Maria RossInstagram: @redslicemariaFacebook: Red SliceGet your copy of The Empathy Dilemma here- www.theempathydilemma.com
The Enlightened Family Business Podcast Ep. 159: The Story Only Your Family Can Tell with Roy Moëd & Yvette Conn In this episode of the Enlightened Family Business Podcast, host Chris Yonker sits down with Roy Moëd and Yvette Conn, co-founders of Lifebook Memoirs, for a rich conversation about why documenting the stories of family business founders may be one of the most underutilized tools in the entire legacy planning space. Roy's journey into this work began with a deeply personal moment — repeatedly shutting down his blind father's stories until it was almost too late — and evolved into a global enterprise that has now chronicled over 20,000 lives across the world. Yvette, with her background in financial markets and business commentary, brings the lens of the family enterprise: how the unrecorded stories of founders get distorted over generations, how family myths quietly become sources of division, and how a book chronicling the origin of a family business can give an entire management team a living framework of values to build on. Together, they explore why so many people believe their story isn't worth telling, what it actually looks like to capture a 100-year-old family business history, the surprising emotional and relational benefits that emerge when stories are finally put to paper, and why a book — not a video — remains the most powerful medium for preserving a family's truth. This is a quietly profound episode for any family business leader who has ever wondered whether the story of how it all began still matters. Episode Chapters · 5:28 Meet Roy Moëd and Yvette Conn · 6:07 The Genesis: A Blind Father and a Secretary Who Listened · 9:34 From Memoir to Family Business Stories — How Lifebook Evolved · 11:07 Who Am I to Have My Story Written? The Self-Worth Question · 13:00 The Aha Moment: Why Every Story Is Worth Telling · 17:42 The Value to the Reader — Not Just the Subject · 19:00 How Founders' Stories Give the Next Gen Permission to Try and Permission to Fail · 20:40 Passing On Values, Not Just Value · 22:08 When the Family Story Gets Distorted — and Why It Causes Division · 24:46 Capturing Stories of Founders Who Are No Longer Alive · 27:21 You Can't Ensure Your Memory, But You Can Ensure Your Memories · 30:42 How This Work Has Enriched Their Own Lives · 37:11 What Families Ask: How Much Time Does This Actually Take? · 39:46 Using the Book Project as a Legacy Role for a Retiring Founder · 42:39 Why a Book Beats a Video · 43:40 Resources and Farewell Websites · lifebookmemoirs.com · chrisyonker.com About Roy Moëd Roy Moëd is the co-founder of LifeBook Memoirs, which he launched in 2010 alongside his wife Yvette following extensive research at the Toronto Brain Health Institute. The company officially launched in October 2011 and secured venture capital funding in 2012. Today, over 20,000 people worldwide own a LifeBook. Roy's entrepreneurial journey began in 1978 with the founding of Pourshins Limited, which he built — starting with just £4,800 — into an international enterprise employing over 600 staff across four factories in four countries. He later re-engineered the company into a global virtual logistics and BPO provider before selling it to gategroup in 2007. Beyond business, Roy is a passionate philanthropist and advocate: he founded a polo club in Windsor, participated in the London to Sydney air race to raise money for charity, volunteered with Crisis at Christmas, and assisted with refugee relocation efforts at the Polish-Ukrainian border. He has been an active YPO member since 1991 and is deeply involved in the Parenting Community, creating forums and events focused on ageing parents. About Yvette Conn Yvette Conn co-founded LifeBook Memoirs in 2011 after a distinguished career in financial markets. After earning her Economics degree from the University of Bath, she entered the City of London — then still heavily male-dominated — and rose through the ranks at Laurie Milbank and later Investec, becoming one of the first female partners in the City and a member of the London Stock Exchange. Today, alongside her role at LifeBook, she leads the company's prestigious OPUS Division, which works with individuals, families, and founders to capture their life journeys and preserve their legacies for future generations. Yvette's rare combination of financial rigour and emotional intelligence allows her to guide clients through the storytelling process with warmth, discretion, and authenticity. As she puts it: "While a balance sheet tells you what a family owns, a story tells you who they are."
Success Audit as discussed on the show: https://podcast.saahilmehta.com/businessSaahil is dedicated to helping ambitious leaders and entrepreneurs scale their success without sacrificing their health, relationships, or inner peace. His approach to conscious leadership encourages individuals to redefine what achievement means, shifting from constant striving to intentional, fulfilling progress.Over the years, Saahil has coached and spoken at organisations such as HP, Dell, Bank of America, P&G, 24x7.ai, Petrochem, Summit Capital, Tata Group, Thomas Cook, TiE, EO, and YPO. As a member of Dr Marshall Goldsmith's 100 Coaches, he contributes to a global leadership movement focused on clarity, purpose, and sustainable growth.Saahil supports founders, CXOs, and next-generation entrepreneurs to navigate moments of transition, pressure, and uncertainty. His work helps leaders move from overwhelm to direction, enabling them to perform at their best without burning out or compromising what matters most.His philosophy is drawn from lived experience. As a mountaineer, Saahil has climbed some of the world's iconic peaks, including Kala Patthar (5,644m), Mount Elbrus (5,642m), Mount Kilimanjaro (5,895m), and Chopicalqui (6,354m). The mountains taught him a principle that guides his coaching today: the journey should strengthen you, not exhaust you. Connect with Saahil Mehta:Website: https://www.saahilmehta.com Success Audit: https://podcast.saahilmehta.com/business LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/saahilmehta Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/saahilmehtaofficial YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxy4r8jsNSdrm3JcEdzCUIQ TurnKey Podcast Productions Important Links:Guest to Gold Video Series: www.TurnkeyPodcast.com/gold The Ultimate Podcast Launch Formula- www.TurnkeyPodcast.com/UPLFplusFREE workshop on how to "Be A Great Guest."Free E-Book 5 Ways to Make Money Podcasting at www.Turnkeypodcast.com/gift Ready to earn 6-figures with your podcast? See if you've got what it takes at TurnkeyPodcast.com/quizSales Training for Podcasters: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/sales-training-for-podcasters/id1540644376Nice Guys on Business: http://www.niceguysonbusiness.com/subscribe/The Turnkey Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/turnkey-podcast/id1485077152
“The Role Of A Lifetime” Join me and my guest Pam Sherman (thepamsherman.com). Pam is an actor, writer, leadership consultant and recovering lawyer who was profiled in People Magazine about her transition from lawyer to actor. She works with Fortune 50 companies, law firms, advertising agencies, and is a highly rated global resource for the leadership organizations EO, Vistage, and YPO. Her nationally syndicated column, The Suburban Outlaw was published in the Democrat + Chronicle and on the USA Today Network for 15 years. Her new book Play You, the Role of a Lifetime has just been released. SHOW NOTES SPONSORED BY: Power of You! Find out more at https://leader.blainebartlett.com/power-of-you Summary In this engaging conversation, Blaine and Pam Sherman explore the intersection of theater, leadership, and the Soul of Business. They discuss how authenticity, believability, and relationship management are vital for effective leadership and building trust in organizations. Key topics The connection between theater and leadership The concept of believability versus authenticity The importance of relationship management in business How to bridge the believability gap for better influence The role of emotional intelligence and relational awareness Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Send us Fan MailIn this episode of Born Scrappy I sit down with Jonathan Ross from John Ross & Sons Ltd., and his son Alex Ross, VP of Ops and Sales. Recorded live at ReMA 2026, this is a candid, unfiltered conversation about what it actually takes to bring the next generation through a fifth-generation family business the right way.Jonathan has spent decades building one of Canada's largest and most respected metal recycling operations. A company now in its fifth generation, which puts it in rare company. Alex came up through the yards at 12 years old, studied accounting and finance at McGill University, and is now stepping into leadership having earned it from the ground up. Together they represent one of the most compelling succession stories in the industry.This episode goes beyond the feel-good family narrative. It's an honest look at the dynamics of working alongside your father, the philosophy behind earning respect before authority, and what the next generation is already bringing to the table that the previous generation didn't see coming.In this episode, we talk about:
You learned how to prompt. Great. Now what?Most business leaders have figured out how to get decent answers from ChatGPT or Claude. But there's a massive gap between writing good prompts and actually building things that run your business. The people closing that gap right now aren't developers. They're business people who figured out one thing: you don't need to code when your browser can do it for you.In this session, Chris Daigle will open his actual setup — Claude Code paired with a browser agent — and build real solutions live. Not slides. Not theory. You'll watch him set up OAuth integrations, automate LinkedIn workflows, and tackle the kind of backend tasks that normally require a developer. All through a browser. All without writing a single line of code manually.Chris calls this evolution "thinking in builds" — the next level beyond prompting. It's where you stop asking AI for answers and start asking it to do the work. And the tools to do it are shockingly accessible: a free browser agent and a $20 Claude subscription.Chris Daigle is the founder of ChiefAIOfficer.com, where he helps mid-market executives and their teams develop AI strategy, implement AI across departments, and become AI-enabled businesses. He trains Chief AI Officers, keynotes at YPO and Vistage events, and has been deep in the agentic AI space since its earliest days. Chris brings the rare combination of strategic thinking and hands-on building.In this session, you'll discover:- How to pair Claude Code with a browser agent like Comet to build real workflows — step by step- What "thinking in builds" means and why it's the skill that separates AI users from AI builders- How to automate OAuth setups, API integrations, and other backend tasks without touching code- Real examples of browser agent workflows you can copy and use immediately- Why even seasoned AI professionals are underestimating what browser agents can do right now- How to safely sandbox your AI agents so they don't destroy your production environment- The exact copy-paste workflow Chris uses to go from idea to working solution in minutesThis is the session where prompting graduates to building. If you've been watching everyone talk about agents but haven't actually deployed one yourself, this is your starting point.About Leveraging AIThe Ultimate AI Course for Business People: https://multiplai.ai/ai-course/YouTube Full Episodes: https://www.youtube.com/@Multiplai_AI/Connect with Isar Meitis: https://www.linkedin.com/in/isarmeitis/ Join our Live Sessions, AI Hangouts and newsletter: https://services.multiplai.ai/eventsIf you've enjoyed or benefited from some of the insights of this episode, leave us a five-star review on your favorite podcast platform, and let us know what you learned, found helpful, or liked most about this show!
On today's episode, I welcome Pam Sherman, Author of the new book Play You: The Role of a Lifetime — Bridge the Believability Gap to Boost Confidence, Connection, and Impact. Pam is an actor, leadership consultant, and President of The ShermanEDGE who has spent her career helping leaders ignite audiences with who they truly are. A former lawyer turned professional actor — a transition profiled in People Magazine — Pam now works with Fortune 50 companies and global leadership organizations, including YPO, EO, and Vistage, guiding leaders to communicate with greater authenticity and impact. In Play You, Pam introduces the concept of the “Believability Gap” — the space between who we are and how we show up. Drawing on techniques from the stage, she reveals how acting tools can help leaders embody their core character more fully, strengthen confidence, and connect more powerfully with teams and audiences. The book challenges the common belief that authenticity alone is enough, showing instead that believability — the ability to truly inhabit your message — is what drives influence and trust. In this episode, Pam shares how her unconventional journey shaped her leadership philosophy, why storytelling is one of the most powerful tools we have, and how small shifts in presence can dramatically change the way others experience us. We discuss overcoming self-doubt, navigating toxic cultures, breaking the “fourth wall” in everyday communication, and how teams can collaborate more effectively when individuals close their believability gap. A compelling conversation for founders, leaders, and anyone ready to step into their own role of a lifetime. Whether you're looking to boost confidence, reconnect with your purpose, or increase your impact, this episode offers practical tools and inspiration to help you “play you” more fully — starting now. Don't miss it! Are you interested in sponsoring and advertising on The Kara Goldin Show, which is now in the Top 1% of Entrepreneur podcasts in the world? Let me know by contacting me at karagoldin@gmail.com. You can also find me @KaraGoldin on all networks. To learn more about Pam Sherman and Play You:https://www.thepamsherman.com/play-youhttps://www.thepamsherman.comhttps://www.instagram.com/thepamsherman/https://www.linkedin.com/in/pam-sherman/ Sponsored By: LinkedIn Jobs - Head to LinkedIn.com/KaraGoldin to post your job for free. AT&T Business - Switch to AT&T Business at business.att.com Intuit QuickBooks Payroll - Keep your focus on the big picture and get ready for what's next. Learn more at Quickbooks.com/workforce 1-800-Flowers - Visit 1800Flowers.com/KARAGOLDIN to claim your Double Roses offer before they're gone! HomeServe - Go to HomeServe.com to find the plan that's right for you. Check out our website to view this episode's show notes: https://karagoldin.com/podcast/828
Today I'm talking with Chris Taylor, an entrepreneur who turned a consulting engagement with Nissan into a software company serving half the automotive industry—then sold the business for multiple eight figures without ever raising outside capital. In this conversation, Chris shares how a consulting project with Nissan became the foundation of his company, how that journey ultimately led to an acquisition, and the earn-out lessons every founder should understand before selling their business. We also talk about building culture, why founder communities like YPO and EO can accelerate growth, and how AI is changing the economics of software and services. Key Takeaways with Chris Taylor (00:00) Intro (01:23) Bootstrapping vs Venture Capital (02:17) Is Every Growth Stage Equally Hard? (04:26) Why Founder Communities Change Everything (09:41) Is SaaS Dead in the Age of AI? (12:30) Why Outcome-Based Billing Could Kill SaaS Seats (15:28) How Chris Got Nissan to Fund His Next Startup (23:09) Turning Consulting Into a Scalable Product (33:11) Why Everything in Business Is Negotiable (40:43) The Real Path to Getting Acquired (48:30) Building Culture in an Unconventional Office (59:20) Earn-Out Lessons Every Founder Should Know Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/Vca63g-kq7k Let's Connect: Website | Instagram | YouTube | TikTok | Twitter | Facebook
This episode is brought to you by Oberle Risk Strategies: Insurance Broker and Insurance Due Diligence Provider for Search Funds and Other Small-to-Medium-Sized Businesses * This episode is brought to you by Boulay, the industry standard for Quality of Earnings, tax, and audit services, serving search fund entrepreneurs for 20+ years*Click Here to Subscribe to the In The Trenches YouTube Channel*A “second-in-command” (sometimes a Chief of Staff, sometimes a Chief Operating Officer, and at other times a different title entirely) can be among a CEO's more important and impactful hires. But, in my experience anyways, there is a lot that we don't really understand about this hire: How do you know that you're ready to hire one? What should they do and what should they not do? What title should we give them (and do titles even matter)? How much do we pay them and what forms of compensation are most appropriate? Should individual entrepreneurs consider hiring one as a sort of “proxy” for a business partner? To help me answer all of these questions (and a few more), I could think of no better guest than Cameron Herold. Among many other accolades, Cameron is the former COO of 1-800-GOT-JUNK (which he helped to grow from $2M to $106M in revenue during his 6 year tenure as COO), Founder of the COO Alliance (a peer network for “second in command” professionals, similar EO or YPO for Chief Executives), host of the “Second in Command” podcast, and author of a book of the same name. Based on all of these experiences, Cameron is now a highly sought after coach and speaker, particularly within the SMB community.
In this episode, Jason sat down with Brian Seidensticker of Mount North Capital to unpack one of the biggest growth constraints property management business owners face: access to capital at the exact moment opportunity appears. In today's show of the #DoorGrowShow, property management growth expert Jason Hull and investor Brian Seidensticker discuss how strategic funding partnerships work, what makes an ideal market and operator, and how property managers can scale faster by combining capital, systems, and the right long-term investment mindset. You'll Learn (05:01) How Mount North Capital helps property management firms with funding: This is the heart of the episode: what they actually do and why it matters. (06:26) Partnership models for property managers and investors: Defines the structure of the opportunity, how both sides work together. (08:45) The win-win scenario for property managers and investors: The philosophy behind the model; why this isn't just financing, but alignment. (09:58) Ideal property management partners and market criteria: Who this is really for, and who it isn't. (11:19) Market selection and geographic focus for investments: Critical filter: where this strategy works in reality. (12:48) The importance of systems and scaling in property management: Without this, everything else breaks. This is the operational truth. (14:29) Overcoming growth ceilings with the right mindset and resources: The deeper constraint isn't capital, it's capability and mindset. (16:39) Evaluating deals in secondary and tertiary markets: Where the actual opportunity lives, beyond obvious markets. (19:17) Advice for property managers ready to grow: The moment where theory turns into direction. (21:46) Partnership requirements and collaboration with DoorGrow: The non-negotiables, this sets the bar for entry into the model. Quotables "The reality is most would never even if they knew what you were doing, most wouldn't even do it. Like most people don't implement. That's just reality in life." "The best scenario for property managers is to manage their own portfolio." "One of my requirements is we do want to scale on a significant level." Resources DoorGrow and Scale Mastermind DoorGrow Academy DoorGrow on YouTube DoorGrowClub DoorGrowLive Transcript Jason Hull (00:01) Five, four, three, two, one. All right, I'm Jason Hull, the founder and CEO of DoorGrow, the world's leading and most comprehensive coaching and consulting firm for long-term residential property management entrepreneurs. For over a decade and a half, we've brought innovative strategies and optimization to the property management industry. At DoorGrow, we are on a mission to transform property management businesses, the business owners, and change their lives. want to transform the industry, eliminate the BS, build awareness, change perception, expand the market and help the best property management entrepreneurs win. Now let's get into the show. So today's episode, our guest is Brian Seidensticker of Mount North Capital. We're going to talk about one of the biggest challenges property management entrepreneurs face having access to capital at the exact moment opportunity strikes. So If you've ever been presented with an incredible acquisition expansion opportunity or growth moment and you wish you had immediate access to funds to confidently move forward, we're going to unpack that today. And that's what we're going to chat about. So welcome to the show, Brian. Brian Seidensticker (01:18) Thanks Jason. Thanks for having me. Thanks having me back, right? Jason Hull (01:21) Yeah. Yes, it's good to have you. So cool. So let's get into let's get into this. So ⁓ let's give everybody a little bit of background first. And ⁓ what what you know, what do people need to know about Brian that have listened to this? This is the first episode first time. Brian Seidensticker (01:47) Well, think maybe a brief history of ⁓ how myself and we, which is ⁓ Mountain with Capital, came to be. I'm actually an engineer by trade and I'd say in a different life, Jason, I would be reaching out to you for help on how to figure out this business that I randomly went off and ⁓ created and then found myself eight years later going, man, this is outgrown my capabilities. What do I do? ⁓ I got a similar help in the form of a group that I joined called Entrepreneurs Organization. And it's been transforming, getting that help from somebody that knows how to take what you build to the next level. So. As part of that, really what we ended up doing is we went from a data software company that had reached a ceiling. We had a really unique data set and then we built a fund, is Mountain with Capital, around the ability or really the model of using that data and acquiring assets in certain markets where we felt with this analytics, we could buy properties that have really great discount, right? Using, you know, not only the platform, but then the style of auctions that we attend. But a key component of that was the partners that we worked with, right? And still work with today. And we were very successful in building partnerships with boots on the ground and folks that knew what to do with these properties. Because we, A, we had a great way of identifying and we had the capital available to acquire those assets, right? At the time, these are auctions that Jason Hull (03:28) . Brian Seidensticker (03:28) that required cash, right? And that's the hard part. And it worked out really well. We went from, you know, a million dollar, you know, proof of concept fund. Last month, we were about 58 million of assets under management. And so it's, it's been great, but it certainly has also uncovered other opportunities for us along the way. The typical partner that we work with is kind of a fix and flip strategy, right? But Jason Hull (03:47) Hmm. Yeah. Brian Seidensticker (03:55) we felt a lot of the opportunities that we were seeing is much more in the, I'll say fixed to buying rent, right? It was the long-term hold strategy where we had an excellent avenue of acquiring, right, and getting them there, right? But what we were looking for and lacked is really the property managers that we want to partner with in those areas. our I don't want to give away all of the special sauce or we can dive into the details, but that's really what's led us to where we're at today is we're kind of at this pivot point and we've built a couple relationships with great partners in a couple markets and now we're wanting to grow that, right, and find more partners in more markets. Jason Hull (04:40) Yeah, we want all the special sauce, Brian. Give it to us. I'm just kidding. So, I mean, the reality is most would never even if they knew what you were doing, most wouldn't even do it. Like most people don't implement. That's just reality in life. Right. Like a lot of people like what's how's door grow helping people grow? I'll tell you, I give away free videos that teach you like what we do. But until they join our program, they find it difficult or hard to figure stuff out on their own. They just they don't do it. So. So awesome. So Brian, obviously you believe in mentorship and coaching and you've gotten, you you have had resources that have helped you get to where you're at now. So let's get into the topic at hand. So let's unpack. How is Mountain North Capital helping property management business owners unlock strategic funding solutions that fuel growth, right? Like, how do we do this? Brian Seidensticker (05:37) Yeah, I think, you know, kind of thinking out loud here a little bit, right? But, you know, I'll, I'm a big fan of, you know, it sound cliche, like win-win, right? Is we're not sick. We're not a bank, right? It's like, Hey, I got a better rate than you do. And we're not in it, you know, purely for ourselves. And so everything we go into, we, we look at it as a partnership, right? But it also has to make sense for the folks that we're going to partner with. And so, you know, Really what we are looking for are, and the partnerships that we found to be very successful are scenarios where ⁓ if there's a property manager or I guess a property manager that will. maybe wants to get into the business, You know, an aspiring property manager, if you will. ⁓ And they have access to a, you know, either it's a deal or a market or a ⁓ portfolio, right? Where maybe they don't have the ability to take that down themselves, right? because I know full well, right? Why would you partner with somebody? you know, for the capital access, if you have the ability to buy it yourself, it always makes sense to buy it yourself, right? And so really what we're looking for are folks that maybe have, you know, scenarios or deals that come across, right, that would allow them to grow their portfolio that they're managing, right, grow their business, right? ⁓ Especially if they think of it as a business, ⁓ but maybe don't necessarily have the capital stack that allow them to to pursue that to its fullest, then we might be a partner, and it is a partner partnership, to help them grow that business really with a different tool in their belt than they maybe have ever had before. And that's really, know, when we were talking with, I'll say potential partners, you know, on this concept initially was, hey, we were only interested in the acquisition and the you know, get it ready for rent. then Mount Norris typical model was let's refinance or sell it out. Let's get it out. We get out of the fund as quickly as possible. And we had success in doing that. But a lot of times, you know, the partners that we're working with, we really, they wanted to build, do that, but they wanted to keep it in their portfolio, make it a rental, right? Hold it for the longterm. ⁓ And so it was like a partial solution for them. And we, I guess, went out on a limb and built a structure with a couple of them that Jason Hull (08:10) Thank Brian Seidensticker (08:11) that it took it beyond just that initial acquisition and they'll say fix and flip stage to a, okay, now we've got another tool that we can bring to the table from our end, a new fund that allows us to take on those assets for the long term. And so we can partner with you beyond just that acquisition and disposition. it's so far has been, you ⁓ I'll say immensely ⁓ rewarding, right? But it's still early, right? And we're definitely in the growth phase. And so it's an exciting adventure to embark on. Jason Hull (08:43) Yeah, I see it as this awesome win-win. There's three sort of challenges. One, there needs to be somebody with capital to deploy. There needs to be a really good property manager. But most property managers aren't good. Most suck. And then we need somebody maybe to help bring those together, door grow, and help those property managers be good. And so I'm excited to maybe find you some... Brian Seidensticker (08:59) you Exactly. Jason Hull (09:13) connect some of our potential clients, because this might be a way that our clients can grow their portfolios, maybe even have some ownership stake in some of these investments. And you bring your capital and stuff to the table, they're able to add value by making sure the properties are managed well. And then DoorGrow, we're able to help them be able to do that so that they are able to not be a sucky property management company and that they're able to continually grow out the other arm of their portfolio. with their direct third party owners, but the best properties for property managers to manage that make the most sense would be their own. It would be something they have some sort of ownership stake in. ⁓ We've got a client, we've got a client in our program and he basically uses his property management business as a honey potter, flight, flight trapper, whatever you want to call it to just like people look at it and go, ⁓ he offers property management and they reach out to him and he convinces them to. Brian Seidensticker (09:52) Exactly. Jason Hull (10:14) sell him their properties and then he manages those. So which is some most of the portfolio he has ownership stake in. He just works deals out, you know. And so a lot of property managers leave a lot of money on the table because they're not even focused on building their own portfolio. They're helping just manage other people's portfolios. Brian Seidensticker (10:33) Right. Right. And I think that's you're exactly right. I think the best scenario for property managers is to manage their own portfolio. Right. And I think what we can allow, you know, property managers, partners, right, to do is think of acquisitions, you know, maybe where they didn't feel like that was an opportunity before. And so, you know, one recent example was a property manager working with in Mississippi who had an amazing opportunity to buy a couple of large multifamily buildings. And ⁓ she is a fantastic property manager, but didn't necessarily have all of the requirements that the bank wanted to see in order to take down underperforming. ⁓ One needed a full remodel, but the end goal is going to be a fantastic ⁓ asset to work on and to manage in the long run. And so we were able to partner on that. so That's like the perfect scenario that we're looking for is when somebody that is familiar with their market and familiar with the portfolios that are out there for sale or familiar with that, we want to be looked at as a partner that can help them either A, keep assets they already have under management, maybe moving from an owner that wants to sell and keep them in house, right? it makes sense. Maybe acquire assets in a little larger Jason Hull (11:32) Yeah. Brian Seidensticker (11:56) size than maybe they would typically be qualified for, right? The single family home is very different than a 44 unit multifamily, right? But the management of those two isn't wildly different, right? It just, the bank doesn't see, you know, the sponsor, right? And all the requirements the bank requires is wildly different, right? As far as the equity that you need to bring to the table. And those are the scenarios where it truly, I think, can be that win-win. Jason Hull (12:07) Yeah. Brian Seidensticker (12:25) Um, and, you know, long story short, Jason, that's exactly what we're looking for. Jason Hull (12:31) Awesome. So I think a question for those listening, because, you know, I love the story of the example you gave. Excuse my voice. I love that example. You know, we see it all the time. Property managers get big portfolios from some investor or they get an opportunity to get into a property in this scenario. They don't have the money to do it. So they have a partner like you that has access to capital. But then the next step is they need systems. And a lot of times they don't have the systems to be able to handle that level of growth. taking on another hundred units, another 200 units, like this starts to break some things in the business. So they're like, man, I need systems for hiring. I need systems for planning. I need systems for processes. And so at DoorGrowth, if you're listening and you want to grow fast, like we built a program around that called the Super System. those three systems, people planning a process. And when we get those things really well built out, those businesses become what I call infinitely scalable. So then they can work with somebody like you and just go crazy. They could just add lots of business, lots of doors, build things out. And if they're, if they're building equity as they're doing this, if they're taking ownership stake in this, that's even better. And so they're bringing deals to the table. You're bringing money to the table. Now, sometimes you're bringing money and a deal. It sounds like, but you need a property manager. Brian Seidensticker (14:00) Yes, right. that's the yes, there are certainly scenarios where we have assets we'd like to move into this model. And so having those ready made, hey, you know, we're looking for the partner, right, to take that that portfolio to the next level, right or next phase. But we're not just looking for any property manager to your exact point. And I think maybe Jason Hull (14:01) Thank Brian Seidensticker (14:23) speaking to the wrong audience, because I think anybody listening to this is already in the right mindset because they are thinking about how to grow. their business and how to learn, right, and how to have the right mindset, right? But a lot of problem managers out there, quite frankly, don't have that right mindset. And, you when you and I were speaking offline, Jason, it was like so many light bulbs were going off. And, you know, this was such a perfect scenario where, you know, for somebody to grow, they need lots of things, right? Capital is one, right? And flexible partners, one, which we can bring. Jason Hull (14:38) Yeah. Brian Seidensticker (14:59) but they're going to inevitably like any business, they're going to inevitably hit a ceiling where they, you know, they, they're limited, right? A limited typically by time, right? And that time can be, you know, re gained right by, like you said, people systems and, Jason Hull (14:59) Yeah. Mm-hmm. Yeah, you buy time. Brian Seidensticker (15:17) Yeah, so it's a, how do you, but you need to, you need to be willing to implement those things in order to grow beyond that, you know, ceiling. And so it's having that right mindset. And I'd say most, if not everybody listening here already has what sounds like, you know, could be that mindset. ⁓ And that's where I thought I got really excited about how can we work more together with your, you your audience and your ⁓ really your members, the people that are implementing the systems that you have. That's the exact recipe that I feel like has such great potential for success. If you can't tell, I'm rather excited. Jason Hull (15:59) Yeah, I'm excited about it too because all of our clients want to build their portfolios. They all want to build equity. They want to build ownership stake. They want investments. They usually believe in the vehicle of investing. Otherwise, why would they be selling property management, which is selling that vehicle? so, ⁓ yeah, so I think it's a solid win-win-win for all three parties. And I'm excited to connect you with clients that I think would be good fit. How do you decide markets that make sense for you? So if property managers come to you and like, Brian, like, I want to get more doors. Like, let's get let's let's do some deals together. What markets would you say no to? You're like, this doesn't make sense. We aren't going to deploy capital into that state or that area. Brian Seidensticker (16:46) Yeah, it's probably easier to paint the picture of the hard nos, right? And then ⁓ maybe back into the areas because the hard nos are, I'd say in the general, very sought after, grade A rentals and markets where everyone wants to be is probably not exact fit for what we're looking for, right? Or the partnerships we're looking for. Jason Hull (16:55) Yes, let's do that. Brian Seidensticker (17:11) So where where do I mean? I would say that it breaks off most of California, most of New York, right? Most, you know, I'd say, you know, hot markets of even like where I'm from, ⁓ which is Western Montana. Unfortunately, this stone. Sorry, the show Yellowstone has totally ruined the market there as far as things at a rate that you could make a decent rental income. Jason Hull (17:14) an example. Really? Brian Seidensticker (17:37) from, right? And those are the areas where it just doesn't quite make sense. Right. And I'm looking at it from both our and right. The property manager's perspective. There's got to be enough meat on the bone for everybody. But if it's in a, I'll say a secondary tertiary market, right. So maybe not Austin directly downtown, but maybe around Austin, right. Where you can, you can, you can have at least 20 or more units up and running within a 12 month period, which is a pretty wide net. Right. Jason Hull (17:38) Yeah. And yeah. Brian Seidensticker (18:07) But then you can also have enough rent to say, loosely 1 % of the value of the property as a gross rental amount. And you can fit those two requirements as far as growth potential and rental income potential. And you have a need or an opportunity that can turn into an amazing ⁓ long-term hold scenario. Jason Hull (18:18) Yeah. Brian Seidensticker (18:36) I say that only because it doesn't have to be existing cash flow. can, that multifamily unit I talked about, right? ⁓ It's actually two buildings and one of the buildings is entirely empty, right? That's what, right? When it's done and stabilized, it will be an amazing opportunity to hold, right, in the long term. So anybody that's listening that says, man, I'm in the right market. Yeah, I can get the rate you're talking about. And I see those type of deals all day long, right? That's exactly who we want to talk to. Jason Hull (18:48) Okay. about, you know, there's areas like Florida right now where like the people cannot their rent rate is now dipped below mortgage rates in areas. You know, it doesn't make sense cash flow wise, but long term, it still may make sense. Brian Seidensticker (19:22) Yeah, think it really depends, right? Because we do some work in Florida, but the acquisition has to be ⁓ special, right? And so I can't say a hard no on all instances, but in most cases, it's going to be very, very difficult. And the cases where it makes a lot of sense is typically those scenarios where there's a lot of urgency to an acquisition because Jason Hull (19:31) Yeah. Thank Brian Seidensticker (19:46) The deal is here today, but it's not going to be there in two weeks. Right. And we can come to the table and say, okay, right. If, the numbers make a lot of sense, sure. We can close in two weeks. That's one of the things that we bring to the table is that flexibility from a capital standpoint. So it can work in Florida, but it's not going to work as well as it does in some other areas of like in Georgia, right. Or Ohio or Michigan or Indiana or Texas. Jason Hull (19:57) you Brian Seidensticker (20:14) Those are some areas that we've done a lot of partnerships in and want to do more. Jason Hull (20:19) Okay. So let's let's have you say a message to everybody that's listening because there's a lot of property managers that might hear this. My message to them is look, if your business stuff isn't tight, if you operationally right now, your capacity without having to hire a bunch of people or build out new systems, your capacity right now is 200 doors. You could add into the business in a short time period. That's healthy. If it's a hundred, then that's okay. If you say, we can handle another 50 units, that's bad. And that could happen very fast. If you, if you start growing, if we start helping you grow, if you get a BDM, anything, so you need to fix some things. assuming there's people listening that have a decent or a healthy capacity right now to grow their business. What would you, what would be your mess? What would be your message to them? Like, Hey, if your area is like this, then let's have a conversation. Brian Seidensticker (20:55) Mm-hmm. Jason Hull (21:19) Maybe go talk to Dorgo and get cleaned up, like, let's have a conversation. Maybe we can do some deals. Brian Seidensticker (21:25) Well, one of my requirements is we do want to scale on a significant level. And so one of the things that I'm asking everybody is almost a requirement. You need to be signed up through DoorGrow or something similar and not trying to solve all of those scale problems yourselves. And so if you're listening right now and you are already on board with DoorGrow, great, reach out to us directly. If you're listening right now and you aren't Jason Hull (21:31) Mm-hmm. Brian Seidensticker (21:52) signed up for DoorGrowl, right, or something similar, then I would request, right, that you do that, or at least be planning to do that, because that's going to be one of our requirements. Just, you know, trying to be straight with everybody out there right now. Jason Hull (22:07) OK, I I'm not going to complain about that. That sounds cool. So then your existing partners that you had before you met DoorGrow, some of them are probably going to start running into some scaling issues because you've got capital and you keep throwing property at them. So then maybe the idea is where DoorGrow is going to start helping them with some of that stuff then potentially. Brian Seidensticker (22:11) Hahaha! Oh, yeah, absolutely. And I'm not kidding where it's going to be a requirement where all of our property managers that we're working with are working with DoorGrow or something. don't even know if there's anything even remotely close to what DoorGrow provides, but they have to have some solution of enabling and helping them. The only one that comes to mind would be like a YPO, which is usually really large organizations or an EO, entrepreneurs organization that provide. Jason Hull (22:44) Yeah, I don't know either. Yeah. Brian Seidensticker (22:57) resources that help you get beyond. if you have none of that, you're going to, and I'm just speaking from experience, right? I didn't have that. Um, and that ceiling that stood there for almost four or five years felt impossible to break through unless you have those, those, um, those resources available to you. Um, and so it may sound, you know, like a weird requirement, but, uh, trust me, we're, we're both going to be a lot happier in that. Jason Hull (23:16) Yeah. Brian Seidensticker (23:25) partnership if you're willing to take that leap and make that a part of our joint plan going forward. Jason Hull (23:33) Yeah, I'm not the only property management coach out there. I think I'm biased, but I'm the best ⁓ and our company is the best. Sarah, my wife, also amazing. Like we're the best, I think, in the world. And you don't have to work with DoorGro, but you got to work with somebody. I agree. I was that guy that thought I knew everything in the beginning, trying to get my business to grow, struggling, struggling to pay team members, struggling to make cash flow. Like, you know, that's early stage entrepreneurism. And eventually I realized, ⁓ I could go a lot faster with a mentor in any money I spent on a decent mentor. I made back 10 times that usually. So it was like the eventually became the biggest no brainer ever. I'm like, let's spend six figures on coaches and mentors annually. Like, let's just, if we make a little bit of progress and it feeds my addiction to learning. you know, so I've always got multiple coaches and mentors going at any given time and. And yeah, I love learning, but it also allows me to be able to facilitate and turn around and benefit others, which I also just really love and enjoy doing. OK, so let's say you've got some people that are their business is ready to grow. They've got the things to scale ⁓ and they think their market has growth potential and income potential. Then ⁓ then those. That's the ideal. You want those people to reach out and everyone's going to start making some money together. Brian Seidensticker (25:05) Yes, exactly. Right. So if you're again, you know, if you're listening to this, you probably already have that right mindset. So you're partially already there. Right. If you've got a market that you feel meets those rough requirements that I laid out, if you already are planning to engage, you know, door grow or some similar organization that you've found on your own and you can check those three boxes, then ⁓ Yeah, you can check us out. can go to lastbestpartners.com, but reach out through that contact page and just mention, saw Brian on Jason's podcast. I'd like to talk to him more. That would be fantastic. Jason Hull (25:46) So let's make this crystal clear for those that maybe they're newer, that maybe they are just property managers. They're not super seasoned in investments. Explain just one more time, what are you looking for market wise? Brian Seidensticker (26:00) So there needs to be the potential, right, within 12 months of getting to 20 or more units, right? There's really no maximum. ⁓ In one market, we've got... Jason Hull (26:11) This is just like new construction builds is kind what you're talking about or. Brian Seidensticker (26:15) Well, we've done new construction in some markets, right? We've done full remodels and others, right? We've bought ⁓ existing cash flowing, know, multifamily distressed assets, right? Meaning that, you know, the seller was in a very distressed state. We've done all three of those. And so ⁓ you don't have to have a very specific model. are, you know, our requirements are the cash flow. peace, right? The, the mindset piece, right? And that ultimately when we leave the conversation, we both feel like it's going to be a win-win partnership because the, the hard, I it's not a requirement, right? But the hard thing to express here, right? Or say you're definitely in is it really comes down to, ⁓ we look at a partnership. It's just like a marriage, right? ⁓ you really need to both have a lot of comfort going into that because, ⁓ breaking up a partnership is as painful, if not more painful in some cases than a divorce, right? ⁓ And so we're definitely gonna be able to get to that conclusion right after we meet and talk through some stuff. ⁓ And so if you're listening right now and you're like, don't know if I like this guy, Brian, well, chances of us getting along the long run probably ⁓ minimal. But if you're, hey, I kinda like what Brian's listed, he sounds like a reasonable guy, I'm a reasonable person too. We should chat, right? Then that's exactly who we want to talk to. Jason Hull (27:45) Got it. So worst case scenario, if you're listening to this, you're a property management business owner. You would like to get a bunch of doors fed to you, but not just doors for you to manage. You'll get that and you'll be, you you're not managing for free. You're going to get man management, but you want to get investments. Like you want to build equity and, whatever. Then, ⁓ this may, it may be worth talking to Brian, having a conversation and, ⁓ and then. You know, if you're listening to this and you're struggling in your business, you like want to have capacity, you're getting your burnt out currently, you want systems, you want to figure out growth, which is not a hard problem to figure out and just getting some doors locally, third party or whatnot, then reach out to reach out to us at DoorGrowth. So how can they reach you, Brian? Brian Seidensticker (28:36) Well, the easiest thing is go to lastbestpartners.com. There's a contact link there. Reach out. It goes to me and my right-hand person. So you'll be speaking to one of the two people that you eventually talk to anyway. And that way, you'll get a reply as quick as possible. Jason Hull (28:57) Awesome. Cool. Anything else you wanted to add before we wrap up? Brian Seidensticker (29:01) No, I guess, you know, on the on the topic of what are we not looking for? So if you're if you're listening right now and you're like, you know, I might be able to use them, but I got I got capital. I don't need them. I am at five hundred units. You know, why would I want to then don't. Jason Hull (29:06) Yeah. Brian Seidensticker (29:19) It's fine, right? You've got the running solution. That's not the type of partnership that I think will be successful for both of us. And so kudos to those that have got to that point. ⁓ But I guess no need to reach out to us to try and find something that may not be there. Jason Hull (29:39) Got it, yeah, awesome. Cool, well anybody listening, if you've ever felt stuck or stagnant, you wanna take your business to next level, check us out at doorgrow.com. For a free training on how to get unlimited leads for free, text the word leads to 512-648-4608. Also join our free Facebook community just for property management business owners by going to doorgrowclub.com. And if you want tips, tricks, ideas, and to learn about our offers, subscribe to our newsletter by going to doorgrow.com slash subscribe. And if you found this even a little bit helpful, don't forget to subscribe on whatever channel you saw this on and leave us a review. We would really appreciate it. And until next time, remember the slowest path to growth is to do it alone. So let's grow together. Bye, everyone.
Send us Fan MailIn this week's episode, I chat to Lenny Formato, Co-founder of Empire Metal Trading. A third-generation recycler out of New York, Lenny has lived and breathed this industry from a young age. From riding trucks as a kid to building a business that's still evolving today.We cover everything from persistence and patience in deal-making to the power of going “all in” when it really counts. Lenny shares stories that only come from decades in the game, including the deals that took years to land, lessons from starting again in his mid-40s, and why backing yourself matters more than ever.We also get into the importance of collaboration across the industry, staying involved in trade associations, and how relationships, not just transactions, are what keep this business moving forward.This one's full of real, hard-earned insights for operators who are in it for the long game.In this episode, we talk about:
In this episode of Food for Thought Leadership, Food Institute Chief Content Officer Kelly Beaton steps in as guest host to interview Fransmart CEO Dan Rowe on the evolving restaurant labor market. Rowe challenges operators to view labor not as a cost to minimize but as a strategic investment, noting that the most successful brands are those that “staff for the sales they want” and prioritize retention, engagement, and culture amid ongoing workforce constraints. The discussion also touches on how to attract and retain Gen Z workers through flexibility, transparency, and clear growth paths, alongside practical insights on AI adoption in restaurants. Rowe emphasizes that operational uses of AI—like improving efficiency and accuracy—offer the greatest value, while expressing optimism that strong, well-run brands will continue to thrive despite broader industry challenges. More about Dan Rowe: Dan Rowe is the CEO of Fransmart, a leader in franchise development. He's focused on growing emerging concepts into major franchise brands. Under Rowe's leadership, Fransmart developed a portfolio of franchise brands including Five Guys Burgers & Fries, QDOBA Mexican Grill, and more. Rowe is Co-Managing Partner at The Kitchen Fund and FranInvest, which have invested in Sweetgreen, Cava, and Inday to name just a few. He's an active Board Member of YPO and the National Restaurant Association. Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/danrowe3/ Learn more: https://fransmart.com/
Send us Fan MailIn this week's episode, I chat to Andy Golding, Chief Strategy Officer & Partner at Kripke Enterprises and incoming ReMA Chair.This one's a proper masterclass on attracting young talent, and more importantly, what to do once you've got them.Andy shares how the industry needs to rethink some of its oldest habits if we want to stay relevant. From moving away from the “everyone must start in the yard” mindset, to hiring for specialization and actually trusting people to do what they're good at.We also get into how Kripke has built a brand that people genuinely want to be part of — not just customers, but employees too. Because if you want better people in your business, you need to give them something worth joining.There's a lot in here for anyone trying to build a stronger team, keep good people, and future-proof their operation.In this episode, we talk about:
Send us Fan MailIn this episode, I host a live panel discussion diving deep into one of the biggest forces shaping the scrap industry right now: Tariffs, trade policy, and global market dynamics.Joined by industry experts, the panel unpacks what's actually happening beneath the headlines, covering recent tariff changes, shifting trade flows, and the real-world impact on recyclers, traders, and operators.From 10% global tariffs to 50% steel and aluminum duties, and everything in between, this conversation cuts through the noise to focus on what really matters for scrappies on the ground.In this episode, we talk about:
In this episode of Long Blue Leadership, Joel “Thor” Neeb '99 explains this simple framework. “Yes” builds experience. “No” protects focus and time. SUMMARY In this episode of Long Blue Leadership, Joel Neeb '99 explains this simple framework. Yes builds experience. No protects focus and time. Leadership is knowing when to shift. SHARE THIS EPISODE LINKEDIN | FACEBOOK JOEL'S TOP 10 LEADERSHIP TAKEAWAYS 1. Time is your most finite — and most misused — resource. Facing mortality created instant clarity: Stop letting others waste your time. You must actively protect time to focus on what matters most. 2. Regret comes from inaction — not failure. Neeb didn't regret failures — he regretted not trying things that were uncomfortable. Leadership growth = bias toward action in uncertainty. 3. Imposter syndrome + growth mindset = a leadership superpower — “I don't belong here… yet” paired with effort fuels growth. Elite teams are full of people quietly thinking the same thing — and pushing forward anyway. 4. Reinvention is not optional — it's continuous. You don't “transition” to a new role — you start over from scratch. The best leaders willingly become beginners again. 5. Comfort is the enemy of growth. When things become easy, growth stops. Leaders must intentionally seek discomfort, not avoid it. 6. Elite teams + inspiring mission = peak human performance The most meaningful work comes from: Being on a team where you feel you must earn your place and pursuing a mission bigger than yourself. This combination drives purpose and performance. 7. Say yes early in life, say no later in life. Under 35: Say yes to everything → build capability through exposure. Over 35: Say no to almost everything that doesn't align with your goals → protect focus. Leadership maturity = ruthless prioritization. 8. The future belongs to those who disrupt themselves first. AI (and any disruption) rewards those who move early. “Stay slightly ahead of the rate of change” = competitive advantage. 9. AI should be a thought partner in everything; not a replacement but an accelerator. Leaders who integrate AI into daily workflows will move exponentially faster. 10. Think in five-year transformations, not three-month wins. People overestimate short-term output and underestimate long-term transformation. Leadership requires a bold long-term vision and daily actions from that vision. CHAPTERS 00:00:00 — Introduction: From Fighter Pilot to CEO-Level Leadership 00:00:49 — Stage 4 Cancer Diagnosis: The Moment That Changed Everything 00:03:48 — Clarity on Time, Regret, and What Truly Matters 00:07:02 — Reinventing Yourself: Leaving the Military & Starting Over 00:10:04 — Growth Mindset, Imposter Syndrome & Elite Teams 00:13:38 — Learning the Language of Business 00:17:14 — AI Is Disrupting Everything: What Leaders Must Know 00:22:46 — Using AI as a Thought Partner to Move Faster 00:24:58 — Say Yes Early, Say No Later: Mastering Your Time 00:35:06 — Big Goals, Long-Term Thinking & Final Leadership Lessons 00:37:22 — Joel's Big Audacious Goal: Leading Through AI Disruption 00:42:47 — Using AI to Learn Faster (Even While Working Out) 00:48:14 — Closing Thoughts and Key Takeaways ABOUT JOEL BIO Joel "Thor" Neeb '99 is a recognized business leader in the software-as-a-service (SAAS) industry. He most recently served as vice president of execution and transformation at VMware, where he led a cultural and operating model transformation for the 40,000-person company as well as helped launch VMware's AI roadmap and strategy. Prior to VMware, he served as chief executive officer at Afterburner Inc., where he led more than 100 elite professionals, including former fighter pilots, Navy SEALs, and Army Rangers, in helping global organizations achieve breakthrough performance. Neeb is a former United States Air Force F-15 mission commander. He was the tactical leader of 300 of the most senior combat pilots in the U.S. Air Force and oversaw the execution of a $150-million-per-year flight program. CONNECT WITH JOEL LINKEDIN | 8x8 CONNECT WITH THE LONG BLUE LINE PODCAST NETWORK TEAM Ted Robertson | Producer and Editor: Ted.Robertson@USAFA.org Send your feedback or nominate a guest: socialmedia@usafa.org Ryan Hall | Director: Ryan.Hall@USAFA.org Bryan Grossman | Copy Editor: Bryan.Grossman@USAFA.org Wyatt Hornsby | Executive Producer: Wyatt.Hornsby@USAFA.org ALL PAST LBL EPISODES | ALL LBLPN PRODUCTIONS AVAILABLE ON ALL MAJOR PODCAST PLATFORMS FULL TRANSCRIPT SPEAKERS: Guest, Joel "Thor" Neeb '99 | Host, Lt. Col. (Ret.) Naviere Walkewicz '99 Col. Naviere Walkewicz 0:11 Joel, my friend, welcome to Long Blue Leadership. Joel Neeb 0:13 Thank you very much. So glad to chat with you. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 0:15 Oh gosh. Well, we are excited for this. It's going to be just a filled conversation of incredible insights, and you have so much to share. And I think what's really special about this is how we're going to touch into AI, because it is relevant, and it's everywhere now, but I actually want to dial it back first to a very specific moment in time, and it's probably an area that has really transformed your life, right? So you went through stage 4 cancer. I mean, not many people can say that they have gone through that and survived it, and I think it also really impacted others in your family. Can you just share a little bit about your story? Joel Neeb 0:49 Yeah, so back in 2010 I was flying, on top of the world. I was going through the interview process for the Air Force Thunderbirds, and I found out, out of nowhere, that I had a stage 4 cancer diagnosis. So within just a couple of weeks, I went from feeling like I was at the peak of good health to now being told that I had about 18 months to live and a 15% chance to live five years. And those would be a pretty gruesome five years if I did make it that far. And so that was the new reality that I had to contend with. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 1:19 I can't even imagine that. I mean, just… Was there some kind of indication, like, you went in and you were checked up and they found this? I mean, it just wow, just boom. Joel Neeb 1:30 You know, it's funny. I actually have to credit the flying role with most likely diagnosing and solving this for me early. Because when I would fly and I'd have my G suit on my abdomen, it would inflate against me when I pulled Gs, and it was a pain that I was experienced on the right side of my abdomen that right around my appendix. On a scale of one to 10, it was like a two. So nothing big, but big enough that when I went and saw the flight surgeon for my annual physical, I mentioned it, and I said, I'm sure it's nothing, but they did the right thing, and did some quick tests and ultrasound on that area and some MRI work, and they were able to very quickly determine that a big tumor grown in that spot. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 2:09 Wow. Well, I guess right there, just a lesson off the bat is listen to your body. You know your body, and if something doesn't feel right, seem right, you know, say something and get it checked out. Joel Neeb 2:18 That's exactly right. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 2:19 Oh, my goodness. OK, so you got that diagnosis. You're sitting there with that information. How do you process that? What is the conversation with your wife, you know, what's the next step when you're given some kind of timeline like that? Joel Neeb 2:34 Yeah, you know, it's interesting. I would have thought having gone through like fighter pilot training and even the Air Force Academy, and, you know, all the things that build resilience in life, that I would have felt more prepared for that moment. In other words, that I would have felt more prepared than the average individual. But I did not. I felt, I felt very much like I was in a catastrophe from which I couldn't see how to get through the day to day activities. I was a zombie around the house and it really relied on my wife and my family stepping in to help me. And so for a good couple months, it's was just kind of inconsolable and, you know, I always like to say it was, I would wake up and go through my day very, very tired because I didn't sleep the night before. And then I go to bed staring at the ceiling fan spinning, trying to figure out, you know, any options that I would have to extend my life for my kids to remember me a little bit. I had a 1- and a 3-year-old and so I went through life for a couple of months just a zombie and doing very poorly. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 3:38 So what changed in that couple of months that, I guess, changed the trajectory of how you looked at things, or how you approached her, or what happened? Joel Neeb 3:48 Yeah, you know, there's a great quote that I repeat a lot, which I think makes a lot of sense, which is “the dying have the most to teach us about life.” And what it really means is that when you're faced with these types of struggles, that all of a sudden, whether you're 80 or 33 like I was, you get a certain amount of clarity right in that moment and it's good for eliminating the rest of the noise in your life and identifying what's most important and what should have been most important all along. And that comes through and is in the forefront is it was fascinating to me that the moment I got the diagnosis, immediately I was mad at myself for spending any extra time at work, like it was like a light switch in my head went off and said, like, “You shouldn't have stayed that extra hour at work just to watch the clock turn. You were done with your job there.” I had a boss at the time that I was a huge fan of and he was a clock watcher, and wanted just to be in there to fill up time. And my mind immediately went to “now my finite resource is time, and I've been wasting it.” And I remember vowing that I'll never waste my time again, and I've been very disciplined against letting anybody steal time from me from that point forward; that was one of the key things I took away. And then looking back in my life, there were things I regretted, things that I celebrated and that I was proud of, and also considered what I would do differently if I was given a second chance. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 5:05 So, you know, you wrote a book called Survivor's Obligation. I'm curious about this journey, though, because obviously you beat it 15 years later, you're here. So, you know, you beat the odds of the 18 months. What was that like when you still had to provide for your family? You know, you were still working like, what was that journey like? Joel Neeb 5:25 Yeah, first of all, I have to credit the Air Force with showing up in a huge way. At that time, I was watching other people in the civilian sector who were undergoing cancer struggles, and they had a much more difficult time than I did. The Air Force had stepped in and was making meals around the clock for my family. I didn't have to show up to work. I you know, they afforded me every opportunity to get better and I really credit the Air Force family with getting me through that period of time, in ways I just certainly would not have been able to get through on my own, and in terms of, like how I looked at my life as I was thinking about the things I was proud of and the things I regretted. The things that I was proud of I was a little surprised by, and the things I regretted I was surprised by. I didn't regret my failures, of which there were many. I didn't regret them, because what I actually regretted were those times that I didn't try, where there's times where I didn't make the effort into doing something new that was a little bit scary, that would have put me outside of my comfort zone, and maybe would have challenged my ego a little bit. And now the end of my life was here, and I'd never have a chance to do anything else. You know, my story was complete. And I said, you know, really angry at that. Had I gotten a second chance, I would do things very differently. I love being a fighter pilot, but I would have preferred it to have been a chapter in my life, not the entire book. I would have tried to go to the business world and done all these things, and when I did get that second chance, and basically, God called my bluff and said, “All right, let's see if you actually follow through with this.” Then, of course, I had to hold myself accountable to living differently in that next chapter. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 7:02 So that's what you're doing now. You're living in this next chapter. And so, I mean, I think there's a transition out of the military. Obviously, you retired as a lieutenant colonel. And so talk us a little bit about in this moment of what you're going to do if given a second chance. Let's talk about what some of those things that you took a chance on, maybe in the business world first. Joel Neeb 7:24 Sure. So our mutual friend, Kovacic, he says, “I'm in the middle of my Texas Longhorn MBA right now. It's amazing. It's just down the street from you.” He knew — he was following my cancer struggle closely. And he said, “Look, you're two years into this journey. Who knows what the future holds?” But I talked to him about wanting to be in the business sector and trying something new. And he said, “If you're serious about that, you should join the MBA program.” And so that's what I did. I went and joined the MBA program and had a blast being the dumbest guy in the room, by far, in business school. At the same time, it almost reminded me of being a fighter pilot again, or at least the early days of being a fighter pilot, because it was a little bit of a combination of terror and exhilaration, which is really what I loved about being a fighter pilot. That first time you go upside down by yourself and in pilot training and you prove to yourself you can do it, you're a little bit terrified, but fully exhilarated, and knowing that this is exactly what you should be doing. At the same time, I had that same sentiment as I'm sitting in business school classes, as I'm trying to keep up with the conversation there, and you say, “Well, you know that's so different from flying a plane, how are you getting the same joy out of it?” And it's really because where I landed with, you know, what did I value most in life. It came down to the times when I was on an elite team with an inspiring mission, an elite team, meaning I felt like I didn't deserve that spot there. And the little secret was, everybody on the elite team didn't feel like they deserve that spot there. But boy, are they going to try to earn it. And then that inspiring mission that we're pursuing, whether it was our time at the Air Force Academy, I always felt like I didn't deserve to be there. I felt like that was an incredibly elite team with an inspiring mission. Felt the same way about being a fighter pilot. Had a healthy dose of imposter syndrome going through all of this, but I've learned to believe that that's a bit of a superpower, in a sense, because if you have imposter syndrome coupled with a growth mindset, which means I don't belong here today, but I can sure earn the right if I try hard. I think that helps us to really realize the full potential of our lives. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 9:26 Really well said. And I think that actually kind of helps us see how you're able to make that transition. I want to go back to the fact, — first off, Kope is amazing. I love that he, you know — it talks about the Long Blue Line and our networks from the Air Force Academy. They really are for life. And I think, you know, you just, kind of just showed that you applied and you participated in this MBA program when you're in your mid-30s. Then can you talk about that a little bit? I think there's an interest in, “Oh, if I didn't do this in my 20s, it's too late.” Can you talk about that transition in, you know, your mid-30s, and do you think that was the right time? Can people do it later in their life, etc? Joel Neeb 10:04 So I would say you certainly can do it at any point in life. You can recreate yourself at any point. A lot of — gonna go totally off topic, but a lot of longevity science is saying that the first person to live to be 150 is alive today, meaning we're all going to see a lot more healthy years hopefully in our lives than ever before. So that should mean that all of us should pursue multiple chapters, and there's certainly not a point in life where we're done reinventing ourselves. But the key is the word “reinventing.” And I was at a point in my career where, at 33 years old, I was very, very comfortable flying. I was very, very comfortable doing air shows and flybys and leading missions and signing autographs. And so my identity was a lot of ego and not a lot of growth, meaning it felt good to be told how great I was at doing a certain skill set, but it wasn't that hard to do anymore. It becomes rote, and I wasn't growing at this point. In order to go into the business world, I had to completely reinvent myself. And I like to tell people that are transitioning out of the military, as difficult as it was to do the first thing, whether that's be a fighter pilot or an intel officer, or how you had to reinvent yourself at 23 years old — that's just as challenging as it's going to be. You have to sign up again for the B course, as we call it, as fighter pilots. The thing that introduces you to being a fighter pilot and realize that you're devoting that much effort to reinvent yourself. And people would push back and say, “Yeah, but you've already led in these environments. You have all of these things that should carry over. Wouldn't it be easier for you just to make a transition and less of that initiation energy that's required to start this new thing?” The answer is no, you literally have to start it over, as if you're 25 years old. You got to eat a lot of humble pie and realize you're not special in this environment. But the good news is, you can become special very quickly if you're willing to reinvent yourself now — you bring perspective that nobody else can carry. Nobody else knows how to navigate high stakes, life-or-death environments like we've learned in the military. Nobody shows up with the processes that we've learned through checklists and through cultural training, all the things that maybe we didn't even aware that we're seeing. As soon as you see the opposite in the business world and you realize, well, we don't have that great of a culture here. We had a great one in the military. That's a huge resource that you can bring into that environment, but only after you've completely reinvented yourself and translated your skill set into something that's meaningful for that business setting. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 12:28 So Joel, that's fascinating, because what you're saying is you're almost stripping yourself of all these experiences to really open up your aperture for what's new. And I'm curious if this was a way you came into that? Sid you go in with your eyes wide open with that plan, or did you learn this about yourself? Joel Neeb 12:47 I came into it arrogantly. I went into these conversations thinking, “Wait till they see how much I have to offer. I've been in very complex scenarios. I've led my way out of them. I have all these awards for being a good leader and a good instructor, and so just wait until they see what I've got to offer.” And that's why business school helped me out a lot, because in a sandbox setting that really didn't have consequences, I got to participate in conversations and learn very quickly I didn't know what they were talking about and that they were — they had an understanding around business already that I didn't have. I didn't understand the language, and I needed to really reeducate myself to become ready in this moment. And so there were moments in that period where I would have done very differently in approaching that next transition, had I known how far I had to go to really having something to offer the business sector. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 13:38 Was there a moment during that time when you were getting your MBA that, in a way that cancer startled you as a life-or-death situation, and you changed your you know — “If I'm given a second chance.” Was there a moment in the business, you know, getting your MBA where you like, really, like, linked into like, this is what I'm going to be doing. It was so clear to you the next move in this, in this journey. Joel Neeb 14:04 Yeah, I say that. I mean, there's one that stands out that really showed how little I understood the business world. So they're talking about pipeline in this conversation at my MBA school, and they said, “You know, we need to improve pipeline. We're working on getting better pipeline for our needs.” And I'm listening to this thinking, “What are they talking about? Is this like an oil pipeline? Is this pipe plumbing? What do they mean?” And for those in the business sector, of course, you understand. They're talking about a sales pipeline. A sales pipeline is a sales funnel that shows that the leads that turns into the sales and the conversion rate and all the things that that, of course, I know intimately well. Now, at that point, it showed me that there's an entire language I just haven't been exposed to, because I'd been talking about missiles and G forces and airplanes for so long that it didn't matter how much experience I was bringing to the table. There was a language I didn't understand. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 14:50 I think that is really, really thoughtful in how you showed that, because then it helped you probably in navigating when you're leading, you know, other teams that have different experiences coming to the table. So when you learn that language, and I want to talk a little bit about, you know, CEO of Afterburner, let's just talk about your role in the civilian sector, your multiple roles, I'd love for you to share a couple of stories where you've grown as a leader and where you've continued to learn things about yourself in that space. Joel Neeb 15:22 Yeah, so at Afterburner, what we end up doing at Afterburner, more often than not, was leading in keynotes, doing workshops for training, and what we would show them is how you can leverage the things that we learned in the military on the elite teams that we participated in, whether that's Green Beret, fighter pilot, Navy SEAL — we hired all those backgrounds, and, of course, look for teams that had a business degree on top of that. What we ended up doing was getting on stage in front of these folks and sometimes talking to 10,000 people. So I've done presentations in front of 10,000 people in my past. And what I was surprised by — thinking about the learning opportunities and where the growth came from — is that even after having done 3,000 briefings, you know, in a fighter pilot setting, and getting in front of the red flag team in Nellis and doing a presentation there, I would be behind the scenes at some of these huge presentations, and I would get incredible stage fright, I guess is the only way to say it. Butterflies. I would feel like I was going to pass out. And the reason I share this is because I was frustrated that it didn't translate better to this new thing that I was looking to do with public speaking. Now I'm talking for an hour, and I had to be engaging and comical at times, and, you know, bringing the audience into it. I say that because, once again, I was finding that that combination of terror and exhilaration and proving to myself that I could do it, and I had a new place that I needed to grow into for that now, I've done this enough times where my heart rate doesn't go up a beat when I do this at this point, but that's after doing thousands of presentations and I think the key takeaway for me was our growth is never over with, and it's growth that really feels good, and so leaning into those areas of discomfort has been something that's been really important to me my entire life, particularly after cancer. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 17:06 So what is growing you now? What is new for you that you are pursuing in your personal growth and development? Joel Neeb 17:14 Yeah, so it was new for me now is what's new for society, this next era with AI. AI is going to disrupt every one of our lives. And just as aggressively as AI disrupted my life with cancer, or, excuse me, as cancer disrupted my life, or even becoming a fighter pilot or joining business school disrupted my life, we see the same thing take place on a personal and professional level because of just how powerful this new technology is. And if you're sitting there wondering, “It hallucinates still, and I don't really buy it, and we'll see where this ends up,” I'm here to tell you, as somebody who's at the bleeding edge of AI that's going to transform every single thing we do in very good ways, but also disrupt the way you think you add value today, and the way you think that you know we should participate on teams right now. And so that's it's going to disrupt everything. And so I'm looking to constantly reinvent myself in the context of this next era. And I'm also looking to lead our 2,400-person company at 8x8 on that same journey, so that we can disrupt ourselves before we're disrupted. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 18:14 So what does that look like right now? Share something maybe that is on the leading edge of that, you know, that forefront of being disruptive before you're disrupted in your organization. Joel Neeb 18:27 Yeah, so for us, it's making this new technology as accessible as possible so that we can break down the barriers for using it and realizing that, much like in the '90s, we went from only a small technical portion of the company that was using computers, then expanded to, of course, everyone in the company is using a computer on every desk. But that wasn't always like that in the late '80s and early '90s; that was just reserved for a very technical portion of the group. Now that expanded. Of course, everyone's on the net. You wouldn't dream of trying to get a job without being internet savvy and having computer skills. We're going to see the same thing take place with AI and so, and I don't just mean using AI. I mean using AI to code, using AI to build things, and it's not just going to be reserved for that technical component of the company anymore. And so what that looks like for us: We conduct a weekly session where we talk about the use cases from the previous week on a personal and a professional level. Why is that important? Because now we're breaking down that barrier. So last week, I'll give you an example. We had somebody whose father passed a couple months ago, and this person had he lives in the UK. He's from Africa. His father had never met his son, so this person's grandson, his father's grandson, he'd never met. And by using AI at his funeral, he was able to take their images and create a moment where they came together and hugged and picked up the grandson and played this really touching video for the rest of the people there to share in that moment that never really happened, of course, but was able to celebrate this person's life and that connection through the grandson. And it was just a really I mean, they were people that were getting emotional, talking about it, listening to the story. And then we have somebody else say, I had my basement flood, and I took pictures of it, and I used AI to imagine how we would have to renovate it and build it back better. And somebody else says I successfully used AI to combat the tax increase on my house, because I came up with good comparables around the area and a good way to beat it. By the way, it's a really good one to use, if you have… Col. Naviere Walkewicz 20:32 A mental note right there. Joel Neeb 20:33 Exactly. So we're lowering the barriers on a personal level. So then when I tell you on a professional level, here are my expectations for how you'll bring AI to the table to accelerate the things you're already doing, the teams are ready to do that, and that's been a really important aspect of this journey. Naviere Walkewicz 20:50 Is it important for an organization to already have a culture that is open to — I think what you know is you're going to get a bunch of different perspectives. You're going to get a, you know, maybe thinking outside the box that you wouldn't have thought of. So would you say that the organization was ready for that? Or have you had to create that culture along the way? Joel Neeb 21:11 Yeah, I'd say, you know, change is hard. Nobody likes change. We like being through change. And so one of the things that growth provides an opportunity to change for the better, but it's always start to get that activation energy to really pursue change. And so what we had to teach the culture at 8x8 is to not be change weary, but to be change ready, and to understand that in this era, our ability to stay a couple months ahead of the rate of change will be a superpower the likes of which no one can compete with us. Meaning as difficult as it is to pursue this change and to continue reinventing yourself — and when I say revenge up, I mean if you're doing the same thing today in six months, then you're gonna be passed by — literally changing that fast. And we're seeing that inside of our company. And so the new constant will be changed. The new constant will be disruption. And the faster we get comfortable with that, and the faster we realize that if we disrupt ourselves a little bit faster than the competition, that's a superpower, but we're already enjoying it internally within 8x8, but it's because we've forced ourselves to get a little bit ahead. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 22:15 that's really interesting. And I imagine, would you say that it takes, you know, when you are in this transformation mode, because this is what you're taking your organization through, you know, how are you coaching as a leader? How are you — maybe it's through the repetition of trying it in their personal life. But you know, what are you sharing from a leadership perspective that's helping them think that way constantly, right? I mean, it's different from, “OK, I'm going to do this today and…” But how are they constantly ingraining that in themselves? And how are you leading that? Joel Neeb 22:46 Yeah, a couple of ways. One, we're saying that AI should be a thought partner in everything that we do, maybe not a thought leader, meaning, I'm not going to hand off a decision or an activity to AI, per se, but literally in everything that we do. So I'll give you a quick example in your role. So you're doing podcasts, and these are amazing. And by the way, you're poised, and I'm not surprised after knowing you at the Academy, because you were very polished then. But this is incredible. You did a phenomenal job with this. But let's say that you want to get some feedback after this session. You can take this transcript, upload it to AI, and you would say, “Give me the key themes from this session that we discussed.” You could say, “Create emails that will be enticing and send them out to the entire team based on this transcript that we have for this conversation.” You could say, “Create new episodes and new questions for the next 10 guests that will continue to weave a red thread of common questions and common themes throughout all these.” Where I'm going with this is when you consider how to use AI as a thought partner in everything that you're doing, you can go 100 times faster on the key things that we want to accomplish. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 23:52 I believe that wholeheartedly. And just a little side story, I'm coaching my son's fifth grade basketball team. Never coached basketball before, and he's going to be middle school next year, so it's the one and only year. But I used ChatGPT to build out my coaching plan, and we are — we only lost our first game and we've been undefeated since so I'm going to hand it off to my ChatGPT coaching partner. Joel Neeb 24:13 That's amazing. That's a great story. See, that would be one we'd love to hear at our session that we do every week around how accessible AI is. Because people hear that and they say,” I can do that too. I want to bring that to my kids game.” The more we use it every single day, the better prepared we're going to be for the big changes that are coming. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 24:27 Excellent. So Joel, I want to dig into your personal life a little bit, because you have such a fascinating way of — I mean, you make everyone feel that the moment that they're spending with you is 100% theirs. But I know in the background — and your time is important, you talked about that — but I know in the background, you are doing so many things. You've got your family is a key pillar. You know, your health and fitness is a key pillar. You're traveling all the time. As a leader. You know, how are you navigating all of that and doing it so well? Joel Neeb 24:58 Well, first of all, I appreciate the sentiment. I certainly don't feel like I'm always doing it well, but I'll tell you my philosophy and how I mentor people that are that are pursuing a path to their dreams, and whatever that dream might look like, is the following. I tell them, “If you're younger than 35 years old, you need to say yes to every opportunity that comes your way.” What do I mean by that? When the boss asks you if you're able to give a big sales presentation, even though the voice in the back of your head says you're not ready for this — “I don't think you you're gonna do well,” the answer is yes. You prepare yourself, you go out there, you embarrass yourself, you do it better next time. And that's how you learn through that process. When they ask you if you're ready to go lead this mission, your answer is yes. You're gonna figure it out. You're gonna do everything behind the scenes to make sure that you're successful. And you're going to push yourself into that discomfort zone and ensure that you're leaning into all of those opportunities as aggressively as you can. Why? Because it's exposure to all of those areas of discomfort that really owns the discipline for us to perform in this positive way when you get to those areas now. When you're after 35 years old, the main advice that I give to people is that you're flipping the script. You are no longer going to say yes to everything you're asked. You're going to aggressively say no to everything you're asked unless it aligns to your key things that you want to pursue in life. So you're completely looking at it in a different direction. I've said yes to everything for the first half of my life. Now I'm saying no to everything in the second half. Why? Because it's the distractions that stop us from doing the big things in life. Once we pass about 35 years old, the better you are at saying no to things, the freer your time will be to say yes to the most important things. So while it looks like I'm juggling a lot of things, to your point, I'm aggressively saying no to everything else that doesn't align with a few things that I have really focused my time on. Naviere Walkewicz 26:52 So let's pull that thread a little bit more, because saying no is uncomfortable, and it may feel to some that they are letting others down. How do you or how might you coach them through telling someone no? Joel Neeb 27:09 Yeah, I would say that I don't have that problem. I probably did, and certainly prior to cancer, I would have. I am at the place now after I've learned how short all of our lives are, not just my life because I had a cancer battle. And the big surprise for me was not that I might die in 18 months, it was that I was going to die at all. Because for all of us, that notion of death is so far away and really something that we don't really come face to face with very often in life, that all of a sudden I had to accept the fact that I was going to die someday, and I better make good use of the time between now and then. So when people ask to have my time, I aggressively say no. I never feel bad about it. And then I also introduce gatekeepers to my time on top of that. So I don't even — most of the time you're working with my executive assistant, most of the time you're gonna be working with somebody on my team, and that's because I want to jealously guard my time at this stage so I can be as incredibly impactful on the few things that I want to do as possible. That desire dwarfs any emotional attachment I would have to say no to somebody else that long time. It doesn't even cross my mind to think twice about it. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 28:25 I think that's a great lesson right there. I mean, I think if you actually put time as the, you know, main, the thing you're protecting, right, everything else on to your point, it dwarfs behind that. And I think the way you did that, you actually made it very doable for people to say no, because now you've created gatekeepers, you put some stops in there. And I think that's a lesson that people can take away as they're looking to navigate their journey forward. So thank you for sharing that for sure. So, you know, you wrote two books, I'm sure there's probably more. Is that something you've always wanted to do, or has that been a realization of “I've experienced this, and there's a — I need to share this. Like, what was the impetus behind writing books on your experiences? Joel Neeb 29:09 Yeah, great question. Very different reason I wrote both books. So the first book was born out of this feeling that as I was going through cancer, that clarity that I experienced: The dying-have-the-most-to-teach-us-about-life piece of it, I came back to the sense that, wow, I wish I knew this before I had cancer, I would have lived my life very differently, and I had made a deal with God that, you know, if I do make it through this, I want to share these insights and share what you know, my perspective was from being on this precipice with death and what I take away from it, because I did think it was valuable enough for my life to share with others in my immediate vicinity and then to write it in a book. And I just needed to get that out of me. The second one for the insight age is much more around what is the template that I wanted to pursue within companies to help take them from the Information Age where we have universal access to information, to the Insight Age, where we now have universal access to AI-driven insights, and how you prepare for that. I wanted people to have the template for it and understanding about how I approached it before I showed up so that we could all be on the same sheet of music when I led the transformation. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 30:15 OK, that's really helpful. So as we think about AI in business, and, you know, having a template for that, can we talk a little bit? And we went to the Air Force Academy, and so I, gosh, I can't even imagine how I might have been a better student had we had AI back in the day. But how do you see AI disrupting? You know, our service academy cadets are, you know, anyone going through, you know, degree programs, you know, how do you use it where there's still original thought, but obviously it's, there's a thought partner that is helping you and maybe accelerate that. I mean, how is that working? Joel Neeb 30:49 It's the same shift that you and I both experienced with universal access to information in the Information Age. And so in other words, there was a time where you had to memorize every phone number that you would call in your network, right? I mean, I sat down — we went to a high school reunion recently and we all sat down and we're trying to rattle off the phone numbers across the table. And we got most of them out there, still lingering in our head somewhere, these memorized phone numbers for everybody. I couldn't tell you, like, my kids phone numbers at this point, like, because I'd push a button and I just get it. And where I'm going with that is we're now in an era where memorization of rote facts and phone numbers and just facts that you can find in the internet is no longer required, and we're used to that, right? And so I wouldn't say that we think less. I would say we think a lot more. At this era there's a risk right now of saying, “I'm no longer going to be required to do critical thinking, because AI is going to do some of that for me.” And the answer is, it will. But much like I got a calculator for every GR that I got to go to — I did a math minor at the Academy… Col. Naviere Walkwicz 31:54 That's why I didn't see you in any classes. Joel Neeb 31:59 I brought a calculator to every test, but it certainly didn't make it easier. If anything, it made it harder. I would have had an easier time like writing down calculations and just having to do the arithmetic. Because I had something that did the arithmetic for me, it elevated my thought process and made me more responsible for the critical thinking. You're going to see the same thing with AI. So as you think about it, how AI will disrupt a knowledge institution like the Air Force Academy. At first blush, we would think, well, it's just going to make it easier to cheat. It's going to make it easier to do the things that we're doing today. Yes, it does, just like if I only was doing arithmetic, a calculator makes it easier for me to do that, and I can turn my brain off. But as we all know, it's just going to elevate the threshold for what is required of us, right? So we're going to go in right, we're going to go into this next era with a thought partner on everything that we do, but you still have to guide that thought partner. You still have to point it in the right direction. You have to ask it the right questions. This era is going to be much less about having the right answers and much more about asking the right questions to find success. Col. Naviere Walkwicz 32:59 Which is critical thinking at its finest, honestly. Fascinating. So, you know, Joel, I think about you and, you know, when I see the, like, the things that you're doing, American Ninja Warrior, your family is involved in this. How do you see, you know, how do you bring your family into the vision that you have it with the growth mindset? Do you see that that's how your family is? All the children are raised that way your wife is. I mean, is this the way that the Neeb household kind of operates? And has it always been this way, or has it really been since you kind of came to that realization that life is too precious for me to live otherwise? Joel Neeb 33:35 Yeah, I mean, I try to live the philosophy that I want my family to live as well. And it's not the Joel show, meaning this is not just for them to support me and go cheer in the crowd at American Ninja Warrior. My wife has gone on and done physique competitions like you have as well. Col. Naviere Walkwicz 33:49 She's amazing. Your whole family's amazing. Joel Neeb 33:53 And she's a regional board member for a group called YPO. So she's in charge of 3,000 CEOs and a network for that. And then she just did a presentation to Europe yesterday on AI herself, and she's going to be traveling to Europe next month to do the presentation in a live setting. And so where I'm going with this is, I feel like because of my cancer battle, because of what we've experienced as a family, and we've learned how precious our time was and how incredible it is to experience that combination of terror and exhilaration, all of us lean into those moments, and we don't do it perfectly, and we all get mad at traffic, and we all are lazy once in a while, and, you know, myself included, but more, we try to do a little bit extra step into that direction, because it has been such a fun way to live after having the scare that we had as a family. Col. Naviere Walkwicz 34:43 That makes sense, and I can really see your family embracing that. You know, I want to ask you a question about yourself and what you're doing on a daily basis to be better, and it sounds like you're already thinking about it right? Reinvention on a constant basis. But if there was anything else you would say that you're doing on a daily basis to be better and better is, you know, in quotes, like you define what better is, what would that be? Joel Neeb 35:06 Yeah, I think that there's a couple of things that I think we should all try to do if we're trying to be, quote, unquote “better.” As you said, there's a quote I like that that says that we vastly overestimate what we can do in three months and we underestimate what we can do in five years. Col. Naviere Walkwicz 35:27 OK, wait, say that one more time. If you don't mind, say it one more time. Joel Neeb 35:30 Yeah, really, we overestimate what we can do in three months. “I can't wait for February. I'm going to do X, Y and Z.” And then we disappoint ourselves because we didn't accomplish all those things. And yet we underestimate what we can do in five years. What do I mean by that? It means that if we were intentional about what we wanted to do in the long term, about what we wanted to grow into in years from now, five years from now, you can reinvent yourself to be anything. I think conceivably, any of us could say, “I could accomplish just about anything in five years, if I put my mind to it.” The problem is we think in the short term, and so a lot of us think of I need this happen fast. I need the, you know, in three months. I need this to take place. That's putting the car before the horse. We need to define what we want to be in the long term and then back into what that implies we need to do right now. That also speaks to the focus that I have and saying no to other things, because if I have this big, audacious goal for what I want to be in the long term, then I have to say no to a lot of things if I'm going to take those steps necessary to start marching down that path. And so what I say to folks is that build that long term first, build that vision of what you want to be in the future that's exciting to you, whether that's a fighter pilot or a CEO or you name it, shoot for the stars, whatever that is that you want to be, and then start backing into it and celebrate the fact that you're doing this. In other words, then people get caught up and, you know, I feel like I'm not making enough progress, and I'm mad at myself for not taking enough steps, I would challenge that and say, don't put the pressure on yourself that you have to do this. Reverse that conversation. Say, “I get to, I get to pursue this vision.” Doesn't mean it'll take place. Doesn't mean to occur. But if I have a vision in mind, and I'm taking steps towards it, even if I don't reach it, I'm still going to be in an incredible place that I wouldn't have been otherwise. And so that's, that's the approach that I would take. Col. Naviere Walkwicz 37:18 All right, Joel, so what is your big audacious goal in five years that you're working towards? Joel Neeb 37:22 Big audacious goal? Yeah, so I am super excited about the future of AI. I think that it has a lot of positive and negative implications for society in general. And so I'll give you a quick example. Right now, we've got 9.5% of our recent graduates that are unemployed, which is much higher than it's ever been from graduating college. That's unique, and what I attribute that to is that we're just starting to see the workforce disruption that's occurring because of AI. We're starting to see the workforce drawdown that's occurring because of it. At the same time, we're seeing companies that are able to do much, much more with AI. And so they're questioning, well, how do I operate as a company? How do I teach everybody to stay on board this training and be successful in this new environment and then societally, we're challenged with, well, how do I set up our young people for success? How do I tell my 19-year-old what to do to do to be successful. So when I think about the big, hairy, audacious goal that I want to go pursue in this next chapter in five years, I want to be on the forefront, helping the government, helping companies, helping everyone to continue disrupting themselves and leaving as few people behind as possible in this next era. Because that's the real threat. And the challenge is cats out of the bag. If we don't do this, China is going to do it like others are going to pass it by. Pass it by. The wrong answer would be to try to step it back in the bag and say we're not doing any I we're going to put regulations around, putting our heads in the sand. We would just get passed by, like, in a few years by our biggest competitors out there, which we know we don't want to have happen. And so the key is, how do we keep as many people up to speed with his transformation possible? So I talked to, you know, graduates like August Pfluger, who's in Congress, and we have, yeah, he's awesome. And so we talk about, what does that look like in the future he's shaping, you know, the future from a government perspective? I talked to former Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger, is a good friend of mine, and we go on vacations together and a conversation we have about from a corporate perspective: How do we address this as well? So that's my big goal. That's what I want to influence over the next couple of years. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 39:22 Love that. So if you could rewind the clock and, you know, tell your young Joel, and this is really for anyone who is looking for preparing myself for that long term, right? So maybe it's not the five year, the big thing in five years, but it's — this is for what can I do today that is gonna — I'm gonna help myself — future me. What would you tell yourself, Joel? Joel Neeb 39:43 If I were to go back to Academy Joel, I would say, “Take this experience more seriously.” At the time, I kind of resented the experience that I was going through at the Academy, not understanding fully that they understood how to polish the coal to try to make it into a diamond. And I didn't always see the method to the madness behind the scenes and why they were doing things. And I would tell myself to take it more seriously, to lean into the leadership opportunities, lean into the experiences. I think it's a tendency as a cadet to lean away from those and to kind of look at those with resentment. I remember I did, and I wish I would have taken those more seriously. I wish I would have taken my 20s more seriously in terms of pursuing things that were uncomfortable, and not just getting comfortable towards the latter end of my 20s and early 30s, where I was flying upside down with ease every single day and really not doing anything that was challenging me too much. I certainly didn't have it all mastered and figured out. But my discomfort was all but gone in those moments. And so I would tell myself, “Keep leaning into those areas of discomfort, because it's in those areas that we find growth.” And growth is one of the top things that we can feel as a human being. Being a part of an elite team is growing together on an inspiring mission. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 40:56 Well, I know that you are, you know, constantly in the forefront of AI, but what makes you or what causes you discomfort now that you're working through? Joel Neeb 41:05 What causes me discomfort now is compelling a 2,400-person organization to move as quickly as I think we need to. In other words: right now. The things I'm talking to you about, I'm communicating with them about on a daily basis, and we have remotely dispersed teams. I'm staring into cameras like we are right now. So I'm not sitting in the room with them and helping them to learn these things. My discomfort is around how as a leader, can I be more compelling about the burning platform that they're standing on right now, that as soon as it burns away, their role is going to be obliterated, and we're going to be disrupted by the market. And how do I really excite them around this destination that we're pursuing together, where we're going a little bit faster than the rate of change? I'm proud of the progress that we've made, but in terms of the discomfort that I'm feeling, it's almost impossible to go fast enough in this era, and so I am. The thing that keeps me up at night is, how do I make this more compelling for them? And then ultimately, I know that whatever themes I'm learning right now to make it compelling is what I'm going to have to bring to society in this next chapter, as well as we try to keep the entire American society moving ahead of the rate of change that we're experiencing. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 42:14 Well, thank you for that. I would imagine you probably phoned your friend, ChatGPT, on some ways to do that, but I think that what you really shared today has opened, I think, eyes of how we can partner with technology at our fingertips. I mean, you and I were just chatting before this, and I asked you this, because one of the things I remember you being really big on is finding time to read as a family. I remember you had like Saturday family time, we read. As much as you're traveling and as much as you're trying to move your organization at this rate of change with AI, where do you find time to read now? Joel Neeb 42:47 Yeah, so I use AI for that too. So when I'm in the gym, I upload a chapter at a time into ChatGPT for the books that I'm reading, and I ask it to read it to me in the voice thing that it can do. And so it's reading the book to me. But the really cool part is, it's not just audible. I'm not just hearing, you know, the recording of it. And by the way, you can even tell it talk two times faster or whatever you want to do for the right speed. And I'll interrupt it. The cool part is, I'll say, “Hey, wait a second. I didn't really understand that that part of the book. Break it down for me in simpler terms.” And it'll actually pause, explain it to me and put it in terms that my fighter pilot mind can understand, or I'll even say, “Yeah, tell me about that theme in the context of the company that I'm in, 8x8, and tell me how we can apply that right now, and look at our industry. And how can I take some of this to that team?” And so it takes a book that was generically written and makes it customized for my experience by leveraging AI to do that. So once again, it's a thought partner in literally everything that I do. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 43:42 What's the last book that you read in which you were able to take some of those things to, or maybe that you'd recommend to some of our listeners to listen in via ChatGPT. Joel Neeb 43:51 I just finished reading the Teddy Roosevelt biography, which is phenomenal. What an incredible American, and it was inspiring to read. And I was able to pause it in parts and challenge some parts of the books and say, “Did that really happen?” And, “Tell me more about this incident in history.” And it explains some historical pieces that I wasn't aware of and the book didn't delve into as much as I would have liked it to. That's a little bit of a boring historian-nerd kind of answer, but that's what I took away from it. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 44:17 Well, thank you for sharing that. So Joel, is there anything that we didn't talk about today that you would really like to make sure that we touch on? Because this has been a really exciting and fascinating conversation for me, but I want to make sure, because this has been your leadership journey, and there's so many facets to that that that we hit on the things that are important? Joel Neeb 44:33 The thing that I've learned in my time is that the foundation that we receive in the military, whether that's the cultural foundation, how we are all aligned with similar values, with a common mission that's inspiring the adherence to what we call in the business world, standard operating procedures, what you would call in the military, a checklist, effectively. That foundation that we have is easily the most valuable resource that I carried into the business world and the teams that I've been on. And I think we underestimate just how powerful that experience is, that during our 20s, we're in this incredibly disciplined environment with a really strong culture, really strong sense of value, really strong sense of mission. Pay attention to that while you have that opportunity. While you're being exposed to it, pay attention to how it was built. Pay attention to how they that accelerated our success in those teams. Because I promise you, you'll want to someday carry those concepts to every team that you're on in the future. And so I think it's an opportunity for us to leverage the incredible team that we're on in the military, and talk about that in an exciting way with whatever team that we participate on down the road. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 45:50 Thank you for sharing that. And if I could just pull on that thread a little bit more in that just in that transition, and taking those to those teams, I want to just jump to your very first transition from military to Afterburner? How did that come about for you? And I think that just our folks will be curious on that. Joel Neeb 46:10 Yeah, so Afterburner is a company that's been around since 1996 and they basically took some of those things from the military that I just spoke to, brought it into a corporate setting and helped them to adopt the same levels of positive outcomes. And when I saw this company, I said, “Wow, they really tapped into something that I that I knew as well intuitively, that if we apply some of these same themes, we could really take over anything in the business world. And so I reached out to the CEO and kept bugging him and continue to stay on his radar until he agreed to bring me into the office in Atlanta. I was living in San Antonio, and I went out there on my own dime and did an interview with them, and it went well. And of course, the rest is history after that point. But I found the thing I wanted to do and pursue, and then a very aggressively got in front of the people that could make it happen and definitely was part of the journey for me that I needed in order to be successful. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 47:04 Yes, I definitely wanted you to share that, because I knew, obviously, you had that experience. You took those things that you learned, and you wanted to hone in as you led other teams. But I think the critical piece was you pursued it, and you continue to pursue it, and you continue to pursue it until you got there, right? And so I think that's a critical part of moving forward and getting what we want. So I really am glad that you shared that, because it may seem that it's really easy just to make the transition, right? You can check all these boxes and so you're the shoe in, but it sounds like that wasn't the case, and you had to make a case for yourself. Joel Neeb 47:39 One-hundred percent. I had to be my own biggest advocate, and not in an arrogant way, in a way that I could show I could add value for that team. And that was, that was a lesson that I've taken and tried to apply since then. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 47:51 Well, I'll tell you what, it's been, gosh, 1999. How many years is that? 25 years for us? I mean, I feel like, you know, this has been a true honor to be able to sit with you. I mean, I've always watched your journey and just really been cheering you on, but I think what's incredible is how you're able to now really give back to our Long Blue Line. So Joel, thank you so much for this time today. It's been really wonderful having on Long Blue Leadership. Joel Neeb 48:14 What a privilege, Naviere. And I would say, you know, you had just asked me back in 1999 if there's a dozen people from the Academy that I thought would be very successful, your name would have been one of them. I don't think there's another person at the Academy who would have said my name. So we came from very different starting points, but I'm super excited to see the success you created, and, more importantly, the impact that you have on our graduate community, because it is noticed by everyone that I talked to. So thank you for how you lean into that our community as well. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 48:43 Thank you for saying that. And as we come to a close, I'd love to offer a few thoughts before we go. What stands out to me today from our conversation is how leadership is both timeless and adaptive. Joel's journey from commanding F-15 missions to leading global organizations and navigating AI reminds us that leadership fundamentals remain steadfast, just like you said, yet in the context in which we lead, it's always evolving, and the ability to adapt is what sets exceptional leaders apart. His story of personal resilience, overcoming stage four cancer diagnosis underscores that leadership is defined by how we respond to challenges and how we make lasting impact. From lessons in the cockpit to corporate transformation and personal discipline. Joel offers a blueprint for leading with confidence in uncertain times. Thank you for investing your time and listening in Long Blue Leadership. I encourage you to share this episode with others who are also in their personal journeys, especially because it's my classmate and he's phenomenal. Thank you for listening to Long Blue Leadership. I'm Naviere Walkewicz; until next time. KEYWORDS Leadership, leadership development, modern leadership, leadership mindset, growth mindset, resilient leadership, adaptive leadership, transformational leadership, leadership under pressure, leading through adversity, leadership lessons, executive leadership, high performance teams, elite teams, leadership philosophy, leadership strategy, personal growth, professional development, continuous improvement, reinvention, career transition, imposter syndrome, mental toughness, discipline, time management, prioritization, decision making, strategic thinking, innovation leadership, change leadership, leading through change, disruption, self leadership, accountability, peak performance, overcoming fear, stepping outside comfort zone, leadership habits, future of leadership, AI leadership, leadership in the age of AI, digital transformation, organizational culture, team culture, mission driven leadership, purpose driven leadership, high impact leadership. The Long Blue Line Podcast Network is presented by the U.S. Air Force Academy Association & Foundation
Part two of Amy Morin and Amy Wirtz's podcast is now out: 'Addressing Family Dynamics in Business Succession - Part Two (#276).' Hear the end of their discussion on the importance of addressing family dynamics during business succession planning. Tune in weekly to hear more from Mastery Partners and to receive relevant key content on your journey to maximizing your business value! #maximizebusinessvalue #masterypartners #AmyWirtz #TheFamilyBusinessConsultingGroup GET THE BOOKS: Start with Maximizing Business Value by Tom BronsonLearn More about Amy MorinAmy Morin is an accomplished entrepreneur and Business Growth Coach who brings exceptional value to your network. She has an impressive background as a Certified EOS Implementer®, Outgrow Sales Advisor, and Certified Exit Planning Advisor®. What makes Amy truly remarkable is her real-world success. She co-founded and scaled a company from zero to $40 million in revenue across multiple states before executing a successful exit. Later, she purchased a struggling Montana fly-fishing resort, implemented effective systems and accountability measures, and transformed it into a profitable enterprise that she also successfully exited. Learn More about Amy WirtzAmy Wirtz is a senior consultant with The Family Business Consulting Group passionate about helping families develop and define their purpose. She works closely with families to identify their goals around values, ownership, and financial wealth. To support these goals, Amy helps families establish family offices, family councils, and enterprise governance systems. Amy's multidisciplinary background supports the unique challenges family businesses face. She holds a bachelor's degree in secondary education and a law degree, and she practiced law for 27 years, ten of which were focused on collaborative law. She is also a trained mediator and skilled facilitator with deep expertise in conflict resolution, communication, and listening.In 2024, the Exit Planning Institute named her Exit Planner of the Year in recognition of her outstanding work guiding family firms through successful transitions. Amy also serves on multiple family business advisory boards in Ohio. She is a sought-after speaker for organizations such as YPO, YPO Family Office, the Private Company Governance Conference, and The Exit Planning Institute.Mastery PartnersElevating Businesses to Achieve The Business Owner's Dream Exit The unfortunate reality is that for every business that comes on the market (for whatever reason), only 17% of them achieve a successful exit. You read that right. 83% of attempted business transitions never reach the closing table. Mastery Partners is on a mission to change that. We ELEVATE businesses to achieve maximum value and reach that dream exit.Our objectives are simple - understand where the business is today, identify opportunities for dramatic improvement, and offer solutions to enhance the business, making it more marketable and valuable. And that all starts with understanding the business owner's definition of his or her dream exit. Mastery has developed a 4-Step Process to help business owners achieve their dreams.STEP 1: Transition Readiness Assessment STEP 2: Roadmap for Value Acceleration STEP 3: Relentless Execution STEP 4: Decision: Now that desired results are achieved, the business is ready for the next step in the journey!CONNECT WITH MASTERY PARTNERS TO LEARN MORELinkedInWebsite© 2025 Mastery Partners, LLC.
Host Steve Legler speaks with Executive Coach Jill Nykoliation ahead of her Keynote set for Family Enterprise Canada's upcoming Symposium in Vancouver, taking place May 25-27, 2026. The discussion covers some of the limits of a stewardship mentality, and delves into helping each family member discover their own innate drivers and talents to use in service of the family enterprise All views, information, and opinions expressed during this podcast are solely those of the individuals involved and do not necessarily represent those of Family Enterprise Canada. Guest bio Jill Nykoliation is an award-winning business leader with 30 years of experience shaping global brands, from Fortune 100 to entrepreneurial companies. For over three decades, she has dedicated herself to understanding why we do what we do. Her fascination with human insight was the driving force behind her co-founding a creative agency eighteen years ago — and now drives her work as a Personal Coach. Jill now applies her deep expertise to help people unlock their true potential and navigate pivotal moments in their lives and careers. Jill coaches executives one-on-one across the globe and facilitates workshops for corporations, YPO, and MEA Wisdom School, guiding leaders toward greater clarity, confidence, and impact. You can learn more about Jill Nykoliation on LinkedIn. Key Takeaways [:23] Steve Legler welcomes Jill Nykoliation and launches the episode by asking her to share her thoughts on the notion of stewardship and how it holds importance for enterprising families. [3:21] Jill speaks on the rigidity of stewardship in a world of increasingly fast-paced change. [4:45] Is stewardship an ingredient of great leadership or vice versa? Jill shares her perspective. [7:00] Leadership is an individual recipe, Jill explains how evolving styles and hierarchies can better serve upcoming generations and enterprises. [8:05] Who is Carl Jung, and what are the 12 archetypes? Jill explains how each of them can impact leadership styles. [11:04] Jill shares the exercise she will be walking the audience through at the Symposium in Vancouver and how it often leads to marvel and a new understanding of the people we have been living with our whole lives. [15:24] The bicep and tricep as analogies for the part of ourselves we think we need to be versus our true selves. [20:43] Jill touches on how a family enterprise needs to go beyond the needs of the business and always remember its family members, and how to empower each individual. [22:36] It is OK for family members to go out and find their way outside of the family enterprise. [23:32] Some archetypes do better in certain cycles: Who doesn't want an explorer in this fast-paced time? [26:02] Are we "just like dad" or "just like mom"? Jill answers the heredity question and how it might be a trap. [27:34] When it comes to family enterprise, can you make the role fit the person, or is it really just the other way around? [32:00] Jill's promise to the audience! [32:20] Jill shares her book recommendation and a piece of advice for advisors. [36:13] Steve Legler thanks Jill Nykoliation for sharing so much of her expertise and invites listeners to sign up for Symposium, which will be held May 25‒27 in Vancouver, BC. If you enjoyed today's episode, you can subscribe to Let's Talk Family Enterprise on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and other podcast apps. Please remember to share this episode with family, friends, and colleagues. Share your thoughts with us at fea@familyenterprise.ca. Mentioned in this episode From Strength to Strength: Finding Success, Happiness, and Deep Purpose in the Second Half of Life, by Arthur C. Brooks Working Identity, Updated Edition, With a New Preface: Unconventional Strategies for Reinventing Your Career, by Herminia Ibarra Symposium 2026 More about Family Enterprise Canada Family Enterprise Canada FEC on Facebook FEC on Twitter FEC on LinkedIn
Send us Fan MailIn this episode, I sit down with Amy Hinton, North American Scrap Editor at Fastmarkets. We break down one of the most misunderstood parts of our industry. How prices actually work.If you've ever questioned where scrap prices come from, how they're formed, or whether the market is being “played”… this is the episode for you.Amy pulls back the curtain on how price reporting agencies operate. From sourcing real transaction data to filtering out noise, bias, and market positioning. We dig into the mechanics behind pricing, but more importantly, what you as a scrappy should actually be paying attention to.We also get into what really moves the market. From geopolitics and currency to supply and demand fundamentals and the often-overlooked role of psychology and sentiment.In this episode, we talk about:
On this episode of the "Maximize Business Value Podcast," our Certified Mastery Partner host, Amy Morrin, and guest, Amy Wirtz from the Family Business Consulting Group, discuss the importance of addressing family dynamics during business succession planning. Tune in weekly to hear more from Mastery Partners and to receive relevant key content on your journey to maximizing your business value! #maximizebusinessvalue #masterypartners #AmyWirtz #TheFamilyBusinessConsultingGroup GET THE BOOKS: Start with Maximizing Business Value by Tom BronsonLearn More about Amy MorinAmy Morin is an accomplished entrepreneur and Business Growth Coach who brings exceptional value to your network. She has an impressive background as a Certified EOS Implementer®, Outgrow Sales Advisor, and Certified Exit Planning Advisor®. What makes Amy truly remarkable is her real-world success. She co-founded and scaled a company from zero to $40 million in revenue across multiple states before executing a successful exit. Later, she purchased a struggling Montana fly-fishing resort, implemented effective systems and accountability measures, and transformed it into a profitable enterprise that she also successfully exited. Learn More about Amy WirtzAmy Wirtz is a senior consultant with The Family Business Consulting Group passionate about helping families develop and define their purpose. She works closely with families to identify their goals around values, ownership, and financial wealth. To support these goals, Amy helps families establish family offices, family councils, and enterprise governance systems. Amy's multidisciplinary background supports the unique challenges family businesses face. She holds a bachelor's degree in secondary education and a law degree, and she practiced law for 27 years, ten of which were focused on collaborative law. She is also a trained mediator and skilled facilitator with deep expertise in conflict resolution, communication, and listening.In 2024, the Exit Planning Institute named her Exit Planner of the Year in recognition of her outstanding work guiding family firms through successful transitions. Amy also serves on multiple family business advisory boards in Ohio. She is a sought-after speaker for organizations such as YPO, YPO Family Office, the Private Company Governance Conference, and The Exit Planning Institute.Mastery PartnersElevating Businesses to Achieve The Business Owner's Dream Exit The unfortunate reality is that for every business that comes on the market (for whatever reason), only 17% of them achieve a successful exit. You read that right. 83% of attempted business transitions never reach the closing table. Mastery Partners is on a mission to change that. We ELEVATE businesses to achieve maximum value and reach that dream exit.Our objectives are simple - understand where the business is today, identify opportunities for dramatic improvement, and offer solutions to enhance the business, making it more marketable and valuable. And that all starts with understanding the business owner's definition of his or her dream exit. Mastery has developed a 4-Step Process to help business owners achieve their dreams.STEP 1: Transition Readiness Assessment STEP 2: Roadmap for Value Acceleration STEP 3: Relentless Execution STEP 4: Decision: Now that desired results are achieved, the business is ready for the next step in the journey!CONNECT WITH MASTERY PARTNERS TO LEARN MORELinkedInWebsite© 2025 Mastery Partners, LLC.
Send us Fan MailIn this week's episode I chat to Ryan Fogelman, Fire Protection Consultant at Fire Rover, about one of the biggest risks facing scrap yards today. Fires.Ryan has spent the last decade helping recyclers protect their facilities from devastating fires caused by lithium-ion batteries and other hidden hazards in the recycling stream. What was once an occasional problem has rapidly become a global issue affecting yards of every size.We break down why fires are becoming more common, what operators can realistically do to reduce the risk, and how early detection and preparedness can make the difference between a small incident and a catastrophic loss.In this episode, we talk about:
Send us Fan MailIn this week's episode I chat with John Sacco, former President of Sierra International and former Chairman of ReMA. John has been one of the most influential voices in the recycling industry for decades, helping shape both the culture of Sierra and the broader narrative of our industry.After recently transitioning out of the business he helped build, John reflects on what comes next and why he's still deeply committed to pushing the recycling industry forward. From brand building to industry storytelling, this conversation is a masterclass on how recyclers can reshape the way the world sees what we do.John shares the story behind building one of the most recognizable brands in the industry and explains why changing the narrative around recycling is more important than ever.In this episode, we talk about:
Marko i Miroslav Tanazević gosti su Vladimira Stankovića u 204. epizodi podkasta Biznis priče.
Sloan Dean, host of the Not Done podcast and former CEO of Remington Hospitality, returns to share a leadership lesson he gained from an unlikely source: an orchestral conductor. After attending a YPO session led by a professional conductor, Sloan began rethinking the role of a leader as less of a performer and more of a conductor, someone who makes no sound yet drives performance through clarity, intention, and trust. In this conversation, he unpacks why command kills and connection creates, why leaders must face their teams instead of the crowd, and how ego becomes the biggest obstacle at the top. If you're leading in hospitality and want to elevate team performance without micromanaging, this episode will challenge how you see your role.Also see:Our full conversation on YouTubeIf you want to change the world, change yourself - Sloan Dean, Remington HotelsDirect Access Leadership: The Key To Building A Winning Culture - Sloan Dean, Remington HospitalityNot Done: Sloan Dean After Remington - How He's Betting on Himself and What's Next A few more resources: If you're new to Hospitality Daily, start here. You can send me a message here with questions, comments, or guest suggestions If you want to get my summary and actionable insights from each episode delivered to your inbox each day, subscribe here for free. Follow Hospitality Daily and join the conversation on YouTube, LinkedIn, and Instagram. If you want to advertise on Hospitality Daily, here are the ways we can work together. If you found this episode interesting or helpful, send it to someone on your team so you can turn the ideas into action and benefit your business and the people you serve! Music for this show is produced by Clay Bassford of Bespoke Sound: Music Identity Design for Hospitality Brands
In this episode, Rory speaks with Nick Pasquarosa, Founder and CEO of Bookkeeper360, about building a modern accounting firm from the ground up and why innovation starts with listening to small business owners. Nick shares how a door-to-door side hustle in high school evolved into a nationwide cloud accounting firm serving nearly 1,000 clients with a fully remote team across 26 states. He explains how his role shifted from boots-on-the-ground bookkeeper to strategic CEO, and why leadership communities like EO, YPO, and Hampton helped accelerate that growth. The conversation dives into the firm's technology roadmap, including the development of its proprietary AI tool BOLT, designed to deliver CFO-level insights at scale while preserving the human relationship. Nick also unpacks how AI is being used internally to surface advisory insights, streamline month-end analysis, and reduce burnout without sacrificing value. Want to know how firms can leverage technology without losing their human edge? Curious how AI can enhance advisory conversations rather than replace them? Find out the answers to these questions and more in this forward-looking conversation with Bookkeeper360's CEO Nick Pasquarosa.
FREE COPY OF JEFF'S BOOK DISCERNMENT HERE What happens when you get FIRED… and it becomes the best thing that ever happened to you? In this episode of The Unemployable Podcast, Jeff Dudan sits down with serial entrepreneur, investor, and former Global President of EO, Troy Hazard. From Australian radio announcer… to building and selling 12+ companies… to turning around distressed businesses and exiting to private equity — Troy shares the exact mindset, leadership philosophy, and exit strategy that changed his life.
FREE COPY OF JEFF'S BOOK DISCERNMENT HERE What happens when you get FIRED… and it becomes the best thing that ever happened to you? In this episode of The Unemployable Podcast, Jeff Dudan sits down with serial entrepreneur, investor, and former Global President of EO, Troy Hazard. From Australian radio announcer… to building and selling 12+ companies… to turning around distressed businesses and exiting to private equity — Troy shares the exact mindset, leadership philosophy, and exit strategy that changed his life.
What if success isn't about pushing harder but allowing yourself to be pulled toward your purpose? In this episode, Seth Streeter shares how he helps people navigate major life transitions and discover their inspired life purpose as co-founder of Mission Wealth, a wealth management firm he started 25 years ago that now manages $14 billion in assets for 4,600 families across 34 US locations. Seth has been a financial advisor for 34 years, specializing in guiding clients through major life events while helping them live more fulfilling lives through assessments across 12 dimensions of wealth. After going through divorce and the financial crisis, Seth realized he was achieving traditional success but wasn't fulfilled, leading him to spend an introspective year attending retreats, meditating, and traveling to India. In the last eight years, Seth has led purpose-driven retreats for over 2,000 people, including nine-day retreats in Bhutan where leaders trek in the Himalayas and stay with monks. Seth spoke at Davos with Deepak Chopra on conscious leadership and leads the purpose community for YPO. Seth reveals the relationship that transformed his life: Joe Bosco, owner of an Italian restaurant in Fort Collins, Colorado where Seth worked as a dishwasher through high school. When Seth was looking at colleges and his parents wanted him to attend Colorado State, Joe Bosco said "you should check out Santa Barbara, California" because he went there for horse shows. Seth had never heard of Santa Barbara but applied to UCSB because of Joe Bosco and spent 27 years there, founding Mission Wealth, having his children, serving on 10 nonprofit boards, starting sustainable future.org, and doing a TED Talk, all because Joe Bosco suggested he check out UC Santa Barbara. Seth also credits Chip Conley, founder of MEA, as a mentor who showed him how to move from his head to his heart. [00:03:40] Led Two Nine-Day Purpose Retreats in Bhutan In Asia for most of the trip Had 25 leaders in each group trekking in Himalayas Stayed overnight at monasteries, lived with monks Contemplated purpose individually, within companies, within world at large [00:04:40] Mission Wealth: 25 Years and $14 Billion Co-founded Mission Wealth 25 years ago Independent registered investment advisory firm 34 locations across US, manages just under $14 billion in assets About 4,600 families, team of 200 advisors and professionals [00:05:20] Started Leading Retreats Eight Years Ago In last eight years started leading retreats and coaching For different companies, leaders, different groups of people Takes paid time off to do it, spends vacations leading retreats About 2,000 people have gone through in-person programs [00:06:00] The 13 Inches From Head to Heart Great quote: "furthest distance many travel in lifetime are 13 inches from head to heart" As financial guy, had heart in what he did, loved helping people solve problems This work feels more intimate, more meaningful Really helping people give themselves permission to be best version of who they want to be [00:08:00] Started in Financial Services Right Out of College Right out of college, needed a job Was in student government at UC Santa Barbara, thought he'd be entrepreneur Dad was in government, mom was teacher, brother was police officer Family said "you need a job with benefits, security, and paycheck" [00:09:00] Went Through His Own Tough Journey Went through divorce, financial crisis, bumps in life Realized success script needed to be rewritten Was working hard but wasn't fulfilled, wasn't content Achieving success in traditional way materially but didn't feel fulfilled [00:09:20] The Introspective Year That Changed Everything Decided to do whole introspective year Went to retreats, read self-help books, listened to podcasts Got into meditation, went to India, did all these "woo" things That year opened up whole new framework for living [00:10:20] Push Energy vs Pull Energy As entrepreneur, had lot of push energy: building vision, growing team, charging hill Used that in Ironman, marathons, running nonprofits After personal reflection, started to adopt pull energy approach More of allowance, trusting doors close and open for reason [00:11:20] Speaking at Davos With Deepak Chopra Was asked to speak at panel in Malibu with five people Woman from Finland asked if he'd been to Davos, offered to get him in Three months before event, confirmed: Thursday with Deepak Chopra on Conscious Leadership in Era of AI Couldn't have pushed way into that opportunity, was being open and available [00:14:40] 12 Dimensions of Wealth Talk about wealth not just in financial sense but across 12 dimensions Impact families are having, quality of relationships, physical health, intellectual growth Seeing families grow true wealth feels very rewarding Lead purpose community for all of YPO [00:15:00] The Success Script and Grind Mentality Lot of people followed success script, did what they were taught Worked hard in school, career, moved through ranks or started company Rinsed and repeated grind mentality to get ahead Now 40, 50, or 60 saying "is this all there is?" [00:17:00] Woman Going Through Divorce Woman in mid-50s going through divorce Two daughters just graduated high school, going to East Coast for college Husband ended 30-year marriage right at same time From financial standpoint she was fine, but really struggling with identity [00:18:00] Converting Husband's Office Into Studio She loved working with single women's nonprofits, domestic shelters Also loved skincare, always did facials for daughters Helped her convert former husband's office into studio Became licensed aesthetician, did facials for women in community including free ones for women through tough times [00:19:20] The Inspired Life Purpose Exercise Had someone at retreat who was CEO, just exited food tech company in New York Did exercise called Your Inspired Life Purpose Four circles: innate gifts, skills, passion, what world needs most Look at how those four circles intersect [00:20:00] Paul's Life Manifesto CEO named Paul came up with amazing idea during exercise Went to room that night, wrote his life manifesto Next morning: "I was up most of the night, I now have life manifesto" Wanted to change food systems of North America leveraging technology [00:20:40] Started a Blog, Got Recruited by Patagonia Paul decided to start blog writing about his vision Just couple months later, recruiter read one of his blog posts Interviewed for new position Became head of Patagonia's Food Provision Company [00:24:00] Invested Heavily in Relationships Since High School Always had lunch meetings 12 to 1, five days a week at same restaurant Would book with clients, teammates, or people in community City council members, students, nonprofit leaders, business leaders Every single day asking: who is this person, what makes them tick, how can I support them? [00:25:00] Working at Italian Restaurant in Fort Collins Worked at Italian restaurant through high school to pay bills Was bus boy, dishwasher, had all the jobs Owner was Joe Bosco, owned restaurant in Fort Collins and one in Casper, Wyoming Was thinking about colleges, parents would pay for Colorado State [00:25:40] "You Should Check Out Santa Barbara" Wanted to do something different, applied to UCLA and Berkeley Joe Bosco said "you should check out Santa Barbara, California, they have university there" Used to go there for horse shows Had never even heard of Santa Barbara at the time [00:26:00] Chose UCSB Because of Joe Bosco Applied to UCSB, packet looked amazing, university on coast Ended up choosing UCSB as his university because of Joe Bosco Spent 27 years in Santa Barbara, half of his adult life Founded company there, had children there, on 10 nonprofit boards [00:31:00] Meeting Ashley Brilliant Mom was sixth grade teacher, had cartoons called Pot Shots by Ashley Brilliant in classroom Going through tough time in Santa Barbara, Ashley's cartoons spoke to him three days in row Wrote thank you note to Mr. Brilliant He replied, met for lunch at Chinese restaurant [00:32:00] The Fortune Cookie Message After meal, got fortune cookies Ashley's note said: "Finally, the answer you've been looking for is sitting across from you" Seth's said: "If at first it's a no, it may become a maybe" Decided to help Ashley start building business around his cartoons [00:34:40] Service Trip to Honduras Took son on service trip to Honduras, worked at orphanage Security guard had wooden leg, very archaic piece of wood with hinge 34 years old, probably made $2 a day, couldn't get new leg Decided to get him a leg [00:35:40] Getting Him a $10,000 Leg Took almost a year but got friend who was Paralympic athlete involved Got him fancy $10,000 leg that was molded and fit for him Had to get it down there strategically because shipping would mean it gets stolen He sent FaceTime video: first time he'd been able to slow dance with wife since car accident 10 years prior KEY QUOTES "A lot of people followed the success script, worked hard in school and career, rinsed and repeated this grind mentality. Now they're 40, 50, or 60 saying 'is this all there is? I now have success, but there's a creative in me that hasn't been out to play.'" - Seth Streeter "The furthest distance many of us travel in our lifetimes are the 13 inches from our head to our heart. This work feels more intimate and meaningful because it's really helping people give themselves permission to be the best version of who they want to be." - Seth Streeter "I had a lot of push energy as an entrepreneur. But I started to adopt a pull energy approach, more of an allowance, trusting that when a door closes it closes for a reason, when it opens for a reason. I was being pulled to where I was supposed to be." - Seth Streeter CONNECT WITH SETH STREETER
In this episode, we sit down with Aaron Moore, President of PPD Painting and Co-Founder of the Commercial Painting Industry Association, to explore how industry-specific peer forums transform insight into action—and relationships into a powerful retention engine.Aaron shares his journey from Chicago startup to buying out a partner, scaling a commercial painting company, and building CPIA around a forum model inspired by EO and YPO. We unpack the structure behind high-performing groups: non-competing peers across geographies, monthly virtual meetings, in-person sessions, and a deceptively simple update framework that surfaces what's working, what's draining energy, the best idea, the most important action—and the one thing you don't want to talk about.The game-changer? Experience-sharing over advice. Speaking from lived wins and losses lowers defenses, accelerates learning, and drives clearer action.We also explore how forum habits migrate inside companies—leaders replacing certainty with curiosity, teams balancing KPIs with the human layer that drives execution, and members navigating ownership transitions, succession planning, and tough decisions with greater clarity and confidence.If you lead a trade, run a chapter, or want a serious leadership edge, this episode is a practical playbook for building high-trust peer groups that actually move the needle.Please visit www.internationalfacilitatorsorganization.com to learn more about Mo Fathelbab and International Facilitators Organization (IFO), a leading provider of facilitators and related group facilitation services, providing training, certification, marketing services, education, and community for peer group facilitators at all stages of their career.
Outgrowing Your Team: The Loyal "Mike" Problem Every Business Owner Faces with Kurt Wilkin Find Rocky Lalvani @ www.ProfitComesFirst.com or email him at rocky@profitcomesfirst.com "Every growing business has a 'Mike'—the loyal early employee who quietly becomes your biggest bottleneck." Most entrepreneurs don't fail because they lack hustle. They get stuck because the team that got them here… can't get them there. In this episode of Profit Answer Man, Rocky Lalvani talks with Kurt Wilkin—entrepreneur, former founder of HireBetter (a recruiting firm that partnered heavily with EOS companies), and author of Who's Your Mic?—about the moment every growing business eventually faces: you outgrow a "key person," and your loyalty delays the decision that growth requires. Kurt breaks down the "Mike" problem (the early employee who handled the finance/ops/integrator work), why founders wait too long, and what to do before the bottleneck starts costing you profit, time, and momentum. In This Episode, You'll Learn: What "Who's Your Mike?" really means—and why every entrepreneur either has, had, or will have a "Mike" if they keep growing. The classic growth pattern: how "Mike" goes from bookkeeper → accountant → controller → "CFO"… until the business hits a level where he's in over his head (banks, credit lines, bigger deals). Why business owners delay the hard conversation—and why it feels like firing a lifelong friend. Why you don't always have to fire Mike (reassignment can work)—but keeping a struggling leader creates a ceiling on the whole team. A key hiring truth: you can't attract A-players to join a team when a C-player is running the department. The "Pipeline Paul" warning for sales hiring—and the red flag Kurt calls out (repeated ~18-month stints). Why founders struggle to hire salespeople: the owner can sell because they are the business, but a salesperson can't replicate that without a real sales system. The difference between traditional sales and business development (solving the customer's problem vs. forcing a fit). The integrator affordability question ("Next Level Natalie")—and Kurt's view that many businesses have "money in the couch cushions" through waste and inefficiency. Rocky's take on the "everyone is busy" trap—and how sometimes one person is effectively creating fires the team constantly fights. Why peer communities matter: Kurt's perspective on EOS as a business operating system, and YPO as a broader peer group that includes family and personal balance. The Big Takeaway: Growth doesn't just demand better strategy—it demands better people alignment. If you're scaling and your leadership team hasn't scaled with you, you may be running a "lifestyle business" for everyone except the owner: the team hits goals, stays busy, and the founder is left holding the stress (and sometimes the lack of profit/cash flow). The question isn't whether you'll face a "Mike." The question is whether you'll address it early—before it becomes the reason growth stalls. Bio: Kurt Wilkin is an entrepreneur and former founder of HireBetter, a recruiting firm that helped entrepreneurs build next-level teams and partnered with EOS companies. He previously built and sold a finance and accounting consulting firm (growing to ~120 employees), and he hosts the podcast Unlocking Moves. Kurt's work focuses on helping entrepreneurs build strong teams and healthy businesses—what he calls "capitalism for good." Links: Instagram: @Kurt.Wilkin and @UnlockingMoves Facebook: @KurtWilkin Twitter: @KurtWilkin LinkedIn: Kurt-Wilkin Conclusion: If you want to grow, you can't avoid hard people decisions forever. Start by identifying your "Mike," getting clear on where the business is going next, and mapping the real gaps on your leadership team. Then have the honest conversations early—because once you see misalignment clearly, waiting only makes it more expensive (in profit, time, and momentum). Listen to the full episode to learn how to spot your "Mike," make the hard people decisions sooner, and build a team that scales profitably. #ProfitAnswerMan #ProfitFirst #ProfitComesFirst #CashFlow #BusinessOwners #Leadership #TeamBuilding #Hiring #Recruiting #PeopleOps #CompanyCulture #LegacyEmployees #EOS #Traction #Integrator #Operations #ScaleUp #Entrepreneurship #SalesHiring #BusinessDevelopment #SalesProcess #SmallBusinessGrowth Watch the full episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@profitanswerman Sign up to be notified when the next cohort of the Profit First Experience Course is available! Free Copy of the Profit Blueprint Book: : https://lp.profitcomesfirst.com/landing-page-page Monthly Newsletter signup: https://lp.profitcomesfirst.com/newsletter-signup Relay Bank (affiliate link): https://relayfi.com/?referralcode=profitcomesfirst Profit Answer Man Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/profitanswerman/ My podcast about living a richer more meaningful life: http://richersoul.com/ Music provided by Junan from Junan Podcast Any financial advice is for educational purposes only and you should consult with an expert for your specific needs.
In this episode, I speak with Kirsten Baker, CEO of Jeenie, Inc. (ranked No. 271 in 2025), a platform dedicated to breaking down language barriers through live interpretation. We explore the powerful intersection of AI innovation and the irreplaceable human element required for meaningful communication. Kirsten shares her perspective on building a culture of innovation, highlighting collaboration, embracing failure as a learning tool, and leading with purpose. We also discuss Jeenie's mission-driven approach to leadership, the importance of hiring for values alignment, and the successes of managing a diverse, fully remote team. Our conversation offers a compelling look at the future of Jeenie and underscores how effective leadership empowers people, nurtures creativity, and drives collective innovation. Episode Highlights & Time Stamps 2:08 Leading Innovation 10:23 Core Leadership Principles 16:35 Embracing AI in Business 17:35 Creating a Culture of Innovation 23:20 Wrapping Up Insights Follow me on Twitter @genehammett Website: www.genehammett.com About Kirsten Baker Kirsten Brecht Baker is CEO & Co-Founder of Jeenie, an AI+Human multilingual and multicultural platform powering the next generation of smart-tech and AI for more inclusive communication. A Wharton MBA and serial entrepreneur, she has built and scaled ventures across SaaS, tech, and global market development. She is an Ernst & Young 2025 Entrepreneur of the Year, and made the top lists of Forbes, Inc., and Fast Company for leading in equity, innovation, and human connection. She is also a member of YPO, the SAFE-AI Task Force, INC. Leadership Forum, and Fast Company's Impact Council. How to Connect with Kirsten Baker: LinkedIn: Kirsten Baker https://www.linkedin.com/in/kirsten-brecht-baker/ Company Website: Jeenie, Inc. https://jeenie.com/ Resources & Next Steps Ready to take your leadership energy to the next level? Explore free training and resources at training.coreelevation.com to help you identify energy leaks, strengthen your leadership presence, and elevate your team's performance.
GuestEric Metz, Chief Investment Officer & Head of SpiderRock Advisors Fully Owned Subsidiary of BlackRock's approximately $250B SMA platformBioEric Metz, CFA, Managing Director, is the Chief Investment Officer and Head of SpiderRock Advisors. SRA, acquired by BlackRock in May 2024, delivers customized derivatives strategies and solutions, via SMAs, to nearly all client segments of BlackRock. He oversees all SRA's investment strategies and is responsible for the commercialization of the vertically integrated business unit within US Wealth Advisory. Mr. Metz is a memberof BlackRock's USWA Executive Committee.Prior to the BlackRock acquisition, Mr. Metz was a Co-Founder of SpiderRock Advisors, and led both the business and investment team, as President & CIO, since its inception in 2015, and throughout the BlackRock strategic partnership in 2021.Preceding SRA, Mr. Metz was the Derivatives Strategist and Portfolio Manager at RiverNorth Capital Management, managing both mutual fund and hedge fund assets. He began his career with the Chicago Trading Company on the floors of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) and the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE). After the trading floors, he was a senior trader and partner at both Ronin Capital and Bengal Capital, proprietary trading firms specializing in volatility arbitrage. Mr. Metz graduated, Magna Cum Laude, from the University of Michigan with a B.S.E. in Industrial and Operations Engineering. He earned his M.S.E., with honors, in Industrial and Operational Engineering, and was enrolled in the program's PhD program. Mr. Metz is a CFA Charterholder, a member of the CFA Institute, the CFA Society of Chicago and a member of YPO's Chicago based Windy City Chapter.
How can you start your generosity journey now with the budget you currently have?In this episode, Jeff, Jeff, and Ivan discuss: Learning from all work experiences.Lessons from living upside down.Navigating partnerships.Starting your generosity path early - and bringing your family into your giving at all levels. Key Takeaways: There is no need to go into debt to fund your lifestyle.When working with others, the sum of the whole is greater than the individual parts. But recognize there will be challenges and debates, and see the blessings in each other's strengths.Give before you're ready. Start small and increase incrementally, even if only 1% annually.Sharpen your iron around those who are also doing great things around you. Build a community of strong individuals around you to raise and strengthen one another. "I would be an evangelist for peer groups, whether they are faith-based or not. Of course, faith-based is a plus, but getting around some like-minded individuals that are going through the same thing I am, and having a group that I can talk to and be vulnerable with, and then mirroring that with some sort of coaching or mentorship or advising. Those two aspects have been rocket fuel for my trajectory." — Ivan Barratt Episode References: Firefly IN: https://fireflyin.org/ About Ivan Barratt: Ivan Barratt is a 25-year real estate veteran and the founder and CEO of The BAM Companies. An expert in multifamily operations and investment fund management, Ivan has raised over $585MM in equity across 6 funds, acquired 10,000+ units, and surpassed $1.85B in transaction volume since 2015. Under his leadership, The BAM Companies has become an eight-time Inc. 5000 winner with numerous cultural accolades. Ivan currently focuses his time on equity finance, investment opportunities, and corporate strategy. He is an active member of Tiger21, YPO, and NMHC. Outside of work, Ivan enjoys philanthropy and spending time traveling with his wife and three children. Connect with Ivan Barratt:Website: https://thebamcompanies.com/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/BAMCapitalLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/thebamcompanies/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BAMCapitalGroupInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/bamcapitalgroup Connect with Jeff Thomas: Website: https://www.arkosglobal.com/Podcast: https://www.generousbusinessowner.com/Book: https://www.arkosglobal.com/trading-upEmail: jeff.thomas@arkosglobal.comTwitter: https://twitter.com/ArkosGlobalAdvFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/arkosglobal/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/arkosglobaladvisorsInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/arkosglobaladvisors/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLUYpPwkHH7JrP6PrbHeBxw
Foreign Options for US Citizens Summary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-Jnr3Go2Gg In this conversation, Frazer Rice of Next Vantage and Judi Galst of Henley and Partners discuss the increasing interest among U.S. citizens in exploring global mobility options amidst geopolitical chaos. We delve into the distinctions between residency and citizenship, the implications of U.S. taxation, and the motivations driving individuals to seek alternative living arrangements. The discussion also covers the potential for citizenship through ancestry, popular destinations for relocation, and investment opportunities in countries like New Zealand and Australia. Judi emphasizes the importance of understanding the legal and practical aspects of relocating, as well as the need for personal exploration before making significant decisions. Takeaways Interest in global mobility has surged among U.S. citizens. Many seek residency as an insurance policy rather than leaving the U.S. Understanding residency vs. citizenship is crucial for potential expatriates. Residency can lead to citizenship but often requires time and investment. Tax implications are complex; relocating should not be primarily for tax benefits. Ancestry can provide a pathway to citizenship in several countries. Popular destinations for U.S. citizens include Europe, the Caribbean, and New Zealand. Investment opportunities exist in countries like New Zealand and Australia. Emerging markets in South America and Asia are gaining attention. Practical steps include consulting experts and visiting potential countries. Chapters 00:00 Navigating Geopolitical Chaos: The Rise of Global Mobility 02:55 Understanding Residency vs. Citizenship: Key Differences 06:06 Tax Implications and Motivations for Seeking Alternatives 08:48 Exploring Ancestry-Based Citizenship: Opportunities and Challenges 11:54 Popular Destinations for U.S. Citizens: Europe, Caribbean, and Beyond 15:10 Investment Opportunities: New Zealand and Australia 17:59 Emerging Trends in South America and Asia 20:50 Practical Steps for U.S. Citizens Considering Relocation Transcript I’m Frazer Rice. We’re certainly living in crazy political times right now, and a lot of US citizens are worried about what’s happening here and abroad. And they’re starting to think about other residencies and citizenship options. I talked to Judy Gost at Henley and Partners about what is and isn’t possible on that front. By the end of this, you’re going to understand the locations that are interesting, the difference between residency and citizenship, and why that may matter as you make choices for your retirement and your location long-term, both for yourself and for your kids. Frazer Rice (00:00.874)Welcome aboard, Judy. Judi Galst (00:03.022)Thanks for having me. Frazer Rice (00:04.244)Well, we’re in the midst of a lot of geopolitical chaos, and I think you have seen and I’ve seen a lot of interest in United States citizens looking abroad for either places to live or other situations to either get away from the chaos or try to address some other needs in their lives. What is the state of the union? assume interest has ticked up. Judi Galst (00:27.874)Yes, I’ve seen more business than I could have ever predicted, but it’s not necessarily people that are leaving the United States. For the most part, most of the clients that I’m working with are doing it as an insurance policy. A lot of the conversations I have with a client start out with them saying, I don’t want to leave the United States, but I’m feeling unsettled and the way to mitigate the way that I’m feeling is to have options. So they want to understand what if I did want to have a guaranteed right to go live in another part of the world? What is available to me? How do I pursue this? How long will it take? Frazer Rice (01:08.434)And we’ll get into some of the technical aspects here, but one of the concepts is understanding the difference between being able to reside somewhere else and being a citizen of another country, and then how that interacts with being a citizen of the United States. Maybe take us through the comparison of residents versus citizenship. Judi Galst (01:28.748)Yeah, that’s actually a really important distinction. And it doesn’t mean that one is better than the other, but they do have different benefits. And so it’s important to understand the difference. So let’s start with residents. Residents doesn’t mean the ability to have a house in another country. It means the ability to reside legally in another country. So the US passport is very strong. You can go into a lot of different countries even without having a visa. But we can’t stay there forever. We have limits, for example, in Europe. We can go in for 90 days, but then we have to leave for 90 days before we can go back in for another 90 days. So if you become a legal resident of another country, you have the ability to live there unlimited for a certain period of time. Residency is not permanent unless there’s a path to permanent residency. So usually you’re going to have to renew it and there may be some conditions in order to maintain it. Now, how frequently you have to renew it is going to vary by the country. For example, in Greece, you can become a Greek resident via a golden visa and that is good for five years and you’ll renew for another five years. In Italy, it’s good for two years. Then you renew for another three years. In Portugal, it’s good for two years. Then you renew for another three years. And as I said, there could be conditions. So in Greece, you qualify via purchasing real estate. If you sell the real estate, you’re going to lose your golden visa, not be able to renew it. In Italy, you qualify via purchasing stock. Frazer Rice (02:51.925)Right. Judi Galst (02:55.945)If you sell the stock, you’re not going to be able to renew it. You can get some travel rights by being a resident. Usually this benefit is not as important to a U.S. person because we already have really good travel benefits with our U.S. passport. But it can often be a strategy for someone from a country with a weaker passport, say even someone living in the United States that has only a Chinese passport. If they want to go into Europe, they have to get a Schenken visa. So a strategy for them might be let me become a resident of say Greece and then I gain Schengen access. Not unlimited, but I get that 90 days out of 180 days. Finally, I would say that residency can have a path to citizenship. Usually it’s a pretty arduous path. For example, in Italy, you can become a resident. You have to live in the country of Italy for six months a year for 10 years before you’d be eligible to apply. In Greece, six months a year for seven years. But there is ultimately a path in most residency programs. Frazer Rice (03:56.755)So let’s dive into citizenship, which my predilection on that is that it’s a much more permanent component, but it’s also a much more difficult process in general. Judi Galst (04:05.646)It doesn’t necessarily have to be difficult. It really depends on what program you’re doing. But you’re right. It’s a guaranteed right. It’s very difficult for a country to take away someone’s citizenship. The other big difference is that you get a passport. So in addition to gaining the ability to live in the country that you’re a citizen of, you also get another travel document. So depending upon what treaties have been done between your country of citizenship and other countries, it may really improve your mobility. Again, U.S. passport is pretty strong. you’re U.S. passport holder, unless there’s something unexpected like a pandemic when borders close to Americans, you already have a good travel document. But it can be another mobility option. Perhaps you’re going into a country you don’t want to identify as a U.S. passport holder, or perhaps you have a weaker passport and you want to travel on a secondary citizenship passport that might improve your mobility. Where citizenship is particularly powerful is in Europe. Because if you become a citizen of one country in the European Union, you gain the right to reside and work in any country in Europe. Frazer Rice (05:11.104)And just to distinguish, how does that impact UK people after they Brexited? Judi Galst (05:16.942)Sadly, with Brexit, the UK is no longer part of the EU. So many people in the UK are quite upset about this because no, you’re not going to gain the ability as a citizen of an EU country to live in the UK, nor are citizens of the UK now able to live anywhere in the European Union as they were previously. Frazer Rice (05:36.992)So let’s apply this directly to US citizens. So US citizen taxed on worldwide wealth. Let’s start with that. sure because I just got a Twitter fight with somebody who said, well, if you’re crypto, you can move away and you’re not out of the system. I’m like, that’s just no. We’ll start with that. But taxed on worldwide wealth, good passport can travel, but there are limitations as far as how long you can stay in various countries, probably around Judi Galst (05:52.622)Mm-hmm. Frazer Rice (06:06.578)Investment options, land ownership, things like that, depending on it. Where are the benefits of that U.S. person looking for another place to either reside or gain citizenship? Judi Galst (06:20.312)Well, it’s not a tax benefit. You started out with taxes and I know when someone, a client calls and says, you know, can you tell me what my options are? I’m really sick of paying us taxes. I’m like, well, this isn’t the right call for you. Yeah. So, but it’s important to understand. It doesn’t mean you’re going to be double taxed because that is a misconception that many people have about whether they should pursue a strategy of alternative residents or citizenship, because unlike the U S and Eritrea, Frazer Rice (06:22.079)Right. Frazer Rice (06:30.08)Puerto Rico that that’s it. That’s your best bet if you’re gonna try if you’re gonna try to play games Judi Galst (06:49.774)Every other country in the world, you don’t automatically become a tax resident by being a legal resident or even by being a citizen. Usually, you’re not going to trigger tax residency unless you reside 183 days in another country, but there are some exceptions. Switzerland is 90 days. Some, like New Zealand, will say it’s 183 days, but in a 12-month period, not necessarily in a year. I’m not licensed to give tax advice, so I’m giving high-level answer to this question. But in general, just by pursuing an alternative residence or citizenship, there’s no tax consequences. And if you were to become a tax resident, many of the countries that we support programs in have treaties. So it doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re going to pay double tax, but it does mean it has to be looked at. If I am talking to a client and they really have full intention of relocating to another country, immediately I want them to have a local tax consultation, which I set up for them to understand what, if any, consequences they have to be aware of. Frazer Rice (07:50.322)And those consequences can change. did an episode probably about six months ago on the change in law in the UK. And it’s a different environment than it was even six months ago for people either going in or coming out of that country as it relates to their US intersection. So I think that the summary on all of that is, look, if you’re going there, A, don’t do it for tax purposes, B, If you’re going to do it, make sure you get local tax counsel because those relationships can be complicated and will affect your planning. Judi Galst (08:25.198)Let’s talk about why people are doing it because taxes is not the strategy. And I would say, and my clients are almost exclusively Americans. So why are people calling me about this? There’s really four key motivators that tend to come up in the conversation. The first is because they do want another mobility option. They kind of have some PTSD still from the pandemic. They remember that feeling. Frazer Rice (08:27.935)Mm. Judi Galst (08:48.226)We could all work remotely. You had the vacation house in Italy or you had the private plane and all of a sudden you couldn’t take advantage of it because all the borders are closed to you and we could only stay in the United States. So some people are just realizing there is some risk to having one mobility option and they want to have an alternative. But I would say 90 % of the conversations I have there’s some reference to a plan B. People are feeling unsettled for so many different reasons. You know, I talked to people whose family fled the Holocaust. It is literally in their DNA where their family thought it could never happen here. And that comes up in every conversation with them. But I have same sex, you know, couples, have transgender clients, I have people whose family lived in other countries where they saw the fall of democracy. And then I just have a lot of wealthy clients, and they’re diversifying their assets right now. And they want to diversify their mobility. They pay a lot of money in insurance and they say, Judy, this is just another line item. Frazer Rice (09:45.896)You Judi Galst (09:46.703)I’d say some are thinking not just about themselves, but they’re thinking about protecting generational opportunity and legacy. Some say, you know, I’m a student of history and yeah, maybe it’s going to take 10, 15, 20 years, but I’ve seen this happen before. And I want to know that my kids and my grandkids are going to have options to either live a life in another part of the world for cultural or educational opportunities or in a worst case scenario, because the U.S. isn’t where they actually want to be. And finally, I’d say it fits nicely in a diversification of asset strategy, which many, many people are thinking about right now. Maybe they don’t want to hold all their money in the United States. Maybe they don’t want to all their real estate in the United States. And there can be strategies that are separate from what I do in terms of opening bank accounts in Switzerland or Singapore or other parts of the world. But really, all the programs that I do require you to move some assets. You’re either investing in stock or venture capital or private equity or real estate. So it does complement a diversification of asset strategy. Frazer Rice (10:42.911)Cool, so let’s think about, we sort of beat the tax horse to death a little bit here, but relocating versus renouncing. And different things, know, people probably come up to you with questions, do I have to fully leave? Do I have to renounce my US citizenship? How does all of that Judi Galst (10:51.608)Mm-hmm. Judi Galst (10:58.222)Great questions. So I’ve never had a client renounce. The US right now does not limit the number of passports one can have or citizenships one can have or how many residences they can have. Now, there is a congressperson who has just decided he wants to introduce some sort of bill that’s going to eliminate dual citizenship for Americans, although most constitutional scholars feel that’s like dead on arrival. But I have to acknowledge that. So no, you don’t need to renounce. And frankly, if you have a lot of money, renouncing is quite complicated and expensive, and you need really good counsel to make that very, very significant decision. In terms of relocation, almost all of the programs that we support require little to no physical presence. You’re always going to probably have to go for biometrics and give fingerprints. But a lot of these programs, you don’t actually have to come back to that country again, except to renew it. So for people that really want it as a Plan B and have no intention of really going to live in another part of the world at this stage in their lives, there’s not an obligation for you to spend time in order to maintain the ability to live in another country if you so choose. Frazer Rice (12:08.017)One thing that comes up that people ask me about and I only vaguely understand it is the concept of being able to get citizenship via ancestry. Comes up with a lot of people of Irish descent, Germany and Austrian especially. What’s the state of that and how realistic is it across different countries? Judi Galst (12:15.993)Mm. Mm-hmm. Judi Galst (12:26.767)It’s very realistic. And in fact, I’m doing German citizenship for myself. So for anyone whose family fled due to Nazi persecution from Germany and Austria, you and all future generations are entitled to citizenship. And my friends are like, why do you want German passport? But first of all, my kids got it. So my kids can go now live and work in Europe if they want, which is great, tremendous optionality. If you remember, I said before, it’s not just Germany. It’s any country in the European Union. Frazer Rice (12:30.473)Okay. Frazer Rice (12:47.956)Right. Judi Galst (12:56.899)And it’s very affordable if you actually are entitled to it. At Henley and Partners, we have established relationships with experts, lawyers in several countries that specialize in citizenship by ancestry. It’s very complex. And every country has different rules about like, it was passed down on the mother’s side, or if there was a break in the bloodline, or if it was passed a certain generation, or if there was a name change, there’s a lot of complexity to it. But clients who think they may be eligible can contact us and we will have an assessment done. And if there is a case, we’ll refer them to someone that can help them through the process. And, you know, it can cost around 5,000, 7,500 euros versus I have clients getting EU citizenship through, you know, Malta and they’re 1.5 million out of pocket. So if you can qualify via Ancestry, I’d say certainly it’s worth considering. Frazer Rice (13:50.879)Terrific. Judi Galst (13:51.311)But don’t call me and say, like, I did 23andMe and I’m Irish. Because you do actually have to produce documents. Not a humongous list of documents, but you’re going to need naturalization certificates for the descendant. You’re going to need marriage certificates, birth certificates, and other documents. Frazer Rice (13:55.187)Ha ha ha! Frazer Rice (14:10.844)So there’s definitely an exercise involved with it, but if you can legitimately trace lineage, you may have a shot. So let’s talk about what jurisdictions are popular with United States citizens. We talked a little bit about Europe, and I’m sure there’s some, let’s call it, some that are easier than others. But then Caribbean, South America, Australia, New Zealand, maybe even Asia, what comes across your desk as being Judi Galst (14:14.094)Mm-mm. Exactly. Frazer Rice (14:40.488)more reasonable than others maybe. Judi Galst (14:43.246)So I’d say clients that I’m talking to are basically going in one of four different directions. One is Europe. For residency, we’re looking at Portugal, Greece, Italy, and Malta. Those are all great programs because they require little to no time in the country to maintain the residency rights. So for people that really have no intention of spending significant time in another country, they’re really good solutions. And for citizenship in Europe, there very limited options. There’s ancestry, which we just talked about. But the concept of citizenship by investment in Europe essentially was killed by the European Court of Justice in the spring of 2025. To give a little bit of explanation, Malta used to have a citizenship by investment program. And it basically said, do these three things, make a large gift to the Maltese economy, rent a property for six years and spend somewhere around 21 days in the country. And you will have a path. to citizenship in Malta, which is an EU country. And the EU hated it. They felt it was transactional, that the passport was being sold, and they felt that people were being granted citizenship that didn’t show a tie to the country. And when this court ruling came out and deemed Malta’s program illegal, it essentially killed citizenship by investment programs in Europe. So I don’t think you’re going to see any European Union country have a citizenship by investment program, nor any country that wants to join the EU have one. But many countries in Europe have provisions in their constitution that say, if you are an exceptional person that make an exceptional contribution to our country or to humanity, we have discretionary ability to grant you citizenship. And so there are some paths to citizenship via merit, specifically through Malta and Austria right now, as well as some other places. So that’s Europe, snapshot of Europe. Let’s talk a little bit about Caribbean, which you specifically brought up. Frazer Rice (16:35.581)Right. Judi Galst (16:40.862)So Caribbean is a path to citizenship. If you remember, said citizenship, lifelong, right? Not many countries have a path to citizenship. It’s very fast. It’s very affordable. What does it give you? So there are five countries in the Caribbean that have programs St. Kitts, Antigua, Grenada, Dominica, St. Lucia. It gives you citizenship in one of those countries. A passport, another passport that you can travel on. Right now, it’s pretty strong. You can go into Europe with it, the UK, Ireland, not unlimited, same as the US, limited amount of time. Although I’m not sure the strength of the Caribbean passports is always going to be. as strong as it is today. Europe doesn’t love these programs. And I wouldn’t be surprised if the Caribbean passports tend to get weaker. However, for a client that says to me, this is purely an insurance policy. I want to cover my kids and my kids are in their 20s because a lot of times these program kids are going to need their own investment if they’re over the age of 18 or 21. Caribbean wouldn’t be a bad place for us if we felt we wanted to get out of town for a little while. Frazer Rice (17:23.23)Sure. Judi Galst (17:50.031)The Caribbean’s a great solution for a very affordable amount, maybe 400,000 for family. You can get and make an investment in real estate that you can sell in five or seven years and your entire family can gain citizenship. So that’s Caribbean. I can pivot to something else that you want to ask a question. OK, so I actually love the program that New Zealand has out right now, especially for a high net worth person. Frazer Rice (18:05.342)Okay, no, let’s try Australia and New Zealand. Judi Galst (18:18.414)I think every high net worth person should do New Zealand. And for a couple of reasons. First of all, it’s purely investment driven. You have to move a lot of money. So it has to be for a high net worth person because they’re going to move three million US dollars to be invested in private equity, venture capital and private credit in New Zealand for around a three year period. And children up to the age of 25, provided that they’re single and not working full time can be included in that investment. There’s very little time that the family needs to spend in New Zealand. As soon as you move the money there, you gain the right to live unlimited in New Zealand. But the main applicant only has to do 21 days, and the other family members only have to enter and exit for one day in the first year. At the end of three years, provided you didn’t invest in things that have a longer holding period, but from an immigration perspective, you can liquidate your investment. And then you can become a permanent resident. So you have a lifelong right at any time to relocate to New Zealand, or you never have to go back again. English speaking, good healthcare, good education. You could have a life there, unlike I don’t think people really want to envision spending 10 years in the Caribbean. But 10 years in New Zealand, you know, there’s many industries and many things that you could be doing. And you could have a quality of life, maybe not akin to the United States, but good. So I love the New Zealand program. Australia used to have a citizenship by investment program. They do not have one any longer. There is a route that they extend to people, which they call sort of like a talent visa. So there are certain sectors that are important to Australia and they would very much like to attract talent in those sectors. Usually it’s younger talent. So when I’m talking to a client that’s over 55, it can be difficult to get you approved for it. But I’ve had people over 55 that have gotten approved. And if you have the background that Australia deems valuable, they’ll grant you a five-year visa for you and your family at no cost. Children have to be under the age of 18 or financially dependent up to age 23 to be included. But this is a visa that’s only good for five years. And if you don’t contribute to Australian society, it’s not getting renewed. Judi Galst (20:38.082)But I’ve had people from Hollywood, I’ve had songwriters, I’ve had producers, directors, people in private equity that specialize in sectors that are important to Australia. People in finance have been approved. So it’s worth considering if the idea of being able to live in Australia means something to you. Interestingly with that visa, you can also live in New Zealand. Frazer Rice (20:58.095)Okay, it’s one of those things too. If people aren’t forcing you to say, don’t hate me because I’m beautiful, that might not be a good route, but if you are talented or bring something to bear, it may be worth taking a stab at. Is it reciprocal? If you’re in New Zealand, can you go to Australia? Got it. So let’s pivot to Asia and or South America, which you hear about Singapore, you hear about… Judi Galst (21:16.194)No. Good question. Frazer Rice (21:27.131)Other different sort of haveny types of places where people place their wealth or establish family offices and South America I think is, know, think about like Uruguay and places like that which, you know, have the reputation of being the Switzerland of South America. What’s the state of play there? Judi Galst (21:44.527)So I have actually had a few clients that have done residency in Uruguay. They don’t have a formalized program, although I think a more formalized program is going to come out of there. Henley and Partners actually has a government advisory line of business, so we design a lot of these programs and we’re very active in South America. There’s a lot of interest in South America to have citizenship and residence by investment programs, so I think you’re going to see a lot coming from that region in the near term. But Uruguay does have a path to residency. You have to spend time there. Frazer Rice (21:58.611)Mm-hmm. Frazer Rice (22:12.893)Judi Galst (22:13.251)And they don’t tell you exactly how much. Yeah. But most of my clients went with the expectation that maybe they’d have to stay for 30 days and they ended up getting the visa approved faster. You have to go back every year for a period of time or not renew renewing it. But yes, there is a path in Uruguay and more in Central America. People are doing Panama. Frazer Rice (22:36.637)Costa Rica. Judi Galst (22:37.773)Costa Rica is really interesting, very affordable. know we wanted to talk a little bit about the range, but in Costa Rica, you can gain temporary residence by demonstrating you have $2,500 a month in passive income. Many people will have that with interest and dividend income. Or you could invest $150,000 in real estate. It’s a temporary residence for two years, and then you renew for another two years. But at three years, you can transition to permanent residence. As a temporary resident, cannot work for a company in Costa Rica, so you’d have to be able to work remotely. And then once you become a permanent resident, that requirement disappears. Once you are approved, you do have to pay into Social Security in Costa Rica that gives you access to health care. So it’s about $300 per application per month. But Costa Rica is very interesting, I think. Frazer Rice (23:26.67)As we go back, pivot back to Asia, are there any countries with Singapore or others that are possibilities for people in the US? Judi Galst (23:33.722)So Singapore is a possibility. However, you have to move a family office with over 200 million there, or investment levels are around 30 million, and you have to relocate, and the ability to renew it is contingent upon how much time you spend in Singapore. So I would say a very niche client could do Singapore. A more affordable option might be Thailand, which you can get a residence permit very… Frazer Rice (23:44.125)Mm-hmm. Frazer Rice (23:52.605)To be sure. Okay. Judi Galst (24:00.782)Inexpensively. mean, a five-year permit for $25,000. Frazer Rice (24:05.159)Wow. And to round out our tour of the world here, Middle East countries, maybe the UAE, you hear about that as a place where a lot of Europeans go to move their wealth. Is that becoming popular with United States citizens? Judi Galst (24:16.463)Mm-hmm. Judi Galst (24:22.381)Golden Visa in Dubai is very popular. Honestly, not so much among Americans. It’s usually people from other parts of the world. mean, my firm has 70 offices around the world and we do a lot of UAE Golden Visas. I don’t have a huge amount of interest from Americans. I’ve done a couple of them. It’s not hard. You do have to spend time, like 30 days as part of the process there. Frazer Rice (24:26.525)Mm-hmm. Judi Galst (24:46.703)You can invest in real estate at 550,000, but there’s like 19 different visa types. You can set up a company. If you’re a member of YPO, Young Presidents Organization, they’re deemed talented and they don’t even make an investment. So, you know, it’s an option and we could certainly help it. But to be honest, I don’t see huge demand among Americans. Frazer Rice (25:03.259)Interesting. So let’s round this out a little bit here. For a U.S. citizen who is feeling unsettled or is just curious what’s out there. They want the ability to go live in Madeira, buy a place there. And to be able to go unfettered or something like that. What’s a good thought process or sequence of events for them to go through in order to make that happen? Judi Galst (25:31.344)I mean, we don’t charge for consultations. So I don’t know if you’re going to share my email at the end of this, but just hit me up. To me, any client conversation is about educating. This is generally a new topic for someone. It’s very rare that someone calls me and they really understand what is available to them and also what would be a good fit for them. They may not understand if they want to include their children. There are going to be some that are going to be better fits for them than other based on the ages of the kids. They may not understand how much time they have to spend in a country to make it happen. How much it’s going to cost, and just learn about it. Learn what your options are. I can usually pretty quickly. Once I understand a client’s objectives, tell them. This is a strategy that I think makes sense for you and exactly how it would Frazer Rice (26:14.206)And it strikes me too, that for people who are exploring different places, it’s probably a good idea to have visited them first before just jumping in, jumping in feet first and sort of solving a problem without understanding what actually implementing the solution looks like. Judi Galst (26:21.111)Yeah. Yeah. Judi Galst (26:29.177)For sure. I because many of the clients that I work with are of higher wealth, they usually have done a fair amount of traveling. So the idea of envisioning, know, residency in Italy, they’ve been to Italy. But when I talk to clients, especially about the Caribbean, where they might be investing in real estate and they have to decide between which country makes the most sense, I always tell them they should try and go because it can be a lifestyle decision. And they want to see where they could actually envision themselves if, in fact, they triggered this insurance policy. Frazer Rice (26:58.59)Judy, great stuff. Here it is. Put your email out there in case people want to reach out and find out more. Judi Galst (27:05.099)Okay, amazing. So my email is my first name, Judy, J-U-D-I dot my last name, GALST, G-A-L-S as in Sam T, at henleyglobal.com, H-E-N-L-E-Y, global.com, or you can give me a call at 646-856-3712. Frazer Rice (27:29.406)Great stuff. We’re going to have that in the show notes too so people can look on webpage, etc. to get that information. Thank you so much. It’s something, you know, when you’re at the desk and dreaming wistfully about what life looks like, what you’re done working, if you’re done working, my calculation is I’ll be able to retire when I’m 127. But it’s great just to sort of envision what that looks like. the expertise is out there. Thanks for being on. Judi Galst (27:56.047)My pleasure. HENLEY & PARTNERS DAVID LESPERANCE ON CITIZENSHIP DIVERSIFICATION DAVID LESPERANCE ON US EXPATRIATION https://www.amazon.com/Wealth-Actually-Intelligent-Decision-Making-1-ebook/dp/B07FPQJJQT/ #familyoffices #citizenship #residency #residencybyinvestment #citizenshipbyinvestment #austriancitizenship #newzealand #portugalproperty #portugalresidency #uscitizens #stkitts #malta #eucitizenship #wealthcitizenship #Californiawealthtax #puertorico #puertoricotax
Re-Release: On this Live Greatly podcast episode, Kristel Bauer sits down with Amy Sandler, Principal Coach and Podcast Host at Radical Candor, to discuss how to successfully give and receive feedback at work and in life. Tune in now! Key Takeaways From This Episode How to give feedback at work without being a jerk What is radical candor Should you give positive and negative feedback at the same time? Tips to be better at giving and receiving feedback About Amy Sandler: Amy Sandler is Principal Coach and Podcast Host at Radical Candor, where she's also served as Chief Marketing Officer and Chief Content Officer. Amy has trained tens of thousands of people worldwide, ranging from CEOs and leadership teams to recent graduates just starting their career. Her leadership philosophy focuses on empowering people to develop greater awareness, resilience and compassion, essential foundations for teamwork and shared success. A pioneer in bringing mindfulness-based leadership practices to the workplace, Amy was selected in 2014 to be one of the first 30 certified teachers of the Search Inside Yourself leadership program developed at Google. Amy brought mindfulness training and breathwork meditation to executive coaching organizations Vistage and YPO, where she also served in leadership roles. Amy has an AB and MBA from Harvard University and an MFA in Screenwriting from UCLA. A certified breathwork meditation teacher, Amy is in the third year of a medical Qi Gong teacher certification program. She has performed stand-up comedy and walked on fire seven times. Connect with Amy: Website: https://www.radicalcandor.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amysandler/ About the Host of the Live Greatly podcast, Kristel Bauer: Kristel Bauer is a corporate wellness and performance expert, keynote speaker and TEDx speaker supporting organizations and individuals on their journeys for more happiness and success. She is the author of Work-Life Tango: Finding Happiness, Harmony, and Peak Performance Wherever You Work (John Murray Business November 19, 2024). With Kristel's healthcare background, she provides data driven actionable strategies to leverage happiness and high-power habits to drive growth mindsets, peak performance, profitability, well-being and a culture of excellence. Kristel's keynotes provide insights to "Live Greatly" while promoting leadership development and team building. Kristel is the creator and host of her global top self-improvement podcast, Live Greatly. She is a contributing writer for Entrepreneur, and she is an influencer in the business and wellness space having been recognized as a Top 10 Social Media Influencer of 2021 in Forbes. As an Integrative Medicine Fellow & Physician Assistant having practiced clinically in Integrative Psychiatry, Kristel has a unique perspective into attaining a mindset for more happiness and success. Kristel has presented to groups from the American Gas Association, Bank of America, bp, Commercial Metals Company, General Mills, Northwestern University, Santander Bank and many more. Kristel has been featured in Forbes, Forest & Bluff Magazine, Authority Magazine & Podcast Magazine and she has appeared on ABC 7 Chicago, WGN Daytime Chicago, Fox 4's WDAF-TV's Great Day KC, and Ticker News. Kristel lives in the Fort Lauderdale, Florida area and she can be booked for speaking engagements worldwide. To Book Kristel as a speaker for your next event, click here. Website: www.livegreatly.co Follow Kristel Bauer on: Instagram: @livegreatly_co LinkedIn: Kristel Bauer Twitter: @livegreatly_co Facebook: @livegreatly.co Youtube: Live Greatly, Kristel Bauer To Watch Kristel Bauer's TEDx talk of Redefining Work/Life Balance in a COVID-19 World click here. Click HERE to check out Kristel's corporate wellness and leadership blog Click HERE to check out Kristel's Travel and Wellness Blog Disclaimer: The contents of this podcast are intended for informational and educational purposes only. Always seek the guidance of your physician for any recommendations specific to you or for any questions regarding your specific health, your sleep patterns changes to diet and exercise, or any medical conditions. Always consult your physician before starting any supplements or new lifestyle programs. All information, views and statements shared on the Live Greatly podcast are purely the opinions of the authors, and are not medical advice or treatment recommendations. They have not been evaluated by the food and drug administration. Opinions of guests are their own and Kristel Bauer & this podcast does not endorse or accept responsibility for statements made by guests. Neither Kristel Bauer nor this podcast takes responsibility for possible health consequences of a person or persons following the information in this educational content. Always consult your physician for recommendations specific to you.