The Matt Sodnicar Podcast

When SJ agreed to be the event decorator for her friend's wedding, she had no idea it would lead her to the love of her life. As she navigated the stresses of planning the elaborate 180-person affair, SJ found herself instantly drawn to the caterer, John. Despite initial reservations, their undeniable chemistry and connection grew stronger throughout the chaotic wedding day.  What started as a cha...

John Lawyer dishes out a hilarious and heartfelt journey through his wild culinary adventures. From corndog chaos to molecular gastronomy experiments, John's passion for food shines through every story. He shares the ups and downs of running food trucks and restaurants, including some crazy encounters with politicians and celebrities. Through it all, John's love for cooking and creating unique fla...

This powerful conversation explores the deep grief and vulnerability that comes from losing a loved one to suicide. Christy courageously shares her story of losing her sister Teri 17 years ago, and the profound impact it continues to have on her life.  While the pain has never gone away, Christy finds strength in being open about her experience and hopes it helps others feel less alone.  This inti...

I talk with Stephanie Villavicencio, founder of Tits Deep For Breast Cancer. We go into Stephanie's personal journey that led to starting this impactful organization after losing her best friend Nadine to aggressive breast cancer at just 31 years old. You'll hear the touching story of how Tits Deep got its start through a fundraising effort to help Nadine with medical bills, and how its grown into...

Ellen Busch returns for a second conversation and shares her inspiring journey of healing from past abuse through writing her memoir, facing fears of vulnerability, and finding purpose in helping others.   Ellen reflects on her 47-year journey of fighting for her self-esteem and self-worth, culminating in the publication of her book.  My favorite part is her feeling when she describes the emotiona...

Tyler Z takes me through the origin of Biked Goods, making food fun and enjoyable, coaching kids on the bike, the importance of introducing healthy habits to kids, and where his sense of community and servanthood originated. Connect with Tyler at bikedgoods.co, on Instagram @bikedgoods.co, and be sure and check out his blog for all these damn tasty recipes.   ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Author Wiley Davis takes me through the origin of her memoir, and some powerful stories that comprise "It's Me or the Horse", including: The worst date she's ever been on? Earning trust and the power of a buffer zone. Her process of writing a book. The hardest chapter of her life. And, why didn’t she leave when she was terrified? Take a look at her website here: https://www.booksbywd.com/ ★ Suppor...

Grab your white bread, butter and make some Sandwiches of History with Barry Enderwick.  We talk sardines and sandwiches and then dive into his career at Netflix before Netflix was a thing. Enjoy Barry on Instagram @sandwichesofhistory, and his other feeds: @inthechipswithbarry, @barryiscookingagain, @craftbeerbarry and @barrysicecreamoclock. ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

GET A TICKET to the July 31 show in LIttleton! I met Stephanie at a Denver event, and wanted to deconstruct her sense of humor - which reminded me so much of Mike Birbiglia.  Stephanie recorded this just a few weeks after her dad passed away, and we talk about his influence on her comedy. Stephanie’s journey with comedy began as a child when she learned the power of making people laugh.  Eventuall...

Doug takes me through his life working with wood:  building cabinets with his dad to eventually starting his guitar business.  Shipping pranks with sawdust, just barely making it, riding bikes, and just 2 nerds chatting. Check out these gorgeous instruments here. And here is Otis Rush, Live at The Wise Fools Pub. ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Anthony and I talk about the rewards of being cyclists, connecting as friends across the world, and what our little companies have done for ourselves and for each other.  I share the amazing story of a product going from Colorado to Australia and on to Ireland, in the hands of Sonia O'Sullivan , Olympic silver medalist, thanks to Anthony. Take a look at Bespoke Velo.   ★ Support this podcast on Pa...

Emma describes her journey to become a death doula - helping people with holistic end-of-life planning.  She is the founder of Beautiful Life Beautiful Death .  She takes me through watching her dad die - then 11 years later, being pregnant with her first child when her husband was diagnosed with a terminal illness. Learning to live presently, mitigating fears, conscious peaceful dying. ★ Support...

Michel Hogan , Brand Counsel , and author of " The Unheroic Work " generously teaches a masterclass on branding, marketing, values, integrity. We cover the myth of excellence, the difference between expectations and experiences, lessons from her book and why she wrote it, not starting with Why, values misused as a promotional tool, and how values can flip and become a liability. I'm on my second r...

In a continuation of our previous conversation, Michelle takes me thru the trial of the man who abducted her as a young woman in upstate New York. She takes me through falling out with her family over the events, the PTSD and hypervigilance, blending in and not wearing makeup, and the effect the experiences have had on her.  She also helps with talking to therapists, how friends and coworkers can...

Alternate titles for this episode: A bottle of wine and a donut 2 Idiots in a box I wanted Chris to be a guest because he tells great stories.  While still amusing AF, Chris has a great life philosophy about how to treat people and maximize an opportunity, and recover from adversity. We go through his days as a graveyard shift valet at a Vegas hotel & casino, 9/11 being his second day as a fli...

I connect with Michael Cox from Zagworx and TheSalesRecruiter.com. In my book, he is one of the best humans, serving others as a recruiter - doing business the right way.  We cover failures, self-doubt and fear - defining fearless along the way, and the book Beyond Band of Brothers . He takes me through leaving the security of working for Xerox, starting his own recruiting firm during the pandemic...

I sit down with Jonathan Banks, President and Co-Founder of NCXT .  He takes me through the design philosophy of working with restaurants, and leveraging the right technology for the owners to help them thrive - and how to create our best world. We also talk about how the customer determines the value of the offering, the intersection of values, intentions, and decisions, how design thinking allow...

Michelle takes me through leaving the US, moving to Costa Rica to launch a food truck.  "The Salty Pineapple" or La Pina Salina happened to be only the 4th food truck in the whole country - and she hates to cook.  Oh, and then when project was hitting the wall, she found out by accident that her husband was preparing to divorce her.  She takes me through the difference between giving up and giving...

I sit down with Jennifer Wreyford CEO and Founder at Courage to Rise , and while she is a life coach, I unequivocally prove that she is not the cringey kind! We cover how she has used her own journey to help others through the trauma of divorce and breakups, with honesty, accountability and zero judgement.  We cover positivity bypassing, how the work is not going to be a happy, fluffy bunny, worki...

Cyd's story, in her own words: I'm a tea and polka dot junkie, bulldog momma, and passionate supporter of women's empowerment…But most of all, I'm a storyteller. As a kid, I would regale friends and family with my retellings of The Three Billy Goats Gruff . As an adult, I still love to tell stories, but now I don't talk about silly goats and trolls. Instead, I tell the stories of people, their pas...

I sit down with Jessica Rae , VP of Account Management from Blackline to talk about leadership in business, but specifically how she recognized and admitted to fears as a leader - and the transformation that occurred in her teams from that candor and courage.  We also explore facing mortality as a breast cancer survivor; the concepts of neutral curiosity, assuming positive intent, and how her athl...

Christine Wzorek , CEO of White Label Advisors defines how marrying human capital, business strategy, and financial strategy through the lens of human behavior can truly affect the performance of a business.   We also cover the origin of her personal brand deck inspired by Coco Chanel, leaving an abusive relationship and the many attempts to actually do it.  She then describes the elegant puzzle o...

Samtu Palouki takes me through his incredible journey from a nerdy tech kid in Togo, moving to the US without being fluent in English, joining the US Army, the added challenge of the language barrier during bootcamp, isolation & lonliness, to creating short films to boost his comrades' morale - and becoming a viral video star.  A story of perseverance, creativity, humor, and creating from the...

I sit down with Kelly Schexnaildre, founder and CEO of Merfs Condiments .  And this conversation is not about the hot sauce.  We talk about the journey to allowing yourself to be loved - and accepted, the spirit of forgiveness, defining grace as unearned favor, leaving the church, religion, and the guilt of being gay -  culminating her calling to ponder becoming a minister. ★ Support this podcast...

At a very young age, Ellen Busch was labeled dyslexic.  At the time, it was a death sentence in the educational system.  With the unwavering support and love from her parents, she realized she's not broken and learned to thrive.  We also talk about finding the courage to leave an abusive marriage, the transformation after attending Mark Divine's Navy SEAL Unbeatable Mind program, and the impact an...