The Story Engine Podcast

What if the biggest obstacle in your business isn't the problem you're trying to solve—but the question you haven't been willing to ask? In this episode of  The Story Engine Podcast , I sit down with executive coach and Vistage chair Ken Proctor to explore the power of asking better, tougher questions. Ken shares how his own failures taught him that leaders don't necessarily need more answers—they...

I've built a lot of businesses over the years, but some of my biggest lessons came from the ones that went painfully wrong. In this episode of  The Story Engine Podcast , I sit down with serial entrepreneur Tom Matzen, who has built 94 businesses, taken companies public, built franchise models, and experienced both enormous wins and multimillion-dollar losses. We dig into one of the most painful c...

I've spent a lot of time thinking about the patterns that quietly shape how we lead, love, and live—and this conversation with Bryan Post took that exploration somewhere much deeper. Bryan has spent nearly 30 years working with families, adopted and foster children, parents, CEOs, entrepreneurs, and high-performing executives. His central message is powerful: when we experience stress, we don't si...

What happens when the traits you spent your life fighting become the very things that allow you to serve others? In this episode of  The Story Engine Podcast , I sit down with Jennifer Hill, a self-described former "asshole" who has transformed decades of misunderstanding, broken relationships, self-hatred, and personal development into what she now calls her superpower: human connection. Jen shar...

In this episode of  The Story Engine Podcast , I sit down with Dr. Torrie Thompson to unpack one of the most frustrating experiences in health: doing everything "right" and still feeling terrible. We talk about the hidden toxins in our homes, products, and environments that can quietly accumulate over time—and why so many symptoms that we've been taught to accept as "normal" may actually be signs...

What happens when the challenges you've spent years trying to overcome become the very experiences that shape who you're capable of becoming? In this episode of  The Story Engine Podcast , I sit down with Tom LeNoble, a former executive at companies including MCI, Palm, Walmart.com, and Facebook, who has been given six months to live three separate times and has lived with metastatic cancer for th...

In this episode of  The Story Engine Podcast , I sit down with Barry Goldstein, a longtime music producer and creative collaborator who has spent more than 40 years exploring how music can magnify mission, unlock creativity, and help us move through the blocks that keep us from our next level. We dive into the idea of the "last 3%"—that frustrating gap between knowing you have something great and...

I've spent a lot of time thinking about alignment—not just as a personal-growth concept, but as something that directly affects how we lead, build businesses, make decisions, and live our lives. In this episode of  The Story Engine Podcast , I sit down with Esther Wildenberg, an executive coach, entrepreneur, consultant, and AI business owner who has spent more than 20 years helping leaders recogn...

What if the very experiences you've been trying to leave behind are actually the things that qualify you to play a bigger game? In this episode of  The Story Engine Podcast , I sit down with Markus Kaulius, a multi-exit entrepreneur, investor, author, and longtime student of personal development, to unpack the beliefs, habits, health, and faith that have shaped the man he is today. Markus grew up...

What happens when you've built the successful career, hit the milestones, created the life everyone tells you that you  should want—and yet, deep down, you know something is wrong? In this episode of The Story Engine Podcast , I sit down with Melissa Marina, a subconscious healer and intuitive channel for top entrepreneurs and founders, to explore what happens when high achievers finally stop comp...

I sat down with entrepreneur and business coach  John Glon for a conversation about something I've experienced personally—and something I see happen to so many founders: the moment when hard work, grit, and determination that once built the business start becoming the very things that hold it back. John shared his journey from running a successful electrical manufacturing business to realizing tha...

What happens when you're a nurse who deeply cares about helping people, but you realize the healthcare system doesn't always give you the freedom—or the options—to provide the kind of care you believe people deserve? In this episode of  The Story Engine Podcast , I sit down with Ashley Yardley, founder of Advanced Mobile IV, to unpack the personal experiences that pushed her to build a completely...

In this episode of  The Story Engine Podcast , I sit down with brain health and dementia expert Eric Collett to explore a question I think a lot of us would rather avoid: What if the problems we experience in our brain, energy, focus, and mental health today are warning signs of something deeper? Eric explains why conditions like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's can begin developing decades before obvi...

What if the thing we spend our lives avoiding—death—could actually become one of the most powerful tools for creating a more meaningful life? In this episode of The Story Engine Podcast , I sit down with behavioral change expert and bestselling author Karen Salmansohn to explore why so many ambitious, high-achieving people resist self-help, stay trapped in "beast mode," and keep telling themselves...

Most people who want to write a book are thinking about the book. What they don't see coming is what the process does to them. Steven Heumann spent 15 years as a television writer and director before founding Superhuman Creative, a ghostwriting and publishing company that helps leaders tell their stories. In this conversation, we talk about the difference between leading with principles and leadin...

Rae Irelan was home alone, leg in a cast, a two-year-old running around, and a mattress on the living room floor because she couldn't climb stairs. Then the landlord called. Sixty days to move out. Most people would have collapsed. Rae and her husband Sammy sold almost everything they owned, hit the road, and used the chaos to finally go all-in on what they had been studying for months: using AI t...

Chandler Bolt dropped out of college with a C in English, ADHD, and about three months of runway in the bank. He borrowed his parents' retirement savings to buy out his business partner at Self Publishing School, then paid every dollar back in 11 months. Over the last 12 years, his company has helped publish more than 7,000 books. In this episode, Chandler gets honest about what it means to lead t...

Chris Miles calls himself the anti-financial advisor. Not because financial advisors are bad people. Because he was one, and it nearly ruined him twice. In 2007 he had it all figured out. Debt free basement finished, growing equity, a Mercedes in the driveway. He went to the bank to cash out on his home's equity and they kept moving the goalposts. Get your credit score up two points. Now do X, Y,...

What happens when you've built the career, earned the title, achieved the success—and still feel disconnected from yourself? In this deeply honest conversation, I sit down with Justin Ricklefs, founder of Guild Collective and author of *Give a Damn*, to explore the hidden cost of achievement-driven leadership. Justin shares the personal journey that transformed his life—from sitting alone in a Tar...

Scott Richmond was lying on a hotel bathroom floor in Atlanta, the day after his birthday, on the phone with his mom. He'd already spent thirteen days in two hospitals that month. He'd lost 42 pounds. His mom was telling him they couldn't afford this anymore. He needed to come home. He didn't go home. He stayed anchored to one thing: his five year old daughter back in Iowa. That's what kept him fi...

What if the symptoms you're fighting aren't the real problem? In this powerful episode of The Story Engine Podcast, I sit down with functional medicine pioneer and bestselling author Dr. Jill Carnahan to explore her extraordinary journey from a 25-year-old battling aggressive breast cancer and Crohn's disease to becoming one of the leading voices in root-cause medicine. Dr. Jill shares how a seemi...

On this episode of The Story Engine Podcast, I am talking to Nancy Bisbikos. Nancy runs a company called the Biko Method, and for fifteen years she's been helping people, from Olympic athletes to PGA golfers to executives, clear what she calls "emotional footprints." These are the patterns that get built when we're small and unprotected, then get passed down without anyone naming them. In aviation...

What if the biggest thing holding your brand back isn't a lack of content, strategy, or opportunity—but your inability to see your own value? In this deeply personal and insightful episode of The Story Engine Podcast, I sit down with filmmaker, storyteller, and entrepreneur Chris Van Loan II to explore the hidden art of capturing authentic moments that create lasting impact. From documenting elite...

On this episode of The Story Engine Podcast I sit down with Andrew Quebbemann, and we discuss something on the podcast that I haven't stopped thinking about. "People only think other people die." Not morbid. Just true. You know people get sick, but it's someone else. You know people get laid off, but not you. You're a safe driver, you eat healthy, you got your shots. So the plan gets pushed to twe...

What does it really take to stand out in a world where everyone is fighting for attention? In this powerful episode of The Story Engine Podcast, I sit down with PR strategist and visibility expert Lauren Cabello, founder of Leverage with Media PR and the newly launched Big City Podcast Tours. Lauren shares what most entrepreneurs get wrong about visibility, why traditional PR is making a surprisin...