Fry Your Chickens!

Dale Irvin is a speaker who sawan opportunity to leverage his quick wit into a great career.   In this episode we talk about he landed his dream career. And we laugh a lot. And we talk about his hilarious podcast "Another Day Above Ground".   And we talk about chickens.   It's fun and learning. You can't beat it!   Dale's linked in profile:   https://www.linkedin.com/in/dalei...

Ed Rigsbee is a CSP (Certified Speaking Professional) and CAE (Certified Association Executive), He's the author of multiple books. He knows his stuff. He's also a lot of fun to talk with. Our conversation covers a lot of ground, including - The fantastic places he’s spoken. - His bourbon and cigar podcast. - Cigar PEG – a philanthropic group that helps charities and speakers around the wo...

When I invited Jenn and Tom Bedell back for a second episode I had one rule. We couldn't do anything that wasn't completely silly. For the most part we stuck with that rule. We talked about geese (the sons of bitches of the animal kingdom), rules for dry January, and why a clipboard carrying duck is trustworthy. We heard from Darcy (but we had to censor her language). We discussed whether...

Veronica Sterling is a national park lover and keynote speaker. She is known for helping audiences navigate change with clarity, capacity, and courage. Her message is shaped by more than twenty years of executive leadership, including her role as CEO of Hospice of Southwest Ohio. Her work informs her approach to purpose, resilience, and alignment. Also she is a lot of fun to interview on a podcast...

Erica Woods is the Director, Talent Experience & Social Impact for Apex Systems. She is also a great chicken fryer and a lot of fun to interview! On this podcast we talked about low cost (frequently free) ways to do team building. (One idea was a typing speed test, so we tested it out live on the podcast). And we talked about National Parks - Phil adds one to his bucket list! It's a great...

In this episode, I sit down with Darren LaCroix —stand-up comedian turned Las Vegas keynoter, 2001 Toastmasters World Championship of Public Speaking winner, and coach to speakers around the world. We talk about Darren’s first stand-up performance, the bomb that taught him the most, and how stage time—real stage time—shaped everything that followed. From comedy clubs to a world championship to bui...

Cybersecurity expert Bryce Austin returns to Fry Your Chickens for his second appearance — and yes, we have a little fun with the fact that being a multi-time guest is clearly a big deal. But the laughs come with a serious purpose. In this episode, Bryce breaks down what’s really happening at the intersection of cybersecurity and AI. We talk about where AI is making organizations safer, where it’s...

Anytime you've heard "I'm a sage on the stage", "I'm the guide by their side" and "You can't who up and throw up" within the first THREE MINUTES of a podcast you know it's going to be good. My conversation with Patrick Donadio was very good. Lots of great points and lots of laughs. You don't want to miss this one! Patrick Donadio, MBA ,  is a c...

Welcome to season two of Fry Your Chickens! In this episode, I’m joined by AJ Hawley — keynote speaker, consultant, and a good friend. We talk about imposter syndrome (the kind that still shows up even when things are going well), keynote speaking and more. Along the way, the conversation takes a few very detours into dogs, zombies, Halloween creativity, and — naturally — rubber chickens. There’s...

In this episode, I sit down with Claire Edwards —a true morning routine ninja (my words, not hers). Claire has completed a morning routine 2,000 days in a row , and the results have been incredible . As always, we mixed practical insights with the usual nonsense, including deep philosophical questions like “Would you rather fight one bear-sized chicken or 100 chicken-sized bears?” (Science was inc...

In this episode, I sit down with leadership coach and keynote speaker Kamilla Pinel for a conversation that blends emotional intelligence, AI, and real-world leadership in a refreshingly human way. Kamilla shares her DREAM™ framework and how AI can help make us better humans. Oh and she also talks about the human side of coaching. I learned a lot! Inspired by Kamilla’s spontaneity and coaching sty...

In this episode, I sit down with keynote speaker, LinkedIn Learning instructor, and all around great guy Vince Mirabelli to unpack a topic most people avoid — organizational politics . Vince argues that politics, when done right, can actually be a force for good, helping teams navigate influence, alignment, and change. We dive into: Why every organization has politics (and how we can make that a g...

In this episode, I sit down with my college roommate and longtime friend Brad Perkins , now Managing Partner at Perkins Equity Management, to talk about the twists, turns, and lessons from a life spent leading massive software teams… and why he walked away from corporate life to build something on his own terms. We cover a lot of ground — and yes, plenty of laughs: Why contractors and software dev...

This is one of the most important episodes I've done in the podcast. Bryce Austin is a cybersecurity expert. He fights the bad guys. And he can help you fight them too. More importantly he can help you avoid ever having to fight them in the first place. If you have the same password on multiple accounts, this one is for you. If you have an IOT water softener, it's for you. If you want to h...

What can a former hostage negotiator teach us about leadership, stress, and communication? A lot — especially when the stakes are life and death. In this episode, Phil Barth talks with Jeff Owens, CSP , about how lessons learned in life-and-death negotiations now help organizations build trust, stay calm, and transform under pressure. Jeff shares stories from the field, his journey from police wor...

Fabrício Laguna — The Brazilian BA — joins the show for a wildly entertaining and insightful conversation that has everything: a genius dog, a terrifying mobster encounter, and a masterclass on how to market a book without losing your sanity. We dig into how Fabricio became one of the world’s most recognizable voices in Business Analysis, his philosophy on teaching complex ideas simply (with stori...

What do Bill Nye the Science Guy , Johnny Depp, and 29 Emmy Awards have in common? They’re all part of the incredible career of Bill Stainton — Hall of Fame speaker, innovation expert, and author of Innovation Unleashed . In this Fry Your Chickens episode, Bill and I dive into: 💡 How a sketch on a Seattle comedy show helped launch Bill Nye the Science Guy (with an unplanned assist from Johnny Dep...

What happens when a guy who’s shared the stage with Robin Williams, Jay Leno, and Dana Carvey brings his “Leadership Through Laughter” philosophy to Fry Your Chickens ? You get 45 minutes of charisma, comedy, and quotable wisdom. Ray Engan joins Phil to talk about: The missing piece in most sales conversations (and why it’s not more data) Why people instinctively lean in to genuine connection How...

What’s it really like to write for the Comedy Central Roast of Justin Bieber ? Or to coach Martha Stewart through jokes about him? In this episode, comedy writer and producer Chris McGuire takes us behind the curtain of some of the wildest, funniest, and most unpredictable moments in television. From the legendary Snoop and Martha Show to a day spent at Snoop’s compound (yes, there’s a story), Chr...

🎙️ Episode: Frying Chickens with Jeff Rogers – From Second City to Last Story Standing This week, Phil welcomes Jeff Rogers — actor, author, improviser, and creator of Jeff’s Homemade Game Show — for a high-energy conversation that zigzags from the comedy stage to the keynote stage. We dig into: How Jeff went from Second City performer to professional speaker. His 2024 NSA “Last Story Standing” ch...

Trent Leopold is a seasoned business analyst, project strategist, and cognitive science advocate with over 25 years of experience across public and private sectors. Based in Dallas, Texas, Trent is a long-term research participant with the Center for BrainHealth at the University of Texas, where his curiosity about strategic thinking and human cognition meets neuroscience in action. He regularly s...

What do you get when you cross a senior Intel engineer with a comedy stage? You get Dan Nainan—our guest this week on Fry Your Chickens . Dan shares the wild leap he made from tech to touring comic, and the surprising role Toastmasters played in the transition. We talk about what it takes to open for Russell Peters and Robert Schimmel, how Dan turned fear into laughter, and yes—there’s even a deto...

This is one of the most powerful and important conversations we’ve had on Fry Your Chickens . Dr. Samra Zafar shares her extraordinary journey—from escaping an abusive arranged marriage to becoming a bestselling author, human rights advocate, and future psychiatrist. We explore her first book, A Good Wife , and her newest release, Unconditional , diving deep into the process of unlearning inherite...

Ever wonder what it’s like to run Who Wants to Be a Millionaire ? My guest this week, Rich Sirop, was Co-Executive Producer of the show — and my Associate Producer back when I sat in the hot seat. He’s also been at the helm of countless other TV projects. We talked about working with Regis and Meredith, shared behind-the-scenes memories, and had plenty of laughs. Rich also opened up about his curr...

In this laugh-filled episode, I sit down with Cincinnati legend Terry Aufermann to swap stories that span generations of Scouting adventures and beyond. We dig into Terry’s rich family history in Scouts, his surprising knack for triathlons, the unforgettable chaos of camp chair races, and of course… the invention of “Hungry Human Hippos.” It’s part comedy, part nostalgia, and all about the lessons...