Anything But Typical

The failure rate for small businesses is astronomical. The failure rate for first time entrepreneurs is even higher. Michelle Tunno Buelow beat those odds while also having her business, Bella Tunno, donate a meal to a child in need for every product they sell since day one! Today, Bella Tunno has given almost 5 million meals to children. In this episode, Michelle shares about the differences of a...

Jeff Wolfberg has built two startups that turned in to industry leaders. He's been able to successfully exit each company. With Jeff's experience overseeing companies from 1 employee to over 1,000, he shared many thoughts and lessons on leading companies of all different sizes. Today Jeff runs CEO Focus of the Carolinas, where he conducts business advisory boards as well as coaches and consults fo...

"Finding what you have energy for is where you need to be" Spencer Lueders is the founder of the nonprofit 24 Foundation, has had a 21 year career as an attorney, is the owner and President of State Building Services, is the Founder of Ride Rock Hill, and is a husband and a parent. If anybody understands prioritizing focus and spending time where you get the most energy, it's Spencer. Spencer shar...

When looking to discuss scaling and exiting companies, Mac Lackey immediately comes to mind. Mac has had 6 exits, including multiple 8 figure exits. He has now created a community called The FENX to help entrepreneurs escape the grind and pursue what matters most to them. He has a mastermind focusing on scaling and selling companies called ExitDNA. In this episode, Mac talks through his journey of...

Vanessa Vaughn Mathews was sitting in her car, when within seconds the winds picked up, things were flying past her windows, and a lady was holding on to a lamp post to prevent herself from flying away. This experience changed Vanessa's perspective on crises and led her down a career path of risk management. After working for The U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Lowe's, and Gulfstream Aerospa...

It's difficult building a business and selling it. It's difficult coaching and helping mid market CEOs steer their companies. It's difficult being a pro mountain bike racer. It's even more difficult to become pro at age 40 racing against people half your age.   This episode's guest, Robert Fish, has done all of those things at an elite level. Robert shares about changing directions in your life, w...

Hilary Porta took a massive pivot from a successful corporate strategist career to starting her own company helping others shape the life they desire. But it didn't stop there. Hilary saw the value in topics most coaches ignore. Hilary took years to develop in areas such as neuropsychology, neuroscience, cognitive behavior, and metaphysical anatomy. The result was a practice where Hilary is able t...

Chris Elmore has been with AvidXChange, the first unicorn (billion dollar valuation of a private company) in Charlotte, NC.   Stacy Cassio is the Founder & CEO of the Pink Mentor Network, which is a high growth female mentorship community, and the first of its kind in Charlotte.   So when these two accepted coming on to Anything But Typical together to discuss mentorship, we knew it would be a pow...

Mark Linsz helped safely steer Bank of America through the worst of the financial crisis as Corporate Treasurer. He now uses this experience, along with leadership roles within Bank of America on 3 continents, as Co-Founder and Senior Managing Partner at My Next Season. My Next Season serves individuals that are going through a transition in their lives and careers. In this podcast episode, Mark s...

Colin Pinkney has a passion for lifting up others and creating positive impact that is at a level most never reach. Colin is the Executive Director at The Harvest Center in Charlotte, NC where he leads the nonprofit in the battle on homelessness. Colin is also the chaplain for the Charlotte Hornets. Colin created a book club at Olympic High School in Charlotte which has led to 350 young men gradua...

This episode's guest, Daniel McCollum, runs Torrent Consulting as a Purpose-Driven Company. Torrent is a Salesforce Platinum Consulting Partner focused on serving mid-market companies in the US. We dive in to creating and growing a successful business while maintaining a focus on the core purpose of the organization. Daniel also shares their in depth 3 year vision planning process. The thought and...

Chad Jenkins began his entrepreneurial journey before most people were reading chapter books. Throughout elementary and high school, Chad ran multiple successful business ventures while employing his friends. Today, Chad owns and operates many businesses in different industries. In this episode he discusses how owning a technology company and a waste management company intersect and relate. One of...

This episode is a throwback to when Ben and Gary first met in 2018. In this episode, Gary shares the lessons he has picked up throughout his journey. We hit on an array of topics such as company culture, CEO responsibilities, leadership traits, and more. Although this was recorded a couple of years ago, the lesson still apply and will carry forward. Enjoy the insight and a peek in to Gary's mind!...

Running a business can be extremely difficult. But running a business with your brother, while making sure the primary focus is serving others at all times, that is another level. This is exactly what this episode's guests, Nick & Giovanni Gallo, do. These brothers own and run ComplianceLine as Co-CEOs. In this wide ranging episode, we get to hear about the leadership heritage of these brothers, b...

As technology progresses, we have all seen the nonstop gimmicks and marketing strategies to win business or close a sale. This episode is throwing the gimmicks away as we discuss how to be thoughtful, attentive, and meaningful in business. Caleb Musser founded Craftom.io because he believed that growing a business should not be done by sending cheap swag that instantly ends up in the garbage. His...

Jeni Bukolt created Haven Creative, a multimedia marketing agency, in 2012. Jeni started the business like most do, with a laptop and figuring things out by herself as she went. Haven Creative has morphed in to a leader of creating communities using branding and digital marketing. And she certainly is not figuring things out by herself anymore. Jeni has created a culture inside Haven Creative that...

When Clean Juice was still only an idea, Kat & Landon Eckles had an audacious goal of opening 10 stores. Today, with over 90 locations and over 50 more in development, the vision for the company has evolved. In this episode, Landon shares the journey of starting the business, what things are like running a company with a spouse, how to create and adjust a vision for a business, and much more. Land...

If you're in an airport and you see a yellow blur run past you, that's just Jesse Cole on his way to his next speech. This episode will open your eyes to how you can set yourself apart from your competition and industry. Jesse's stories, lessons, and experiences all empower you to stand out by being different and focusing on your fans and clients. Fresh out of college, Jesse took over a college wo...

A young David Privitera happened in to the construction industry. Having a tangible result from projects caught his interest and kept the pursuit for more opportunities alive. So when David was moved from Western New York to Charlotte, NC for a potentially great opportunity, he was ready for the challenge. Today, David is the President and CEO of Concorde Construction Company. This episode takes u...

The journey of Tana Greene, from her beginnings to owning and running a 5 Time Top Fastest Growing National Company by Inc Magazine, is nothing short of awe inspiring. Tana is the Co-Founder and CEO of MyWorkChoice, a company that builds localized communities of highly productive, engaged, W-2 employees, transforming the way companies meet their contingent workforce needs through an easy to use mo...

Today's episode is all about Growing With Purpose. We couldn't have asked for a better guest than Charlie Malouf, CEO of Broad River Retail, DBA Ashley HomeStore. Charlie takes us through his journey and gets authentic about the difficult decisions that come with running a business with a purpose. He shared how the culture of Broad River has led to a purpose focused business; not a company growing...

In our first episode, Ben and Gary have a conversation about the Anything But Typical podcast. Anything But Typical is designed to highlight different paths, decision making, and leadership to share how you can go against the norm and be successful. In this episode you will hear about Ben and Gary's background story, how we connected, and more. Enjoy the first episode and subscribe to the show to...