Control or Be Controlled

What happens when you achieve success but realize the life you’re building no longer feels aligned with who you’re becoming? In this episode of CONTROL OR BE CONTROLLED , I sit down with Dean Taylor , speaker, coach, mentor, and creator of the DIAMOND Pivot framework , to explore what it takes to recognize when it’s time to make a meaningful change—and have the courage to actually make it. Dean’s...

What if your identity isn’t defined by what you do, what you achieve, or what you carry—but by what God is growing through you? In this episode of Control or Be Controlled , Darlington sits down with Dawn Stephens, award-winning children’s author, inspirational speaker, publisher, and self-proclaimed “Fruit Pot,” for a deeply faith-filled conversation about identity, purpose, surrender, and discov...

What if the thing keeping you from bigger opportunities isn't a lack of expertise—but a lack of visibility? In this episode of Control or Be Controlled , Darlington sits down with Karen Yankovich, LinkedIn and PR strategist, host of Good Girls Get Rich , and a leading voice on helping women turn visibility into meaningful business opportunities. For more than 20 years, Karen has helped thousands o...

Corey Bibolet: The Alien Unicorn and a Life Built on Adventure, Resilience, and Reinvention What happens when a life takes you from IT and martial arts to the Def Jam scene, thousands of rideshare conversations, extreme adventures, near-death experiences, Costa Rica, meditation, and everything in between? In this episode, Darlington sits down with Corey Bibolet , better known as The Alien Unicorn...

In this episode of Control or Be Controlled , we sit down with Jennifer Dechaine , founder of Congruent Projects and creator of the Human Foundations framework, to explore why high-pressure professionals often burn out from skills they were never taught. With more than two decades in real estate and new home sales—including 13 years selling, 10 years leading sales teams, and experiencing burnout t...

In this episode of Control or Be Controlled , we sit down with Amen Divine Ikamba , founder and CEO of PACIN (Pan-African Credit Intelligence Network) , to explore what happens when the systems designed to create opportunity end up excluding the very people they were meant to serve. We talk about: · The personal story behind PACIN and what Amen witnessed growing up in Kigali, Rwanda
· Why millions...

What happens when you reach retirement and realize you may not have saved enough to last? In this episode of Control or Be Controlled, Darlington sits down with Mitch Abel, Founder and CEO of Investment Current, to explore the hard lessons that transformed his relationship with money, investing, and risk. After retiring at 62, Mitch realized he was worried about outliving his retirement income. De...

What if sound is doing far more to us than we realize? We hear music, voices, and noise every day—but what happens when sound interacts with the body, the mind, and even the way we process emotion? In this episode of Control or Be Controlled , Darlington sits down with Heather Schmid, a classically trained opera singer, international recording artist, GRAMMY voting member, and filmmaker behind Voi...

In this episode of Control or Be Controlled, we sit down with Yogi Mueller, leadership strategist, speaker, author, and founder of Craft Leadership, to explore the uncomfortable truths that separate performative leadership from leadership that actually develops people. With more than two decades of experience designing leadership and talent development programs for organizations including Disney,...

What does leadership look like when there is no finish line—and no guarantee that everything will work out? In this episode of Control or Be Controlled , Darlington sits down with Craig Wahl, author of The Walk: Leadership When There Is No Finish Line , to explore what leadership really demands when the pressure is high, the path forward is uncertain, and the stakes are enormous. Craig has lived t...

What happens when the place that was supposed to help you find God makes you feel like you’re not good enough? In this episode of CONTROL OR BE CONTROLLED , we sit down with Jeff Dalton , author, poet, and speaker, for a deeply personal conversation about faith, rejection, mental health, and what it means to have an honest relationship with Jesus. Jeff shares a journey that took him from depressio...

In this episode of Control or Be Controlled , we sit down with Kristan Swan, M.Ed. , former business coach turned life and spiritual guide, to explore what it really means to come home to yourself—and why self-knowledge may be more powerful than self-improvement. We talk about: · How our childhood experiences and inherited stories shape who we become · Why your past can inform your life without co...

What does it really mean to live an audacious life? In this episode of CONTROL OR BE CONTROLLED , I sit down with Audley Stephenson , host of The Audacious Living Podcast , where he has shared nearly 700 conversations with authors, leaders, creatives, and change-makers. Audley believes audacity isn’t about reckless decisions or dramatic gestures. It’s about everyday courage—the willingness to choo...

In this episode of Control or Be Controlled, we sit down with Rael Bricker, serial entrepreneur, professional speaker, author, and business strategist, to explore what it really takes to build a life and business around excellence—and why sometimes the biggest lessons come from the moments that force us to stop. Rael’s journey spans more than 30 years and multiple industries, from working 6,000 fe...

Most founders think growth is the hard part. The real danger is growing without a legal and structural plan that can survive partners, payroll, disputes, disability, or exit. Attorney and founder strategist **Scherrie L. Prince** shows entrepreneurs how to build a business that does not just scale, but stays protected when things get messy. If you are a founder, co-founder, or business owner who w...

What if some of the answers you've been searching for aren't outside of you at all—but have been waiting to be discovered within? In this episode of Control or Be Controlled, Darlington sits down with Brandt Morgan, a writer, teacher, mentor, and certified firewalking instructor who has spent decades helping people reconnect with their deeper sense of purpose, authenticity, and possibility. Brandt...

What if the experiences that challenge you the most are actually preparing you for your biggest opportunity? In this episode of CONTROL OR BE CONTROLLED , I sit down with Paul Moore , founder of Smily Mia , to explore the unconventional journey that took him from commercial fishing in remote Alaska and living in China to becoming a single father and building a successful international product bran...

Why do so many couples keep having the same argument over and over again? In this episode of CONTROL OR BE CONTROLLED , I sit down with Rebecca Mullen —marriage communication coach, author of Six Steps to Better Marriage Communication , and host of Habits for Your Happily Ever After —to explore the small habits that make the biggest difference in healthy relationships. Rebecca explains why recurri...

What makes someone a true leader—and why does leadership begin long before you receive a title? In this episode of CONTROL OR BE CONTROLLED , I sit down with Kevin Wayne Johnson —leadership expert, founder of the Johnson Leadership Group , author, and veteran of 34 years in federal service—to explore what it truly means to lead with purpose, integrity, and influence. Drawing from decades of leader...

Can you choose happiness—even when life feels chaotic? In this episode of CONTROL OR BE CONTROLLED , I sit down with Reesi Roca —award-winning author, performer, and spiritual teacher—to explore how our thoughts, words, and beliefs shape the way we experience life. Reesi shares her remarkable journey from the world of rock and roll to a life centered on faith, personal growth, and spiritual transf...

In this episode of CONTROL OR BE CONTROLLED, I sit down with Lauren Fay—award-winning author, keynote speaker, life strategist, former collegiate athlete, and Reiki Master—to explore what it truly takes to create lasting transformation. Lauren shares the powerful story behind her award-winning memoir, Blurred Lines: My Reclamation of Power from Alcohol Addiction (P.S. You Are Not Powerless.), reve...

In this episode of CONTROL OR BE CONTROLLED , I sit down with Joseph "Joe" Edgar —serial entrepreneur, investor, real estate developer, and CEO of Loca.us . Joe's journey is extraordinary: from growing up in poverty on a Native American reservation as one of thirteen children to buying his first investment property at 14 and building multiple companies worth hundreds of millions of dollars. We exp...

What if your greatest purpose was waiting for you in the second half of life? In this episode of CONTROL OR BE CONTROLLED , I sit down with Abigail E. Dominguez —author, podcast host, early childhood educator, and first-time mother of fraternal twins at 48. From growing up in Ghana dreaming of a different future to reuniting with her mother after more than three decades, Abigail's journey is a pow...

What happens when a Shopify brand scales quickly on Meta Ads but eventually hits a growth ceiling? In this episode of CONTROL OR BE CONTROLLED , I sit down with Ben Davis , founder of JB Marketing , a Google Ads agency helping Shopify brands generating $2–5 million per year build their second profitable acquisition channel. Ben shares why many eCommerce brands struggle with Google Ads—not because...

What would make someone spend their house savings to ride a bicycle across America? In this episode of CONTROL OR BE CONTROLLED , I sit down with Teddy Bloom , founder of Ride4Rights , who cycled from the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco to the Washington Monument in Washington, D.C., on a mission to promote free speech, equal justice under the law, civic education, and national unity . Facing...