Founder Talk with Alex Sheridan

A lot of founders say they want freedom, but end up building a business that depends on them for everything. In this episode of Founder Talk, Alex Sheridan sits down with Angelo Sisco, founder of Sisco Advisors, to unpack why that happens and what it takes to build a company that can scale without burning out the person leading it. The conversation gets into founder identity, emotional patterns, c...

Most founders do not break because of strategy first. They break because success can amplify internal conflict. In this episode of Founder Talk, Alex Sheridan sits down with Mark Hattas, an award-winning author, entrepreneur, and coach, for a serious conversation about identity, purpose, and what happens when ambition is built on fear, pressure, or the need to prove something. Drawing from his own...

Getting a product into Walmart isn’t just a “great product” problem. It’s a buyer problem, a packaging problem, and an inventory cash-flow problem. In this episode of Founder Talk, Alex Sheridan sits down with Joe Barron, founder of Gray Matters Games—a family-owned business that designs and publishes family and adult party games sold in thousands of stores worldwide. Joe shares what it really tak...

The best sales pitch isn’t in a founder’s deck. It’s what customers repeat when the founder isn’t in the room. In this Founder Talk episode, Alex Sheridan sits down with Jude Nosek, VP of Sales and Marketing at Keson LLC, to break down how products really get sold in the field. They talk about word-of-mouth in the trades, why credibility beats polish, and how founders can scale growth by turning u...

The “founder dream” breaks a lot of people quietly. And sometimes, the boldest founder move is walking away from that. In this episode of Founder Talk, Alex Sheridan talks with Nate Cheviron, a multi-time founder who built, scaled, shut down, and sold businesses, then chose to return to W-2 employment to get his family and focus back. They get into the real tension founders face: freedom vs respon...

When a company culture goes quietly toxic, founders usually don’t see it in the metrics first. They see it in silence. In this episode, Alex Sheridan sits down with Sarah Mitial of People Architecture Group to break down what “toxic” actually looks like inside growing companies—and what leaders can do before it turns into churn, distrust, and stalled execution. Sarah brings 19+ years across the fu...

When a founder makes a mistake, the real damage rarely comes from the mistake itself. It comes from the internal spiral that follows. In this Founder Talk episode, Alex Sheridan sits down with Barbara Wichman of CKC Consulting, a Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) expert and practitioner, to break down how founders can interrupt that spiral, reset their thinking, and lead with more control under p...

Building a great culture isn’t about perks, slogans, or “values” on a wall. It’s what happens when revenue gets tight, standards get tested, and leaders have to choose between fear and trust. In this Founder Talk episode, Alex Sheridan sits down with Burt Levy of Revenue Mountain—an operator with 30+ years across media and technology, known for building sales teams, leading multi-million-dollar re...

Market volatility doesn’t just test portfolios. It exposes how founders think under pressure. In this episode of Founder Talk, Alex Sheridan sits down with Matt Rice and Bill Seyfarth of Vistamark Investments, two experienced investment professionals who have built and scaled an advisory firm by staying disciplined when markets — and emotions — swing hard. Together, they tackle a common but danger...

Most founders underestimate how much their thinking, food choices, and daily habits quietly shape their performance– and their health. In this episode of Founder Talk , Alex Sheridan sits down with Dr. Chrystal Ciodyk , founder of Chrystal Clinic , to explore the overlooked connection between mindset, physical health, and long-term decision-making. Chrystal built her clinic after completing advanc...

Founders don’t lose money because they lack intelligence. They lose it because they make emotional decisions under pressure. In this episode of Founder Talk , Alex Sheridan sits down with Dan Tresemer , Managing Partner at OnPath Financial , to break down how founders should actually think when volatility hits. Dan has spent decades stewarding capital for entrepreneurs and business owners, helping...

Most founders know they should be visible, but very few understand what it actually takes to show up with clarity, confidence, and conviction—without performing or posturing. In this episode of Founder Talk , Alex Sheridan sits down with Donna Marie Post , keynote curator, speaker coach, wardrobe consultant, and founder of TEDx Arlington Heights. Donna Marie works with leaders, founders, and execu...

In this episode, I sit down with Bob Lambert, who draws on decades of real operating experience building iconic consumer brands like Nerds to explain why sustainable growth doesn’t come from clever campaigns or chasing trends. It comes from clarity, curiosity, trust, and a deep understanding of how people think, feel, and make decisions. He breaks down why so many founders struggle to stand out de...

In this episode of Founder Talk, I sit down with Ryan Walsh, a drone industry veteran operating at the intersection of advanced technology, regulation, and global competition. We dive into what it really takes to build a tech company in heavily regulated industries, how drone innovation fell behind in the U.S., and what the growing conversation around UAPs reveals about advanced aerospace technolo...

In this episode of Founder Talk, I sit down with Mark Bealin, SEO Expert and founder of SearchLab, to unpack what it really takes for businesses to get found today, across Google, local search, and the rapidly changing world of AI-powered discovery. This is not a surface-level SEO conversation. Our conversation breaks down how search has evolved, why many founders are unknowingly invisible online,...

In this episode of Founder Talk, I sit down with John Morris, founder of 444 Media and host of Golf with JMO, to break down how podcasting can be used as a business development engine, not just a marketing channel. Together, John and I unpacked why cold outreach no longer works like it once did, how real conversations build trust faster than any pitch, and how founders can use podcasting to shorte...

Most great businesses start with a personal problem. For Brittany Hizer and Addie Gundry, a public restroom moment with Addie’s infant son led to Pluie, the first self-sanitizing diaper changing table in the U.S. In this episode of Founder Talk, Brittany and I unpack the real journey behind building and scaling a physical product company, one with long sales cycles, manufacturing hurdles, capital...

On this powerful and emotional episode of Founder Talk, Jennifer Guzman, founder of Bestola Collective, and I dive into what it really looks like to scale a company through human connection. Jennifer helped grow an HR outsourcing firm from 150 to 500 clients with a 95% retention rate, and a huge part of our conversation centers on why that happened; the in-person relationship-building, the trust,...

Most founders don’t realize how much their work is reshaping who they are. Until it’s too late. In this episode of Founder Talk, Nick Greco, mental health expert, crisis intervention instructor, and founder of C3 Education & Research, breaks down what chronic stress really does to people who live in it day after day. Nick has trained thousands of officers across the U.S., taught suicide preven...

In this episode of Founder Talk, Christoff Poppe, founder of Half of Eight and a Vistage Chair who works with CEOs across industries, breaks down why peer groups are becoming a non-negotiable advantage for top leaders today. He’s in the room for the hardest conversations CEOs have: succession issues, hiring freezes, layoffs, stalled growth, shifting economies, AI disruption. And he’s seen how peer...

In this episode of Founder Talk, Alex Iannessa, founder of EnRoads Paving, shares the real story behind going from zero to eight figures in under four years. Alex breaks down how he took a side-door industry path, from laborer, to sales, to founder, and how he used relationships, reputation, and relentless consistency to build a national parking lot management company during a time when most busin...

Zach Selch didn’t start with a network, a brand, or a head start. He started in a trailer park, found sales early, and turned it into a billion-dollar career. Here’s what founders can learn from that climb. Today, I sat down with Zach Selch, one of the world’s top international sales leaders and a key driver behind more than $1 billion in revenue growth. But this conversation isn’t about quick tac...

Most founders say they want a smarter team, but they keep handing their people training that makes them dumb. In this episode of Founder Talk, I sit down with Erin Huizenga, founder of Desk Light and author of Learning in the Wild, to break down how to build a team of relentless learners and why that is one of the fastest ways to grow a business. Erin shares why most workplace learning fails. It i...

Most founders obsess over growth, but few think about staying in business long enough to enjoy it. In this episode of Founder Talk, I sit down with Matt Sidman, founder of TEQWORKS, to uncover the real blueprint behind building a company that not only survives 24 years but also supports your life, your family, and your purpose along the way. Matt breaks down what actually keeps a business alive: v...

Most founders dream about the day they can finally “retire.” But what happens when you actually get there, and it’s not what you thought it would be? In this episode of Founder Talk, Dr. Rajeev Khanna, a former sports medicine physician who built and sold a thriving medical practice, shares how stepping away from work left him feeling restless, unfulfilled, and without purpose. After decades of tr...