Hacks and Hobbies with Junaid Ahmed

Are your stories changing lives—or quietly causing harm? In this powerful conversation, nonprofit messaging strategist  Maria Bryan  returns to go deeper into  trauma‑informed storytelling —and why every marketer, nonprofit leader, and creator needs to rethink how they collect and share stories. If you’ve ever shared a client story, testimonial, or case study “for the cause,” this episode will cha...

What if the way you tell stories is quietly harming the very people you want to help? In this episode, Junaid Ahmed sits down with  Maria Bryan , a trauma-informed storytelling trainer and host of the  When Bearing Witness  podcast. Maria has trained thousands of nonprofit leaders, fundraisers, and storytellers to share stories that inspire change  without exploitation, re-traumatization, or strip...

What if 95% of your life is being run by programs you didn’t choose? In this episode of  Hacks and Hobbies , Junaid Ahmed sits down with  Irina Alexander , professional mental trainer and founder of the  Academy of Motive, Action . With 20 years in  neuroscience, entrepreneurship, and global wisdom traditions , Irina has helped hundreds of high-stress professionals step out of autopilot, dismantle...

If your life feels successful on the outside but empty, chaotic or exhausted on the inside, this episode is for you. In this conversation, Junaid Ahmed sits down with  Irina Alexander  – a high-performance coach who blends  neuroscience, leadership, and ancient wisdom  – to unpack what it really takes to stop living on default and start living  by conscious choice . Irina shares how she burned out...

What if the only rule you followed was to never have a 0% day? In this powerful conversation, host  Junaid Ahmed  sits down with high-performance coach and entrepreneur  Jake Smolarek , who arrived in the UK with just £150 and went on to build multiple successful businesses. This isn’t about hacks or hype. It’s about the brutal honesty, discipline, and obsession required to build a life you’re pro...

Most people don’t fail because they’re lazy. They fail because they get lost in the middle. In this raw and practical conversation, Junaid sits down with high‑performance coach  Jake Smolarek  to dismantle the myths around success, discipline, and “luck.” Jake introduces his powerful  1080/10 framework  and  Vision GPS , revealing why the middle 80% of any journey—the boring, lonely, repetitive pa...

Most entrepreneurs are not failing because of their product… they’re failing because of their numbers. In this episode of  Hacks and Hobbies , Junaid sits down with  Paden Squires , founder of  Squires Tax Planning , who has quietly helped business owners save tens of thousands of dollars and rebuild their relationship with money. This isn’t a “tax tips” episode. It’s a deep dive into  identity, b...

Most entrepreneurs are building impressive businesses on a completely broken financial foundation. In this episode of  Hacks and Hobbies , Junaid sits down with  Paden Squires , a  CPA, CFP, and founder of Squires Tax Planning , who walked away from the corporate world to help business owners finally feel in control of their money. Paden reveals why even multi–million-dollar businesses are often a...

What if your brand wasn’t a business, but your legacy? In this powerful conversation, Junaid sits down with  Kaveh, the Inspiration Engineer , to unpack what it really takes to build a  legacy-driven  personal brand in a noisy world. This is not another fluffy branding chat—this is about systems, mindset, and the uncomfortable truth that most “personal brands” fail because they never get past vani...

What if the very adversity that tried to break you was actually the blueprint for your breakthrough? In this powerful conversation, TED speaker, coach, artist and strategist  Cauveé – The Inspiration Engineer  – breaks down how he transformed doubt, failure and “you can’t do that” into a repeatable framework for  energy, execution and elevation . From selling out his first concert at 18, to missin...

What if your great‑grandchildren could sit down and talk to you… 100 years from now? In this emotional and mind‑bending conversation, entrepreneur  Steve Endacott  reveals how he’s building  Life Echo  – an AI-powered legacy platform that lets anyone, not just billionaires and celebrities, preserve their voice, stories, and values for future generations. Steven shares the deeply personal story of...

What if you could build a company you never have to run again—yet it keeps growing, thriving, and changing lives? In this episode of Hacks and Hobbies, Junaid sits down with entrepreneur, investor and mentor  Steven Endacott , who sold his travel and insurance businesses (including Holiday Taxis for $60M) and then chose a new game: helping the next generation of founders build AI-powered companies...

Most people watch house flips on TV. Scott Durham figured out how to own the deal in real life. In this episode, Junaid sits down with  real estate investor and coach Scott Durham , who went from a $10/hour hotel job to flipping houses and building a repeatable system for wealth. Scott pulls back the curtain on his  first flip , how he almost priced himself out of his own deals, and the  simple ma...

If your book, course, or expertise is sitting on a shelf, this episode is for you. Junaid sits down with learning strategist  Parchelle Tashi , founder of  The Author’s Leverage , to unpack how authors, coaches, and experts can turn years of experience into powerful, scalable learning assets that create income, impact, and freedom. They dive into how to  productize your expertise , choose the righ...

Most online courses fail not because the expert isn’t brilliant, but because the learning experience is broken. In this conversation, former high school math teacher turned video producer and learning architect  Parchelle Tashi , founder of  The Author’s Leverage , reveals how she helps authors, coaches, and consultants transform their books and intellectual property into high-impact, profitable l...

You can build an empire and still lose everything that matters. In this raw and practical conversation, high-performance men’s coach  Mitchell Osmond  returns to reveal why so many successful entrepreneurs are secretly failing at home — and how to flip the script without sacrificing their ambition. Mitchell breaks down the  three pillars  every driven man must master: marriage & key relationships,...

What if your biggest success story begins at your lowest point? In this raw and deeply honest conversation, leadership consultant and Dad Nation founder  Mitchell Osmond  shares how he went from a depressed, addicted, $100k-in-debt ex-executive on the brink of divorce… to rebuilding his marriage, paying off all his debt, losing 60 pounds, and becoming the man his family actually wants to follow. W...

What if selling cars had nothing to do with cars—and everything to do with your face on camera? In this episode, Junaid sits down with  Ina Coveney , founder of  Auto Social Consulting  and the creator behind  Auto Social Gal , to dismantle every excuse dealerships and local businesses use to avoid short-form video. Ina reveals why you  shouldn’t  try to be an “influencer,” why copying trends is a...

What if the niche you were meant to dominate is the one you never planned to enter? In this episode of Hacks and Hobbies, Junaid sits down with  Ina Coveney , marketing strategist, social media trainer, and founder of  Auto Social Consulting , to unpack how a single conference talk for podcasters pulled her into the  automotive industry —and why car dealerships across the U.S. are now relying on h...

She was 40, successful in tech… and secretly falling apart.  Sleep vanished, anxiety spiked, brain fog wrecked her performance — and no one at work knew why. Even her doctors didn’t have answers, beyond a prescription for antidepressants she instinctively refused. In this raw and revealing conversation,  Amita Sharma , co-founder of  Nourish Doc , shares how her hidden battle with perimenopause ex...

You don’t need more discipline. You need a system built for your brain. In this powerful conversation, ADHD strategist and founder of  Unconventional Organization ,  Sky Waterson , reveals why most traditional productivity and business systems silently fail ADHD entrepreneurs—and what to do instead. If you’ve ever felt “broken” because you can’t stick to lists, planners, or funnels that seem to wo...

What if your overwhelm wasn’t a personal failure, but a wiring mismatch? In this episode, Junaid sits down with  Sky Waterson , founder of  Unconventional Organisation  and an ADHD strategist who went from burning out in academia to building a thriving business, powered by the very brain that once held her back. Diagnosed with ADHD during her PhD, Sky realised no one was going to hand her the “ins...

What if your next client, investor, or life-changing opportunity is already watching you… but you’re posting for likes instead of leverage? In this episode, Junaid sits down with  Jeremy Bishop , the personal brand architect behind some of today’s most recognizable names. Jeremy explains why most creators and entrepreneurs are asking the wrong question about monetization—and how to turn your  exis...

You’re building everyone else’s brand… except your own. In this episode,  Junaid Ahmed  sits down with celebrity brand strategist  Jeremy Bishop , the man behind brands for Netflix stars, top realtors, artists, and authors. Jeremy reveals how losing everything in his early twenties forced him to confront a brutal truth: if your name doesn’t stand for something, your success can disappear overnight...

What if the algorithms you’re trying to “beat” were quietly rewiring who you become as a creator? In this episode, Junaid sits down with  Tim O’Hearn , software engineer, growth strategist, and author of  Framed: A Villain’s Perspective on Social Media . Tim has lived on both sides of the screen: he’s  built  persuasive recommendation systems and  broken  the rules to generate millions of follower...