How I Built My Small Business

This is my personal story and is not business-related. It's the reason why I have taken the last month off from podcasting and interviewing... because about a month ago, I got the lab results back showing that not only have my thyroid panels been in range for well over a year now, but they've continued to move more into the ideal center of that range. I've been off medication for ov...

Today’s episode is with fellow podcaster and now friend, Nik Hulewsky of Nikonomics - a great show that you should definitely add to your line-up if you’re interested in entrepreneurship. He’s an excellent host and I’ve had the honor of being on his show a couple of times. So I thought I’d turn the table and put him in the hot seat. Subscribe on Apple Podcast , Spotify or YouTube . Let’s connect!...

🎄 Ever thought about running a Christmas light business? This is your behind-the-scenes masterclass. In this special episode, a podcast listener flips the mic and interviews the host, Anne McGinty, about how she started a seasonal Christmas lighting business. The listener comes prepared with thoughtful, detailed questions about every step of starting and scaling a holiday lighting operation. If y...

Chris Smith is the co-founder and co-owner of Sonoma Pizza Co. , an artisan pizzeria in Forestville, California, which he launched in 2022 with his wife, Eda Atasoy.  After three decades in San Francisco’s nightlife and hospitality world… running spots like The Pawn Shop, Monarch, The Great Northern, and even the record label Om Records … Chris shifted his focus from nightlife to culinary craft. H...

Israa Nasir is a New York City–based psychotherapist, writer, and the founder of WellGuide , a digital community dedicated to mental health awareness.  With a master’s in counseling and advanced training in Cognitive Behavioral and Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy, she’s dedicated her career to mental health. Israa has built a community of over 350,000 followers with her evidence-based approach...

Johnny Rickard calls in from Raglan, New Zealand, where he has built a full-time martial arts dojo on his family’s ancestral land. Johnny was a dedicated schoolteacher for 15 years when life circumstances gave him a nudge (or perhaps a calling) to change paths. With over 30 years of experience in martial arts and personal training, Johnny is the founder of THE REFINERY , a community space that’s f...

Dr. Sarah Daccarett is a board-certified physician, hormone specialist, and founder and CEO of Inner Balance , a personalized hormone therapy platform that just closed a significant investment round and is scaling quickly. Today’s episode is all about menopause (perimenopause, menopause, and post-menopause) and the physical, emotional, and hormonal shifts that come with it. We talk about common sy...

Today’s guest is Jason Graystone , a professional investor, trader, entrepreneur, and founder of the Tiers of Freedom program. He’s the author of Always Free , shares generous education on financial freedom, wealth building, investing, trading, and creating passive income YouTube, and creates financial empowerment content on his own podcast . I’ve been self-taught in forex trading for a while now,...

Subscribe on Apple Podcast , Spotify or YouTube . Let’s connect! Subscribe to my newsletter: Time To Live: Thriving in Business and Beyond Website: https://www.annemcginty.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annemcginty Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/annemcgintyhost

Today’s guest is Elizabeth Husserl , a financial advisor, registered investment advisor representative, and the co-founder of Peak360 Wealth Management , a boutique wealth planning firm based here in the Bay Area. Elizabeth has this rare and fascinating blend of expertise: she holds a degree in economics from Tulane and a master’s in East-West psychology from the California Institute of Integral S...

Today, I’m excited to bring back a guest whose first episode was one of the most listened to of Season 1 and in May this year, it topped the charts again as the most streamed episode on Spotify. Loren Vandegrift is a partner at Business Exits and has brokered over $500 million worth of business sales in just the past five years. He’s also no stranger to the founder journey himself... he previously...

Today’s guest is Lauren Vermette, founder and CEO of Franchisee Insight . Lauren has dedicated her career to bridging the gap between franchisees and franchisors, offering a unique perspective on the franchise industry. She truly understands the challenges and rewards that come with franchise ownership, having successfully built and sold multiple units in her own portfolio. Now, Lauren’s mission i...

I met John Clapham or "JC" in Raglan, New Zealand last year when I walked into his shop hoping they weren’t yet closing and said while huffing from my brisk walk, “What time do you close?”  He responded with a smile, “depends on whose asking…LOL."  And from there, we ended up chatting for about half an hour. I left thinking, I want to hear more of this guy’s story . JC didn’t go to...

What began as a tribute to my dad has unexpectedly become part of my healing journey, transforming from purely business and entrepreneurship to learning through storytelling.  How I Built My Small Business recently won a 2025 Communicator Award of Excellence as an educational series , validating the creative endeavor of hosting, editing, and producing this show. • Season One focused on business cr...

Today’s guest is Dave Pope, a friend of mine from college who spent 14 years in sales in the Northeast before making a bold move and buying Kaytech, Inc., a surface preparation company based in Greenville, South Carolina.  At the time, he had no prior experience as a business owner. In this episode, Dave shares what it’s really like before, during and after acquiring a small business with stories...

Today’s guest is Samantha Rose , an Emmy award-winning television writer and three-time New York Times Bestselling ghostwriter. She’s the founder of Yellow Sky Media , a literary development company that collaborates with celebrities, experts, and industry leaders to bring their powerful stories to life. Recently, Samantha stepped into the spotlight with her own memoir, Giving Up The Ghost , a poi...

Today’s guest is Glenn Harrold , a meditation guide whose relax and sleep well recordings have personally helped me get much needed rest at times when I’m tired but wired. Glenn is an international best selling self-help author and one of the world’s most successful hypnotherapists. His guided meditations and mindfulness audio titles have been streamed over forty million times. And, his CD title,...

As the daughter of immigrants, I’ve often turned to my own parents’ story for inspiration, a belief that we’re all capable of achieving anything we truly believe in, and a reminder that taking risks is often the key to making meaningful leaps in life. Today, I’m joined by Neri Karra Sillaman , who shares her extraordinary journey, from fleeing her home country as a refugee to building a global, mu...

Today’s episode is not so much about starting a business, but a glimpse into the neuroscience of influence and the power of Neurolinguistic Programming.  My guest is Dr. Josh Davis , PhD in psychology and neuroscience from Columbia University. He’s the international bestselling author of Two Awesome Hours   and an upcoming title The Difference that Makes the Difference . Josh is the founder of the...

Jennifer Tsay is the co-founder and CEO of Shoott - with two Ts, a fast-growing company making professional photography more accessible for clients and a reliable supplemental income for photographers. In just seven years, Shoott has grown from $800K to over $9 million in revenue, achieving operational profitability and expanding services to over sixty cities across the US. "Jen" shares...

Today we have Lloyd Rooney sharing his journey - from leaving the traditional schooling system at 12 due to dyslexia, learning how he learned best, to bartending in the UK and now owner-operating multiple restaurants in New Zealand, employing over 135 people. Lloyed is a co-founder of The Jetson Group , a collection of distinctive restaurants in New Zealand: The Quay , No. 8 , Loco , and The Cove...

Tara Bielawski is a medium and today’s conversation is not so much about starting a business and more so about perspective, her gift and her journey to mediumship. Losing my dad was the hardest thing I’ve ever been through, and it’s what led me to start this podcast. Conversations like this, whether you believe in mediumship or not, are part of my journey of asking bigger questions about life, con...

Today’s conversation with Dr. Bill Rawls and Braden Rawls is about understanding health at a cellular level. Dr. Bill Rawls is a licensed physician with over 30 years of experience in medicine. After facing a personal health crisis in his early forties, he turned to herbal and alternative medicine, restoring his health and becoming a leading voice in holistic wellness. He is the bestselling author...

Kerri Futch is a friend of mine who moved from Northern California to Wisconsin to be closer to family and to chase a dream vision for a Wolf and Fox , boutique winery and an event space. This episode is more of a casual conversation and catch-up between friends, but there are oodles of nuggets in her story, her strategic approach, and you’ll get real-time insights and perspective into what it’s l...

This interview was so entertaining to host because I felt like I was back in college for an hour and had the most interesting guest teacher who made me laugh, play games, and have fun - all while learning. Duncan Wardle, the former head of innovation and creativity at Disney, is on a mission to teach people how to access their natural creative abilities, to be innovative, explore curiosity, connec...