#MeetCoolPeople

Everybody wants to move fast right now. AI is everywhere. Founders are jumping on every new tool before they even test it out. I've noticed the pushback starting already, because people are making rash calls before they stop and think. This one's just me today. I want to talk about Temperance, a stoic virtue, and why it matters more in business than most people give it credit for. I use Zoom's con...

There’s a version of business ownership that looks productive from the outside but is quietly draining you from the inside. You’re good at a lot of things. You’ve got the receipts to prove it. And that’s exactly the problem. Most established entrepreneurs I talk to aren’t struggling because they lack skills. They’re struggling because they’ve spent years building around competence instead of geniu...

I got to sit down with Anneliese Vance, and this one took some turns I did not expect. We started talking trust and relationships, landed on Google Ads for a good stretch, and ended up on her podcast about dads. That is honestly how the best conversations go. Anneliese is the co-founder of Be Present Advertising. She runs Google Ads for family owned trades and service businesses, and she has built...

There's a lot of noise out there right now. AI is everywhere. Content is everywhere. And somehow, it feels harder than ever to actually connect with people. That's what this episode is about. This is a solo episode where I'm thinking out loud about something that's been sitting heavy with me lately. The world is moving fast. A lot of people are getting left behind. And I think the answer isn't mor...

There is a question I want you to sit with before you hit send on anything. If someone on your list described you to a friend right now, what words would they use? Vendor? Or trusted source? That gap is everything. And most people never stop to think about it. This episode is about honor. Not the abstract kind. The kind that shows up in how you communicate, how consistently you add value, and whet...

Most people who struggle with sales aren't bad at selling. They're just thinking about it the wrong way. They walk in focused on making a sale. And the people across from them can feel it. I sat down with my friend, Morris Sims, and this conversation reminded me why the long game always wins. Morris spent over 30 years training financial professionals and executives at New York Life. He helped bui...

Most people think they have a motivation problem. Or a discipline problem. Or maybe just bad luck. What they actually have is a brain that's been trained to look for everything that's wrong. That's not a character flaw. It's biology. And it can be changed. Dr. Lucette Beall knows this firsthand. She's a neuroscience-based coach, a number one international bestselling author, and the founder of the...

Most people think writing a book is about selling the book. It’s not. The book is a door. What’s behind it is the whole point. I’ve known David Hancock since 2008. We met at a seminar in Atlanta. We don’t talk nearly as much as I’d like to, but nearly 20 years later, the friendship is still there. So sitting down with him for this episode felt less like an interview and more like a long-overdue co...

Most people think follow up is about timing and frequency. Send more emails. Make more calls. Stay visible. But that's not the real problem. The real problem is most people follow up without ever stopping to think about who they're talking to. This solo episode is drawn from the chapter about compassion in my book, The Follow Up Code. And it might be the piece that changes how you look at every pr...

Most founders reach a point where something feels off. The message isn't landing. The deals aren't closing. The brand feels like it belongs to someone else. So they do what seems logical. They call a designer and ask for a rebrand. Elise Bay says that's almost always the wrong move. Elise is a brand strategist who works with established founders who have outgrown where they started. She helps them...

Most people who want to write a book start with the wrong question. They ask, "How do I write this?" when the real question is, "Have I done the work that makes writing it possible?" I sat down with Bonnie Daneker, a book coach and publisher who has guided more than 120 authors through the process of getting their stories out of their heads and into print. She has been doing this for over 20 years...

I have known Drewbie Wilson for about four or five years now. We met through a group, and honestly the first thing that stood out about him was how easy he was to talk to. At an event once, I was going through a rough stretch and he just took a few minutes to sit with me and have a real conversation. That stuck. He wrote a book called Crushing the Day Before It Crushes You . He went from tech supp...

Why Being Honest Is Now Your Best Marketing Move People are exhausted. Fake reviews, inflated results, made-up income claims. It's everywhere. And honestly, I'm tired of it too. This episode is about something I've been thinking about a lot lately, especially with the launch of The Follow-Up Code. Honesty isn't just a virtue. Right now, it's the clearest way to stand out. This one digs into what h...

Are You Building Loyalty or Just Collecting Contacts? I talk to a lot of business owners who've given up on email. Open rates dropped. Nobody replied. They figured the tool was broken. The tool is fine. The relationship is the problem. This episode is a solo from me, pulled from the chapter about loyalty in my upcoming book, The Follow-Up Code. It comes down to one idea: people buy when they're re...

Why Integrity Isn't Just About Keeping Your Word There are two sides to integrity in business. Most people only think about one. The obvious side is doing what you say. Deliver what you promised. Show up. If you say you're going to do something, do it. Most of us get that part. The other side is where things get tricky. And it's the side that quietly kills your confidence when you ignore it. In th...

Why Most Follow-Up Fails Before It Even Starts When was the last time you followed up with someone and actually felt good about it? If that question made you pause, this episode is for you. Most follow-up fails, and it fails fast. Not because people forget to do it. It fails because of what people say when they do it. I've been working on something for several months now. My book, The Follow-Up Co...

Why "I'll Just Do It Myself" Is Costing You More Than You Think Most business owners don't have a task problem. They have a letting-go problem. I got to sit down with Cathy Baillargeon, founder and CEO of Virtual Cathy, and this one hit close to home. She runs a US-based virtual assistance agency built around support that actually moves the needle. Not just task work. The real right-hand-person re...

Why Your Business Feels So Heavy (And the 5 Principles That Fix It) Your business should feel lighter as it grows. For most founders, it feels heavier. More people. More meetings. More opinions. Less gets done. Nils Vinje has seen this repeat across companies of every size. The problem is almost never strategy. It is complexity. And the fix is simpler than you think. Nils is a business growth guid...

How a Carpet Cleaner Turned Disney Systems Into a Business Clients Can't Stop Talking About Your competitors have similar prices. Similar services. Similar websites. So why does the customer pick them over you? Most business owners assume it's about being cheaper or spending more on ads. It's not. It's about being memorable. And most businesses are doing absolutely nothing to create that. Vance Mo...

You planned the event. You set the date. You posted about it everywhere. And then almost nobody showed up. Or worse, they showed up, enjoyed the snacks, and disappeared without ever becoming a client. Most business coaches and entrepreneurs treat events like a box to check. Shaquille Telford treats them like a system. And the difference is everything. Episode Overview This episode is for coaches a...

Why Your Negative Self-Talk Is Killing Your Business (And How to Fix It) You're probably sabotaging your success without realizing it. Every time you think "I'm so far behind" or "I should have started earlier," you're reinforcing the exact patterns keeping you stuck. Your habitual thoughts are not passive observations. They're actively shaping your reality, your energy, and the opportunities you...

The Copywriter Who Refuses to Sound Like a Robot You just paid someone to write your social media content. It's polished. It's professional. It sounds like every other business page on the internet. Problem is, it sounds nothing like you. Your audience can tell. They scroll past because there's no soul behind the words. You're posting consistently, checking that box, but nobody's converting. You'v...

From Events to Assets: How to Turn Your Voice Into a Business You book the gig. You show up. You deliver your talk. People clap. Maybe a few grab your business card. And then... crickets. No leads. No follow-up. No clients. Just another speaking gig that looked good on LinkedIn but didn't do much for your business. Most speakers treat stages like one-off performances instead of business assets. Th...

Why the Most Valuable Business Lessons Come from Getting Uncomfortable You're stuck in the same routine, the same business problems, hoping something will change while refusing to make yourself uncomfortable. Jonathan Shkolnik has lived and worked across three continents. Tel Aviv to Moscow to Paraguay. Each move forced him to adapt and figure out what actually drives growth when you can't rely on...

Ever feel stuck trying to juggle everything at once and getting nowhere fast? That was the whole focus of today’s solo episode, and honestly, something I’ve battled myself. I kicked things off by exploring why “just in time” learning can save you from drowning in information overload. Most of us try to collect anything and everything, but our brains aren't built for that. Instead, I walked through...