Productivity Smarts

What does it take to keep a live broadcast on the air when a storm knocks out the antenna, a policeman calls a tow truck, and 2,000 people are waiting for the show to start? Right now, the world is watching the 2026 FIFA World Cup unfold live across three countries and 16 stadiums, with millions tuning in every night without a second thought about how the signal gets from the pitch to their living...

Is complexity really the price of success, or have we simply forgotten the power of simplicity? For Wes Towers, founder of Uplift 360, the answer is clear. A 20-year veteran of the digital marketing industry, Wes built his career through trial and error, learning the hard way what works and what doesn't. From losing a lead developer mid-project to nearly burning out on a job that wasn't the right...

What if one of the most powerful productivity tools wasn't an app, a planner, or a morning routine, but a passport? For Evelyn Kelly and her daughter Natalie Kelly, travel has been far more than a hobby. Over three decades, it has shaped their resilience, adaptability, negotiation skills, and personal growth. What began as a three-week trip to Europe after a disappointing election loss grew into a...

What if the home you lived in was a secret portal to 250 years of American history, connected to the Revolutionary War, the Kennedy assassination, and the Apollo 11 moon launch? For David Deputy, a retired brigadier general, historian, and former state trooper, that's exactly what he discovered when he moved into a 19th-century mill house in Delaware. In this episode of Productivity Smarts, host G...

What if the secret to productivity isn't another to-do list or time‑hack, but a universal map of what it means to be human? In this episode, host Gerald J. Leonard welcomes Dr. James Smith,  systems thinker, author of The Real Map of Life, and a man who has lived every corner of his own framework. From delivering newspapers and working on a farm to becoming a hospice chaplain, a banker, and finall...

What happens when you wake up one day and realize you've been asleep for 20 years successful on paper, but dead inside? For Brian "Dixon" Dixon, that realization came after a near fatal pulmonary embolism. But it didn't have to. In this powerful episode of Productivity Smarts, host Gerald J. Leonard sits down with Brian Dixon, Colorado based adventurer, speaker, and author of the upcoming book Hol...

Most entrepreneurs chase the fast exit. But what if the real reward is building a company so meaningful you would never dream of leaving? In this episode of Productivity Smarts, host Gerald J. Leonard sits down with David B. Hampson, acquisition entrepreneur, aviation insurance leader, and award-winning author of Rainbow Gold. David shares hard-earned lessons from a career that spans from launchin...

Did you know you could read a 200-page book in under 10 minutes and actually retain it? In this episode of Productivity Smarts, host Gerald J. Leonard sits down with Dr. Paul Scheele, PhD, a pioneer in accelerated learning and creator of the Photo Reading Whole Mind System.  Gerald shares how Dr. Paul's work personally transformed his life, from managing the mental and physical challenges of vesti...

What does it take to stay creatively productive for five decades? In this episode of Productivity Smarts, host Gerald J. Leonard sits down with Annette LaFortune Murray, storyteller, educator, and Route 66 expert, to unpack the habits and mindset behind five decades of prolific, purposeful creativity. Annette shares how she spent years researching the life of Cyrus Avery, the visionary behind Amer...

How often does an employee's personality get mistaken for a performance problem, quietly undermining productivity across teams? In this episode of Productivity Smarts, host Gerald J. Leonard sits down with Ariel Vox, award-winning author of Crack the Luck Code. Ariel blends psychology, storytelling, and leadership to help individuals unlock hidden strengths. Drawing on her unique LUCK personality...

What do you do when life looks successful on the outside but deep down you feel stuck, unfulfilled, and disconnected from yourself? In this episode of Productivity Smarts, Gerald J. Leonard sits down with Anne Smith, a seasoned corporate trainer and HR expert who transformed her life after the end of a 29-year marriage. Instead of staying stuck, Anne chose to rebuild, turning her journey into her...

What happens when a Hollywood insider faces career-ending setbacks, cancer, and a Parkinson's diagnosis all while refusing to give up? In this episode of Productivity Smarts, Gerald J. Leonard chats with Tommy Burke, a film and TV veteran who turned some of life's hardest punches into stepping stones. From getting kicked off a film set early in his career to working alongside stars like Ben Afflec...

What if the "sugar high" you rely on for a productivity boost is actually the very thing sabotaging your focus, mood, and long-term performance? In this episode of Productivity Smarts, host Gerald J. Leonard sits down with Connie Bennett, a transformational speaker, certified health coach, and bestselling author of Sugar Shock!, Beyond Sugar Shock, and I Blew My Diet! Now What? Together, they unco...

Did you know the habits and environment you create in your child's first six years can shape how they focus and function for life? In this episode of Productivity Smarts, Gerald J. Leonard sits down with Teresa Angeles, a Montessori educator, parent mentor, and author of The Montessori Home and Beyond. Together, they explore how early childhood development connects directly to adult productivity,...

We often measure productivity by output, deadlines, and achievements. But could one of the most powerful indicators of human performance be something we rarely discuss in leadership conversations, our fertility and overall biological health? In this episode of Productivity Smarts, host Gerald J. Leonard sits down with Dr. Marina, an experienced OBGYN and educator with more than 30 years of experie...

Are you leading from a place of wholeness or simply performing while carrying hidden emotional wounds? What if your struggles in leadership, creativity, or relationships are not really about strategy or productivity systems, but about deeper issues that have never been addressed? In this episode of Productivity Smarts, host Gerald J. Leonard sits down with Terry and Carol Moss, relationship archit...

Do you know your unique stress personality pattern? What if your stress isn't coming from your workload… but from a hidden personality pattern running your life? Why do some people shut down under pressure, others explode, and others spiral into anxiety and overwhelm? And what if understanding your unique stress personality could completely transform your productivity, health, and leadership? In t...

If AI can plan your day, write your reports, and automate the busy work, what's really left for you? Are we all project managers now? Or is the bigger shift that entire organizations have to become project driven just to stay relevant? In this episode of Productivity Smarts, host Gerald J. Leonard reunites with Antonio Nieto-Rodriguez, the world champion of modern project management and author of...

What if one of the biggest drivers of your productivity wasn't your calendar, your habits, or your willpower but the light around you?  In this episode of Productivity Smarts, host Gerald J. Leonard sits down with Dr. Martin Moore-Ede, a world-leading expert in circadian biology and founder of the Circadian Light Research Center. Dr. Moore-Ede, known as "The Light Doctor," reveals a hidden product...

Imagine at 45, Melissa Jean Rod discovered that the man she had always believed was her father wasn't. What followed was a journey full of family secrets, DNA twists, and moments that felt almost like a detective story, all while learning to forgive when it seemed impossible. In this episode of Productivity Smarts, Gerald J. Leonard sits down with Texas-born author and speaker Melissa Jean Rod to...

In this episode, host Gerald J. Leonard pulls back the curtain on his personal journey into the world of Artificial Intelligence and accelerated learning. What began as a physical constraint, losing the ability to walk before a TEDx talk, became a catalyst for discovering the neuroscience of learning and the superpower of accelerated adaptation. Gerald shares how he applied principles of music, me...

How can a 22 day silent retreat at a Buddhist monastery transform trauma, mindset, and daily productivity? In this episode of Productivity Smarts, Gerald J. Leonard sits down with  Laurie S. Jacobson, certified health coach, motivational speaker, and author of Unexpected Awakening: 22 Days at a Buddhist Monastery Freed Me from Abuse, for a powerful conversation on transformation, resilience, and h...

Did you know quick, courageous decisions can unlock clarity, confidence, and real progress in life and in work, especially when you approach them in creative, improv-inspired ways? In this episode of Productivity Smarts, host Gerald J. Leonard reconnects with longtime friend and former coach Gina Trimarco Klauder, a leadership strategist, international bestselling author, improv comedian, and foun...

How can understanding neuroscience transform your decision-making and productivity? In this episode of Productivity Smarts, Gerald J. Leonard sits down with Cherian Koshy, author of Neuro Giving: The Science of Donor Decision Making, for a thought-provoking conversation that explores how neuroscience, decision science, and generosity shape productivity, leadership, and burnout prevention. Cherian...

neuroscientist, former CMO, and author of Make Me Great, for an engaging conversation that redefines productivity from the inside out. Thomas shares his unconventional journey from artificial intelligence and neuroscience into marketing, leadership, and ethical persuasion, revealing how his early work in neuromarketing delivered results but ultimately felt incomplete without a human-centered appro...