The Long Cut

Life has a funny way of changing while we're busy making plans. After a brief break from the podcast, I share what I've been up to, why I've been gone, and the realization that maybe some seasons aren't meant to produce more work—they're meant to produce a life.

This week's episode is a conversatoin with my good friend Chris - A nephrologist and father who's built success more than once. We talk about immigrant roots, medicine, divorce, blended families, and what achievement actually costs.

This week I’m talking about the middle — that long, quiet stretch between starting something and seeing real results. It’s not glamorous, it’s not dramatic, and it rarely gets applause. But most good things are built there. A short episode about consistency, discipline, and showing up when it’s not exciting.

In this episode, I’m thinking out loud about the things that still feel unfinished, and why maybe that’s not such a bad place to be.

This week’s episode is a conversation with Isaiah, who spent a few days shadowing me at Meridian before heading to NYC next summer to intern in finance. We talk about work from the ground up, what outsiders don’t always see, and why understanding how things actually get done matters.

Most mentors never sit you down and teach you anything. They just show up. In this episode, Ben reflects on the people who shaped his life through quiet example — and the lessons borrowed along the way. A conversation about influence, observation, and the people who leave a mark.

This week I sat down with Megan Norowski. Megan's from outside the manufacturing industry and my general circle so this was a fun one. We talk about hiking, getting back to your roots, and taking big chances and how they pay off.

Cold hands, sticky sap, awkward trees, and a ladder incident that didn’t go as planned. In this episode of The Long Cut , Ben heads back to the Christmas tree farm to talk about seasonal chaos, hard work, great people, and why saying “yeah, I can help with that” sometimes turns into a very good story. It’s about brotherhood, work ethic, and learning (again) that the straight path is overrated.

Just a quick update...

A quick gratitude episode after a long farm weekend. Some deep thanks, some dumb thanks, all real.

In this episode Ben sits down with Cody Gadreault — Product Manager at Pilot Precision Products, Cody’s path wasn’t a straight one. Growing up in a rough home, he had to build his life the hard way — choice by choice — and carved out a career (and a family) he’s proud of.

In this episode, I tell a story I’ve never shared publicly — the time I applied to become an FBI Special Agent, got surprisingly far into the process, and then derailed it with one stupid mistake. It’s a story about ambition, anxiety, honesty, and the unexpected forks in the road that end up shaping our lives.

What makes a good leader? Ben’s not sure he’s qualified to answer that — but after years in the trenches running Meridian Industrial Group, he’s picked up a few lessons worth sharing. This one’s about discipline, humility, mistakes, and what it really means to show up for your people every day.

Ever wonder why we care so much about work? Ben dives into our obsession with productivity, what happens when work becomes identity, and a backpacking trip that reminded him what really matters.

When I was younger, I thought I’d be a Marine. I was accepted to Officer Candidate School — but one medical test changed everything. This isn’t an “I almost served” story. It’s a story about failure, identity, and finding another way to serve.

This week on The Long Cut , Ben salutes the everyman of foods — the hot dog. It’s cheap, it’s weird, and it might just be the most honest thing on the menu. Between laughs and nostalgia, he shares how a forbidden cafeteria hot dog became a symbol of resilience during his cancer treatment. A story about flavor, survival, and why imperfection can still taste damn good.

From teenage chaos to shop-floor wisdom, Ben shares how small towns and machine shops both teach us about belonging, grit, and finding your people.

Ben kicks off The Long Cut with a story about his very first job at a local farm and Christmas tree nursery. From childhood memories running through the fields to hauling soil bags bigger than him, he shares the lessons, laughs, and pine-scented chaos that shaped his work ethic—and why he still goes back every year to help sell trees. Because the straight path is overrated.

The Long Cut is a podcast about life, work, and the lessons you pick up along the way- told through stories of resilience, failure, humor, and everything in between.