Problem Solvers

Musicians are the overlooked influencers. That's what Jesse Kirshbaum of Nue Agency says. He creates partnerships between the largest brands and musicians, and says that all entrepreneurs, of any size, should consider working with musicians too. They're cultural influencers full of authenticity, have loyal followings, and aren't getting the kind of brand deals that traditional "influencers" do. So...

Codie Sanchez started by buying a little laundromat. Now she has a portfolio of small local businesses that drive tens of millions in annual revenue, and developed a playbook for anyone looking to buy small businesses and build serious wealth. Her new book is called Main Street Millionaire, and in this episode, she explains how and why small biz is such a great buying opportunity. Learn more about...

Notion is changing the way people communicate and collaborate. Cofounder and CEO Ivan Zhao has an unusual philosophy about how to do it — which anyone can follow. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Catherine Connelly cofounded one of the first social media platforms, and was early in the online dating space. And over time, she learned how to do a very hard thing: She killed features that she loved, and that customers loved, because they no longer served the company. How and when do you do that? She discusses. Read Catherine's new book, Designing Success: Lessons from 20 Years as a Female Tec...

Carla Ondrasik hates the word "try." She says it's holding you back from taking action achieving your goals. On today's episode, Carla will give you a better way to approach big and scary tasks: No more trying allowed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How do you grow, while staying true to what made you successful in the first place? It's something that Chip & Joanna Gaines (Fixer Upper, Magnolia) think a lot about. In this episode, a candid conversation with them about growth, challenges, and what should always remain the same. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

I bombed on stage. It was terrible and embarrassing. Then I learned something very important about how to recover, and it's a lesson I'll use for the rest of my life. Here it is. It'll make you feel better the next time something goes wrong. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Work is changing. People don't feel job security they way they did before. So how do you motivate teams that are operating scared? Mithu Storoni has a unique answer. She's a physician, neuroscience researcher and ophthalmic surgeon who advises multinational corporations on mental performance and stress management (and author of the new book Hyperefficient). On this episode, she explains what reall...

Want to build incredible products? Listen closely to your customers, and (importantly!) have a system to turn those insights into action. In this episode, I speak with Mary Beth Westmoreland, VP of Selling Partner Experience at Amazon, about how this happens on her global selling partner experience team. Her team's products impact millions of businesses, so the stakes are high — and she's incredib...

We had an idea: What if we took a talented but financially struggling artist, and paired them with a coach who helps artists build businesses? The result was magic! Today, you'll hear art-business coach Carolyn Edlund work with photographer Matthew Cortellesi. At the start, Matthew was selling occasional photos but had no idea how to create a real business. By the end, he had a new website and an...

Pasta is a crowded space, so how did Amazon help Madalina Defta and Arash Hashemi, the husband-and-wife duo behind Kaizen Food Company, transform their vision into a thriving brand without relying on traditional marketing? In this episode, they explain how they did it: They leveraged engaging content to build a loyal clientele, refined their product that speaks to an underserved customer base, and...

Erin Wade hated her job. So she created a mac & cheese restaurant called Homeroom, then rethought how every other employee should be treated. In this episode, she explains how she rethough discipline, incentives, and the working environment, and built a place that people actually want to work in. Erin's new book about this is called Mac & Cheese Millionaire. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...

Mike Maples Jr. is one fo the pioneers of seed-stage investing, and invested early in the likes of Twitter, Twitch, and Lyft. I asked him to do something a little unusual: give advice to small business owners who, instead of pitching VCs like him, are instead pitching their family and friends. His advice reveals a lot about how investors think, whether they're pros like him or just a mom or pop at...

How do you see the opportunity that others don't? That's what we discuss with Kuo Zhang, president of Alibaba.com, who has overseen a massive transformation of the company. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Brian Lee cofounded LegalZoom, ShoeDazzle, Honest Company, and now Arena Club, and he believes a lot of conventional business wisdom is backward. Here, he shares the hidden path to founder success. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Removery had a problem: It wanted to rapidly expand and become the world's largest tattoo removal company, but it couldn't find enough tattoo removal specialists to hire. So it built a system to create its ideal employees. Here's a lesson for anyone looking to hire the right people. Removery COO Jo Kelton explains. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Are you prepared to sell your business? Even if a sale is many years away, you should start planning now — and avoid the common mistakes that devalue many other businesses. CLA managing principal of industry Brandon Knight explains why not all businesses are sellable, why you need to build a leadership team, and why it's so important to look at your impact beyond your business. This episode is bro...

Does self-promotion make you uncomfortable? You need to start — because if you don't talk yourself up, nobody else will! On today's episode, I offer my four rules of self-promotion, four ways to talk yourself up if you're afraid to do it, and then how to handle the inevidable haters. These are all tips from my newsletter, One Thing Better. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adcho...

David Walker is the Founder of iCell Consulting LLC, a consulting firm specializing in telecommunications analysis. After a successful career in telecommunications, David decided to start the business by pursuing his skill of analyzing telephone records. Working with multiple telecommunications companies, David has helped solve over 200 criminal cases, bringing him across the country over the last...

Do you know what makes your brand special? Sometimes, you're wrong — and the "special sauce" you cling to can actually be holding your company back. That's the story of HiBall, an energy drink that was struggling to gain traction... until they rethought a critical part of the brand. Sales went through the roof, and the company was sold to Anheuser-Busch. Here, HiBall cofounder Dan Craytor explains...

Want to become a keynote speaker, but you're not sure how to get on stage and get paid? Katrina Mitchell has advice. She's the founder of Franchise Speakers, an agency that books speakers for franchise events, and shares how speakers can find their niche, develop their product, and start making money. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Entrepreneurs make a mistake: They often think of decisions as binary, where one answer is definitely right and the other is definitely wrong. Astrophysicist Saul Perlmutter says there's a better way to approach decisions — and it's with "probabilistic thinking," a concept that's familiar to scientists but less so to businesspeople. Today, he explains. Saul also writes about this in his new book T...

Entrepreneurs often take on too much, so when should you say "yes" to something new? I talk about that with best-selling author Dan Heath, a busy guy who took on a new project, a great podcast called What It's Like To Be... In this episode, we discuss how to evaluate new ideas, which are worth committing to, and how to know if they're truly valuable. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megapho...

We often take on too much, desire too much, or feel stuck between different paths. How can we navigate it? Social psychology professor Tessa West, author of the new book Job Therapy, helps us make sense of our complex paths — and our often complex relationship with work. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In every partnership, there will be disagreements. But they don't have to ruin your relationships. Today, listen in on a coaching session about this: Jason talks with an entrepreneur who disagrees with his cofounders (and family members!). This is an episode from Jason's other podcast, Help Wanted. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices