When SJ agreed to be the event decorator for her friend's wedding, she had no idea it would lead her to the love of her life. As she navigated the stresses of planning the elaborate 180-person affair, SJ found herself instantly drawn to the caterer, John. Despite initial reservations, their undeniable chemistry and connection grew stronger througho…

John Lawyer dishes out a hilarious and heartfelt journey through his wild culinary adventures. From corndog chaos to molecular gastronomy experiments, John's passion for food shines through every story. He shares the ups and downs of running food trucks and restaurants, including some crazy encounters with politicians and celebrities. Through it al…

This powerful conversation explores the deep grief and vulnerability that comes from losing a loved one to suicide. Christy courageously shares her story of losing her sister Teri 17 years ago, and the profound impact it continues to have on her life. While the pain has never gone away, Christy finds strength in being open about her experience and …

I talk with Stephanie Villavicencio, founder of Tits Deep For Breast Cancer. We go into Stephanie's personal journey that led to starting this impactful organization after losing her best friend Nadine to aggressive breast cancer at just 31 years old. You'll hear the touching story of how Tits Deep got its start through a fundraising effort to help…

Ellen Busch returns for a second conversation and shares her inspiring journey of healing from past abuse through writing her memoir, facing fears of vulnerability, and finding purpose in helping others. Ellen reflects on her 47-year journey of fighting for her self-esteem and self-worth, culminating in the publication of her book. My favorite part…

Tyler Z takes me through the origin of Biked Goods, making food fun and enjoyable, coaching kids on the bike, the importance of introducing healthy habits to kids, and where his sense of community and servanthood originated. Connect with Tyler at bikedgoods.co, on Instagram @bikedgoods.co, and be sure and check out his blog for all these damn tasty…

Author Wiley Davis takes me through the origin of her memoir, and some powerful stories that comprise "It's Me or the Horse", including: The worst date she's ever been on? Earning trust and the power of a buffer zone. Her process of writing a book. The hardest chapter of her life. And, why didn’t she leave when she was terrified? Take a look at her…

Grab your white bread, butter and make some Sandwiches of History with Barry Enderwick. We talk sardines and sandwiches and then dive into his career at Netflix before Netflix was a thing. Enjoy Barry on Instagram @sandwichesofhistory, and his other feeds: @inthechipswithbarry, @barryiscookingagain, @craftbeerbarry and @barrysicecreamoclock. ★ Supp…

GET A TICKET to the July 31 show in LIttleton! I met Stephanie at a Denver event, and wanted to deconstruct her sense of humor - which reminded me so much of Mike Birbiglia. Stephanie recorded this just a few weeks after her dad passed away, and we talk about his influence on her comedy. Stephanie’s journey with comedy began as a child when she lea…

Doug takes me through his life working with wood: building cabinets with his dad to eventually starting his guitar business. Shipping pranks with sawdust, just barely making it, riding bikes, and just 2 nerds chatting. Check out these gorgeous instruments here. And here is Otis Rush, Live at The Wise Fools Pub. ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★…

Anthony and I talk about the rewards of being cyclists, connecting as friends across the world, and what our little companies have done for ourselves and for each other. I share the amazing story of a product going from Colorado to Australia and on to Ireland, in the hands of Sonia O'Sullivan, Olympic silver medalist, thanks to Anthony. Take a look…

Emma describes her journey to become a death doula - helping people with holistic end-of-life planning. She is the founder of Beautiful Life Beautiful Death. She takes me through watching her dad die - then 11 years later, being pregnant with her first child when her husband was diagnosed with a terminal illness. Learning to live presently, mitigat…

Michel Hogan, Brand Counsel, and author of "The Unheroic Work" generously teaches a masterclass on branding, marketing, values, integrity. We cover the myth of excellence, the difference between expectations and experiences, lessons from her book and why she wrote it, not starting with Why, values misused as a promotional tool, and how values can f…

In a continuation of our previous conversation, Michelle takes me thru the trial of the man who abducted her as a young woman in upstate New York. She takes me through falling out with her family over the events, the PTSD and hypervigilance, blending in and not wearing makeup, and the effect the experiences have had on her. She also helps with talk…

Alternate titles for this episode: A bottle of wine and a donut 2 Idiots in a box I wanted Chris to be a guest because he tells great stories. While still amusing AF, Chris has a great life philosophy about how to treat people and maximize an opportunity, and recover from adversity. We go through his days as a graveyard shift valet at a Vegas hotel…

I connect with Michael Cox from Zagworx and TheSalesRecruiter.com. In my book, he is one of the best humans, serving others as a recruiter - doing business the right way. We cover failures, self-doubt and fear - defining fearless along the way, and the book Beyond Band of Brothers. He takes me through leaving the security of working for Xerox, star…

I sit down with Jonathan Banks, President and Co-Founder of NCXT. He takes me through the design philosophy of working with restaurants, and leveraging the right technology for the owners to help them thrive - and how to create our best world. We also talk about how the customer determines the value of the offering, the intersection of values, inte…

Michelle takes me through leaving the US, moving to Costa Rica to launch a food truck. "The Salty Pineapple" or La Pina Salina happened to be only the 4th food truck in the whole country - and she hates to cook. Oh, and then when project was hitting the wall, she found out by accident that her husband was preparing to divorce her. She takes me thro…

I sit down with Jennifer Wreyford CEO and Founder at Courage to Rise, and while she is a life coach, I unequivocally prove that she is not the cringey kind! We cover how she has used her own journey to help others through the trauma of divorce and breakups, with honesty, accountability and zero judgement. We cover positivity bypassing, how the work…

Cyd's story, in her own words: I'm a tea and polka dot junkie, bulldog momma, and passionate supporter of women's empowerment…But most of all, I'm a storyteller. As a kid, I would regale friends and family with my retellings of The Three Billy Goats Gruff. As an adult, I still love to tell stories, but now I don't talk about silly goats and trolls.…

I sit down with Jessica Rae, VP of Account Management from Blackline to talk about leadership in business, but specifically how she recognized and admitted to fears as a leader - and the transformation that occurred in her teams from that candor and courage. We also explore facing mortality as a breast cancer survivor; the concepts of neutral curio…

Christine Wzorek, CEO of White Label Advisors defines how marrying human capital, business strategy, and financial strategy through the lens of human behavior can truly affect the performance of a business. We also cover the origin of her personal brand deck inspired by Coco Chanel, leaving an abusive relationship and the many attempts to actually …

Samtu Palouki takes me through his incredible journey from a nerdy tech kid in Togo, moving to the US without being fluent in English, joining the US Army, the added challenge of the language barrier during bootcamp, isolation & lonliness, to creating short films to boost his comrades' morale - and becoming a viral video star. A story of perseveran…

I sit down with Kelly Schexnaildre, founder and CEO of Merfs Condiments. And this conversation is not about the hot sauce. We talk about the journey to allowing yourself to be loved - and accepted, the spirit of forgiveness, defining grace as unearned favor, leaving the church, religion, and the guilt of being gay - culminating her calling to ponde…

At a very young age, Ellen Busch was labeled dyslexic. At the time, it was a death sentence in the educational system. With the unwavering support and love from her parents, she realized she's not broken and learned to thrive. We also talk about finding the courage to leave an abusive marriage, the transformation after attending Mark Divine's Navy …

I sit down with my longtime professional mentor and career guardian angel, Carie Zoellner about how she got involved with Hagar International and their mission to end the cycle of trauma from human trafficking. Gartner will match your donation for the next month, at 200%: https://hagarusa.org/carie-hagar-fundraiser/ ★ Support this podcast on Patreo…

I chat with Marley Blonsky, Seattle-based bike advocate, bike adventurer and fat cyclist advocate. We talk about how dealing with retailers assuming she's a beginner, cycling through a crumbling marriage, speaking up for fat cyclists and how this journey ultimately led to being featured in the Shimano documentary All Bodies on Bikes with friend Kai…

How you learn to accept that you're worthy of being loved - after addiction, physical trauma and transformation and divorce? I sit down with Quinn Brett (@quinndalina) and Joshua Stevens, (@tumbleweedultra) in advance of the Wings of Life Relay, raising funds for spinal cord research. Please join the team or consider a donation! We talk about brave…

Adam Gamboa from Talnua Distillery in Arvada takes me through their Star Wars themed cocktails, including the Yoda Soda, Darth Tater, Wookie Crumbles, and why gravy didn't work in a cocktail - this time around. We go through the history of Single Pot Still Whiskey, and but more importantly, Adam takes me through the leadership in Talnua, and the su…

I sit down with friend and sales training consultant Teila Evans from Flockjay. We talk about how she started her sales consulting business, more out of necessity than by choice, breaking through decision paralysis, impostor syndrome, the unconscious impact of being the only black person in the office, and helping create space to help another show …

I sit down with Cori James, tattooer, triathlete, self-love advocate and founder of Fill The Well Athletics. We cover her journey of anxiety, depression, and an eating disorder - to start an athletic wear company based on inclusion and self-love. We cover The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron, comparison being the theft of joy, learning that an eating …

I sit down with friend, fellow cyclocross racer and Principal Architect at Arch11, Ken Andrews. I have personally been fascinated with design and architecture since I was a kid, but never understood the nuances of why I liked some buildings and not others. Take a look at the amazing designs on Arch11's Instagram feed: Ken takes me through, with pas…

Scott Smeester has been an engineer, developer and a CIO and founded CIO Mastermind to help companies - and the individuals that lead those companies - manage technology solutions and navigate digital transformation with trusted, unbiased peer advisory. Learn more about CIO Mastermind. To download the case study we spoke about, click here. ★ Suppor…

In Part 2 of my conversation with Colleen Abdoulah, she describes actionable steps women can take to overcome gender inequity in the workplace. How to be a better negotiator The difference between assertive and aggressive Being your own worst enemy Loving yourself and respecting yourself enough to GO FOR IT Changing the mindset to overcompensate Wo…

This is part 1 of a conversation with Colleen Abdoulah, Ardent Warrior for Gender Equity. She is also the: Former Chair and CEO of WOW! Internet and Cable Chair Emeritus of World Pulse, a social network for Women to Accelerate Change for Gender Equality Board Chair of Rocky Mountain PBS Board Member of Colorado Women's College We cover courage in t…

Steve Thompson takes us through how empathy, and progress vs. perfection has lasting results on fitness. I always knew this cat was deep and thoughtful, and this conversation absolutely reinforced that. Starting with Steve's Facebook post on changing how he felt rather than how he looked - we dive into being empathetic with himself, and how he take…

Merry Christmas everyone! This was a powerful and amazing episode with Gary Stotler, coach, consultant and author. I'm releasing this on Christmas Day so that if you, or anyone you love is struggling to simply know that you're not alone in your journey. Gary takes me through weighing 400 pounds, sucking at selling cars and starting with walking one…

I sit down with Thomas Frey, Executive Director and Senior Futurist at the DaVinci institute, and he takes us through: The future vs. optimism & pessimism How we will interact with devices in the future Autonomous vehicles / semi trucks and yard operations What is it about the future that scares certain people throughout history Unintended consquen…

On this, the 100th episode of this podcast, I sit down with friend, mentor / mentee Sarah Laughlin. Sarah pivoted from a career in marketing to earning an MBA and concurrently starting SlopeThreads - Rent The Runway for ski apparel. Then COVID shuts down ski resorts, essentially destroys her business for the season on March 9 2020, and forced her t…

I sit down with Alex Elias, taking me through starting his first business at 15 years old, working with real estate agents, building websites. WE then travel through his philosophy of building assets, not jobs, trust, failure, AI, the fractional rarities business, and my favorite, the forcing function! Keep in mind, Alex and I recorded this March 2…

I sit down with Christine Hafen to talk about her life on the sea, spanning being a ship's captain, chief mate, and dynamic positioning operator for a drill ship. This thing is 860 feet long, 150 tall and operates 200 miles offshore in 11,000 feet of ocean - which she has to keep over the drill site in less than 5% variance. She also tells the tale…

Quinn, Joshua and I talk about their Wings for Life relay in Estes Park - recorded in May 2020, so long ago. As usual, we divert pretty quick from bikes, handcycles and running and chase some deep topics. Enjoy! ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★Par Matt Sodnicar

How does someone go from being a geophysicist to starting a non-profit to create a unique science fair and serve kids? I sit down with Wendy Wempe and talk about her journey to help children - particularly those who are under-represented in Science, Technology, Engineering, & Math (STEM), namely girls and students of color from low-income families.…

I sit down with 787 pilot Donna Miller to talk about her journey from flying lessons in Korea to flying one of the most advanced aircraft in the world. Starting with equating finances and purchases to literal minutes of flying time, then flying and unloading car parts in Mexico during the week and skydivers on the weekend. Chipping away and continu…

I sit down with longtime friend Jean Hadzi to talk about Robotic Process Automation (RPA) - what it is and isn't - and how RPA has a love for humanity, not a contempt for it, his involvement with NAMIC (National Association for Multi-Ethnicity in Communications), watches, specifically the 1960 Omega Constellation, and more. Connect with Jean on Lin…

Randy Wiafe - poet, musician, developer, father, son. In this amazing, wide ranging conversation, Randy and I talk about his journey to being a developer in the tech/SaaS space. He takes me through a near-fatal injury, leaving college, finding another way to pursue his technology goals while ultimately proving his mom wrong in the best way, battlin…

Beth takes us through growing up as one of 6 kids, working with Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer, ultimately traveling to Rio with Team USA as a sports massage therapist. From there, a drive of "How do I do this" led her to an apprenticeship in the bicycle framebuilding business, and opening an amazing shop in Eudora. ★ Support this podcast on Patr…

I sit down with Melissa Stenger from Allegion, and we talk about our similar career paths, through the bike industry, and eventually ending up in tech in Denver. We also dispel the myth that only technical people can run technical businesses, and the 100 year journey of her company transforming from philosophy of strong, literal, physical security …

There are two titles for this episode: "Easy Conversations about a Difficult Topic" and "Reparations of The Mind".I invited my friend Mike Jackson to speak about a Facebook post in which he recounts witnessing the fatal car accident of his friend in 1999.The story is not about the accident. The story is about one black man's experience with one pol…

Eric and I talk about his journey as co-founder of BracketLabs / TaskRay and the courage needed to be an entrepreneur. We cover the difficult process of layoffs, being a good project manager, and health issues in 2016 that ultimately led him to step away. We then go deep into inherited trauma, specifically the U curve of happiness, the work of Pete…