Business of Story

What if working LESS is the smartest business growth strategy for 2026? Michael Walsh went three years without a vacation—grinding relentlessly, believing scaling required personal sacrifice. Then his wife forced him to take time off. The result? He generated $10,000 in new sales—more than any previous week. He tested further, taking the last week of every month off. His income kept growing. After 30+ years helping $2M-$20M companies scale, Michael has proven that people-first business growth outperforms systems-first approaches every time. What You'll Discover: ✅ The $10,000 vacation discovery - Why strategic time off accelerates revenue instead of slowing it down ✅ The relationship complexity math - Why 100 people = 4,950 relationships, explaining why your systems break as you scale from $1M to $10M ✅ Survive, Thrive, Connect, Adapt framework - Practical roadmap for understanding human behavior structures that support your people to be at their best ✅ Why your people are your #1 brand story customer - How training influencers (even janitors and cafeteria workers) instead of just executives creates authentic brand ambassadors ✅ The social contract that works - Why professional growth takes pressure off top dollar, and how two-minute weekly conversations replace twice-yearly performance theater ✅ Intelligent ecosystems vs. machines - Why "I'm the boss, you do what I say" fails in service businesses, and how to build adaptive capacity ✅ AI and the Age of Creativity - How AI is eliminating junior jobs and what the shift from Information Age to Age of Creativity means for your business About Michael Walsh: Michael Walsh is founder of Walsh Business Growth Institute and author of Freedom by Design: The Established Business Owner's Guide to Grow, Make an Impact, and Find the Joy Again. His myth-busting methodologies liberate owners from operational dependency through contrarian, people-first strategies. FREE BOOK: Get Freedom by Design free (print, PDF, or MP4) at WalshBusinessGrowth.com Key Topics: business growth strategies, scaling $2M-$20M companies, employee relationship management, leadership development, burnout recovery, work-life balance, organizational culture, brand storytelling, people-first leadership, service business optimization, AI impact on business, future of work Connect with Michael: 🌐 WalshBusinessGrowth.com 📧 info@WalshBusinessGrowth.com About Business of Story: Business of Story helps business owners and marketing professionals master brand storytelling for business growth. Hosted by Park Howell, featuring expert guests sharing proven strategies. Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Podcasts Connect: BusinessOfStory.com | @parkhowell | @businessofstory ⭐ Love the show? Leave a 5-star review and help other leaders discover strategic storytelling!

Discover why 80% of new ideas fail—even with perfect execution—and how to test market desirability before wasting time and money. Alberto Savoia, Google's first Director of Engineering who launched AdWords, reveals the pretotyping method he developed as Google's Innovation Agitator. Learn the XYZ hypothesis for turning fuzzy ideas into testable assertions, the YODA framework for collecting data that predicts success, and skin-in-the-game validation techniques that reveal real market interest. Author of The Right It: Why So Many Ideas Fail and How to Make Sure Yours Succeed. Essential listening for entrepreneurs, product managers, and innovators who want to build the right product before building it right. Craft your brilliant brand story strategy in minutes, not months, and instantly create compelling content that converts customers with the StoryCycle Genie™ #StoryOn! ≈Park

Damon Lembi, CEO of LearnIt and a 3x bestselling author, shares his 30 years of expertise in the learning industry. He discusses how curiosity and storytelling are key to revitalizing corporate training, helping organizations grow. Damon explains the importance of relatable stories that use hooks and emotional tension to engage learners. He also highlights the rise of AI in training, advocating for a balance between human leadership and technology. Finally, he introduces the StoryCycle Genie for crafting impactful brand narratives that resonate.

Are your leadership meetings killing engagement with PowerPoint bullets and 45-item agendas while your team's eyes glaze over? You're stuck in what Park Howell calls the "voice vacuum"—and there's a stupidly simple way out. Julie Lancaster, founder of Lancaster Leadership and author of Beyond Words: How Our Stories & Strategies Inspire Action, reveals the REST method that's helped her team coach over 75,000 leaders through succession planning challenges. She used to hate storytelling—until she discovered how to do it right. Discover the four-step REST framework (Relate, Engage, Short, Theme) that transforms managers into inspirational leaders. Learn the "Life Download" exercise and "Homework for Life" practice that builds your story bank one daily moment at a time. Find out why failure stories create more connection than success stories, and how AI amplifies your storytelling without replacing your human experiences. Julie shares her own medical lab faculty meeting disaster—racing through agendas as Dean of Education while secretly annoyed at questions—and the tiny tweak that changed everything. Perfect for leaders seeking skills, connection, and influence through accessible storytelling. Craft your brilliant brand story strategy in minutes, not months, and instantly create compelling content that converts customers with the StoryCycle Genie™ #StoryOn! ≈Park

Shagen Ganason, a global audit executive and author of The Storyteller's Ledger, shares insights on transforming data into compelling narratives. He emphasizes the importance of storytelling for auditors to create emotional engagement and make findings actionable. Shagen highlights how reframing risks can turn auditors from adversaries into advocates for stakeholders. He discusses practical tips for effective storytelling, such as understanding the 'why' behind data and using a structured narrative to resonate with audiences.

Drew McLellan, CEO of the Agency Management Institute, and author of the latest Agency Edge Research Report: Leading through the AI Revolution: The New Competitive Edge for Agencies, reveals the impact AI is having on clients and agencies and why agency principals and marketing consultants should be AI leaders to create a timely competitive edge. Craft your brilliant brand story strategy in minutes, not months, and instantly create compelling content that converts customers with the StoryCycle Genie™ #StoryOn! ≈Park

Joeri Billast, an international marketing strategist and author of 'The Future CMO,' joins to explore how CMOs can harness AI to tell compelling brand stories. He emphasizes the importance of a narrative-first approach over AI-first tactics and shares strategies to prevent fragmented AI efforts. Joeri discusses the significance of defining KPIs for CMOs to secure their place in the boardroom and introduces his innovative tree of beliefs framework for clear messaging. Listeners will gain practical tips for integrating AI seamlessly into marketing workflows.

Join Jason Leong, co-founder and CEO of Pocketsmith, as he redefines personal finance by transforming anxiety into confidence through storytelling. He discusses the innovative 'time machine for money' concept, which allows users to forecast their financial futures. Explore inspiring customer stories, like a dyscalculia user mentoring her community and a father-son relationship healed by financial clarity. Leong emphasizes the importance of household CFOs and how Pocketsmith adapts like Lego to fit individual needs, empowering users to take control of their financial narratives.

In this Business of Story episode, Park Howell interviews Femi Oke, distinguished international journalist with 30-plus years at BBC, CNN, NPR, and Al Jazeera, and co-founder of Moderate the Panel. Femi shares professional moderating techniques including how she stopped a president mid-speech at the United Nations, ninja methods for redirecting verbose speakers, re-engagement tactics for drifting audiences, and why authentic recovery creates connection. Discover the audience-centered mindset that eliminates nervousness, preparation protocols that enable confidence, and improvisational readiness that turns disasters into highlights. Learn how classical storytelling wisdom applies to modern business communication for presentations, panels, and client meetings. Femi offers Business of Story listeners 10% off Moderate the Panel services. Craft your brilliant brand story strategy in minutes, not months, and instantly create compelling content that converts customers with the StoryCycle Genie™ #StoryOn! ≈Park

Mark Schaefer, author of How AI Changes Your Customers, discussing research from 300 global futurists on artificial intelligence's impact on customer behavior, marketing strategy, and business success through 2035. Learn the dual content strategy for optimizing both AI algorithms and human connection. Craft your brilliant brand story strategy in minutes, not months, and instantly create compelling content that converts customers with the StoryCycle Genie™ #StoryOn! ≈Park