Gym Business - Business for Unicorns Podcast

A serial entrepreneur for over fifteen years, Joe is the CEO of the publicly traded, revolutionary blockchain company, Lannister Holdings. CHRIS BROWN, Chief Technology Officer In their own words... Lannister Holdings is generating scaled revenues and growth by developing, owning, and delivering proprietary technology to the financial sector. In this conversation we discuss: Blockchain technology - what is it and why we should be paying attention. The current and possible future use-cases for block-chain technology The process of taking a company public and how you might know when that is the right decision for your company Managing a remote team

Rachelle is an accomplished Executive Coach and Facilitator who has built a stellar client reputation by getting results. As e talk about in the podcast Rachelle recently started her own leadership consulting agency called Equalibrium with her long-time friend and business partner Katie Byrme. A little more about Rachelle - She is a qualified counsellor, and certified in a variety of Emotional Intelligence and personality assessment tools. Rachelle is a proud graduate from Reed College (Oregon) and Warwick University (UK). She also spoke at the 2017 TEDx Broadway Conference on the challenges in receiving feedback.Rachelle has consulted for over 50 companies, including: Human Rights Watch, Sony Music Entertainment, NBC Universal, and so many more. Hope over to businessforunicorns.com for all the details of Rachelle’s incredible accomplishments. In this episode Michael and Rachelle discuss: The importance of having a coach or mentor for business leaders How to give and receive feedback The definition of emotional intelligence and its value for building a team Our shared experience of starting a business with a close friend.

In our first crossover episode, Michael speaks with host of The FitCast, Kevin Larrabee. They talk about the struggles of starting a new business, the rollercoaster of life, and the current state of the fitness industry. Kevin Larrabee graduated from Keene State College with a BS in Health Science in August 2008. He is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the National Strength and Conditioning Association. Kevin has had a passion for fitness and nutrition ever since winning his battle with the bulge at the age of 15. After discovering the effects of diet and exercise, Kevin lost 30 pounds in three months. Ever since then he has been striving to learn as much as he can about fitness and nutrition. He recently opened his first training studio, Allied Strength, in Gloucester, MA. Kevin created The FitCast Podcast after looking for a decent fitness and nutrition podcast and coming up empty. He has recorded more than 450 episodes and interviewed some of the best and brightest in the industry. The FitCast was named Best Fitness Podcast by Men’s Health Magazine in 2015.

Radha Agrawal is a community force. She is the Co-Founder and CEO of Daybreaker, an early morning dance movement in 22 cities around the world with a community of over 350,000 members who connect through dance, yoga, music and mischief. Her upcoming book “BELONG: Find Your People Create Community and Live a More Connected Life" published by Workman comes out next fall (September 2018) and open sources all that she learned about community building with methods and exercises she designed so that anyone could create the blueprint for their dream community. She is also the Co-Founder and Partner of THINX, a high-tech, beautiful underwear solution for women to wear during their periods with a growing community of hundreds of thousands of women globally. THINX also supports women and girls in developing countries with a 1 for 1 solution — for every underwear purchased, seven washable reusable cloth pads goes to a girl in Uganda. To date, THINX has helped tens of thousands of girls stay in school.Radha is an identical twin, half-Japanese, half-Indian French Canadian, Division 1 soccer player and graduate of Cornell University.She was the recipient of the TriBeCa Film Festival’s “Disruptive Innovation Award” and was named one of the “Top 20 Millennials on a Mission” by Forbes.   In this episode Michael and Radha talk about: How the idea for Daybreaker was born. Radha’s approach to creating community. Our cultural and personal need for connection and belonging. How to design engaging and compelling experiences. How Radha thinks about using partnerships and collaborations. The impact Daybreaker is hoping to have on college campuses. The challenges of managing a global brand.

Chris is the owner of Lift the Bar Education for Personal Trainers which offers high quality education for health & fitness pros delivered by the brightest in the industry. He is also the proud owner of Lift the Bar Gym, a training studio in England.   In this podcast Michael and Chris discuss: Chris’ ability to be a super-connector and networker. How to harness the drive for constant improvement. How to attract and hire staff that connect with your values. What steps leaders can take to set up their team to succeed. What do to when the people who want your help stop showing up. The role emotions play in consumer’s decisions. The value of rational decision-making.

Joanna is currently the Vice President of Marketing at WeWork, a seven year old real estate-meets-technology-meets-community start-up, originally founded as a shared office space provider - now on a mission to transform the way we work, live and play.  Before WeWork, Joanna spent over 10 years in the fashion world at brands like J.Crew, Lilly Pulitzer and Vera Wang, working across retail and digital marketing.  Joanna also did a brief stint on Wall Street, working on the trading floor at Goldman Sachs right out of college.  She did her undergraduate degree in French and Political Science at Georgetown University, and has a Masters in Fashion Design from Parsons School of Design.    In this podcast Michael and Joanna discuss: How Joanna’s eclectic background is her greatest strength. What makes a great leader. How to stay focused in a fast-past, rapidly growing business. When and how you know it’s time to scale your team. How to turn your customers into evangelists for your brand. The challenge of scaling culture and community. The role design can play in creating community. The promise and peril of close friendships at work. How millennials are driving new expectations in the workplace.

Dan Emery is on a mission to bring the thrill and pride of guitar playing to the world.  He is the founder of NYC's friendliest and fastest growing guitar schools, New York City Guitar School, Brooklyn Guitar School and Queens Guitar School. He is the author of the Amazon best selling guitar book "Guitar For Absolute Beginners" and several other books on guitar playing and deliberate practice. He has a Masters in Education from Columbia University Teachers College, and extensive performing experience as songwriter and guitarist for The Dan Emery Mystery Band. Besides loving to play guitar and teach guitar, he enjoys coaching new business owners in the Entrepreneurs' Organization Accelerator Program, learning about music from his three kids, and reading books. And, as you’ll hear us talk about in the podcast, Dan’s official life mission is "coaching personal greatness, one lesson at a time."   In this podcast Michael and Dan discuss: Creating a mission statement for your life and work. How to keep your team in sync. How your team can demonstrate your values every single day. Dan’s approach to meeting rhythms. The importance of clear and consistent expectations. Dan’s approach to checklists and accountability. How being relentlessness can be a magical superpower.

Mona is the CEO of Motivate design, UX expert, professor, speaker and author. “I work to make technology approachable. At first, I got to think about keeping shuttles in space and medical equipment operating smoothly. It was groundbreaking and heavy, and I thrived. It gave me a distinct POV: there is no problem too big to solve for, and no design too small to make a big impact.” In 2009, Mona started Motivate Design, a UX/UI research and design agency. They are based in NYC and their clients Fortune 500 companies from all over the world. Our UX staffing agency UX Hires (2010) was born soon after to support a need Mona saw in the community. Motivate has been on the Inc. 5000 fastest-growing companies list three years in a row. Mona’s latest project is a new proprietary method of customer investigation, Insider Insights. It uses the best practices of investigators to get to the truth about what customer’s think about your company. We talk about this exciting new project in the podcast – it’s brilliant. Mona also does a million other things, so go to businessforunicorns.com/podcast to read her full bio.   In this podcast Michael and Mona discuss: Mona’s amazing book Reframe: Shift the Way you Work, Innovate and Think. Why business leaders are crummy at defining our actual problems. Mona’s 8 BS Excuse Personas. The power of “what if” questions. The importance of design in the customer’s experience. Common design pitfalls most companies make. The key signs that your company should consider doing market research. Mona’s advice on personal branding, speaking, and becoming an author.

Steven M. Ledbetter, aka "Coach Stevo" on Twitter, is an expert in the science of human behavior change and has been helping people who know what to do, but can't make themselves do it since 2008. He is the CEO of the behavior change consulting company Habitry which he co-founded in 2014. Originally from rural Georgia, he moved to San Francisco in 2005. He collects mid-century modern furniture, never carries more than 6kg of luggage, and is a third generation Eagle Scout. In this podcast Michael and Steven discuss: The building blocks of motivation science. Self Determination Theory and how it applies to the workplace. The value of processes over goals. How to embrace an experimental mindset. Steven’s tips on driving client retention. How to manage your team so they get results without feeling micromanaged. What to do when you know what to do, but just can’t make yourself do it. What is “emotional labor” and why most of us fear it.

Susan Blackwell is on a mission to free people’s self-expression. As a performer, writer, speaker and educator, she champions this cause around the world, on Broadway, off-Broadway, in classrooms and writing, and on TV, film, sound recordings and the Internet. As the founder of Susan Blackwell & Co, she partners with like-minded, compassionate artists and thought leaders to deliver inspiring entertainment and educational offerings aimed at freeing people’s creative self-expression. As an educator, she has empowered thousands of people to identify and slay the vampires that stop them from being free. In this podcast Michael and Susan discuss: The value of defining your purpose for yourself and others. How leaders can build instant rapport and connection. How to bring play and fun into the workplace. Why an acting class might be the education all leaders need. How to build fun, memorable, and engaging learning experiences. Susan’s tips for dealing with resistance in meetings and workshops. How to access creativity in your life and work.