The Action Catalyst
Southwestern Family of Podcasts
The Action Catalyst interviews top leaders and achievers, sharing hard-earned tips and advice to help you uncover your inspiration and gain valuable insights to overcome setbacks, defeat mediocrity, and reach your goals in life, business, and beyond.
Southwestern/Great American, Inc., dba Southwestern Family of Companies, for itself and its related entities and their assigns, reserves and retains all rights to their copyrighted materials and trademarks contained in this podcast.
Southwestern/Great American, Inc., dba Southwestern Family of Companies, for itself and its related entities and their assigns, reserves and retains all rights to their copyrighted materials and trademarks contained in this podcast.
Episodes
Mentioned books
Oct 28, 2025 • 16min
REMASTERED: Disruption, Innovation, and Battling Complacency, with Whitney Johnson (Business, Leadership, Executive, Learning)
Speaker, coach, and CEO / Co-Founder of Disruption Advisors, Whitney Johnson, talks about disruptive innovation and the levers of disruption, making it scarier NOT to change, providing “proof points”, the “learn, leap, repeat” method, disrupting a MARRIAGE, when feeling scared and lonely is a positive sign, and silly little things that take over the world.
Oct 23, 2025 • 3min
CLIP: Don't Be A Nickel
Speaker, author, and President & CEO of OCLC, Skip Prichard, shares the insightful way that people can often be like nickels....but you shouldn't want to be.Hear Skip's full interview in Episode 230 of The Action Catalyst.
Oct 21, 2025 • 26min
Release Yourself, with Mickie Kennedy (Public Relations, News, Promotions, Business)
Mickie Kennedy, PR expert and the founder of eReleases, a leading press release distribution service, dives into why press releases aren’t just for the big boys, how to create the best one for maximum attention, and what to do in a damage-control setting, plus shares his “3% rule”, and explains how even local press can net BIG wins for your business.Mentioned in this episode:The Puppet Masters Playbook is available now at https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DXB4VKBHPuppet Masters Playbook / Jonathan Graves
Oct 20, 2025 • 59min
Introducing "Think Big, Buy Small"
Today on the podcast, we’re excited to feature a conversation from Think Big, Buy Small, produced by our friends at Harvard Business School. Hosted by HBS professors (and former Action Catalyst guests) Rick Ruback and Royce Yudkoff, Think Big, Buy Small explores the world of entrepreneurship through acquisition (ETA), highlighting how ambitious leaders build lasting wealth and careers by acquiring and growing small businesses. Each episode features candid conversations with CEOs, investors, and entrepreneurs who have taken the leap into small business ownership.On this special episode, you’ll hear their discussion with Paige Sopcic, who left behind a promising engineering career to pursue entrepreneurship. Paige shares her journey from Harvard Business School to acquiring CanSource, a fast-growing beverage can supplier, just months before the pandemic hit. She reflects on leading the company through the chaos of COVID-19, scaling operations to meet unprecedented demand, and ultimately selling the business to TricorBraun in 2023.Listen to more episodes of Think Big, Buy Small and follow the podcast: https://link.mgln.ai/7Fgb85
Oct 16, 2025 • 4min
CLIP: The 51 Percent Rule
Brent Ridge and Josh Kilmer-Purcell, co-founders of Beekman 1802 skincare, partners in both business as well as life, explain the "51% rule" for decision making, both professionally, and personally.Hear Brent and Josh's full interview in Episode 494 of The Action Catalyst.
Oct 14, 2025 • 12min
REMASTERED: Mistakes Leaders Make, with Skip Prichard (Nonprofit, Publishing, Success, CEO)
Speaker, author, and President & CEO of OCLC, Skip Prichard, shares his unusual childhood background, the research on near death experiences, why to fail faster, how people are often like nickels, and the philosophy of working harder on yourself than you do on your job.
Oct 9, 2025 • 4min
CLIP: What Has Being Realistic Cost You?
CEO and Founder of Dream University, Marcia Wieder, explains the value of realism, self-confidence, and risk taking in dreaming, how to break down big dreams into small projects, and why you should want to be PIE (but not the baked good).Hear Marcia's full interview in Episode 134 of The Action Catalyst.
Oct 7, 2025 • 28min
GOAT Wisdom, with Brent Ridge and Josh Kilmer-Purcell (Entrepreneurship, Business, Community, Skincare)
Brent Ridge and Josh Kilmer-Purcell, a.k.a. the “Fabulous Beekman Boys”, co-founders of Beekman 1802 skincare, recount settling in with Farmer John and his goats and packing 52,000 bars of soap, and chat about making neighbors, not customers, making hay while the sun shines, NOT Shark Tank-ing every business, making kindness part of the business model, working with your partner, reframing work-life balance, and finding contentment without sacrificing ambition.
Oct 2, 2025 • 5min
CLIP: Creating "Creating Humanity At It's Best"
Rouzbeh Yassini-Fard, the tech entrepreneur known as the “father of the cable modem", explains what things like broadband and cable modems REALLY are, and how their invention quickly impacted producers, consumers, and the broader economy.Hear Rouzbeh's full interview in his special bonus episode of The Action Catalyst.
Sep 30, 2025 • 20min
REMASTERED: Dreams, Purpose, and Vision, with Marcia Wieder (Goals, Success, Personal Development, Self Improvement)
CEO and Founder of Dream University, Marcia Wieder, explains the difference between dreams, fantasies, and goals, the value of realism in dreaming, how intention and integrity work together, breaking down big dreams into small projects, separating dreams from doubts, the 3 little words that breed self-sabotage, and why you should want to be PIE (passionate, interested, excited, not the baked good).
