I met Summer through LinkedIn. She had started posting and building her own brand, and I found it inspiring and honestly a bit brave, because it’s something I hadn’t done myself. So I asked her to come on the show.

Summer is a sales executive and level four apprentice with experience across B2B technology, property and hospitality. Right now she sells hardware leasing into the education sector, which she’ll tell you is not easy over the summer holidays. She’s also doing all of this while finishing her apprenticeship.

In this episode we talk about:

• The hard parts of starting early. Keeping friendships going when your classmates are out on a weekday afternoon, moving from eight weeks of summer holiday to 28 days of annual leave, and the comments she got for choosing an apprenticeship over A levels. I share a bit of my own start too, a night shift in customer service straight out of college.
• Staying organised without getting stressed. Getting in early to beat the traffic, what Parkinson’s Law taught her about long to-do lists, and her 30-minute bursts of calls, about four a day. I add my own thoughts on buffer time and the pins example from Atomic Habits.
• What she loves about sales. Every day is different, and the skills (negotiation, customer service) are valuable in almost any industry.
• Burnout, honestly. Summer is open about how drained she felt in her first months, and about being too tired to talk to the friends she loves after speaking to 70 people in a day. We talk about what helps, from time blocks to getting out of the house at the weekend.
• Her lessons for anyone just starting. No one is coming to save you. Start building your brand from day one. Make yourself valuable by doing things your coworkers don’t, like topping the call board, running the company TikTok and collecting customer reviews. And advocate for yourself, because no one will hand you a gold star.

If you’re at the start of your career, in sales or not, I think you’ll take something from this one.

Tell us what you thought in the Spotify comments, or send me an email like you always do, and I’ll pass your feedback on to Summer. You can also connect with her on LinkedIn, where she shares her insights every day. Next episode is coming next week.

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You don't need the same culture in every office. You need the same standards. That's how Adam O'Connor answers the first question I ask him, and it sets up the rest of our conversation.

Adam has spent over 20 years in global sales and revenue leadership. He's helped companies grow from under $1M to more than $150M in annual revenue and led teams across North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. He's now Chief Revenue Officer at Connectus. In this episode we talk about what actually makes global teams hard, and what he's learned from the C-suite.

Some of what we get into:

• Why silence means different things in different cultures, and Adam's tip for learning the local rules fast: ask the taxi driver on the way in from the airport
• Why 99% of founders think building more features will fix everything, and why polishing something that isn't finished doesn't make it finished
• What happens when customers show up having already asked ChatGPT about you, and why the human conversation matters more now, not less
• Why servant leadership isn't soft, and why Adam doesn't try to take pressure off his team. He tries to find out what's blocking them.
• How you build trust with people who won't speak up in a group, even if it starts with a private message
• Our own culture clashes: Adam is British, married to a Turkish wife, and spent ten years in the Philippines. I'm from North Macedonia and based in Portugal. Neither of us has it figured out.

His advice for anyone stepping into a C-level role: you don't have to know everything. Ask your team. Nine times out of ten, someone knows it better than you do.

I also mention The Culture Map, one of my favorite recent reads, if you work in a global company.

If you enjoyed this one, leave us a rating on Spotify or a comment, or message me directly with feedback. You can also find Adam on LinkedIn, and he's happy to take your questions. New guest next week.

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Hi everybody, welcome back to Mindverse! Season 8 is here, and I'm starting it with Scott Zuckerman, financial services professional and founder of Financial Fitness Passport.

Scott's point is that nobody teaches us this stuff in high school or college, so we end up asking family and friends for money advice. He puts it this way: you wouldn't ask them for medical advice, so why ask them about your money? We talk about the mistake he sees most (living beyond your means, because people love credit cards and credit cards really love people), and why so many of us feel that first-paycheck "I can finally treat myself" pull.

We also get into why finance feels so overwhelming, how the jargon makes people give up, and how Scott keeps it simple, sunglasses and umbrellas included. And we talk about AI. ChatGPT can explain what life insurance is really well, but it won't ask whether you have kids, what you're trying to protect, or what your situation looks like. That's where the human side still matters.

Scott's advice is to start somewhere, because "I don't have enough money" is one of the biggest myths out there. You can get a free score from 0 to 100 at Financial Fitness Passport, and if you're under a 70, you've got some work to do.

Connect with Scott on LinkedIn and check out Financial Fitness Passport. See you next week with another guest!

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Feeling like life is moving too fast to keep your home in order?

In this episode of MindVerse, we're talking about something every single one of us deals with: house chores and the chaos of daily life. Whether you live in a big house or a small apartment, the to-do list never really ends — laundry, dishes, cleaning, organizing... it piles up fast, and before you know it, you're avoiding it altogether.

We break down the most common household chores, why apartment living comes with its own set of challenges, and most importantly, how you can organize everything without losing your entire day to it. No overwhelming systems, no unrealistic routines — just simple, doable steps that actually stick.

This is the first in a series of short, practical guides designed to make everyday life a little easier.

Stay tuned with MindVerse!

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This week on MindVerse, I'm flying solo — and honestly, it feels a little scary (which is fitting, given what we're talking about). Over the next 2 episodes, it's just you and me, and I'm kicking things off with a topic that's deeply personal: facing your fears.

In this short but honest episode, I open up about my own fears — where they came from, what they felt like, and the small but meaningful steps I've taken to start working through them. Because here's the truth: fear doesn't just disappear on its own. But it also doesn't have to run your life.

I also talk about something we don't say enough — setbacks happen. You might make progress, then feel like you've gone backwards. That's not failure. That's just part of the process.

Whether you're dealing with something big or something that feels too small to mention, this episode is your reminder that you're not alone — and that moving forward, even slowly, counts.

In this episode:

• Why I decided to talk about fear (and why now)
• My personal experience with fear and where it started
• The steps I've been taking — and what happens when progress slips
• Why these solo episodes are designed to feel like a short, practical guide

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In this episode of MindVerse, we sit down with Jermaine Ee, entrepreneur and founder of HeirLight, to talk about what it really takes to build a company around helping people make better decisions — for their money, their career, and their future.

Jermaine shares the personal story behind HeirLight, including a conversation with his late mother that set him on this path, and opens up about the early choices that shape a strong, trustworthy product. The conversation turns practical too: what founders should focus on when they're just starting out, and the advice Jermaine gives to anyone trying to build something meant to genuinely help people.

It's a conversation about purpose, clarity, and what it actually takes to build something that matters — both as an entrepreneur and as a person.

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What happens when a self-described foodie who builds technology for a living gets tired of spending hours researching where to eat? You get Stupid Good AI — and a pretty great conversation.

In this episode, host sits down with David Leibner, founder of StupidGood.AI and former CEO of GiftLocal.com, to talk about building companies that actually solve real problems, why the food discovery space is broken, and how AI might just be the fix we've all been waiting for.

David shares the winding journey from a simple chatbot idea called Foodie Bot to a full-blown personalized food discovery platform — think Spotify, but for where to eat and drink. He opens up about what it really takes to compete in a crowded content space, why naming your company "Stupid Good" turned out to be the right call, and what he believes sets great AI companies apart from the ones that fade out fast.

Whether you're an entrepreneur trying to figure out where AI fits into your business, a foodie who's burned out on "Top 10" listicles that don't know a thing about you, or someone who just wants to hear a genuinely passionate builder talk about his craft — this one's for you.

In this episode:

• The origin story behind Stupid Good AI and why "Foodie Bot" just didn't cut it
• Why the food discovery space has no real personalization — yet
• How David thinks about AI as a tool for genuine human good
• The storyteller advantage: why communication skills are just as valuable as engineering on an AI team
• David's surprisingly wholesome death row meal (hint: chicken cutlets are involved)

Connect with David Leibner: StupidGood.AI | GiftLocal.com | ObjectStudio.co

Exclusive for MindVerse listeners: Head to stupidgood.ai for early access.

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What does it actually take to build customer relationships that last — and turn them into a real growth engine for your business?

In this episode of MindVerse, we sit down with Steve McDougal, a Customer Success leader with over 16 years of hands-on experience — from working directly in the trenches to leading high-performing teams, and now helping companies and individuals navigate one of the toughest markets we've seen in years.

Steve shares the thinking behind his shift into advisory and mentoring work, and why he believes Customer Success has evolved far beyond its reputation as just a support function. We get into the leadership lessons that shaped his approach, the challenges CS professionals are running into right now, and what it really means to build trust with customers when budgets are tight and expectations are higher than ever.

We also tackle a topic that keeps coming up across every industry — AI. Steve brings a grounded, experience-backed perspective on how artificial intelligence is reshaping customer-facing roles, and more importantly, how CS professionals can use it as a tool rather than fear it as a threat.

Whether you're just starting out in Customer Success, leading a team, or trying to figure out how to grow in today's market, this conversation is packed with honest insights and practical advice you can actually use.

In this episode:

• Why Customer Success is now a strategic growth driver, not just a retention tool
• Key leadership lessons from 16+ years in the field
• The most common challenges CS professionals face today — and why they're so widespread
• How AI is changing customer-facing roles and what to do about it
• Advice for anyone looking to build or advance a career in Customer Success

MindVerse is the podcast where we explore the mindsets, strategies, and stories behind professional growth. New episodes every week.

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