Episodes

  • Chiseled Ep 125 - Chiseled by Football, Refined by Faith - Matt Birk

    Chiseled Ep 125 - Chiseled by Football, Refined by Faith - Matt Birk
    Feb 14 2026
    Born in a town called St. Paul, Minnesota, you would figure that Matt Birk was destined to be Catholic. And he is. But while he followed the rules growing up, the essence of his religion got away from him as a young man, especially after having been accepted into Harvard University and then winning an opportunity to play professional sports.

    Matt thought he had it all figured out. But the 15-year offensive lineman discovered along his NFL journey that there was much left to learn.

    "When you're given a gift, you don't always appreciate it," he said. "Those seeds were planted in me at an early age. I guess it just kinda took a while for them to blossom fully."

    Getting married and having his first child — and working in a sport that "hurts" — led Matt back to his faith. Combined with the great fortune of being surrounded by professional players and coaches who embraced and mentored him, Matt discovered that like football, Catholicism teaches you to push through the "passion" to experience the divine.

    After 11 years with his hometown team, the Minnesota Vikings, Matt became a free agent. It only took a short while after sitting down with another God-fearing Catholic, John Harbaugh, Matt knew it was time to head to Baltimore.

    "I just thought this guy's going to get the most out of me in every way," he said.

    Matt played with the Ravens for four years and ended up winning a Super Bowl ring with the 2013 champion team. That's when he decided it was time to pack it up and turn toward building on all that he had learned.

    Working in and out the NFL League Office, Matt focused on doing good and being good. He started programs to encourage more than 100,000 students to read. He promoted not just child literacy, but family learning.

    Returning to Minnesota in 2019, Matt launched a faith-based high school in an underserved area. He also developed a program called 4HG, "For His Glory," a project to create a healthy sports culture in elementary schools. He's been especially active in the pro-life movement and had a short-lived fling with politics before deciding it wasn't for him.

    Now with eight kids, Matt looks at his family the way he imagines God looks at His children.

    "Sometimes I just want to be with my kids. I don't need them to perform. I just want to sit with them," Matt said.

    In multiple stories on this week's episode of Chiseled, Matt shares how football prepared him for faith and vice versa. He describes how the NFL treats religion and describes how "suffering" — in both sport and church — is not merely physical, but a mindset to achieve glory.

    This week's episode is perfect for anyone who wants to learn more about the history and practice of Catholicism, but it's also great for anyone who really loves football. And as Matt puts it, they're very much the same thing. You will hear all about it when you tune into this week's Chiseled. Amen and enjoy.
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    56 mins
  • Chiseled Ep 58 - Recoding the Unconscious Mind - A.J. Yager

    Chiseled Ep 58 - Recoding the Unconscious Mind - A.J. Yager
    Feb 7 2026
    A.J. Yager's grandfather had a lot to do with where A.J. istoday — a highly successful hypnotherapist, emotion and performance coach basedout of Eden, Utah.
    "My grandfather was a mentor early in my life," he said. "Hechallenged me to have a self-study course outside of school or sports."
    When A.J. was a boy and wanted to achieve a goal, his grandfather would makehim read a book, watch a video or listen to an audiotape by Tony Robbins,Napolean Hill, Dennis Waitley, and others. His granddad told A.J. to studythese and other self-development leaders for 45 minutes per day and write downhis thoughts. At the end of the week, A.J. and his grandfather would reviewwhat he learned.
    "All these different self-development topics that he wanted to startingraining into my unconscious mind at a young age," A.J. recalls of hisstudies. "Basically, that got me into a place where I wanted to help otherpeople."
    A.J. started his career path when he was just 10 years old.By age 17, he owned a computer maintenance business and was attendingdevelopment seminars with his grandfather. He has been professionally coachingsince he was 18 years old.
    Now 42, A.J. helps people recode their unconscious mind and move out ofunhealthy patterns of suppression into healthier patterns of connections. Healso helps business owners translate their data into growth.
    I had the pleasure of interviewing A.J. a few months back and am glad tofinally get this episode of Chiseled out to you. A.J.'s knowledge of how themind works and how to surface the unconscious to achieve what you are set outto do is the true meaning of chiseling. If you're like me, you will befascinated by what he had to tell me.
    Want to reach A.J. and learn more about how your mind can affect your physicaland mental wellbeing and what you can do to evoke the incredible amounts ofpotential in your brain? You can reach him on his website and connect for a complimentary introductory call. I'm sure you will immediately tap into some new insights about yourself and your relationship to the world around you.
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    37 mins
  • Chiseled Ep 124 - Creating Power in Everything We Say - Thomas Blackwell

    Chiseled Ep 124 - Creating Power in Everything We Say - Thomas Blackwell
    Jan 31 2026
    If you're a lover of words, you're going to love listening to Thomas Blackwell. Like the water whose molecules change based on how you talk to it, Thomas has a way of making you change the way you think, and more importantly, how you convey it.

    Thomas is the author of The Liberty of Our Language Revealed, We Bring About What We Talk About. Now a highly successful entrepreneur and public speaker, Thomas went — in the space of five years — from earning $87 per month in commissions to running an insurance company earning seven figures per year — largely and simply by picking his words carefully.

    He learned during that time that by paying attention to the way he spoke to others, he changed the way he talked to himself about himself. Rather than thinking he was in a "losing" situation, he flipped the script and chose to say he was on his way to winning. It started to work. And people started to connect with him.

    "Sometimes the universe is conspiring for things we don't want to happen but oftentimes we're unconsciously making those decisions," he said.

    Thomas explains that our success depends not only on how well we connect with others, but how we perceive ourselves — because how we perceive ourselves is how others will be trained to see us.

    For instance, a salesperson afraid to ask for a referral conveys disbelief about the value of what he or she offers. Likewise, if we view others in our industry as competitors, we miss out seeing them as partners.

    These redirects in our thought and speech can be applied to our personal and spiritual lives as well.

    "In order to reach the next level of achievement ... my value has to be congruent with that," he said.

    It may sound at first like Thomas is talking about the power of "positive thinking," and that's part of it. But Thomas is a master of language, and he coaches on turning thought into speech, which then stimulates action. The law of attraction works better when we give our words the power we seek.

    These insights on how to use language successfully started working for me immediately. Here's an example for you: instead of saying, there's nothing wrong with putting out some positivity, instead I will tell you that everything right can come from it.

    When you listen to Thomas speak and then try it yourself, you too can create maximum opportunity to be of service and success. I hope you enjoy putting into practice this week's episode of Chiseled.
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    1 hr and 15 mins
  • Chiseled Ep 60 - Changing Lives with Laughter -Greg Kettner

    Chiseled Ep 60 - Changing Lives with Laughter -Greg Kettner
    Jan 28 2026
    Greg Kettner got started in comedy on a dare. After watching hockey with his buddies one night, on their way home they passed a pub that was holding an open mic night. After a couple drinks, he got the courage to stand up and tell some stories. The rush was so big, he returned the next week, and kept up the weekly routine until he got a call to become a comedy club emcee.
    From there, Greg hit the comedy circuit. For almost a decade, he toured North America, opening for no less the likes of Robin Williams, Jim Gaffigan, Norm MacDonald, and Gilbert Gottfried.
    But it was a lonely and financially unsatisfying place.
    "The downside was I wasn't getting paid that much so it took me about six years to figure out that I like money more than I like standup," he said. "But now I've been able to combine the two."
    About four years ago, Greg founded WorkHappy, a coaching program that teaches corporate leaders how to communicate, remember where they want to go, how they want to get there, and how to blow off steam rather than "bottling it up and just blowing a gasket."
    "We spend two-thirds of our day, a lot of us working, and when we're not happy, it's a grind," he said.
    Working in suicide prevention and mental wellness, Greg also founded Men in the Middle, a fellowship program in his hometown of Walla Walla, Washington. The program enables bonding experiences and teaches men how to care for themselves and talk openly about mental health.
    "If we take care of each other, take care of ourselves, the world's a much better place," he said.
    I met Greg through a mutual friend and I'm so glad I did. He made me laugh throughout this interview, and I'm sure you will too listening to his stories and natural timing. I'm sure I will be following his mantra to "laugh every day. Put it on your calendar."
    Greg also runs the Facebook group, The Humor Lab, which he launched during the pandemic lockdown. Nonpolitical and PG-13-rated, the group now has more than 38,000 members. I encourage you to look it up when you need a laugh. If you'd like to reach Greg, you can do so on LinkedIn or on his website, GregKettner.com.
    I hope you get a bellyfull of laughs from this episode of Chiseled.
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    41 mins
  • Chiseled Ep 123 - How to Win the Dough, Make the Bread, and Serve Souls - Heather Reed

    Chiseled Ep 123 - How to Win the Dough, Make the Bread, and Serve Souls - Heather Reed
    Jan 17 2026
    Being a pastor’s wife can be lonely. The work is never done, your life is always on display, and there will always be critics. None of that has deterred Heather Reed. Heather pours into her husband’s ministry while building a thriving real estate career—one that has taught her and her husband powerful lessons about what it means to shepherd people well. “All of life is ministry, including business,” she says. “It’s all loving people.” When they moved to Centennial, Colorado in 2016, money was tight. Heather had a new baby and worked as a personal trainer. Her husband drove Uber to keep the family afloat. After getting her real estate license on a whim, she went six months without a single deal. But she didn’t quit. Through discipline, tenacity, and faith, Heather became a 2024 REMAX Torchbearer—one of the top REMAX producers in the country under 40. Her business now helps support the ministry and strengthens their mission. Heather shares what she’s learned about time-stacking, perseverance, grace, and staying focused when pressure comes from every direction. This episode is a masterclass in winning—and redefining what “winning” really means.
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    50 mins
  • Chiseled Ep 61 - Finding more Joy, Purpose, and Value - Jim DeCarlo

    Chiseled Ep 61 - Finding more Joy, Purpose, and Value - Jim DeCarlo
    Jan 9 2026
    Jim DeCarlo has had a very full life. He is the proud son of Art DeCarlo, a champion Baltimore Colts defensive back and end. He lived in Australia for 24 years, lured by the offer to play indoor lacrosse professionally. After 22 years of success in the financial services industry down under, a $19 billion buyout of the firm where he worked as a senior executive proved to be a transformative opportunity. He decided to quit the firm and move his family of six back to Baltimore.
    "I told my kids and my wife, we have two choices, we either sell the house and move to Sydney or we sell the house and move to Baltimore and everyone voted feet and hands, Baltimore," he said.
    Upon his return, Jim discovered that transitions in the financial services industry in the United States were taking root more slowly than in Australia. It was another opportunity for transformation.
    "It was a gift to see around the corner a little bit," he said.
    Jim started working with large financial services firms, but decided his mission in the U.S. would be more than technological transformation. It would also be a chance to build an environment where capitalism stands by its original promise to help employees reap the rewards of their commitments.
    In this episode of Chiseled, Jim shares when he realized the move back to Baltimore was a leap of faith, why he's energized to change the organizational culture of financial firms, and what we all can do to find more joy, purpose, and value while we still have time on this Earth.
    It was a pleasure to speak to Jim for this episode of Chiseled, and I am really moved by the insights, perspectives, and honesty he brought to the conversation. If you would like to contact Jim you can find him on LinkedIn or Instagram.
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    45 mins
  • Episode 122 - Finding Your Whistle - Chris Ullman

    Episode 122 - Finding Your Whistle - Chris Ullman
    Jan 3 2026
    The idea of whistling while you work takes on a whole new meaning when talking to Chris Ullman. The four-time international whistling champion was at his job one day when his boss came in and told everyone the staff meeting was cancelled. He turned to Chris and ordered him to follow him next door.

    So, the government spokesman grabbed his coat and walked over to the Oval Office to whistle for President George W. Bush.

    It was in 2001, and Chris says it was a relief to learn that his boss, Office of Management and Budget Director Mitch Daniels, wasn't firing him.

    "When you're a spokesman in the White House you are just one bad quote away from losing your job," he joked.

    Chris has spent his entire life whistling. He would whistle for hours while delivering newspapers on his bicycle as a kid. At age 25 or 26, a guy in a parking lot heard him whistling Beethoven's third piano concerto and recognized it. With that affirmation, Chris decided his talent was worth developing.

    Chris has performed the National Anthem for the Wizards and the Baltimore Orioles, has appeared with the National Symphony Orchestra at the U.S. Capitol, and whistled on the Tonight Show, among other gigs.

    But not everyone loves it.

    "Some people hate whistling and can't stand the sound and think it's stupid," he said, noting that the former House Speaker, Newt Gingrich, was not a fan.

    For Chris, whistling is more than puckering up and blowing air. It's a metaphor for finding your gifts.

    "We live in a society where it's always big, more, better," he said. In actuality, it's the small things that matter. Just like practice makes perfect, learning how others perceive your skills helps develop tools to change the lives around you.

    "Think small. Don't worry about changing the world. And more importantly, be courageous," he advised.

    Chris has been extremely successful as a spokesman at the top level of government. He has worked for corporate leaders and billionaires. As you will discover in this week's episode of Chiseled, Chris not only teaches the art of storytelling he also shares how to perfect your own.

    This week's Chiseled is a great episode to kick off the new year and learn how to develop your best self. So, make it your resolution to tune in and enjoy.
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    56 mins
  • Chiseled Ep 121 - Becoming a Change Agent - Mike Gandolfo

    Chiseled Ep 121 - Becoming a Change Agent - Mike Gandolfo
    Dec 20 2025
    This week's episode is the quintessential study in excellence for real estate agents, but you don't have to be an agent to gain insights in how to conduct your own business or life of service.

    I've known Mike Gandolfo for nearly 20 years. In fact, he's the voice of Chiseled — my announcer and voices my commercial. He also made the cool new intro clip for this podcast.

    In any case, Mike has been on a journey to discover why real estate agents are held in such low regard. Just Google the expression "realtors are ..." and see what the autofill shows you. It's not good, but it may be a true reflection of what people think.

    "There are not too many realtor Halloween costumes floating around out there. There weren't too many people growing up wanting to be a realtor," he said.

    Mike says the reputation may be deserved. Most agents don't think about themselves as a "person of influence" and many arrive in the industry on a whim or as a last resort. Sixty percent of real estate agents do not close one deal per year, and 87 percent of realtors quit the business within five years.

    "Most people go into the real estate business because it's a path of least resistance," he said.

    That is partly because the industry does not demand excellence. Real estate classes don't come close to meeting the demands of the job, which require wearing many hats, including financial adviser, therapist, lawyer, advocate, and negotiator.

    "You literally are taking people who have low self-esteem, who have imposter syndrome, and you're putting them in an almost impossible situation," he said.

    Mike is out to change all that. He has stepped back from the production line to help agents change their perspective about what their role is — consultants and insiders helping individuals going through the biggest financial deal of their lives while also experiencing at least two of the biggest stressors of their lives — moving and whatever is impelling them to move.

    Mike is now bent on making the changes that are going to tweak the Google algorithm. I'll let you hear more about it on this week's episode, but his goal, starting with an incredible new app called Requity, aims to transform client relationships by giving realtors and their clients the tools they need to connect on a deeper level.

    Anyone who wants to be more service-oriented will benefit from this week's episode of Chiseled, but for the realtors in the audience, this week's episode is a must. Enjoy and let's go get chiseled.
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    1 hr and 7 mins