From side hustle at 15 to SaaS founder — Ryan Austin shares the raw entrepreneur story behind personal growth, success mindset, self improvement, and starting a business with nothing but grit.

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In this candid conversation, Ryan — Founder and CEO of Cognota, the world's first Learn Ops platform — tells the full, unfiltered story of what entrepreneurship actually looks like from the inside. The side hustles that became real businesses. The exits. The wrong partnerships. And the moment in Austin, Texas, when he slid down against a wall, went into something like a fetal position, and genuinely thought it was over. This is not a highlight reel. This is the real thing. 🔑 What you'll get from this conversation: → How Ryan turned a teenager's side hustle into real businesses with employees — before he could drive → Why his university campus store shut him down (and what he did next) → The wrong partnership that killed a business that could have been massive → How he became SVP by pitching the board a revenue stream they didn't know they needed → The $100K phone call that came the second he hit rock bottom → Why he says "businesses don't die unless you kill them" → What the SaaS apocalypse looks like from inside a company going fully AI-native → His advice for anyone in L&D or corporate training who is job searching right now → What he'd tell his younger self — including the childhood stuff he rarely shares Whether you're building a business from scratch, navigating a career pivot, working in learning and development, or sharpening your entrepreneur mindset — this one's for you.

MEET RYAN AUSTIN: Ryan Austin is a serial entrepreneur and thought leader in talent development with nearly 20 years of experience. As CEO of Cognota, the leading LearnOps platform, he's building a new software category focused on the operational effectiveness of corporate L&D, Talent, and HR teams. Cognota's patent-pending technology is trusted by global enterprises and recognized by Brandon Hall Group. Ryan is also host of the LearnOps Leadership Series and a contributor to Forbes Business Council, ATD, and Training Journal.

CONNECT WITH RYAN:

IG: @ryanwhyyy

LI: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryanaustin3

Candice Mitchell is a Talent Development Strategist, CEO of Talent Collective, and USA Today bestselling author of Choose You: For the People Who Refuse to Disappear. With nearly two decades of experience building and leading capability functions inside global and Fortune 500 organizations, she founded Talent Collective, a premium capability-building firm for L&D, HR, Change, and People leaders in high-growth companies.

Website: https://talentcollective.org/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/candicemitchelltc/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/candice_mitchell_msc/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@candice_mitchell_msc

Talent Development Academy: https://courses.talentcollective.org/bundles/talent-development-academy

Choose You book: https://chooseyoubook.com/

Original music composed by: Paul DeHaven

pauldehavenmusic.com

Adrienne Weimer’s career path did not follow a straight line and that is exactly what makes this conversation so powerful. From nearly becoming a doctor, to building a career in consulting and leadership development, to moving alone across the world to Thailand, to leaving LinkedIn and building a million-dollar business, Adrienne shares the real story behind what it takes to trust yourself through uncertainty.

This episode is a deeply honest conversation about identity shifts, career pivots, resilience, entrepreneurship, and what success really looks like when you define it on your own terms. If you are navigating change, questioning your next step, or building something that asks you to believe in yourself before the proof exists, this conversation will stay with you.

What you’ll get from this episode:

• How to know when it’s time to pivot
• The courage it takes to trust yourself without proof
• Lessons from corporate leadership and entrepreneurship
• What building a business really feels like behind the scenes
• How moving abroad changed Adrienne’s perspective
• Why success should be defined by freedom, not titles

Get to know Adrienne:

Adrienne Weimer is a business mentor and former LinkedIn Sales Consultant who helps conscious women entrepreneurs build businesses where visibility feels safe, sales feel aligned, and wealth feels natural. With over four years of experience at LinkedIn and more than 3,000 entrepreneurs, coaches, and sales professionals mentored, Adrienne brings both insider strategy and deep coaching expertise to her work.

Through her signature coaching programs and masterminds, she helps women become visible with confidence, sell through self-trust instead of pressure, and build sustainable financial freedom without burnout or bro tactics. Her mission is to empower women to own their brilliance, lead with presence, and create meaningful impact while working less.

Connect with Adrienne:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/coachadrienneweimer/ Website: https://www.adrienneweimer.com/

Candice Mitchell is a Talent Development Strategist, CEO of Talent Collective, and USA Today bestselling author of Choose You: For the People Who Refuse to Disappear. With nearly two decades of experience building and leading capability functions inside global and Fortune 500 organizations, she founded Talent Collective, a premium capability-building firm for L&D, HR, Change, and People leaders in high-growth companies.

Website: https://talentcollective.org/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/candicemitchelltc/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/candice_mitchell_msc/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@candice_mitchell_msc

Talent Development Academy: https://courses.talentcollective.org/bundles/talent-development-academy

Choose You book: https://chooseyoubook.com/

Original music composed by: Paul DeHaven

pauldehavenmusic.com

What if career growth isn’t about climbing faster — but choosing challenge over comfort?

In this episode, Candice Mitchell sits down with learning & development leader, community builder, and solopreneur Anamaria Dorgo to unpack what a non-linear, intentional career really looks like.

From starting in retail, to staying with one company for a decade across countries and roles, to experimenting with consulting, community building, and finally finding the right hybrid — this conversation is an honest look at clarity, pivots, and designing a career that actually fits.

No hype. No “follow your passion” clichés. Just real decisions, trade-offs, and growth.

• Why variety and challenge matter more than titles
• How to think about sideways (and backward) career moves
• The role clarity plays when things get hard
• Why not every career needs an “all-in” leap
• How side projects quietly shape long-term success

This episode is for anyone questioning their next move or wondering if they’re “doing it wrong.”

Get to know Anamaria

Anamaria is a Learning & Development Manager and Community Builder, a podcast host, and the founder of Handle with Brain. You'll usually find her tinkering with collaborative projects at the overlap between community + (learning) experience design + facilitation.

She prefer practical approaches over grand theories, and she cares about creating environments where people share what they know, challenge each other, and make progress together.

Connect with Anamaria

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anamariadorgo/

Podcast (Mapping Ties) : https://mapping-ties.com/

Newsletter: https://anamariadorgo.substack.com/

Candice Mitchell is a Talent Development Strategist, CEO of Talent Collective, and USA Today bestselling author of Choose You: For the People Who Refuse to Disappear. With nearly two decades of experience building and leading capability functions inside global and Fortune 500 organizations, she founded Talent Collective, a premium capability-building firm for L&D, HR, Change, and People leaders in high-growth companies.

Website: https://talentcollective.org/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/candicemitchelltc/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/candice_mitchell_msc/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@candice_mitchell_msc

Talent Development Academy: https://courses.talentcollective.org/bundles/talent-development-academy

Choose You book: https://chooseyoubook.com/

Original music composed by: Paul DeHaven

pauldehavenmusic.com

What if the way we educate people is actively working against how humans actually learn?

In this episode, Candice Mitchell sits down with learning strategist, leadership expert, and author Nick Shackleton-Jones to unpack why traditional education and corporate learning miss the mark and what actually creates meaning, growth, and capability.

From lecturing psychology, to consulting at global organizations like the BBC, BP, and Deloitte, Nick shares real stories about learning systems, leadership mistakes, and why most development programs fail the people they’re meant to serve.

This is a candid conversation about purpose, experience design, and building learning that actually sticks.

1. Why education feels empty for so many people
2. What really shapes purpose and career direction
3. 
   
4. How learning became a ritual instead of an experience
5. Why breaking the mold often leads to impact
6. What leaders get wrong about learning and development
7. 
   

If you work in leadership, L&D, HR, or simply care about how people grow — this one’s for you.

Get to know Nick:

Nick Shackleton-Jones is the author of How People Learn, a book which introduces the first general theory of learning & describes how to apply it. An industry revolutionary, he introduced the ‘courses to resources’ mantra & pioneered human-centred learning design (5Di).

A track record of shaping future learning approaches for public & private organisations, he is winner of several awards for people development, strategy, innovation, & learning content (including the Learning & Performance Institute’s Award for Services to the Learning Industry, 2017). He is the former CLO at Deloitte UK & now CEO at Shackleton Consulting.

Connect with Nick:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shackletonjones/

X: @shackletonjones

Tiktok: @shackletonjones

Candice Mitchell is a Talent Development Strategist, CEO of Talent Collective, and USA Today bestselling author of Choose You: For the People Who Refuse to Disappear. With nearly two decades of experience building and leading capability functions inside global and Fortune 500 organizations, she founded Talent Collective, a premium capability-building firm for L&D, HR, Change, and People leaders in high-growth companies.

Website: https://talentcollective.org/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/candicemitchelltc/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/candice_mitchell_msc/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@candice_mitchell_msc

Talent Development Academy: https://courses.talentcollective.org/bundles/talent-development-academy

Choose You book: https://chooseyoubook.com/

Original music composed by: Paul DeHaven

pauldehavenmusic.com

For years, learning and development has focused on content.

More courses.

More platforms.

More information.

But information isn’t the problem anymore.

In this episode, Candice speaks with learning leader Ajay to talk about what actually helps people learn, grow, and change their behavior at work.

Ajay shares his journey from discovering e-learning early in his career to working across the UK and Europe in corporate L&D. Along the way, he began noticing something important: the moments people remember most in learning aren’t slides or modules — they’re stories.

This conversation explores why storytelling is one of the most powerful tools in learning and development, why the industry may be focusing on the wrong problem, and what organizations need to rethink if they want learning to actually work.

If you work in L&D, leadership, HR, or anyone responsible for helping people grow at work, this conversation will give you a lot to think about.

1. Why information alone doesn’t drive learning
2. The role storytelling plays in behavior change
3. What many organizations misunderstand about learning content
4. Why human connection still matters in the age of AI
5. How L&D can move from content delivery to real impact

Get to know Ajay:

Ajay Jacob is an L&D professional and Storyteller. After 20 years of L&D roles across multiple countries, he founded Tell More Stories to help individuals and teams use storytelling principles to increase their impact. His work also involves working with L&D teams to integrate Story more deeply into learning design to drive better engagement and results.

Connect with Ajay:

LinkedIn: https://in.linkedin.com/in/ajaytj

Course: https://www.udemy.com/course/storytelling-foundations-unlocking-the-power-of-stories/?referralCode=91BDA7E8C30712E28687

Candice Mitchell is a Talent Development Strategist, CEO of Talent Collective, and USA Today bestselling author of Choose You: For the People Who Refuse to Disappear. With nearly two decades of experience building and leading capability functions inside global and Fortune 500 organizations, she founded Talent Collective, a premium capability-building firm for L&D, HR, Change, and People leaders in high-growth companies.

Website: https://talentcollective.org/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/candicemitchelltc/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/candice_mitchell_msc/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@candice_mitchell_msc

Talent Development Academy: https://courses.talentcollective.org/bundles/talent-development-academy

Choose You book: https://chooseyoubook.com/

Original music composed by: Paul DeHaven

pauldehavenmusic.com

Leadership isn’t about having all the answers it’s about being willing to ask better questions.

In this episode, Candice Mitchell sits down with Al Dea, founder of Edge of Work, to unpack what leadership really looks like in practice not theory.

From Al’s first leadership role at age 14, to navigating loss early in his consulting career, to building a consulting practice rooted in empathy, curiosity, and context this conversation is honest, grounded, and deeply human.

Together, they explore how leaders are shaped, how trust is built, and why curiosity matters more than authority in today’s workplace.

What you’ll get from this episode

1. Why curiosity is a leadership skill — not a personality trait
2. How early leadership mistakes shape better leaders later
3. The role empathy plays in high-pressure work environments
4. How to build meaningful professional relationships over time
5. Why leadership is more about others than yourself

This episode is for leaders who care about doing it right, not just doing it fast.

Get to know Al:

Al is a speaker, facilitator, and advisor. He runs The Edge of Work, a talent and leadership consulting firm that helps organizations develop their leaders with the critical skills they need to lead in a changing workplace.

Al’s insights on leadership have been featured in Forbes, Fast Company, and Business Insider. He is also recognized by LinkedIn as a Top Voice in Leadership and the Future of Work. Previously, Al worked at Deloitte Consulting LLP and Salesforce. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree from Boston College and an MBA from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Connect with Al:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/itsaldea/

Website: https://theedgeofwork.com/

Candice Mitchell is a Talent Development Strategist, CEO of Talent Collective, and USA Today bestselling author of Choose You: For the People Who Refuse to Disappear. With nearly two decades of experience building and leading capability functions inside global and Fortune 500 organizations, she founded Talent Collective, a premium capability-building firm for L&D, HR, Change, and People leaders in high-growth companies.

Website: https://talentcollective.org/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/candicemitchelltc/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/candice_mitchell_msc/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@candice_mitchell_msc

Talent Development Academy: https://courses.talentcollective.org/bundles/talent-development-academy

Choose You book: https://chooseyoubook.com/

Original music composed by: Paul DeHaven

pauldehavenmusic.com