Jay Berard explains why great hiring is no longer about resumes, credentials, or polished applications. In a world flooded with AI generated noise, the people who stand out are the ones who know how to build real relationships, communicate clearly, and create trust. He shares why emotional intelligence is becoming more valuable than technical intelligence, and why the best candidates know how to adapt, learn fast, and move through uncertainty.

As the founder and CEO of Jagger, Jay has helped high growth companies hire top talent in one of the most competitive recruiting markets in years. He breaks down why so many companies fail at hiring, why founders often misunderstand the roles they actually need, and how great recruiters identify signals most people completely miss.

In this episode, Jay shares why surviving is different from thriving, how AI is rewriting the recruiting playbook, and why attention has become the most valuable currency in business. He also explains why the best hires are often unconventional, why human connection matters more than ever, and how founders can build stronger teams by first understanding themselves better.

Key Topics:

-AI is completely rewriting the hiring and recruiting playbook

-Emotional intelligence is becoming more valuable than IQ

-Most companies fail at hiring because they do not know what they actually need

-The best hires are identified through conversations, not resumes

-Human connection is becoming more important in an AI driven world

Timestamps:

01:24 How Jay Berard Turned Recruiting Into a High Trust Business

02:10 The Best Entrepreneurs Obsess Over Daily Improvement

03:37 Your Company Will Only Grow as Fast as You Do

05:58 The Shift From Surviving to Truly Thriving

07:12 Why Smart Founders Are Betting Big on AI Right Now

07:56 In Person Relationships Are Becoming More Valuable Again

08:45 The Biggest Hiring Mistake Most Startups Make

10:23 Emotional Intelligence Is Becoming More Valuable Than IQ

12:18 The Best Candidates Tell Stories Differently

13:35 Why First VP of Sales Hires Often Fail

15:15 Companies Fail at Hiring When They Do Not Know Themselves

17:32 Hiring a Great Employee Will Not Fix a Broken Company

21:25 AI Is Flooding the Hiring Process With Noise

23:32 The Best Way to Get Hired Today Is Still Human Connection

25:35 Young People Are Entering the Hardest Job Market in Years

27:05 Attention Is the Most Valuable Currency in Hiring Today

29:32 The Best Recruiters Know How to Cut Through the Noise

31:25 Recruiters Should Be Judged by Pipeline Quality, Not Hires

34:00 The Difference Between Bad, Good, and Elite Recruiters

36:02 Elite Recruiters Start Narrow and Win Faster

37:45 Sometimes There Is Only One Right Candidate in the Market

Connect with - Jay Berard:

LinkedIn - linkedin.com/in/jayberard

Website: http://hellojagger.com

Connect to Entrepreneurial-Excellence Podcast:

LinkedIn - ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/entrepreneurial-excellence-podcast⁠

Youtube - http://www.youtube.com/@EntrepreneurialExcellencePod

TikTok - ⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@eepodcast24⁠Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61570329516959

Website - https://www.hirechore.com/resources/podcast

Jordan Ritter explains why great companies are never built by one person, no matter how visionary the founder may seem. He shares why the best entrepreneurs are not the smartest people in the room, but the ones who know how to build teams, adapt under pressure, and keep moving after constant rejection. For Jordan, startups are not about titles, fundraising, or ego. They are about resilience, culture, and finding people willing to suffer and grow together.

As a six-time founder and former co-founder of Napster, Jordan breaks down the real mechanics behind startup success. He explains why culture matters more than skills in the early stages, how great teams can turn weak ideas into billion-dollar companies, and why hiring should feel like a strong emotional alignment, not just a checklist of qualifications. He also shares his “3 Cs” framework for building elite teams: culture, capacity, and craft.

In this episode, Jordan talks about why fundraising is often misunderstood, why too much money can destroy a company, and why the real achievement is building a product people genuinely love. At its core, this conversation is about building companies through people, surviving uncertainty, and understanding that the hardest part of entrepreneurship is not the product, it is becoming the person capable of leading it.

Key Topics:

-Great companies are built by teams, not solo founders

-The best entrepreneurs adapt when the plan falls apart

-Culture matters more than skills in the early stages

-Fundraising is not the win, building something people love is

-Great teams can turn weak ideas into strong companies

-Leadership starts with self-awareness, resilience, and trust

Timestamps:

02:19 A Plan Is Just a List of Things That Will Not Happen

03:07 No Founder Can Build a Great Company Alone

07:33 Success Belongs to the Team, Failure Belongs to the CEO

10:37 You Need to Keep Getting Back Up After Every Punch

13:23 Great Teams Can Turn Bad Ideas Into Winning Companies

14:00 Culture Is What Makes Startup Teams Survive

16:19 Your Team Is More Valuable Than Your Product

18:08 The Best Interviews Reveal the Person Behind the Resume

21:45 Hiring Should Be a Strong Yes or an Easy No

28:52 It Is Better to Suffer Alone Than With the Wrong People

35:03 Prove the Tech Works Before You Sell the Dream

40:54 Startup Success Always Comes Back to the Team

44:48 Fundraising Is Not the Achievement

45:24 Be Careful What You Raise Because You Have to Pay It Back

46:08 The Real Win Is Building Something People Love

49:47 Great Leadership Starts With Learning Yourself

51:43 A CEO’s Job Is to Carry the Problems No One Else Can Handle

Connect with - Jordan Ritter:

LinkedIn - linkedin.com/in/jordanritter

Website: darkridge.com

Connect to Entrepreneurial-Excellence Podcast:

LinkedIn - ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/entrepreneurial-excellence-podcast⁠

Youtube - http://www.youtube.com/@EntrepreneurialExcellencePod

TikTok - ⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@eepodcast24⁠Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61570329516959

Website - https://www.hirechore.com/resources/podcast

Mac Lackey explains why most founders do not fail because they lack ambition. They fail because they build businesses that depend entirely on them. After six exits across tech, sports, and media, he learned that real entrepreneurial success is not just about making money, it is about building a business that gives you freedom, optionality, and control over your life.

As the founder of ExitDNA, Mac helps entrepreneurs build companies that can scale, operate, and even sell without the founder being involved in every decision. He shares how becoming a father completely changed the way he worked, why stepping away forced his team to grow, and how great businesses are built by trusting people instead of controlling everything yourself.

In this episode, Mac breaks down why founders stay trapped in execution, how forcing functions create stronger teams, and why mentors, advisors, and self awareness are critical for long term success. At the core, this conversation is about building a company that does not own your life, surrounding yourself with the right people, and learning how to lead without becoming the bottleneck.

Key Topics

-Building a business that does not depend on the founder

-Why founders become the bottleneck without realizing it

-How becoming a father changed the way he built companies

-The forcing function that made his team perform at a higher level

-Why the best entrepreneurs move fast and bet on themselves

-The importance of mentors, advisors, and self awareness in leadership

-Why real entrepreneurial success is about freedom, not just money

Timestamps:

06:24 He Built Wealth, Then Chose Time Instead

07:44 The Business Ran Better When He Stepped Away

09:20 Why Letting Go Is So Hard for Founders

11:43 The 4:45 Rule That Changed His Life

12:26 His Team Leveled Up When He Left the Room

13:26 Founders Are Often the Bottleneck

14:16 The Fastest Way to Force Real Delegation

15:27 Pressure Reveals Who Can Actually Lead

16:31 How Founders Can Escape the Daily Grind

17:57 The Founder Hat and Owner Hat Are Not the Same

19:10 Employees Rarely See the Risk Founders Took

20:39 One Alignment Problem Can Break the Team

21:57 Great Leaders Plan for People to Leave

22:48 Hard Conversations Save Strong Teams

24:16 One Question Exposes Performance Issues Fast

25:40 Why Waiting Too Long Can Hurt Everyone

26:42 Soccer Built His Founder Mindset

27:55 Why He Got Hooked on Startups Fast

29:15 The Timing Bet That Changed Everything

31:18 Why He Thought a Safe Job Was Riskier

31:54 Bet on Yourself, Even If You Miss

33:29 Winners Move Before the Market Agrees

34:52 The Real Reason His Companies Worked

36:00 Most Founders Build Alone When They Should Not

37:57 Smart Advisors Can Save You From Expensive Mistakes

39:36 How Broke Startups Get World Class Advisors

41:20 Ego Keeps Founders Stuck

42:13 Know Your Lane or Lose the Business

43:42 Mentors Do Not Work If You Only Reach Out When You Need Something

45:20 Your Mentor May Not Fit Every Season

46:36 The Right Mentor Knows Your Whole Life

47:36 The Best Mentors Do Not Give Easy Answers

48:17 Fast Founders Need Slow Thinkers Around Them

49:19 Founders Need Someone They Can Be Honest With

50:00 Your Calendar Shows What You Actually Value

50:44 Founders Do Not Fail From Lack of Effort

Connect with - Mac Lackey

LinkedIn - linkedin.com/in/maclackey

Website:

exitdna.com (Company)

thefenx.com (Company)

maclackey.com (Other)

Connect to Entrepreneurial-Excellence Podcast:

LinkedIn - ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/entrepreneurial-excellence-podcast⁠

Youtube - http://www.youtube.com/@EntrepreneurialExcellencePod

TikTok - ⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@eepodcast24⁠Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61570329516959

Website - https://www.hirechore.com/resources/podcast

Connor Drake explains why most founders are not actually overwhelmed because of the company, they are overwhelmed because they refuse to let go. He breaks down why saying yes to everything slowly destroys focus, why many entrepreneurs stay stuck in “scrappy founder mode,” and why delegation is not about laziness, it is about survival and scale.

As the co-author of Radical Delegation and a senior executive coach at MindMaven, Connor works closely with founders who are trying to grow companies without losing themselves in the process. He shares why the best leaders stop trying to be the hero, why some fires should be left alone, and why the most successful CEOs build systems that free them to think instead of constantly reacting.

In this episode, Connor and Adam dive into founder psychology, the pressure to prove yourself, the fear behind saying no, and why relationships are one of the biggest drivers of long term success. They also explore how great founders prioritize their time, build stronger teams, and create companies that can grow without depending on them for every decision.

Key Topics:

-Why founders struggle to delegate even when it slows the company down

-How saying yes to everything quietly kills focus and growth

-Why great CEOs stop being the hero and let some fires burn

-How to train your team to stop needing your approval

-Why relationships, priorities, and systems drive real founder success

Timestamps:

07:24 Every Yes Is Quietly Killing Your Focus

08:14 Why Founders Are Terrible at Saying No

12:46 Some Fires Are Not Worth Saving

13:03 Your Team Should Not Need Your Approval Forever

17:00 This Is Why Most Delegation Fails

19:14 Success Means Nothing If It Breaks You

24:24 No Founder Wins Alone

27:25 The Best Founders Stop Reacting to Everything

29:39 Freeing Up Time Means Nothing Without This

31:58 Stop Escaping One Busy Trap Just to Enter Another

34:09 The Best Founders Have Something to Prove

37:45 You Can Train Yourself to Become More Competitive

40:25 World Changing Founders Think Differently

43:08 The Self Made Founder Is a Lie

46:12 Important Work Gets Ignored Because It Is Not Urgent

48:33 Every New Idea Will Test Your Focus

50:08 Great Leaders Know What Their Team Really Wants

Connect with - Connor Drake:

Email - connor.d@mindmaven.com

Connect to Entrepreneurial-Excellence Podcast:

LinkedIn - ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/entrepreneurial-excellence-podcast⁠

Youtube - http://www.youtube.com/@EntrepreneurialExcellencePod

TikTok - ⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@eepodcast24⁠Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61570329516959

Website - https://www.hirechore.com/resources/podcast

Adam Horner shows why becoming a CTO is not just a promotion, it is an identity shift. You stop being the best problem solver in the room and become the person responsible for problems you cannot solve alone. He explains why real leadership is about trust, listening, asking better questions, and staying steady through uncertainty.

As the creator of CTO Playbook, Adam helps technical leaders move beyond execution and into strategic leadership. He shares why CTOs need to understand the business, not just the technology, and why dashboards, metrics, and speed mean little without direction.

In this episode, Adam breaks down why many CTOs get stuck in execution, how AI is changing team structures, and why the most valuable engineers are the ones who understand the customer and the business. At the core, this conversation is about leading through change, building stronger teams, and getting comfortable making decisions without perfect data.

Key Topics:

-Becoming a CTO is an identity shift, not just a promotion

-Great technical leaders stop trying to be the smartest person in the room

-AI is forcing CTOs to rethink teams, strategy, and execution

-The best CTOs lead through listening, trust, and better questions

-Speed means nothing when the team is moving without clear direction

Timestamps:

06:24 Great Builders Often Struggle When They Become Leaders

07:44 The Best CTOs Stop Standing Above the Team

10:05 The First 30 Days Should Be About Listening, Not Fixing

14:51 Moving Fast Means Nothing If You Are Going the Wrong Way

15:35 Plans Die Fast, But Planning Keeps You Alive

17:44 Dashboards Do Not Inspire People, Stories Do

21:16 Most CTOs Are Too Busy Executing to Actually Think

23:09 A CEO Needs a CTO Who Can Challenge Them

24:46 A Strong CTO Should Be Trying to Make Himself Replaceable

27:15 You Do Not Need All the Answers, You Need Better Questions

31:05 AI Is Making Teams Smaller, Faster, and Harder to Lead

34:16 The Best Tech Teams Are Now Measured by Revenue

38:29 The Most Valuable Engineers Understand the Business

40:46 Founders Forget How Heavy Their Words Become

45:45 The Most Important CTO Skill Is Deep Listening

46:51 The Next Great CTOs Will Be Team Builders

48:51 Every Decision You Keep Is a Lesson Your Team Loses

49:47 Great Leaders Get Comfortable With Uncertainty

Connect with - Adam Horner:

LinkedIn - linkedin.com/in/adamhorner

Website: theCTOplaybook.com

Connect to Entrepreneurial-Excellence Podcast:

LinkedIn - ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/entrepreneurial-excellence-podcast⁠

Youtube - http://www.youtube.com/@EntrepreneurialExcellencePod

TikTok - ⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@eepodcast24⁠Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61570329516959

Website - https://www.hirechore.com/resources/podcast

Jerry Brazie shows that entrepreneurial excellence is not about having the perfect plan, it is about surviving what most people cannot, taking full responsibility for your life, and continuing to build even after failure, loss, and setbacks. His story proves that success is not clean or linear, it is built through pressure, pain, and the refusal to quit.

Jerry has spent nearly three decades building, buying, and scaling companies across transportation, logistics, real estate, and construction, generating over 450 million in revenue and employing more than 10,000 people without investors or a safety net. From growing up in extreme poverty to rebuilding after being fired from his own company, his journey is driven by one core belief, everything is your responsibility.

In this episode, Jerry breaks down why a victim mindset destroys potential, how “shut up and listen” became one of the most important lessons in his life, and why trust and reputation can fund a business when money cannot. They also talk about costly mistakes that come from success, the truth about scaling and letting go, why hunger matters more than credentials, and how real entrepreneurs create their own luck through relentless effort. This conversation is a raw look at what it actually takes to stay in the game and build something that lasts.

Key Topics:

-Why full ownership changes the way entrepreneurs handle failure, pressure, and growth

-Why a victim mindset quietly keeps people stuck

-How trust and reputation can build a business before capital does

-Why hunger and work ethic matter more than credentials

-Why fast growth without cash flow can break a company

-How real entrepreneurs create their own luck through relentless effort

Timestamps:

03:04 The game of business comes with failure, pain, and pressure

10:35 Why blaming others keeps people stuck

13:11 The belief that changed Jerry’s entire life

15:01 Emotional control is a founder’s real power

17:52 Shut up and listen or stay the same

19:48 How trust financed a business from scratch

21:24 Fast growth can kill a company without cash flow

23:47 The advice that saved him millions

28:28 Success led to his most expensive mistake

33:18 Why scaling forces founders to let go

41:30 Hunger matters more than credentials

46:45 Luck comes after the effort

57:30 Why most business advice online fails in real life

01:20:06 Excellence is built through consistency, not shortcuts

Connect with - Jerry Brazie:

LinkedIn - linkedin.com/in/jerrybrazie

Website: https://thekronosgroup.org/

Connect to Entrepreneurial-Excellence Podcast:

LinkedIn - ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/entrepreneurial-excellence-podcast⁠

Youtube - http://www.youtube.com/@EntrepreneurialExcellencePod

TikTok - ⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@eepodcast24⁠Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61570329516959

Website - https://www.hirechore.com/resources/podcast

Andrew Windham shows why entrepreneurial excellence is not just about building wealth, it is about knowing who you are without your company, creating meaning beyond money, and designing a life where business, family, and purpose actually work together. He explains why chasing “enough” often leads to regret, and why money without meaning quietly becomes empty over time.

Andrew is the founder of Educated Freedom, a concierge multifamily office serving founders doing 10 to 100 million in revenue. Instead of replacing advisors, he orchestrates them, aligning CPAs, attorneys, and investment teams around one thing most founders ignore, their values. His approach, called integrated stewardship, focuses on coordinating financial, relational, and personal capital so nothing important falls through the cracks.

In this episode, Andrew breaks down why most founders lose themselves after an exit, how poor delegation is really a clarity problem, and why many leaders confuse being in charge with being in control. They also talk about building family architecture alongside financial success, the hidden risks of self-reliance, and why the real goal is not just making money, but creating freedom, impact, and a life that actually feels complete.

Key Topics:

-Why founders lose themselves when their whole identity is tied to the company

-Why money without meaning can still leave you with deep regret

-How great leaders delegate better by choosing clarity over control

-Why building wealth without building family values usually breaks in the next generation

-Why the best founders stop chasing more and start designing a life with purpose

Timestamps:

01:26 Entrepreneurial excellence starts with one brutal question, who are you without your company

06:13 The business he built came from a painful truth about his relationship with his father

09:43 Chasing enough can still leave you with your biggest regret

10:19 Money without meaning is still meaningless

13:43 Most founders build financial architecture, but completely ignore family architecture

15:40 Real leadership starts when you do the emotional work on yourself

20:45 Delegation is not weakness, it is an investment in a better life

21:50 Founders confuse being in charge with being in control

23:38 Most delegation problems are actually clarity problems

28:28 People are unhappy for one simple reason, mismatched expectations

32:14 After the exit, many founders do not lose money first, they lose identity

36:41 The real test of freedom is whether you can disappear for a week

44:27 Wealth falls apart when advisors work in silos instead of in sync

47:14 Great outcomes require three things, specificity, participation, and delegation

54:24 Giving wealth without values is like handing a teenager a Maserati with jet fuel

57:44 Trust is the real reason founders wait too long to get help

1:00:15 The real value is not the money, it is the freedom that money creates

1:02:57 Self-reliance creates blind spots, strong teams create better outcomes

1:04:11 You are only as good as the people you put around you

1:06:17 The most important work for a founder is working on themselves

Connect with - Andrew Windham:

LinkedIn - linkedin.com/in/andrewwindham

Website: EducatedFreedom.com

Connect to Entrepreneurial-Excellence Podcast:

LinkedIn - ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/entrepreneurial-excellence-podcast⁠

Youtube - http://www.youtube.com/@EntrepreneurialExcellencePod

TikTok - ⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@eepodcast24⁠Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61570329516959

Website - https://www.hirechore.com/resources/podcast

Jared Gibson breaks down a hard truth most B2B companies are missing, the real problem is not pipeline, it is familiarity. Buyers are no longer waiting for sales calls. They are watching, researching, and forming opinions long before they ever reach out. That means trust is being built in the background, and if you are not showing up consistently, you are already losing. He explains why content is no longer just marketing, it is part of how companies earn attention, build credibility, and stay top of mind in a crowded market.

Jared is the founder of Outworks, a company helping B2B leaders turn their thinking into consistent, buyer-facing content that builds trust over time. With a background in sales, marketing, and leadership, he has seen firsthand how buyer behavior has shifted and why executive visibility now plays a direct role in growth, recruiting, and closing deals. His work focuses on building content systems that feel human, not automated, even in a world powered by AI.

In this episode, Jared shares why most LinkedIn content fails, how AI should be used without turning your message into noise, and why consistency beats intensity every time. They also talk about the metrics that actually matter, why vanity metrics are misleading, and how a single post with the right audience can drive real business. He also explains how trust compounds over time, why every executive should be creating content, and how companies can build a system that works without turning leaders into full-time creators.

Key Topics:

-Why most B2B companies have a familiarity problem, not a pipeline problem

-Trust is built long before a buyer ever books a call

-Executive content can drive sales, recruiting, and long term brand trust

-AI can support content creation, but human voice still matters most

-The best content strategy is a system that keeps you visible and top of mind

Timestamps:

05:12 Why Mental Toughness Matters More Than Your Business Plan

06:41 The Real Reason He Finally Bet on Himself

07:45 The Dumpster Fire Acquisition That Changed Everything

13:32 The Career Hit That Forced Him to Grow

14:13 The Advice That Changed How He Handled Setbacks

16:15 The LinkedIn Problem That Turned Into a Real Business

17:11 Why Buyers Trust Executives Before They Trust Companies

18:13 Trust Is Being Built Long Before the First Sales Call

19:14 Why Most LinkedIn Content Fails to Stand Out

20:08 AI Can Write Posts, But It Still Cannot Build Real Trust

21:42 Why Every Executive Should Be Creating Content Right Now

24:43 Why CEO Content Alone Is Not Enough Anymore

27:11 How They Use AI Without Turning Content Into Spam

31:07 The Truth About ROI on Content That Most Founders Miss

31:49 A Post With 300 Views Can Still Make You Money

35:00 The System That Makes Executive Content Actually Work

38:24 Ads Capture Ready Buyers, Content Wins the Rest

41:20 The Most Underrated Skill Every Executive Still Needs

44:16 Treat Everyone Like a Mentor and Watch What Happens

Connect with - Jared Gibson:

LinkedIn - linkedin.com/in/jaredoutworks

Website: https://www.outworks.io/?utm_source=linkedin-company-page

Connect to Entrepreneurial-Excellence Podcast:

LinkedIn - ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/entrepreneurial-excellence-podcast⁠

Youtube - http://www.youtube.com/@EntrepreneurialExcellencePod

TikTok - ⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@eepodcast24⁠Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61570329516959

Website - https://www.hirechore.com/resources/podcast