Optimizing friendships starts with choosing the right circle and becoming the kind of friend you’re looking for. Josh and Ashley break down modern connection challenges and share practical ways to build deeper, healthier relationships.

Optimizing friendships is harder than ever in a hyper-connected world. In this episode, Josh and Ashley share how to build meaningful relationships, set boundaries, and find friends who help you grow.

WHAT YOU’LL LEARN:

• Why “more connections” can still mean more loneliness
• How to audit your inner circle (energy, honesty, character)
• When boundaries are necessary (and why they’re not punishment)
• How to become the kind of friend you want to have
• Practical ways to find friends through shared spaces and consistency
• Red flags vs. green flags in healthy relationships

CHAPTERS / TIMESTAMPS:

• 00:00 Intro — Why Friendships Feel Harder
• 02:25 Modern Obstacles to Connection
• 04:36 Your Closest Five Shape You
• 08:23 Boundaries and Letting Go
• 09:23 Can You Handle a Good Friend?
• 16:35 Where to Find Great Friends
• 20:25 Consistency, Questions, Listening
• 24:03 Red Flags and Green Flags
• 26:34 Disagreeing Without Dividing
• 27:11 Closing and Take Action

RESOURCES MENTIONED:

• Watch on YouTube
• Show website

In this episode, Glenn Lundy breaks down how simple morning routines and intentional habits can completely transform your life. Learn why consistency, identity, and investing your time correctly matter more than motivation.

Daily habits shape your identity long before motivation shows up. Glenn Lundy shares why simple, repeatable routines create extraordinary results over time.

WHAT YOU’LL LEARN:

• Why morning routines impact mind, body, and spirit
• The Morning Five and how small habits compound
• Why habits are easy to skip but powerful to keep
• How long it really takes to build a habit
• The difference between spending time and investing it
• Using technology and AI as tools, not crutches

CHAPTERS / TIMESTAMPS:

• 00:00 Intro — Welcome & Guest Intro
• 01:15 The Morning Five Explained
• 03:07 Why Simple Habits Work
• 06:03 The 67-Day Habit Rule
• 11:02 Investing vs Spending Time
• 19:39 Using AI Intentionally
• 28:56 Advice to 20-Year-Old Glenn

RESOURCES MENTIONED:

• OptimizingBeyond.com
• Optimizing Beyond YouTube

GUEST: Glenn Lundy — Entrepreneur, Author, Speaker

• glennlundy.com
• Morning 5 App
• The Legacy Titles by Glenn Lundy

Some of the links shared in this episode may be affiliate links. This means we may earn a small commission if you choose to make a purchase through them, at no additional cost to you. We only recommend resources we personally use or genuinely believe add value.

Grief changes everything—so Josh and Ashley share real lessons from a recent loss and what helped them keep moving forward. Learn practical ways to process emotions, lean on community, and live more intentionally through the waves of grief.

Grief isn’t a theory—it’s a road we all walk eventually. Josh and Ashley reflect on a recent, deeply personal loss and share what helped them cope with sorrow, find moments of joy, and live with renewed perspective.

WHAT YOU’LL LEARN:

• Why peer loss “hits different” and what it reveals
• How laughter and tears can coexist in healthy grief
• The role of faith, hope, and community support
• Gratitude and emotional processing habits that help
• How loss reshapes priorities: presence, words, forgiveness

CHAPTERS / TIMESTAMPS:

• 00:00 Intro — Optimize Through Grief
• 01:40 When Loss Hits Different
• 02:39 Laughter In The Dark
• 07:07 A Life That Gathers
• 07:44 Faith In The Valley
• 09:45 Community That Carries
• 13:13 Gratitude As An Anchor
• 15:18 Let Yourself Feel
• 17:00 Live Like It Matters
• 24:53 Waves, Triggers, Healing

RESOURCES MENTIONED:

• Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@optimizingbeyond
• Show website: https://www.optimizingbeyond.com

Starting is the fastest way to get clarity—and waiting costs more than you think. In this episode, Josh shares what finally pushed him to launch and what action taught him about doubt, perfectionism, and momentum.

Waiting sometimes even feels responsible, but it’s expensive! Here’s what I learned from delaying the podcast for nearly five years—and why action changed everything!

WHAT YOU’LL LEARN:

• Why “not ready yet” is often just doubt in disguise
• The real cost of waiting (confidence, momentum, and impact)
• How reps beat perfection every time
• A practical way to start when motivation is low
• How action builds self-trust faster than planning

CHAPTERS / TIMESTAMPS:

• 00:00:02 Intro: The Waiting Trap
• 00:01:14 May 2021: The Pull To Start
• 00:02:53 Doubt, Perfectionism, Fear
• 00:05:32 The Price of Waiting
• 00:09:20 Just Ship It: Reps Win
• 00:11:05 First Post Commitment
• 00:13:20 Learn By Doing
• 00:16:34 Discipline Beats Doubt
• 00:19:44 Advice to Past Me
• 00:23:56 Start Small, Start Now

RESOURCES MENTIONED:

Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@optimizingbeyond

Show website: optimizingbeyond.com

Optimizing personalities starts when you use personality insights to grow, not to excuse or attack. Josh and Ashley Negron break down core motivators, strengths vs. limitations, and how to build better connection at home and at work.

Optimizing personalities isn’t about boxing people in — it’s about building bridges. In this episode, Josh and Ashley share how to use personality tools to improve communication, conflict, and growth in marriage and the workplace.

WHAT YOU’LL LEARN:

• How personality tests become a crutch (and how to break that cycle)
• Why your greatest strength can also become your biggest limitation
• How to avoid “weaponizing” labels and assumptions
• How core motivators reshape communication and conflict
• Practical ways to lead and collaborate better at work

CHAPTERS / TIMESTAMPS:

• 00:00 Intro — Optimizing Personalities
• 01:19 Personality As Growth Tool
• 03:59 Crutch Vs. Growth
• 06:29 Strengths That Become Limits
• 09:38 Don’t Weaponize Labels
• 14:46 Marriage: Opposites Attract
• 19:50 Core Motives + Love Languages
• 27:15 Workplace: Lead By Type
• 34:52 Communicate With Intention
• 44:53 Action Step + Free Tests

RESOURCES MENTIONED:

• 16Personalities (Free Test): https://www.16personalities.com/free-personality-test
• Color Code Personality Test: https://www.colorcode.com/
• Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@optimizingbeyond
• Show website: optimizingbeyond.com

GUEST: Ashley Negron — Co-host and Josh’s wife

Optimizing when life isn’t optimal is the real leadership test—when you’re emotionally drained, carrying pressure, and still responsible for people who are watching how you respond. In this episode, Josh sits down with senior pastor Eric Dwyer to talk about leading through chaos without burning yourself (or your team) to the ground.

Eric breaks down how to use “low power mode” as a leadership strategy, how to build margin before the crisis hits, and why the answer is often “somewhere in the room” when you stop pretending you have to carry everything alone. They also dig into boundaries, when vulnerability helps vs. when it becomes oversharing, and how community is built over time—often through hard seasons.

Takeaways:

• Identify what to cut first before the storm hits
• Build margin using tools, delegation, and realistic pacing
• Practice authentic leadership without dumping chaos on others
• Strengthen team trust so problems don’t bottleneck at you
• Choose stability and consistency over short-term hero mode

Hosted by Josh Negron, entrepreneur, leader, and serial optimizer.

Reflect: Where are you running at 100% with no margin—and what needs to change this week? Subscribe, share, and put one idea into practice today.

Leadership in adversity, resilience under pressure, healthy boundaries.

Full show notes → OptimizingBeyond.com

The One You Feed isn’t just a proverb—it’s a practical framework for how your thoughts, habits, and inputs shape who you become. In this episode, Ashley and I break down the “two wolves” story (the good wolf vs. the destructive wolf) and get brutally honest about what most people miss: the negative path is usually the default… and changing it takes reps.

We connect the proverb to real life—gratitude, media consumption, dopamine loops, “neurons that fire together wire together,” and why your environment and inputs matter more than you want to admit. We also share a defining moment from our marriage (a serious ATV accident) and how choosing the right mindset in a hard season didn’t just help us survive—it made us stronger.

Takeaways:

• Identify what you’re feeding daily (media, self-talk, habits, relationships)
• Interrupt negative spirals with simple practices like gratitude and “pause + evaluate”
• Rewire habits through small, consistent reps instead of all-or-nothing swings
• Protect your mind by being selective about what you consume
• Choose responses on purpose—especially when life punches you in the face

Hosted by Josh Negron, entrepreneur, leader, and serial optimizer with his co-host, Ashley Negron.

If this hit home, share it with someone who’s been feeding the wrong wolf—and commit to one better “meal” today.

Mindset coaching, habit change, gratitude practice.

Full show notes → [OptimizingBeyond.com

Most people underestimate how much leadership accountability shapes their homes, teams, and communities. When good men — or good leaders — do nothing, disorder fills the vacuum.

This episode digs into the quiet dangers of abdication and why passivity always creates unintended consequences. We explore how appreciation fuels responsibility, why strength must be controlled not hidden, and how servant leadership calls you to show up long before you feel ready.

You’ll learn why avoiding conflict creates bigger conflict, why stepping back invites chaos, and why the people you lead need clarity more than they need perfection. We break down the difference between peacekeeping and peacemaking, why accountability is an act of love, and how intentional presence stabilizes relationships, teams, and culture itself.

These are the lessons that transform marriages, raise healthier kids, build trustworthy teams, and shape strong communities — all starting with one person deciding to take responsibility.

Takeaways

• Recognize how abdication creates disorder
• Show up before you feel fully prepared
• Practice servant leadership through controlled strength
• Communicate truth in love instead of avoiding conflict
• Model responsibility to elevate everyone around you

Hosted by Josh Negron, entrepreneur, leader, and serial optimizer.

If this challenges you, share it with someone who’s ready to step up and lead where it matters most.

Related phrases: responsible leadership, servant leadership, emotional maturity