Breaking Work
Self-Improvement
About
Entrepreneur Michael Gardon is on a mission to help people BREAK work and get intentional about their career journey. In 2018 work wasn't working for Mike, so he decided to BREAK work and design a better work-life. Now, he helps people do the same. Hear from corporate careerists who have found fulfillment in new industries. Hear from entrepreneurs and solopreneurs who invest in themselves in pursuit of a more fulfilled, more sane life. Hear from side hustlers who are building more resilient work lives. Hear what their break moment was, hear how they overcame resistance and their actionable advice for doing the same. You'll also hear a short strategy or story each week from Mike's own experience reinventing his career 6 different times! There's never been a better time to take control.
Episodes
- The Hidden Reason Businesses Stop Scaling With Ashley Bright
Ashley Bright, former advertising creative director and co-founder of Makertank, shares insights on why businesses stop scaling. The episode explores her transition to entrepreneurship, focusing on identity, emotional intelligence, and sel…
- Why High Performers Still Feel Stuck With Leila Entezam
Leila Entezam, a neuroemotional intelligence expert and executive coach, talks about helping high performers understand behavioral patterns to make more intentional decisions. The discussion is on the podcast Breaking Work.
- How to Create Lasting Change in Your Life and Career With Richard Boyatzis
Richard Boyatzis, a professor at Case Western Reserve University and expert in intentional change and emotional intelligence, discusses how people and organizations can achieve lasting, positive transformation. His work combines neuroscien…
- Building Your Bravery Muscle with Jill Schulman
Jill Schulman, a leadership development expert and former U.S. Marine Corps officer, shares insights on building resilience and enhancing well-being through the science of bravery. Her work blends psychology and neuroscience to offer pract…
- How To Turn Adversity Into a Life of Impact With Chason Forehand
Chason Forehand, who overcame addiction and homelessness, shares how he built a life of impact. He details practical steps for overcoming challenges and creating change through his nonprofit, Transformation Kitchen.
- Break Free From Burnout and Build a Life That Works for You With Scott Raven
#533: Scott Raven is a former Fortune 500 executive turned liberation expert who helps overwhelmed entrepreneurs escape the cycle of burnout and build businesses that support their lives, not consume them. After experiencing his own breaki…
- How to Build a Solo Business That Funds Your Dream Life With Joe McKay
#532: Joe McKay is an Australian business coach and solopreneur mentor who helps founders and solo business owners build thriving, opportunity-generating brands. After leaving a secure government job in Australia, Joe relocated his family…
- Embracing Change and Building Social Muscles with Henna Pryor
#531 - Henna Pryor, CSP is a dynamic Workplace Performance Expert who speaks and writes about performance mindset, interpersonal dynamics, high-impact communication, and embracing bumps in a world that keeps optimizing for smoothness. She…
- How To Take A Transformational Life Break With Katrina McGhee
#530: Katrina McGhee is a Career Break and Sabbatical Expert, creator of the Break Blueprint, BreakSpace and the author of Taking a Career Break for Dummies . As a certified master coach with an MBA, Katrina helps mid-career professionals…
- How To Uncage Yourself - The Right Way With Matt Doan
#529: Matt Doan is a transformational coach and entrepreneur dedicated to helping senior professionals break free from the constraints of corporate life and build sustainable, purpose-driven businesses online. After spending a decade climb…
- How To Embrace Your Multi-Passionate Self With Sigute Zitikyte
#528: Sigute Zitikyte is a passionate advocate for multi-potentiality, helping ambitious individuals embrace their diverse interests and build careers that evolve with them. After spending a decade in the "multi-passionate shame cycle," fe…
- Breaking Work With Kasey Jones: Badass Systems To Channel Your Best Work
#527: Kasey Jones is a renowned personal brand consultant, business growth strategist, and advocate for personal and professional empowerment. She specializes in transforming overworked and underpaid solopreneurs into profitable CEOs of bu…
- Becoming Fearless With Dr Benjamin Ritter
#526: Dr. Benjamin Ritter, founder of Live for Yourself (LFY) Consulting and award-winning author of " Becoming Fearless ," is an international leadership and career coach, Sr. Talent Management Consultant, Top LinkedIn Voice, global speak…
- Designing Your Life With Purpose: Tools and Strategies with Nicole Greene
#525: Nicole Greene is a Business and Lifestyle Strategist for badass women founders and executives who are committed to high performance in multiple non-negotiable roles (think executive, founder, mom, caretaker). Her actionable strategie…
- How To Just Get Started With Brian Ondrako
#524: Brian Ondrako is, first and foremost, a dedicated Dad to an amazing young boy who keeps him energized and young at heart. As the host of the Just Get Started Podcast for over six years, Brian has built a platform for meaningful conve…
- Your Grass Is Greener: Building Better Workplaces With Jason Silver
#523: Jason Silver is a multi-time founder of kids and a multi-time founder of companies. He gets his biggest thrill helping modern employees and their teams unlock a better way to work—surfing is a close second. He was an early employee a…
- Pivoting with Purpose: Alex Compton's Inspiring Journey from Basketball to Business
#522: In 2020 when the pandemic hit, Alex and his wife Michelle took their kids to Wisconsin to visit his parents. What was supposed to be a 3 month trip ended up being a family move as the Comptons could not get back to the Philippines an…
- Breaking the Burnout Cycle With Julie Bee
#521: Julie Bee is the founder of TJB Media (2021) and BeeSmart Social Media (2008). She's an award-winning podcast host, a leader, a professional speaker, and an entrepreneur. Julie is a graduate of the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Business…
- From Corporate to Coach: Alli Rizacos' Journey to Entrepreneurial Freedom
#520: In 2021, Alli Rizacos took the leap and left the corporate world to pursue her dream of building a coaching business while traveling the world. In less than 3 years, she has built a recognizable brand on LinkedIn and a successful coa…
- The Courage To Lead With Amy Riley
#519: Amy L. Riley is an internationally renowned speaker, author and leadership development consultant. She's worked with organizations such as Deloitte, Cisco Systems and Aon Hewitt and has over 20 years of experience working with leader…
- Turn Hidden Talents Into Extraordinary Advantage
#518: I dove headfirst into finance for one reason. Money. As a 20 year old I simply neglected who I was, and looked to go to the place I could make a lot of money. How ignorant. I ignored my real talents. Despite natural skills in writing…
- The Setback Cycle: How Defining Moments Can Move Us Forward With Amy Shoenthal
#517: Welcome, everyone, to another episode of The Break podcast, where we delve into the depths of resilience, flexibility, and overcoming life's obstacles. I'm your host, Mike, and today's conversation promises to be nothing short of enl…
- Becoming [Full Stack] Human
#516: In chasing "success" we forget what it is to just be human. I feel like my struggles have been about getting back to just being a person. I don't want to just succeed at some line of work that no one will remember. I don't want to ju…
- Exclusive Free Mini Course: Becoming Unbreakable
#515: Heyooo, So The World Economic Forum recently released their top 10 "skills for the future of work." Guess what made the list: flexibility, adaptability and resilience. Why are those so important to the WEF? Because the WEF knows that…
- Here's how you get good at creating options in your career
#514: You can do anything, but you can't do everything. You must choose your path with the best odds. Look there's 2 places people start when creating options: "I have no options. I can't imagine what else I could do." "I can do anything!…
- Grit In Action: How Danielle Cobo Transformed Challenges Into Triumphs
#513: Welcome back to another episode of The Break podcast, the space where we unpack the remarkable stories of individuals who've faced life's challenges head-on. I'm your host, Mike, and today's conversation is one that you don't want to…
- I Got Fired In The Middle Of A Meeting, And It Can Happen To You Too
#512: I got fired in the middle of a meeting. Well, I was told the next day, but it happened in that meeting. I knew it. What a terrible feeling. I was up all night, walking the streets of Seattle in the dark by myself. My mind racing betw…
- To Overcome Career Fear, Do This
#511: FUD = Fear. Uncertainty. Doubt. The triad that keeps us from betting on ourselves. And keeps us on the incremental path to nowhere. I used to be a FUD. I grew up in a very fiscally conservative household. My parents are well off, but…
- Make more progress on your career path in the next 7 Days than the previous 7 years
#510: I'm back and energized, to dive into something that's been on my mind – and probably on yours too: the messiness of Career Change. I know, just reading those words can send a flutter of anxiety through your chest, as it has for me ma…
- To Win At Life Build Your Boldness Capacity
#509: I thought a lot about how we can build our capacity to take action towards what WE want. That can seem scary because we fear what other people will think, and we think we are RISKING a lot. After all, if what we want is different tha…
- The Art of Reinvention: Finding Fulfillment Beyond the Norm with Roger Osorio
#508: We're delving into the profound topic of reinvention, exploring how to pursue our passions, even when it means taking a leap of faith. In today's interview, I had the privilege of sitting down with Roger Osorio, a remarkable individu…
- Challenging Conventional Notions: How to Align Purpose, Profit, and Mission In Your Career With Arun Gupta
#507: Our guest, Arun Gupta, brings a unique perspective to the table, one that challenges conventional notions of purpose and profit in one's career. We're about to dive into a topic that could reshape how you think about your own profess…
- 3 Frameworks for making better career decisions in 2024
#506: Ok, so 2024 is knocking at the door and I just learned a new word. Actually 2 new words. First, my kids taught me the word "rizz" which means something about flirting or having game. Lo and behold rizz is Time Magazine's word of the…
- The Power of Awkwardness: Transforming Cringe into Courage with Henna Pryor
#505: Henna Pryor, PCC is a highly sought-after Workplace Performance Expert and an award-winning 2x TEDx and global keynote speaker, virtual presenter, author, and professional executive coach. She's known for her science-backed approach…
- Banish The Uncertainty Holding You Back
#504: The only way to crush the uncertainty we feel about the next steps in our careers is to get comfortable not knowing. Which is a huge shift Paul had to make. I believe this is the single greatest skill we can learn if we want to achie…
- Breaking Barriers with Paul Dircks: A Story of Health and Career Triumph
#503: I am beyond excited for today's conversation. We've got a guest who's not only a fantastic individual but has an inspiring journey to share. I want you to meet Paul Dircks. Now, Paul and I go way back. We connected earlier this year…
- 10 Lessons From A Legend Who Broke The Mold
#502: Last week the world lost a legend. Charlie Munger passed away at the age of 99. Charlie was (and still is) deeply influential on me. If you've taken my course, Advantage Mapping Foundations , you've seen and heard from Charlie. I'v…
- The Text Message That Saved A Life: Justin Brey's Incredible Story
#501: Our conversation today revolves around life-changing moments and the remarkable power of personal transformation. Get ready to be inspired as we introduce our guest, Justin Brey, who has a remarkable story to share. On December 19th,…
- Danny Miranda On Living Your True Purpose
#500: Today's conversation is all about belief and purpose, two essential elements on our life's journey. But first, let me share why this topic is so important. When I first reached out to today's guest, I realized how much his journey re…
- 8 Keys to an UnBREAKable Career
#499: I heard this from a former colleague yesterday. Let me know if this sounds familiar: "After the events of last fall, I've adopted an "always on" career search mindset. I'm doing a lot of shameless self-promotion to attract people to…
- Thriving As A Freelancer With Tim Noetzel, Founder Of Freelance GPS
#498: We're about to dive into the remarkable journey of a man who's no stranger to carving his own unique path in the world of technology, entrepreneurship, and creativity. But before we get started, I'd like to extend a warm 'thank you'…
- The 5 Pillars of Work Life Transformation
#497: Every single day I hear from people trapped in their current version of work-life. They WANT to make a change, but their overwhelmed by the complexity of the problem and don't know where to start "figuring it out." So here are the 5…
- What are the odds the 18 year old version of yourself got it right? Or, Why you need to build a portfolio approach to your career
#496: A portfolio approach to your career is all about thriving in the uncertain future. The truth is: We don't know. We don't know what's going to change in the outside world. We don't know how we are going to change in our inside world.…
- Receptionist To Multi-Million Dollar Real Estate Developer - How Sean Sweeney Embraced His Purpose To Live An Authentic Life
#495: We've got an incredible guest in the house – a friend from the past who's has broken himself on purpose, and undergone an extraordinary journey of reinvention. But before we dive into this conversation, don't forget to hit that subsc…
- How To Be Left Alone At Work
#494: In this episode, I am sharing the tactics I implored to not only gain some separation, but carve out autonomous time to design my way out of corporate altogether. If you want to change the trajectory of your career, you need to get s…
- Empowering And Supporting Working Moms With MilkMate Founder Patrice Meagher
#493: How does a working mother of 4 go from climbing the ladder to EVP in the most competitive real estate market in the world, to saying, whoa I need a break, to then founding a corporate wellness company? By tapping into a burning probl…
- How I Broke 25 Years Of Imposter Syndrome
492: Imposter syndrome. We all know it. I know it too well. In a nutshell, it's the (irrational) feeling that sets our own limits. It tells us we don't belong. We're not worthy. Why start? There's someone else out there ahead of us. What's…
- When You Realize Life Is Too Short For Regrets With Dakota Robertson
#491: Dakota Robertson ( @WrongstoWrite on Twitter) bet it all on himself and went from Dominos delivery driver to the internet's pre-eminent ghostwriter in under a year. He has an incredible story of transformation and resilience to share…
- How To Overcome Obstacles And Take Action To Make Meaningful Changes With Kelli Thompson
#490: Kelli Thompson is a women's leadership coach and speaker who helps women advance to the rooms where decisions are made. She has coached and trained hundreds of women to trust themselves, lead with more confidence, and create a career…
- Where Warren Buffett And I Differ About Success
#489: When the richest man in the world tells you something, generally you should listen. Warren Buffett is famous for talking about finding your own "Circle of Competence". I listened. Heck, my entire Advantage Mapping philosophy is based…