Behind The Story Show

What if the future is more predictable than most people think?

On this episode of Behind the Story, I sit down with world-renowned futurist Daniel Burrus to talk about how leaders, professionals, and everyday people can stop reacting to change and start anticipating it.

We get into Daniel’s powerful framework of Hard Trends vs. Soft Trends, why certainty matters more than ever in a world flooded with uncertainty, and how to spot opportunity before everyone else does.

We also dive deep into AI and the future of work including why Daniel believes AI should augment humans, not replace them, what skills will matter most in the years ahead, and why trust, communication, collaboration, and human judgment are becoming even more valuable.

This conversation also explores autonomous vehicles, aging-tech innovation, lifelong learning, and the mindset shift people need to stay relevant in a rapidly changing world.

If you’ve been wondering how to think bigger, move earlier, and use AI without losing your human edge, this is the episode for you.

#BehindTheStory #DanielBurrus #FutureOfWork #ArtificialIntelligence #HumanFirstAI #Leadership #Innovation #CareerGrowth

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Former FBI intelligence analyst Adam Dickinson joins Behind the Story for a conversation about the hidden cost of always being the reliable one.

After more than 15 years analyzing high-stakes information, Adam made a major shift into entrepreneurship and now helps high-performing professionals navigate career transitions with more clarity, self-trust, and alignment. In this episode, we talk about why smart people stay stuck even when they know something feels off, how overthinking creates its own kind of paralysis, and why the hardest career decisions are often less about information and more about identity.

Adam shares how his background in intelligence analysis shaped the way he now helps people move through uncertainty, how intuition and logic can work together instead of against each other, and what it takes to let go of a version of yourself that no longer fits. We also get into burnout, reinvention, self-trust, and how to reset when your head and your gut are pulling in different directions.

This episode is for anyone navigating a career pivot, feeling disconnected from a life that looks successful on paper, or trying to figure out what comes next without making a reckless leap.

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What happens when a career federal public servant spends decades working across administrations—and then lives through the Trump era from the inside?

In this episode of Behind the Story, Jelani sits down with Deric A. Gilliard, author of The Longest Four Years of My Life, for a candid, wide-ranging conversation on leadership, courage, and the price of telling the truth inside big institutions.

We unpack:

• Why “Stand Your Ground” is not courage—and how fear + power shape policing and justice
• Deric’s concept of “white pomposity,” and what it reveals about hierarchy, entitlement, and social order
• The opioid crisis vs. the crack era: who gets empathy, who gets punished, and how narratives get weaponized
• Immigration + UACs (unaccompanied children): what the public misses—and what moral injury looks like up close
• Voting rights and voter suppression—and why Deric believes civic action starts with the basics: vote, call, write, organize
  

This conversation lands in the middle of today’s biggest debates—DEI backlash , mail-in voting fights , and new pushes around voter eligibility restrictions —but stays grounded in lived experience, history, and practical leadership.

🎧 Listen now and share your biggest takeaway.

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On this episode of Behind the Story, Jelani sits down with bestselling and award-winning author Aaron Ryan for a deeply personal conversation about the life behind the books.

Aaron opens up about the childhood spark that made him a storyteller, the emotional therapy of writing, how fatherhood reshaped both his life and his work, and why hope remains the through-line in the worlds he creates. He also shares what it means to self-publish, see his work adapted for screen, and navigate a creative career during a time when AI is rapidly disrupting both publishing and voice acting.

This is a conversation about identity, legacy, creativity, and what it means to keep creating when the world keeps changing.

In this episode:

• The childhood moment that made Aaron realize he was meant to write
• Why writing is both catharsis and calling
• Fatherhood, vulnerability, and his book on being a dad
• The emotional toll of loving fictional characters
• AI’s impact on authors, voice artists, and human creativity
• Self-publishing vs traditional publishing
• The legacy Aaron hopes to leave behind
  

#BehindTheStory #AaronRyan #AuthorInterview #WritingLife #SelfPublishing #VoiceActing #AIAndCreativity #Fatherhood #SciFiAuthor #FantasyAuthor #HumanAuthored

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What really keeps business owners stuck in sales?

In this episode of Behind the Story, Dr. Donna Bellinger breaks down the habits, mindset gaps, and leadership mistakes that quietly block revenue growth. She shares why business owners often become their own bottleneck, how self-sabotage shows up in sales, and why consistently communicating your competence matters more than trying to be the smartest person in the room.

Donna also explains her powerful “suspects, prospects, and ambassadors” framework, how to stop chasing the wrong people, and what sales discipline actually looks like when you want sustainable growth.

This conversation is direct, practical, and full of real-world advice for entrepreneurs, coaches, consultants, and owner-operators who want to grow revenue, own their value, and build a stronger business.

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Why do so many women grow up learning to be liked, agreeable, and accommodating — but not fully themselves?

In this episode of Behind the Story, Jelani sits down with Michelle Minnikin — author, speaker, coach, and organisational psychologist — to unpack the hidden conditioning that teaches women to over-function, people-please, apologize constantly, and shrink their voice in the workplace and in life.

Michelle breaks down the concept behind her work on Good Girl Deprogramming, explains why imposter syndrome is often misunderstood, and shares how women are shaped from an early age to prioritize acceptability over authenticity. The conversation also explores burnout, toxic work environments, cultural conditioning, leadership, and what dads can do differently when raising daughters.

This is a powerful conversation about identity, confidence, language, and what it takes to stop performing and start living more truthfully.

In this episode:

• What “good girl conditioning” really means
• Why so many women don’t know what they want
• The connection between burnout and over-functioning
• Why imposter syndrome may be a workplace problem, not a personal flaw
• How toxic environments affect women differently
• The language patterns that quietly keep women small
• What parents, especially fathers, should stop saying to girls

#BehindTheStory #MichelleMinnikin #GoodGirlDeprogramming #WomenInLeadership #ImposterSyndrome #PeoplePleasing #WorkplaceConfidence #Boundaries #PersonalGrowth

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In this special edition of Behind the Story, Jelani sits down with attorney Courtney Groff and retired FBI agent Eric Robinson for a timely roundtable on the Epstein files, the DOJ response, FBI procedure, congressional pressure, and the growing crisis of public trust. The conversation breaks down how investigations actually move between the FBI and DOJ, why records are sometimes released in pieces, what redactions are supposed to protect, why victim privacy complicates public demands for transparency, and what the reported hack of Kash Patel’s personal Gmail says about the moment we’re in right now. This is a grounded conversation for listeners who want clarity, not chaos.

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Jade Simmons joins Behind the Story for a powerful conversation on purpose, reinvention, faith, leadership, mental health, and politics. Jade shares how a battle with stage fright unexpectedly transformed her career from classical concert pianist into transformational speaker, and why she now defines purpose as what happens in others when you do what you do.

We also discuss youth suicide prevention, the state of the mental health conversation, authenticity, independent political thinking, immigration, tax policy, abortion, and what it means to lead with conviction in a deeply divided culture.

This is a wide-ranging episode about impact, courage, identity, and the cost of becoming who you were really meant to be.

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In this episode of Behind The Story, Jelani sits down with attorney Mark Astor for a candid conversation about addiction, severe mental illness, and why the system often reacts too late to save families. Drawing from his experience as a former prosecutor and his current work helping families navigate crisis, Mark explains what he saw inside the justice system, why untreated behavioral health issues keep leading people back into chaos, and what families can do before tragedy strikes.

They discuss why addiction should be understood as a disease rather than a simple choice, how families can tell the difference between denial and being uninformed, what “real hope” looks like in recovery, and why compassionate legal intervention can sometimes be an act of love. Mark also shares what happens when families do nothing, why treatment often fails when it is too short or poorly enforced, and how earlier action can change the outcome for everyone involved.

This episode is for anyone affected by addiction, mental health crisis, family trauma, or the hard reality of trying to help someone who does not believe they need help.

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What if chronic pain isn’t the end of the story?

In this episode of Behind The Story, I sit down with Daniel “Dan” Esposito, creator of the Undo Method, to unpack his decade-long battle with chronic pain, multiple diagnoses, and feeling like he couldn’t fully show up for his family — and how he rebuilt his health from the ground up.

Dan shares the turning points that changed everything: what didn’t work early on, the first real “breakthrough” moment that gave him hope, and the core framework behind the Undo Method — a combination of a chronic pain playbook plus his supplement approach (“Flexibility Fuel”) designed around the way he thinks pain gets “stuck” in the body.

In this conversation we get into:

• Chronic pain loops: inflammation, soft tissue/fascia, and why it can feel like your body is “on fire”
• The castor oil / lymphatic story that became a major early “signal” for him
• Fasting timelines (autophagy + longer fasts) and why he believes it matters for recovery
• Breathing through the nose, nitric oxide, and the “simple” stuff people overlook
• Food choices, omega balance, and why he became extremely intentional about what’s in his home

Note: This episode is for education and discussion, not medical advice. Always consult a qualified clinician for personal health decisions.

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