This week on Friendly City, chef and former restaurant owner Mikey shares the real story behind building Mashita — from identity and belonging to burnout, family, and learning when to walk away.

We talk about chasing dreams, the realities of running a restaurant, how Covid changed people, and why building something meaningful matters more than chasing a dollar.

Follow Mikey https://www.instagram.com/chefmikeyreisenberg/

In this episode, I sit down with Joe Holmes to talk about what people get wrong about artificial intelligence, how AI agents are changing work, and why the future of AI is going to be more personal, more powerful, and much stranger than most people realize.

Learn more from Joe:Building AI Agents for Beginners: https://www.edx.org/learn/artificial-intelligence/davidson-college-building-ai-agents-for-beginners

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joe-holmes-ai-ml/

Website: https://joeholmes.devDevpost

Learning Hackathon:https://learn-ai.devpost.com/

Resources mentioned:Janus’s Simulators essay:https://www.lesswrong.com/posts/vJFdjigzmcXMhNTsx/simulators

Blog post with Tetraspace’s famous shoggoth cartoon:https://www.astralcodexten.com/p/janus-simulatorsAdversarial poetry paper:https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.15304

Heidi Dove, founder of Village to Village, joins us to discuss her work in fostering community self sufficiency through a Christian organization. We talk about the challenges of starting a nonprofit organization and the importance of effective nonprofit leadership. This conversation highlights how their efforts address global issues, making a tangible impact one village life at a time.

Great Community Give

https://www.greatcommunitygive.org/organizations/village-to-village?utm_source=yt&utm_medium=podcast&utm_content=friendlycity

Village to Village

https://www.hope4villages.org/

https://www.instagram.com/village_to_village/

In this episode, Nik Tucker shares his journey from chasing validation, success, and a party lifestyle to finding real purpose, identity, and transformation. We talk about mental health, self-improvement, faith, and why most people are fixing the wrong things in their lives.If you’ve ever questioned your purpose, struggled with your thoughts, or felt like something is missing—this conversation is for you.

History usually feels like something that already happened.

Clean. Organized. Inevitable.

But the reality is… it didn’t feel that way at all.

In this episode, I sit down with Travis—a Revolutionary War reenactor who takes his craft very seriously—to talk about what was actually happening during 1776. Not the version we learned in school, but the moments where everything was uncertain, messy, and very close to falling apart.

At the end, we break down a list of the qualities that made the Founding Fathers great founders—and why those same traits still matter today.

In this episode, we sit down with Amelia Schmid, a truly confident woman who lives life on her own terms, which we find incredibly inspirational. We discuss how to be confident and the power of embracing your authentic self. This conversation is packed with motivation for anyone looking to cultivate a more confident mindset.

Follow Amelia

https://www.instagram.com/amelia.schmid.photo/

Indi Hewavita is a prosthetist and orthotist at Valley Orthotics and Prosthetics, and his journey to this work is anything but ordinary. From tracking grizzly bears in Montana to building artificial limbs in the Shenandoah Valley, Indi found his calling at the intersection of craftsmanship and human connection.

In this episode, we talk about what it means to lose a limb — and the fear, grief, and uncertainty that comes with it. Indi shares how he helps patients navigate that unknown, sets honest expectations, and works to restore function as close to pre-amputation as possible.

We also get into the power of working with your hands, why creativity is deeply human, and what Indi has learned from serving amputee patients in underprivileged countries — and what that does to your worldview.

Brand designer Vika Samoylov shares her journey from childhood creativity to building a design business.

In this episode of Friendly Founders, we sit down with Julie Katykhin to talk about personal branding without bragging, storytelling without ego, and why consistency—not perfection—is what actually builds trust, community, and momentum over time. We explore the human side of real estate—the emotional weight clients carry, the pressure agents face behind the scenes, and why boundaries, integrity, and self-development matter more than hustle culture. Julie opens up about being a people pleaser, learning to say no, navigating burnout, and how trusting God daily has reshaped how she defines success.Follow Julie:https://www.instagram.com/juliekat_realtor/[email protected] Mark:https://www.instagram.com/chepelyuk

If you've ever struggled with believing in yourself or accepting that your best is enough, this video offers some much-needed inspiration. We discuss the journey of self improvement and building self confidence, providing practical insights for personal growth. Learn to navigate self doubt and cultivate a stronger sense of confidence in your abilities. Believe in yourself and embrace your unique journey.