The 2026 NDAA is out, and most contractors won’t read it. That’s a mistake.

In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Dolores Kuchina-Musina to break down what actually matters. We cover changes to Commercial Solutions Openings, the gray areas around developmental work, what’s happening with SBIR reauthorization, and why OTAs are once again being pushed as a priority tool.

More importantly, we talk about what this means for small and mid-sized contractors trying to position themselves for growth.

Policy changes don’t just affect Washington. They shape your capture strategy, your compliance posture, and your relationship with contracting officers.

If you want to stop reacting and start anticipating, this conversation will sharpen your edge.

We are living in an era of over-optimization for comfort. Safe spaces, avoided confrontation, emotional outsourcing, and leaders who think protecting their teams from pressure is kindness. It is not.

In this episode, Michael breaks down the safety trap and explains why hard times create strong leaders, and why soft times create weakness. He challenges the belief that discomfort is danger and shows why friction is necessary for growth, clarity, and resilience.

From emotional regulation to risk tolerance to doing hard things on purpose, this episode is a wake-up call for entrepreneurs who want to build strong teams instead of fragile ones.

If you want confident, decisive leaders inside your organization, it starts with you stepping out of your comfort zone first.

In this episode, I sit down with Scott Jensen, CEO of NVSBC and author of The Owner’s Playbook, to unpack what actually breaks when a business grows. We talk about why brute force gets you to seven figures but won’t get you past it, how fractured systems quietly bleed money, why most owners misunderstand the role of accountants, and the mental discipline required to level up.

We also dig into team dynamics, culture clarity, and a concept Scott calls “auto suggestion” that might change how you think about performance and leadership.

If you’re under $1M trying to grow, or just crossed it and feel operational chaos creeping in, this conversation will hit home.