Steve Smith has spent nearly 30 years at the intersection of technology, strategy, and operations, with a career spanning startups, IBM, TSIA, 8x8, and now Intelligence by Intent, where he helps law firms put AI to work. In this conversation, we trace his path from teaching adults to program when he was 13 to leaving corporate America and building a business he says he wishes he had started 20 years earlier.

Steve explains why AI should handle individual tasks while people protect relationships and judgment, how firms can move from chatbots to agents, and how his agent system, Project Ollie, manages email, calendars, research, projects, and client knowledge. We also talk about becoming more present with family, protecting close friendships, skiing with his kids, and the standing rule that work stops whenever his 165-pound Saint Bernard brings him a toy.

Chapters:

00:00 Rapid Fire: Ping Pong, Star Wars, and Steak With Magnus
03:54 Thirty Years in Tech, Startups, IBM, and RevOps
06:46 The Career Move He Wishes He Made 20 Years Earlier
08:54 The AI Advice Steve Gives His Kids
12:40 Building Intelligence by Intent for Law Firms
16:48 Choosing the Right AI Tool and Moving Beyond Chatbots
22:55 Teaching Adults to Code at 13 and Learning How to Learn
26:26 Magnus: Life With a 165-Pound Saint Bernard
33:53 Building More Time for Family, Friends, and Presence
38:21 Writing, Teaching, and Sharing What He Learns
46:24 Project Ollie: The Agent System Running His Business
52:46 Claude Code, ChatGBT, and Agentic Travel Planning
56:12 Final Wisdom: Find What Makes You Tick

Subscribe to Longfire for more stories worth gathering around.

Listen on Apple Podcasts:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pieces-of-impact/id1851467002

Listen on Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/show/2IGYfTSYNvsD96UjUqqCJt?si=f5abdaf2294c4a35

Connect with Steve Seger on LinkedIn:
http://www.linkedin.com/in/steveseger

Intelligence by Intent:
https://intelligencebyintent.com/

Read Steve Smith’s Substack:
https://www.smithstephen.com/

Connect with Steve Smith on LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/smithstephen

Rick Wittenbraker has built a career by following curiosity into rooms he was not necessarily planning to enter. His path has included private equity in Latin America, commodities trading, a medical device startup, YETI’s early growth, angel investing, and more than a decade helping grow Howler Brothers. He joined YETI when eight employees shared one Gmail account, then later joined his friends at Howler Brothers as the company grew from a small team into a distinctive outdoor brand.

In this conversation, Rick explains why the best brands know what they are not, why creativity and originality have to be protected as a company grows, and how curiosity can create opportunities that no career plan could predict. We also discuss building work around things you genuinely care about, investing as an extension of learning, creating companies that can outlast their founders, his belief that every business is ultimately a people business, and why he can beat Liam Neeson in a fight (All Credit to Seth MacFarlane for the bit).

Subscribe for more stories like Rick's.

Chapters:

00:00 Rapid Fire: Liam Neeson, Favorite Brands, and Lonesome Dove
06:16 Rick’s Path From Private Equity to YETI
10:53 From YETI to Howler Brothers Through Friendship
12:49 What Made Early YETI Special
17:49 How YETI Turned Coolers Into a Tribe
19:39 Building a Complete Brand World at Howler Brothers
24:48 Protecting Creativity as the Company Grows
27:58 Why Every Brand Needs a “Not List”
30:49 Finding Work That Overlaps With What You Love
36:08 Investing as an Exercise in Curiosity
46:19 Building a Company That Outlasts Its Founders
51:04 Every Business Is a People Business

Watch on YouTube:
https://youtube.com/@Steve_Seger2

Listen on Apple Podcasts:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pieces-of-impact/id1851467002

Listen on Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/show/2IGYfTSYNvsD96UjUqqCJt?si=f5abdaf2294c4a35

Howler Brothers: https://howlerbros.com/

Howler Brothers on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/howlerbros

Rick on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wittrick/?hl=en

In this short solo episode, Steve explains why Pieces of Impact is becoming Longfire and what the new name represents. Longfire will continue sharing conversations with builders, athletes, outdoorsmen, entrepreneurs, creators, and original people with worlds worth stepping into, but with a clearer mission: to tell stories worth gathering around. The goal is to help busy, ambitious people slow down, reconnect, and remember the people, places, and experiences that make the work worthwhile.

Kate and Brandon Couden are the husband-and-wife team behind CrossFit Grandview in Columbus, Ohio. Brandon started the gym in 2009 after taking over the old Rogue Fitness gym with almost no resources, a small private loan, and only 14 members. Kate brought 13 years of experience at Lifetime Fitness, where she built a foundation in personal training, nutrition, and understanding what strong fitness culture can look like.

In this conversation, we talk about building a gym from the ground up, growing from survival mode into a real business, and creating a community that can evolve with people through different seasons of life. We also get into the economics of gym ownership, payroll and equipment costs, buying a building, working together as a couple, making decisions when you disagree, and avoiding burnout in a people-based business.

Subscribe for more conversations like this.

Join the newsletter: https://substack.com/@steveseger
Watch on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@Steve_Seger2
Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pieces-of-impact/id1851467002
Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2IGYfTSYNvsD96UjUqqCJt?si=f5abdaf2294c4a35
Connect with Steve on LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/steveseger
CrossFit Grandview: https://crossfitgrandview.com/
CrossFit Grandview Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/crossfitgrandview/

00:00 Building Something That Compounds
02:08 Kate’s Path From Lifetime Fitness to CrossFit Grandview
03:17 Brandon’s Path
05:58 Starting With Almost Nothing and 14 Members
08:38 Early Traction and Getting People Into It
09:55 Moving to Grandview and Building a Bigger Vision
11:48 Nutrition, Childcare, and Keeping Members in the Community
13:41 Barbell, Power Hour, HYROX, and Training for Longevity
18:00 Day-to-Day Ownership and Avoiding Burnout
23:08 Working Together as a Couple
28:34 The Economics of Running a Gym That Lasts
36:23 What They Would Do Differently

In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Paul Sereno, a paleontologist, professor, explorer, artist, author, teacher, and one of the closest things you will find to a real-life Indiana Jones.

Dr. Sereno has led expeditions across the world, from the Sahara to South America and now toward the Amazon. We get into AI, de-extinction, lost fossils, the asteroid that changed Earth’s history, whether humans would exist if that asteroid had missed, his course on intelligence in the universe, and why he believes the world is still a playground for the next generation.

Subscribe for more conversations like this on Pieces of Impact.

Join the newsletter: https://substack.com/@steveseger
Watch on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@steve_seger2?si=2E2mUXAfOLL9ztyQ
Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast...
Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2IGYfTS...
Connect with Steve on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/steveseger

Guest Links

Paul Sereno Website: https://paulsereno.uchicago.edu/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/paulserenoofficial/?hl=en

Chapter Markers

00:00 Intro and why I wanted to have Dr. Paul Sereno on
02:02 Dr. Sereno joins the show
06:44 Dr. Safety, black bones, and leading expeditions
11:21 The real-life Indiana Jones comparison
16:15 Why discovery is far from over
24:00 AI, de-extinction, and what people misunderstand
31:59 The Amazon expedition and the next big discovery
37:10 Teaching, science, and the evolution of intelligence
49:19 Lost fossils, repatriation, and preserving history
54:25 Would humans exist if the asteroid missed?
57:49 Naming discoveries, future expeditions, and final wisdom
1:06:54 Where to find Dr. Sereno

Aaron Foss is a serial entrepreneur who has built five companies, including Nomorobo, the service that has stopped billions of unwanted robocalls and spam texts. Nomorobo was acquired by Applause Group in August 2023. Before that, Aaron participated in Techstars NYC with SideTour, which Groupon acquired in 2013. He has testified before Congress three times and has been featured by outlets including The New York Times, Wired, CNN, CNBC, and Fox News.

In this conversation, Aaron explains how to identify problems worth solving, distinguish progress from real traction, and know when to narrow your focus from a wide flashlight into a laser. We also discuss why entrepreneurs should fall in love with the problem instead of chasing trends, how constraints can improve creativity, what he looks for in founders, and why his work with Defy Ventures has become such an important part of his life. Aaron also shares lessons from building and selling companies, along with the books and negotiation tools that helped him along the way.

Subscribe for more conversations like this on Pieces of Impact.

Join the newsletter:
https://substack.com/@steveseger

Watch on YouTube:
https://youtube.com/@Steve_Seger2

Listen on Apple Podcasts:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pieces-of-impact/id1851467002

Listen on Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/show/2IGYfTSYNvsD96UjUqqCJt?si=f5abdaf2294c4a35

Connect with Steve on LinkedIn:
http://www.linkedin.com/in/steveseger

Connect with Aaron and explore his work:
https://go.aaronfoss.com/linktree

Learn more about Defy Ventures:
https://www.defyventures.org/

Never Split the Difference Negotiation Cheat Sheet:
https://medium.com/yanda/negotiation-cheat-sheet-31c73031956a

00:00 From Tech Kid to Serial Problem Solver
03:41 The Wing Dipper and Learning Through Real Feedback
07:48 Techstars, Focus, and the Road to Nomorobo
14:53 Retiring at 45 to Coach Entrepreneurs
16:19 Start With the Problem, Then Narrow the Beam
21:23 Constraints, Forcing Functions, and Learning by Doing
29:24 Fall in Love With the Problem, Not Your Passion
35:19 Every Interview Is a Pitch, and Experience Beats a Resume
41:30 Defy Ventures and Entrepreneurship After Incarceration
48:18 Progress vs. Traction: The Proof Investors Need
54:43 Mistakes, Book Recommendations, and Founder Green/Flags
01:05:27 Final Wisdom: Keep It Simple

In this solo episode of Pieces of Impact, I walk through four unrelated rabbit holes I went down recently: Darth Bane and the Rule of Two in Star Wars, trained protection dogs that can cost around $90,000 or more, a quick oral report on redfish, and the federal duck stamp. The goal here is simple: learn a little, have some fun, and share a few topics I found interesting enough to dig into.

Subscribe for more solo episodes and long-form conversations on Pieces of Impact.

00:00 Introduction to the Solo Episode

01:54 Darth Bane and the Rule of Two

07:03 The World of Trained Protection Dogs

10:23 Exploring Redfish: A Deep Dive

15:13 The Federal Duck Stamp: Conservation in Action

In this episode, I sit down with Carter Huff, an Army veteran and the man behind Bogey’s Barn. Carter invited me up to his place to record this conversation inside the pole barn he is turning into a home gym, training space, and brand named after his basset hound, Bogey.

Bogey of course was a big contributor to this candid discussion. Check out the video version to see him.

Subscribe for more conversations like this on Pieces of Impact.

Join the newsletter: https://substack.com/@steveseger
Watch on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@Steve_Seger2
Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pieces-of-impact/id1851467002
Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2IGYfTSYNvsD96UjUqqCJt?si=f5abdaf2294c4a35
Connect with Steve on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/steveseger

Guest Links

Bogey’s Barn Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bogeys_barn/
Bogey’s Barn TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@bogeys.barn
Bogey’s Barn Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61568794403157#

Chapter Markers

00:00 Intro and why I drove up to Bogey’s Barn
02:03 Carter joins the show inside the barn
02:39 Carter’s background, military path, and return to Ohio
03:36 Bogey, basset hounds, and the story behind the name
04:43 Buying the property and building the barn piece by piece
08:41 Finding the farmhouse and why people connect with the space
14:26 Posting every day and growing Bogey’s Barn authentically
22:08 Marathon prep, hybrid training, and removing excuses
32:00 Bogey’s role, diet, basset hounds, and life at the barn
41:55 Carter’s long-term vision, rapid fire, and final wisdom

In this episode, I sit down with Scott Trench, former CEO of BiggerPockets and host of the BiggerPockets Money podcast, to talk about financial independence, career leverage, house hacking, and the path that took him from early employee to leading one of the biggest real estate education platforms.

We get into why financial runway creates better career options, how Scott made himself valuable early at BiggerPockets, what it looked like when the company sold, how he thinks about personal brand and AI, and why financial freedom is about more than just real estate. We also talk about family, kids, wealth, strategy, and the advice he hopes listeners remember.

Subscribe for more conversations like this on Pieces of Impact.

Join the newsletter: https://substack.com/@steveseger
Watch on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@Steve_Seger2?si=NcXPNK00GHANUmpR
Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pieces-of-impact/id1851467002
Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2IGYfTSYNvsD96UjUqqCJt?si=fa8d2e2a653f491b
Connect with Steve on LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/steveseger

Guest Links:

Scott's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scott-trench-53056a22/

BP Money Podcast: https://youtube.com/@biggerpocketsmoney?si=P1_KewEzj67-oYuV

00:00 Intro and why Scott’s work matters to Steve
03:33 Scott joins the show
04:00 Life after stepping down as CEO
05:28 Balance, obsession, and CEO stress
07:14 Finding BiggerPockets through financial independence
07:46 Mr. Money Mustache, house hacking, and early FI thinking
10:16 Building financial runway after college
11:39 Making yourself valuable as an early employee
14:10 Choosing equity and upside
16:34 What a company sale looks like from the inside
19:31 Learning from Josh Dorkin and a professional CEO
20:50 Set for Life and what still applies today
22:16 BiggerPockets Money and the next FI problems
25:45 Personal brand as a long-term asset
27:38 AI, original thought, and better financial planning
32:27 Why AI rewards people who understand the full problem
35:02 Wealth, kids, and not imposing your system
38:50 The financial independence car pick
39:05 Common early-career money mistake
39:21 Underrated career skills
39:37 Content formats he is bullish on
40:19 Book recommendations
40:59 House hack, index funds, or business equity
41:17 AI use cases he is excited about
42:08 A day with no responsibilities
42:33 Current workout split
42:56 Final wisdom: what strategy really means
44:02 Where to find Scott

Joe Simonds is an author and co-founder of Salt Strong, a fishing education, content, membership, tackle, and community business he started with his brother Luke after leaving financial services. In this episode, we talk about walking away from a successful but unfulfilling career, building Salt Strong from scratch, working with family, growing through content and community, and what changed after the company’s recent sale.

We also get into AI, why “riches are made in niches,” protecting community standards, the fishing theme park idea, and why writing down your mission, vision, and core beliefs can change how you build.

Subscribe for more conversations like this on Pieces of Impact.

Join the newsletter: https://substack.com/@steveseger
Watch on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@steve_seger2?si=NcXPNK00GHANUmpR
Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/pieces-of-impact/id1851467002
Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2IGYfTSYNvsD96UjUqqCJt?si=fa8d2e2a653f491b
Connect with Steve on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/steveseger

Guest links:

Website: SaltStrong.com,

Joe’s book link: https://www.amazon.com/Fishing-Happiness-Ultimate-Achieving-Fulfillment/dp/0692733051

Salt Strong YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Saltstrong

Salt Strong Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thesaltstrong/

00:00 Why I Wanted to Have Joe On
02:19 Leaving Financial Services for Something More Fulfilling
09:06 The First Sale That Made Salt Strong Possible
10:25 Seven Months Before Taking a Day Off
11:36 What Works and Doesn’t When Building With Family
14:45 Free Content, Memberships, and the First Signs of Momentum
18:31 Community First, App Second
24:10 Core Beliefs, No Cursing, and Protecting the Culture
25:54 Riches Are Made in Niches, Even in the AI Age
31:06 Selling Salt Strong Without Losing the Mission
37:59 The Funniest Part of Selling the Company
41:27 The Fishing Theme Park Vision
51:00 The Grandfather Story and Creating Memories That Matter
55:58 Final Wisdom: Write Down the Mission