What if the key to being a better leader wasn't a new management strategy, but a deeper look at yourself? In this episode of Making Business Personal, I sit down with Margaret Andrews, a renowned leadership expert and instructor at Harvard University.

Margaret shares the pivotal "moment of truth" in her career: receiving blunt feedback from a boss that she lacked self-awareness. Instead of dismissing it, she spent years researching psychology, philosophy, and management to discover that true leadership starts from within.

In this episode, we explore:

• The "Inside Job" Philosophy: Why you must manage yourself before you can effectively lead others.
• Breaking the Habit: The difficulty of unlearning ingrained patterns and how small daily changes can rewire your brain for success.
• The Harvard Connection: The story behind Margaret’s celebrated leadership course and why it remains one of the most popular professional development programs.
• From MIT to Hollywood Connections: A look at Margaret’s journey from a "standard Southern California childhood" to the halls of MIT and Harvard.
• The Power of Feedback: How to process difficult professional critiques and turn them into a competitive advantage.

Whether you are an aspiring manager or a seasoned executive, this conversation offers a roadmap for leading with more intention, clarity, and fulfillment.

Connect with Margaret Andrews:

• Website: margaretandrews.com

• LinkedIn: Margaret C. Andrews

• Get the Book: Manage Yourself to Lead Others (MYLO) on Amazon

#Leadership #SelfAwareness #ProfessionalDevelopment #HarvardLeadership #Management #MakingBusinessPersonal #MargaretAndrews #MYLO

How does a 14-year-old from the suburbs of Minnesota go from cold-calling agents in the Yellow Pages to starring in cult classics like Freaks and Geeks and major films opposite Chevy Chase?

In this episode of Making Business Personal, I sit down with actress and entrepreneur Brianna Brown Keen for a raw and inspiring look at the power of resilience.

Brianna opens up about her "foundational moment" surviving relentless middle school bullying and a mental health crisis, and how that experience severed her need for external validation, fueling a fearless career in Hollywood.

In this episode, we discuss:

• The "Hip Pocket" Strategy: How Brianna landed a top L.A. agent before she even moved to California.
• Overcoming Stage Fright: From being rejected for middle school plays to singing in the prestigious St. Olaf choir.
• The "Figure It Out" Mentality: Why a Midwest work ethic and a history of rejection are actually competitive advantages in business and acting.
• Divine Intervention: The vivid 14-year-old "awakening" that led Brianna to realize actors can have a more powerful voice than politicians.

Whether you're navigating the entertainment industry or trying to build a business with "balls-out" tenacity, Brianna’s story is a masterclass in turning pain into purpose.

Connect with Brianna Brown Keen:

• LinkedIn: Brianna Brown Keen
• Instagram/TikTok: @briannabrownkeen
• Websites: briannabrownkeen.com, manifestingyourmission.org, and thenewhollywood.org

Season 1 Finale

This is the final episode of our first year on Making Business Personal.

Instead of asking what you accomplished, this episode asks a different question:
What did your success cost you?

Not just time or energy.
But presence. Health. Relationships. Parts of yourself you set aside to keep things moving.

Success isn’t a trophy.
It’s a relationship.
And every relationship has a cost.

In this episode, we explore:

• The hidden toll of achievement

• Why burnout comes from paying costs you never consciously chose

• The difference between a cost you accept and a tax you don’t realize you’re paying

• How to assess the real price of success before you say yes again

This is a slower, more honest conversation for leaders and high performers heading into a new year.

Don’t just count your wins. Count the cost.

Season 2 begins in January 2025.

Tired of transformation fatigue? 😫 In this episode, Jason Weiss  tackles the biggest myth in leadership and business change. The relentless pursuit of speed and transformation is quietly burning out your team. The real path to sustainable growth and evolution moves at one speed: the speed of trust.

Learn why the pace of the human nervous system is the key to corporate change , and how to implement a 90-Day Evolution Sprint that truly works. This is essential listening for any entrepreneur or leader dealing with organizational burnout.

You'll discover:

* The 3 critical reasons most change initiatives fail. * The 4 elements of emotional scaffolding you need to build team trust and resilience. * Why Evolution is the River, and transformation is a destructive Flash Flood.

The real work of leadership is accelerating trust.

Want to stop chasing performance and find purpose?

Join Jason's free community, the Leadership Renaissance, for weekly letters and meaningful conversations.

Find the community link here: https://tinyurl.com/yc3b76h6

Please FOLLOW, give us a 5-Star Rating, and Share this episode with a leader who needs to evolve!

From Hollywood soundstages to Silicon Valley boardrooms, Goldie Chan has built a career at the crossroads of art, business, and authenticity. In this unforgettable conversation, Jason Weiss sits down with the “Green-Haired Oprah of LinkedIn” to talk about how creativity, consistency, and humanity can still win in a world run by algorithms.

Goldie shares how producing the 2011 financial drama Cost of Capital, complete with a literal fire on set, taught her everything about leadership, crisis management, and collaboration. She opens up about leaving entertainment for tech, launching 800 consecutive daily LinkedIn videos that changed her life, and turning her insights into her upcoming Hachette book, Personal Branding for Introverts.

Together, Jason and Goldie explore why “edutainment” matters, how introverts and extroverts can elevate one another, and what it truly means to build a personal brand that feels human. You’ll hear candid stories about anxiety, ambition, and the messy middle between creativity and business success, plus a few laughs about Hollywood, LinkedIn fame, and the lost art of the em dash.

If you’ve ever wondered how to turn presence into power or how to stay authentic when everyone else is performing, this episode will remind you why vulnerability, curiosity, and genuine connection are still the ultimate superpowers.

Guest: Goldie Chan
Founder & CEO, Warm Robots
LinkedIn Top Voice | Author of Personal Branding for Introverts (Hachette Books)

🌐 Website: https://www.goldiechan.com
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/goldiechan
📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/goldiechan
🐦 Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/GoldieChan

Host: Jason Weiss, Founder & President of Jason Weiss Consulting and creator of The Leadership Renaissance™.

Follow Making Business Personal for more conversations that reveal the humanity behind high performance, and share this episode with someone who needs a reminder that authenticity is good business.

You're Never Too Small to Be a Target: Inside the High-Stakes World of Cybersecurity with CISO Phil Davis

Get ready for an episode that proves the best plans are the ones you never make! In this captivating conversation, Jason sits down with the brilliant Phil Davis, a man who has worn many hats on his journey to becoming a Chief Information Security Officer (CISO). From a lifelong dream of becoming a lawyer to a surprising detour into the world of IT, Phil's story is a masterclass in resilience and seizing opportunity.

You'll hear Phil share how a chance internship in IT, a few harrowing months waiting for his bar exam results, and the perfect excuse (ahem, getting married!) led him down an unexpected path. 

This episode is packed with personal anecdotes, including the hilarious story of how Phil’s wife might have thought he was a grump when they first met, and the reality check of working in family law.

But it's not all fun and games. This conversation dives deep into the high-stakes world of cybersecurity. Phil breaks down what a CISO really does, why IT security professionals often feel like they're reporting to the legal department, and how the "dark web" isn't the mythical place you think it is. 

You'll get the real story behind "zero-day exploits" and learn why that random app you downloaded five years ago could be a major vulnerability. 

Phil also tackles the trillion-dollar question about apps like TikTok and why they're so valuable to bad actors, proving that when it comes to your data, you are never too small to be a target.

This episode is a must-watch for anyone who's ever felt stuck in their career, questioned their purpose, or just wants to understand the invisible digital risks we face every day. 

Phil’s story shows that when you embrace agility and leverage your unique experiences, you can create a powerful and valuable career trajectory—even if it's not the one you originally planned.

If you enjoyed this episode of Making Business Personal, you might love getting more of Jason's insights! You can find him at www.jasonweissconsulting.com, on Instagram at @jasonweissconsulting, or connect with him on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/itsjasonweiss/.

And if you really loved this episode, don't keep it to yourself! Help us grow our community by hitting that like button, subscribing to the channel, and sharing it with a friend. We’d also love to hear your thoughts in the comments below—tell us what resonated with you most. And while you’re at it, why not leave a review on your favorite podcast platform? It's the best way to help us reach more people who want to make business personal!

Episode Title: From Garage to Hollywood: Master Weaponsmith Tony Swatton's Journey

In this captivating episode of Making Business Personal, I sit down with Tony Swatton, the legendary weaponsmith behind some of Hollywood's most iconic movie weapons. From his shop "The Sword and the Stone," Tony has created weapons and armor for over 300 feature films since 1988, including the memorable hook from "Hook," Jack Sparrow's sword from "Pirates of the Caribbean," and weapons for "The Last Samurai," "Zorro," and recent Star Wars productions.

Tony shares his unconventional path from immigrant child fascinated by rocks to Hollywood's go-to armorer, starting his business at age 15 in his mother's garage. He reveals the real craft behind movie weaponsmithing—why casting molten metal into molds (as shown in films) would never work for actual film production, and how he hand-forges each piece using traditional blacksmithing techniques combined with modern equipment.

Key Topics We Explored:

• The difference between movie magic and real metalworking
• How Tony built relationships with major studios and prop houses
• Working under impossible deadlines (like creating a full suit of armor for a 5-year-old in 96 hours)
• The business lessons of understanding client value vs. personal pricing
• Dealing with imposter syndrome despite being recognized as a master craftsman
• His upcoming YouTube show "Dream Smith" where celebrities create their dream projects

Tony also discusses his philosophy of seeing potential in discarded materials—from rusted wire to old bandsaw blades—and how this "gem in the stone" mindset has shaped both his craft and business approach. Our conversation reveals how a billion people have watched his work without knowing his name, the challenges of working with Hollywood egos, and why he's never driven a car in Los Angeles.

A must-listen for entrepreneurs, craftspeople, and anyone interested in the intersection of traditional skills and modern entertainment industry demands.

My Guest: Tony Swatton, Master Weaponsmith and Owner of The Sword and the Stone 

Notable Works:Hook, Pirates of the Caribbean, The Last Samurai, Zorro, Star Wars productions, and 300+ other films

Check out Tony's work here: https://tonyswatton.com

Your team doesn’t follow your mission statement—and your kids don’t follow your advice.
They follow your actions.

In Episode 46 of Making Business Personal, Jason Weiss shares the hidden truth about leadership and life: people copy what you do, not what you say. At work, one sigh can shut down ideas. At home, one frustrated tone can teach impatience. Your unconscious habits—big or small—are being mirrored every day.

The Problem: Whether at home or in the office, we accidentally program others with our worst habits. Stress, distraction, sarcasm, impatience—these spread faster than our best qualities.

The Outcome: Learn how to replace accidental influence with intentional modeling. You’ll discover three practical tools to make sure your team (and your family) copy the behaviors you’re proud of.

Why It Matters: This may be the single most important key to personal growth and leadership excellence. Because when people mirror your best—not your baggage—you don’t just change culture. You change lives.

🎧 Listen now to Episode 46 of Making Business Personal.

#LeadershipAndLife #MakingBusinessPersonal #LeadershipExcellence #PersonalGrowth #ExecutiveCoaching #LeadershipDevelopment #CultureChange #LeadershipPodcast #EmotionalIntelligence #ParentingAndLeadership #GrowthMindset #HumanConnection

Jason breaks down why “tell it like it is” often backfires and replaces it with a practical system leaders can use today.

In this episode

• 3 leadership myths that quietly kill innovation and morale

• 3 practices that make feedback land: Partnership, Precision, Silence

• A real EVP turnaround story (from attrition and client complaints to a record quarter)

Perfect for: founders, executives, people managers, HR/L&D, team leads.
Topics: leadership communication, psychological safety, feedback skills, culture change, executive coaching, conflict resolution, high-performance teams.

Work with Jason → www.jasonweissconsulting.com

From the bustling streets of Edinburgh during the world’s largest arts festival, Jason Weiss shares powerful, real-world lessons on creativity, courage, and community. Drawing inspiration from the chaos and brilliance of the Fringe, he reveals three principles that can transform how you share your work: build your support system, take the risk of being misunderstood, and let your “why” guide every move. Whether you’re leading a team, launching a business, or chasing a bold idea, this episode will challenge you to think bigger, act bolder, and never go it alone.

#LeadershipLessons #BusinessSuccess #InnovationMindset #CreativeLeadership #EntrepreneurMindset #PersonalGrowth #RiskTaking #FindYourWhy #CareerDevelopment #WorkLifeHarmony #AuthenticLeadership #InspirationDaily #MindsetMatters #BreakTheMold#EdinburghFringe #MakingBusinessPersonal #JWC