The Authority Company

Crisis communication has changed. Most leaders have not.In this episode of The Authority Company Podcast, Joe Pardavila sits down with crisis communications expert Bradley Akubuiro, former Chief Spokesperson for Boeing and partner at Bully Pulpit International, to break down how modern crises actually work in a world shaped by AI, social media, and declining trust.Bradley explains why the old PR playbook is outdated, how anyone with a phone can control the narrative, and why trust is harder to earn than ever before.They also dive into:

• Why the “Friday news dump” no longer works
• How social media creates crises out of nothing
• The 5 fault lines every brand must understand
• Why most companies ignore internal damage during a crisis
• How to decide what is a real crisis vs internet noise
• What leaders get wrong when responding under pressure

If you lead a company, build a brand, or communicate for a living, this conversation will change how you think about reputation, trust, and control.

📘 Bradley’s book: Faster. Messier. Tougher.

Most people live for Friday. But what if that mindset is costing you your life?

In this episode of The Authority Company Podcast, Joe Pardavila sits down with the authors of TGIM: Love Your Work. Love Your Life. Love Your Mondays, Missy Forlani and Melisa Soydinc. 

They break down why so many people dread Mondays, how burnout really happens, and what it takes to align your work with your purpose. You’ll learn how to find your “sweet spot,” why engagement is not the same as fulfillment, and how small changes can shift your entire relationship with work.

If you’ve ever felt stuck, drained, or just going through the motions, this conversation gives you a clear path forward.

⏱️ TIMESTAMPS 0:00 – Why most people dread Mondays
0:52 – The origin of the TGIM mindset
2:26 – “Are you wishing away your life?”
3:32 – Why Monday became the villain
5:29 – Loving your work as a responsibility
7:12 – What TGIM looks like in real life
9:17 – Work-life balance is broken
10:55 – The “sweet spot” framework
12:40 – Signs you’re close but not fulfilled
16:03 – Burnout comes from silence
18:59 – Turning daily tasks into purpose
22:29 – Engagement vs fulfillment
25:45 – Why leaders avoid hard conversations
30:04 – Getting comfortable with discomfort
34:00 – First step if you dread Mondays
36:50 – Practical path forward

How do you make the right decision when the future is uncertain?

In this episode of The Authority Company Podcast, Joe Pardavila speaks with Parul Somani, author of The Path of Least Regret: Decide with Clarity, Move Forward with Confidence.

After a cancer diagnosis at age 31, Parul faced a life altering decision about treatment. Data, research, and expert opinions could not provide a clear answer. That moment forced her to rethink how humans make decisions when outcomes remain uncertain.

The experience led her to develop the Path of Least Regret framework; a practical method leaders and individuals use to make thoughtful choices with confidence.

In this conversation, Joe and Parul explore:
• Why data alone rarely solves life decisions
• The difference between the path of least resistance and the path of least regret
• Why perfection and certainty are unrealistic goals
• How regret works as a forward looking decision compass
• The five phases of effective decision making
• Why many people get stuck in analysis paralysis
• How this framework applies to both major life decisions and everyday choices

Parul also explains why traditional regret frameworks, including the well-known one used by Jeff Bezos, miss an important psychological reality about how people evolve over time.

If you struggle with difficult decisions, fear of missing out, or second guessing your choices, this episode offers a practical way to move forward with clarity and peace of mind.

Video Chapters
00:00 Introduction
00:33 The moment that changed everything
02:10 Why data cannot always solve decisions
04:20 The origin of the Path of Least Regret
06:05 Why regret is not something to avoid
08:05 The difference between regret and no regret thinking
10:05 Why regret should guide future decisions
12:00 Parul’s cancer journey and recovery
14:10 The five phases of decision making
15:00 Why people get stuck in indecision
17:00 Jeff Bezos regret minimization framework
19:20 Why your future self is unpredictable
21:00 Big decisions versus everyday decisions
24:10 Why perfection is the wrong goal
27:00 How regret relates to fear of missing out
29:00 Defining what truly matters in your life
31:00 The first question to ask when facing a decision
32:20 Why Parul dedicated the book to her daughters
33:10 Closing

Why do so many companies struggle with hiring and retention?
In this episode of The Authority Company Podcast, Joe Pardavila sits down with John William Wright II, managing partner of one of the most successful firms in the Northwestern Mutual network and author of Recruiting to Retain: A Principle Centered Strategy to Win the War for Talent.
Drawing on more than three decades of leadership experience, John explains why most organizations approach recruiting the wrong way. Instead of focusing only on hiring, great leaders start with the end goal: retention.
John breaks down the leadership mindset required to recruit top performers, why overselling a job damage long term success, and how strong cultures attract high level talent without pressure or hype. The conversation also explores the balance between hard skills and soft skills, the role culture plays in independent business models, and why the future of leadership depends on developing people who can grow into exceptional professionals.
If you lead a company, build teams, or want to understand how great organizations find and develop talent, this episode offers a clear framework for doing it better.
What You’ll Learn
• Why recruiting should start with retention
• The hiring mistakes most companies make
• How leaders attract high performers without overselling the role
• Why culture attracts top talent more than compensation
• The difference between hard skills and soft skills in early careers
• Why talent development drives long term company success
• The leadership mindset required to build high retention teams
Timestamps
0:00 Introduction
0:45 Why recruiting shaped John Wright’s career
2:00 Why most people never plan to enter financial services
3:00 Why leaders must personally recruit talent
5:00 Why retention should drive hiring decisions
7:00 How to identify candidates who fit the role
9:00 Hard skills vs soft skills in early careers
11:00 Why the financial services industry struggles with retention
12:30 The danger of overselling a career
14:00 Why independence attracts high performers
16:00 How culture attracts top talent
18:00 The challenge of building culture in independent firms
20:00 The habits behind high retention teams
22:00 Why improving the profession helps everyone
24:00 The mindset required to develop people
25:00 Final leadership lesson
 

In this episode of The Authority Company Podcast, Joe Pardavila sits down with Kris Erickson, cofounder of Workforce Science Associates and author of The Enduring Impact: The Art and Science of Crafting an Exceptional Employee Experience, to explore what engagement at work truly means and why it shapes far more than productivity. Drawing on 30 years of research and one of the largest global employee feedback databases, Kris explains how trust, purpose, and leadership alignment determine whether people thrive or quietly disengage. Kris shares the personal turning point that pushed her to pursue meaningful work, including a moment when she had only 85 cents for gas and decided she needed a different future for herself and her son. From there, the conversation moves into the real drivers of engagement: leaders who clearly answer three essential questions. Where are we headed. Why are we going there. What does this mean for you. When leaders communicate with clarity and consistency, teams feel steadier even in uncertain times. Joe and Kris also tackle what happens when trust breaks in seconds after taking years to build, why middle managers serve as the linchpin between senior leadership and frontline teams, and how engagement surveys can act as an early warning system rather than a box-checking exercise. The episode closes with a sharp distinction between happiness and fulfillment at work. Happiness shifts with circumstance. Fulfillment comes from growth, challenge, and meaningful contribution.

Matt Domo joins Joe Pardavila for a direct talk on how founders and senior leaders build what does not exist yet, then scale without breaking trust, teams, or customers.

As a co-founder of Amazon Web Services, Matt helped launch the first cloud computing database and shape the DBaaS market.  Today, as CEO of Fifth Vantage, he works with leadership teams to turn AI strategy into real execution.

In this episode, Matt explains why ideas matter less than systems, how leaders avoid hero culture, and why value decides whether AI becomes hype or ROI. You hear how AWS priced ahead of demand, how platforms differ from point solutions, and why architecture, accountability, and alignment drive outcomes across startups and large enterprises.

What You Will Learn
• How to move from a single idea to systems that scale
• Why platform thinking creates long term leverage
• How to spot value signals before markets catch up
• How leaders design for failure without hurting customers
• How AI creates ROI when teams lead with outcomes, not tools
• Why Fifth Vantage runs as an anti consultant modelHighlights
• 00:00 Entrepreneur | Authorities opens. Joe introduces Matt Domo and his AWS background.
• 02:00 Avoiding founder hubris and why credibility comes from results.
• 04:00 Why Matt never feared failure, only broken commitments.
• 05:00 Pattern recognition and how leaders read adoption signals.
• 08:00 Pricing ahead of demand at AWS and how leaders model the future.
• 10:00 Speed vs risk. Why leaders design for graceful failure.
• 12:00 Ideas vs systems. Why heroes block scale.
• 15:00 Collaboration, competition, and the Everyone Wins model.
• 18:00 Feature, platform, or end to end solution. How founders decide.
• 24:00 AI hype vs value. Why outcomes beat AI washing.
• 30:00 Fifth Vantage and the Avengers of AI model.
• 36:00 What clients say after working with Fifth Vantage.
• 39:00 Matt’s core leadership lesson on responsibility and architecture.

Contact Matt Domo
Website: mattdomo.com
Request a direct conversation through the site. Matt reviews each request personally.

Most leaders think they need more marketing. Adam Witty says you need more authority.In this episode, Adam Witty, founder of Advantage Media Group and Forbes Books, breaks down how entrepreneurs and CEOs build credibility, stand out online, and turn their expertise into real business growth.

He shares how he started his company from a spare bedroom, why most people never write a book, and the exact systems his team built to remove friction and help leaders become trusted voices in their industry.

You will learn:
• Why authority matters more than ever in an AI-driven world
• The real reason people want to write a book
• How “Talk Your Book” changed publishing forever
• The strategy behind the Forbes Books partnership
• Why books still outperform podcasts, TikTok, and video for credibility
• How to become the person people trust before they buy

If people Google your name today, what shows up? That answer is your authority.

⏱️ CHAPTERS
00:00 Why nobody grows up wanting to be a publisher
02:30 The internship that changed everything
05:00 The mentor who sparked the idea
08:00 The biggest problem with writing a book
10:30 “Talk Your Book” and solving friction
12:30 Authority vs authorship
14:30 The Forbes Books partnership story
18:30 Why brand association matters
20:30 What authority really means today
23:00 Why Google is your first impression
26:30 Why books still matter in a digital world
30:30 The real ROI of writing a book
36:00 Why your goal should be to “die empty”

On this episode of The Authority Company Podcast, Joe Pardavila sits down with venture investor and author Jonathan Hung to explore why trust, not capital, drives long term success in venture. Drawing from decades of investing in more than 250 companies, Jonathan explains why relationships outlast returns, how ego and fear shape investment decisions, and why founders often misunderstand what venture capital truly requires. He breaks down the four pillars he uses to evaluate every deal and shares why raising money does not guarantee building a durable business. Jonathan also reflects on the influence of his father, lessons learned from failed partnerships, and the hard truth about broken trust in business. He explains when to give someone a second chance, when to walk away, and why leadership demands accountability on both sides of the table. If you are building, investing, or leading, this conversation offers a clear reminder that success is a team sport, and trust is the foundation.

In this episode of The Authority Company Podcast, Joe Pardavila sits down with Dr. Michaela Renee Johnson, therapist and author of 7 Primal Wounds: Break the Patterns Keeping You Stuck, for a direct conversation about why your relationship fights are rarely about what you think they are.After reading more than 700 self help books and spending over 15 years in the therapy room, Dr. Johnson developed a framework to identify the hidden “primal wounds” driving your reactions. From arguments about toothpaste and trash to tension with your boss, she explains how old narratives like “I’m not good enough” or “I don’t matter” get activated in real time. You will learn what triggers and “activations” look like in the body, how your nervous system responds before you even think, and why your brain is doing exactly what it was designed to do.The conversation goes deeper into how these wounds show up differently in high achievers, influencers, CEOs, couples, and even workplace dynamics. Dr. Johnson breaks down why labels can keep you stuck, how to spot your dominant wound, and what it means to realize you are not broken. If you want practical insight into your patterns and a clearer path toward healthier relationships, this episode gives you a starting point.

In this episode of The Authority Company Podcast, Joe Pardavila sits down with Rey Ramsey, author of The Tyranny of False Choices: A Guide to Authentic Decision-Making, for a wide-ranging conversation about leadership, agency, and the forces that quietly shape how we think. Rey traces the roots of his philosophy back to a defining moment in childhood, when a teacher challenged the “lowered expectations” placed on him and changed the trajectory of his life. From there, the conversation moves into the heart of his book: how systems, media, institutions, and even our own internal narratives create false binaries that limit our choices. Rey explains how leaders can distinguish between real constraints and manufactured ones, how to develop 360-degree sightlines under pressure, and why mastering the art of the non-reaction preserves both clarity and energy. They discuss responsible capitalism, impact investing, and how virtues such as courage and discernment can guide leaders without defaulting to ideology. At its core, this episode is about agency. Rey argues that we are not spectators in our lives. We are drivers. Each defining moment becomes a brushstroke on the single canvas we are given. The question is whether we default into gray or choose to paint with intention. If you lead teams, build organizations, or want to think more clearly in a noisy world, this conversation offers practical tools for making decisions by design, not by default.