Back in the day, well before I was around, QUALITY was the foundation of everything. Craftsmen and artisans were unrecognized, but their work was at every corner. In fact, their work is still at every corner because it was made to last, but how many of us recognize the details that make our environment relate to us on an emotional level? This is the magic in design. 

Why is the trend of the current times based on speed and cost, rather than quality and timelessness? 

In this conversation with Raelyn & Jonathan Capozzi, a quality-first duo responsible for work coming from West End Interiors and Old Growth Handcrafted, we dissected these ideas around historical craftsmanship and the role it plays in their businesses and todays consumer demand. 

@westend.interiors

@oldgrowthhandcrafted

Enjoy! 

I had an awesome conversation this week with a good friend Taylor Tobias. I was excited to talk about his training philosophies and figure out the inner mental workings that get him through gnarly workouts leading up to his Ironman Lake Placid 2025 race in July. 

I loved the little hits of wisdom in this one.

Enjoy! 

@taylortobias on instagram

@taylor tobias on Strava

This week, I had an amazing, in depth conversation with Carl Montante and Evan Giokas of The College Confidence Coach and MGM Coaching. 

Carl and Evan are awesome Buffalo based entrepreneurs. A trend I noticed with Carl and Evan is that all of their businesses seems to be founded on this value of confidence, whether they are coaching high schoolers toward their college career, business leaders to improve their company culture, or relationship building, confidence is right there to greet you. 

Through a philosophy of CONATIVE theory, the third dimension of the brain (working along side affective and cognitive dimensions), they are able to help folks navigate their instinctive patterns and human intuition, unlocking their truest and highest potential in career and relationships. 

This was so fascinating to me that we are already talking about, perhaps half joking, half joking, about me digging much deeper into this work. I LOVE the coaching opportunities that come up for me in the fitness world and I have always thought it would be awesome to coach on a deeper level, but have always felt like an imposter before taking action. In fact, I struggled massively with building confidence as a young person. Through the development of our business and with the help of my beautiful wife, I have become much more confident in the things I do, but this coaching element still hangs me up. 

I am truly blessed to be able to have conversations like these and I do not take them for granted. Please enjoy and I hope you take out plenty of wisdom from this episode. 

If you feel inclined, please share this episode with a friend who might like the conversation. And if you have an extra minute, hop on the reviews and leave a rating and review for the show. This greatly helps the show grow so we can reach more guests and more audience, sharing amazing stories like this one. 

Find Evan on Linked In 

Find Carl on Linked In

www.thecccoach.com

www.mgmcoaching.com 

<3

Last week, I sat down with Bobby Finan, founder of Whiskey Riot Festival. Welcome to a modern gathering embracing an ancient tradition, built on quality and intention. Bobby talks about the challenges and awesomeness of building an event company, his history as an entrepreneur in the building of Tommy Rotter Distilling, and his outlooks on brand and marketing. 

Let this one go down smooth. 

@whiskeyriotfestival

whiskeyriot.com

In this episode, I sat down with Kevin Heffernan (GoBike, formerly Rise Collaborative and No Boundaries) and Brian Pawloski (educator and a man curious about the world) to talk about building a better Buffalo, leading a family legacy, and finding faith. 

Enjoy the rollercoaster ride of history and future of our city, from Kevin's POV and awesome ideas. 

@gobikebuffalo

@heff_kevin

@bpawloski

@positiveapproach

<3

I was so stoked to sit down with my friend Del Reid and dig a little deeper into what makes him the man, the change maker, the peace maker that he is. It's always a delight being in the same room as him, and I an so blessed to call him a friend and to work with him. 

We talk alot about his personal history and try to decipher where the WHY for his work came from. We dig into some advice for men and leaders, specifically in raising family. 

Check out what 26 shirts is up to @26shirts

26shirts.com

Strong Hearts is a Vegan "fast casual" restaurant, founded in Syracuse in 2008. They opened a new spot in Buffalo in 2022.

Important to note, the restaurant serves "plant-based" foods, a popular term used in modern marketing, but it is very much a VEGAN restaurant. The distinction lies in the history, the activist upcoming and influence of Strong Hearts. Joel says on another podcast, the term already exists, and it is Vegan. 

Joel sustains the roots of his activist nature through Strong Hearts. We dove into stories of his hands on animal liberation experiences, including a 45 day adventure at sea, battling Japanese whale hunters and many other world travels for the cause. 

We talk a lot about business and the possibilities the DIY mindset can bring. Joel gives a lot of credit to DIY and particularly the Hardcore music scene for the development and growth of Strong Hearts. 

“Ho-ka hey! It is a good day to fight! It is a good day to die! Strong hearts, brave hearts, to the front! Weak hearts and cowards to the rear.” - Crazy Horse

Check out Strong Hearts:

@strongheartsbflo

295 Niagara St, Buffalo, NY 14201

@strongheartscafe 

315 Irving Ave, Syracuse, NY 13210

What's the point of "happiness"? Is it just to BE happy? 

I hashed out this question with Max and Nick, and we came up with some awesome but simple conclusions: happiness is what you do in your purpose... It's how you use the joy in life to make impact. 

Mind Over Foundation is an organization founded on the idea of using movement to bring light into people's lives. Max and Nick are building innovative programs, impactful events, and meaningful partnerships through the foundations to offer people a solution to mental health issues and suicide prevention. 

Max & Nick are using their life experiences to build tools to relate to the people in their community and make real impact. 

I am so excited to see this organization grow and create legacy impact in Buffalo. We are stoked to build their branding and merch collections, where we truly believe this can be a powerful tool and asset to building the organization and adding additional fundraising support. 

We are on the pursuit of quality and you know we found it with the Mind Over Foundation. 

@mindoverfoundation

www.mindoverfoundation.com 

The Tool Library is a 501(c)3 community centric organization in Buffalo, NY with the mission to increase access, build power, and foster community.

While studying urban planning at the University at Buffalo and living in University Heights, a neighborhood notorious for slum lord housing, Darren Cotton thought of an idea that would become The Tool Library. This idea evolved not into just into a collection of tools, but it would also act as platform for community change. 

The Tool Library is a way to share, to empower, to encourage, and to sustain. Through a well thought out strategic plan, the team has consistently grown in shop operations, programming, and capital projects. 

Aside from tool sharing memberships, The Tool Library hosts workshops on tool use and creative/practical applications. It also hosts clean ups, tree planting, and other environmental initiatives that they call "Service Days". 

Check out www.thetoollibrary.org for membership information, Service Days & workshops, or just to learn something about community and sustainability. 

We are on the pursuit of quality and we have found it at The Tool Library.

@thetoollibrary

Other shout outs:

@wnytrashmob (WNY Trash Mob)

@ggwny (Grassroots Gardens WNY)

@bfloparks (Olmsted Parks Conservancy) 

@buffalotoylibrary (Buffalo Toy Library)