Zac Palmer’s Perpetual Growth Podcast

Mental resilience, overcoming adversity, and rebuilding your life aren't just about having the right mindset. They're about the decisions you make when life gives you every reason to quit.

I've always believed that success has less to do with what we achieve and more to do with who we become along the way.

But what happens when everything you've built is suddenly taken away?

In this 87th episode of The Perpetual Growth Podcast, I sit down with John Ulsh, entrepreneur, resilience keynote speaker, executive coach, and USA Today bestselling author of The Upside of Down.

In 2007, John survived a catastrophic car accident with less than a 3% chance of survival. He spent 18 days in a coma, underwent more than 45 surgeries, and faced years of physical recovery.

But what stood out to me wasn't just his survival. It was how he approached rebuilding his life when the future looked nothing like he'd imagined.

One thing John shared really stayed with me: There's a difference between allowing yourself to have a difficult day and deciding you're done trying.

I think that's something worth considering, especially for those of us who are constantly pushing toward the next goal.

Because sometimes, personal growth isn't about achieving more. It's about learning how to move forward when the path you expected no longer exists.

Whether you're an entrepreneur, a leader, or simply navigating a challenging season, I hope this conversation gives you a different perspective on resilience, success, and what it means to keep growing.

AUDIO CHAPTERS

00:00 – Introduction: A Story of Survival and Resilience

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Connect with John Ulsh:

Book: The Upside of Down  

Connect with me:

Subscribe to The Perpetual Growth Podcast for more conversations on leadership, entrepreneurship, personal development, and building a life of meaningful success.

I'd love to hear your perspective: Has a difficult experience ever changed the way you define success?

#MentalResilience #OvercomingAdversity #PersonalGrowth #LeadershipMindset #PerpetualGrowthPodcast

The Modern Masculinity Crisis: How Men Can Rebuild Purpose, Confidence & Connection | EP 86

Modern masculinity, men’s mental health, male loneliness, purpose, confidence, and relationships are at the heart of this powerful conversation.

What does it actually mean to be a good man today?

I sit down with Bill McCamley for an honest discussion about the challenges men face in a rapidly changing world—and what it takes to build healthier masculinity, stronger relationships, and a greater sense of purpose.

He  is a former New Mexico Secretary of Labor, state representative, educator, entrepreneur, and author of Right My Dudes...Now What?: Being a Man in the 21st Century Without Being a D*ck.

His work focuses on men's mental health, loneliness, communication, accountability, relationships, and modern masculinity.

Connect with Bill:

Website: https://www.billmccamley.net/

Bill's website also provides access to his book, writing, speaking opportunities, media inquiries, and social channels including Facebook, Threads, TikTok, YouTube, and Substack.

For speaking, media, podcast, or book inquiries:

00:00 — What Does It Mean to Be a Good Man?

Feeling stuck between the career that pays the bills and the life you actually want? 

In this episode, leukemia survivor and former CPA-turned-entrepreneur Jeanne Phares breaks down exactly how she reinvented her life not once, but four times and how you can start your own reinvention without blowing up your income or your identity.

Jeanne shares the real, unfiltered process behind walking away from a "safe" career, the mindset shift that let her rebuild after a cancer diagnosis, and the specific coaching framework she now uses to help women over 40 build strength, confidence, and purpose in midlife. 

If you've ever asked yourself "is this really the life I want?" — this conversation is for you!

Connect with Jeanne Phares:

Audio Chapters:

If this episode resonated with you, subscribe to the Perpetual Growth Podcast for more conversations on business, health, mindset, and the legacy you're building.

Success, fulfillment, purpose, intuition, and personal growth don’t always move in the same direction. You can achieve your goals, build a successful career, and still feel like something is missing.

In this conversation with Karen Weaver and Adrea Peters, co-authors of Heart Frequency: The Science of Using Your Internal Guidance System to Create an Extraordinary Life, to explore what it really takes to live with greater alignment, purpose, and fulfillment.

They discuss why achievement doesn’t always create fulfillment, how old stories influence our decisions, the role of intuition in finding direction, and why creating space to listen to yourself can lead to better choices.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-karen-weaver-04042b381/ 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adrea-l-peters-10790029b/ 

Subscribe for more conversations on leadership, business growth, personal development, and purposeful living.

00:00 Why Successful People Still Feel Empty

#PersonalGrowth #Leadership #Purpose #Fulfillment #Intuition #SelfAwareness

Business growth, leadership, resilience, and entrepreneurship often begin where comfort ends. 

What if the friction you're trying to avoid is actually what could make you better?

In this episode of the Perpetual Growth Podcast, Zac Palmer sits down with Brian Duncanson, entrepreneur, financial coach, MBA, and co-founder behind Spartan Race, to explore how adversity, customer feedback, and calculated action helped turn a bold idea into a global endurance brand.

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LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brian-duncanson-6825971a/

Subscribe to the Perpetual Growth Podcast for conversations on leadership, business growth, entrepreneurship, resilience, and personal development.

00:00 – Why Comfort Can Limit Your Growth

#BusinessGrowth #Leadership #Entrepreneurship #Resilience #Innovation #SpartanRace

Stress, high achievement, mindfulness, leadership, and self-awareness are more connected than we often realize.

As high performers, we're usually taught to handle more, push harder, and build more resilience.

But what if that's not always the answer?

Today's episode, I sit down with Vahid Coskun, a mindfulness coach, leadership facilitator, yoga therapist, and founder of Wellness Assembly, to unpack a question I think a lot of successful people eventually face:

What if the life you're working so hard to manage isn't actually the life you want?

We talk about why high achievers can carry so much stress, how identity shapes our decisions, where self-sabotage comes from, and why mindfulness isn't simply about becoming calmer.

Vahid brings a different perspective: sometimes stress isn't something we need to eliminate. Sometimes it's information.

One idea that really stood out to me: when you're on the right path, hard work can feel more like ambition than anxiety.

That's worth thinking about.

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The conversation also references Vahid's books on yoga and mindfulness, including a mindfulness book that uses short stories to explore the subject. The transcript doesn't provide the specific book titles or links, so I haven't guessed at them.

LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/acoskun/

Audio Chapters

00:00 Why Stress Really Happens

#Leadership #HighPerformance #Mindfulness #StressManagement #PersonalGrowth #SelfAwareness

What does 90 years of life teach you about success, leadership, purpose, relationships, marriage, and legacy? 

Jim Paulk Jr. shares the lessons that took him decades to understand and why the people around you may matter more than what you accomplish.

After serving as a U.S. Naval Academy graduate and Naval officer and spending 26 years in manufacturing management with Procter & Gamble, Jim Paulk Jr. took on another unexpected chapter: becoming an author in his eighties.

His perspective is remarkably simple: You rarely accomplish anything significant alone.

Jim reflects on growing up during the Great Depression, his years at Annapolis, the relationships that shaped his life, and the 60-year marriage that taught him some of his deepest lessons about trust, loyalty, mutual respect, partnership, and love.

But this conversation goes far beyond marriage.

It explores what it means to find your purpose, surround yourself with the right people, keep reinventing yourself, preserve meaningful stories, and build a life that still matters long after professional success fades.

📖 Shaking Up the World: Stories of the Naval Academy Class of 1957 — a collection of stories from his classmates, including extraordinary accounts of military service, innovation, leadership, and achievement. https://www.amazon.com/Shaking-Up-World-Stories-Academy-ebook/dp/B0D3VS3GJG 

📖 How I Found Love: Stories of Romance and Relationships — a collection exploring the many unexpected ways people find love and connection. https://www.amazon.com/How-Found-Love-Stories-Relationships-ebook/dp/B0H3QT1RBN?ref_=ast_author_mpb 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/James-D-Paulk-Jr-Author-61565536059908/ 

00:00 — What 90 Years Can Teach Us About Life

Subscribe to the Perpetual Growth Podcast for more conversations on business growth, leadership, personal development, relationships, and building a meaningful life.

#Leadership #PersonalGrowth #Relationships #Success #LifeLessons

Why do so many ambitious, intelligent, and successful people still struggle with stress, unhealthy relationships, burnout, or the feeling that they're constantly proving themselves?

In this conversation, Dr. Nima Rahmany unpacks one of the biggest hidden drivers of human behavior: the nervous system.

Together they explore why childhood wounds often fuel high achievement, how unresolved trauma silently shapes leadership, business, relationships, and health, and what it actually takes to break destructive patterns.

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Dr. Nima Rahmany is a former chiropractor, educator, entrepreneur, speaker, and creator of The Overview Method. His work focuses on nervous system regulation, attachment healing, trauma integration, emotional resilience, and helping people break intergenerational patterns to build healthier relationships and lives.

Connect with Dr. Nima Rahmany:

Programs:

Books:

Subscribe for weekly conversations on leadership, business growth, mindset, entrepreneurship, and becoming the kind of leader people trust.

#Leadership #TraumaHealing #NervousSystem #PersonalGrowth #EmotionalIntelligence #HighPerformance #Entrepreneurship #AttachmentStyles #BusinessLeadership

00:00 Why Success Doesn't Guarantee Fulfillment

What happens when failure isn't measured in quarterly earnings—but in lives?

Today with retired U.S. Air Force Colonel Trey Morriss, a veteran of more than three decades of military service, B-52 operations, and combat missions.

Trey was part of the top-secret 35-hour mission that helped launch Operation Desert Storm—an experience that shaped his understanding of leadership, preparation, trust, accountability, and team performance under extreme pressure.

But this conversation goes far beyond military aviation.

It explores a question every business leader eventually has to answer:

Will your team trust you when the pressure is highest?

Because, as Trey explains, you cannot surge trust.

Trust isn't created in the middle of a crisis. It's built through years of preparation, credibility, shared experiences, intentional relationships, and the daily decisions leaders make when nobody is watching.

Trey also shares insights from his book, DOOM 34, his firsthand account of the top-secret B-52 mission that launched Operation Desert Storm.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/treymorriss/

Audio Chapters

00:00 Leadership Is Built Before the Crisis

Emergency preparedness, CPR training, crisis leadership, and the psychology of taking action can determine what happens in the moments that matter most. When an emergency happens, will you freeze, wait for someone else to act, or step forward?

Courage rarely appears out of nowhere.

It is built long before the crisis.

In this conversation with Brad Newbury and Keira Newbury, we explore what it really means to be prepared for the moments that matter most and why education, training, experience, and empathy can determine whether someone watches from the sidelines or becomes the person who acts.

➤ Brad Newbury has spent more than four decades in fire and emergency medical services. He is a fire captain, paramedic, educator, CEO, Harvard-trained disaster medicine leader, and founder of a leading emergency medical training organization.

➤ Keira Newbury grew up immersed in emergency medicine, became CPR certified as a child, later became a nationally registered EMT, worked in a leading trauma center, and studied psychology and writing. Together, Brad and Keira co-authored a book built around powerful real-life stories of survival, service, and the ripple effect of a life saved.

Their conversation goes far beyond CPR and emergency medicine.

It explores the mindset behind taking action when other people freeze.

In this episode, you'll discover:

💡Why people freeze during emergencies—and how to overcome the bystander effect

📌The most important lesson may be this:

You become ready long before it happens.

Together, Brad and Keira bring decades of experience in emergency response, medical education, psychology, storytelling, and service to a conversation about what it means to be ready when someone needs you most.

Watch the full conversation to explore emergency preparedness, CPR training, crisis leadership, the bystander effect, and the psychology of taking action under pressure.

If this conversation makes you think differently about leadership, preparedness, emergency response, and the responsibility to act, share it with someone who should watch it.

Subscribe to the Perpetual Growth Podcast for conversations about leadership, business, health, relationships, personal growth, and the decisions that shape the way we live.

#EmergencyPreparedness #CPRTraining #Leadership #CrisisManagement #BystanderEffect #PersonalGrowth

00:00 — Courage Is Built Before the Crisis