The Aaxelera Podcast

Episode 6: Jo Self

Jo Self, founder of Practical Strengths and author of the Practical Strengths book series, joins Monty for a conversation about CliftonStrengths as a second language and the gap between knowing your strengths and actually living them. We cover her path from Yum! Brands to entrepreneurship in Peru, the cancer scare that pointed her toward CliftonStrengths as a full-time calling, why "Communication" as a talent doesn't mean what you think it means, the stories that make the framework click (the kindergarten research debate, empathy in prison populations, toilet paper), and her mission to build a strengths-based generation through the Practical Strengths Foundation. Connect with Jo: Website: https://practicalstrengths.org [https://practicalstrengths.org] Beginner's intro: https://discoverjoself.com [https://discoverjoself.com] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joself [https://www.linkedin.com/in/joself]

Episode 5: Deb Beroset

The Aaxelera podcast with Deb Beroset, Founder of It's Time for Moxie. Deb is an identity-level coach, neuroscience-informed practitioner, and the creator of what she calls Imaginal Intelligence. Her path runs from journalism (personality profiles for Ladies' Home Journal's "How America Lives" series), to leading Hallmark's internal innovation think tank (the Collaboratory), through twelve years heading public relations for a large company, into the coaching practice she's now run for ten years. She's currently Director of Coaching Content & Client Experience at Aligned Wealth Management, where she's helping fuse financial advisory with deep human coaching. In this conversation we get into: • Identity-level coaching, and why shifting the story you tell yourself changes everything downstream (thoughts, decisions, leadership) • Imaginal Intelligence as the missing piece for leaders who have insight but can't seem to move on it • Emotional contagion, and why a leader's interior state quietly sets the ceiling on what the whole organization can do • The skill of being unbothered, and how to cultivate a calm center in the middle of chaos • How she's using Claude as a pattern-recognition partner in her coaching practice, including her "living portrait" client artifact • Why AI, used right, may actually restore the human connection we've been losing rather than erase it Connect with Deb: Website: https://itstimeformoxie.com [https://itstimeformoxie.com] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deborahberoset/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/deborahberoset/]

Episode 4: Dr. Sage Breslin

Dr. Sage Breslin, Ph.D., is the founder of the Sage Wisdom Institute and creator of The ROSE System (Restoring Old Soul Empowerment). Known as America's Narcissist Recovery Expert, she joins Monty for a conversation about the intersection of clinical psychology, spiritual practice, and recovery from narcissistic relationships. We cover her path from trauma psychologist to women's empowerment specialist, the bone marrow cancer diagnosis that became her "divine two-by-four," what soul retrieval actually looks like in practice, her pro bono work with veterans through Give an Hour, and her core message to any woman recognizing herself in this story: you are not alone, and it is not your fault. Connect with Sage: Website: https://sagewisdominstitute.com [https://sagewisdominstitute.com] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sage-breslin-phd/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/sage-breslin-phd/] Sage Wisdom Institute on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/sagewisdominstitute [https://www.linkedin.com/company/sagewisdominstitute] ----------------------------------------

Episode 3: Tom Scarda

Tom Scarda, CEO of The Franchise Academy and author of The Magic of Choosing Uncertainty, joins Monty to talk about franchise matchmaking and the mindset shift from employee to owner. We cover how he assesses fit, why he turns away 40% of prospects, the difference between mastering a category and inventing one, the lessons from his own franchise journey (from running multiple Maui Wowi locations to losing nearly everything on a meal-prep concept that was years too early), what's actually hot in franchising right now, and his 3 Seconds of Guts challenge for anyone stuck in the comfort zone. Connect with Tom: Website: https://tomscarda.com [https://tomscarda.com] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/findafranchise/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/findafranchise/]

Episode 2: Shelly Smith

Shelley D. Smith is the Founder & CEO of Premier Rapport, Inc.  an internationally recognized workplace culture consultancy specializing in helping organizations detect cultural dysfunction and build high-performing teams from the inside out. With over 35 years of executive leadership experience, six published books, guidance spanning 58+ companies, and certifications from Cornell Business School, Predictive Index, and Emotional Intelligence (EQi), Shelley has earned her reputation as the Creator of the Culture Inquiry and developer of the proprietary IMPACT® Model. In this conversation, Shelley traces her journey from the formative lessons learned at her parents' auction house, through 14 years at Marriott International where "treat your employees right and everything else falls into place" became her operating philosophy, to the burnout and disengagement she experienced as COO of a hotel franchise, the catalyst that led her to launch Premier Rapport in 2009, in the heart of the recession. She walks us through her Hydration Framework for diagnosing and restoring workplace culture, how she conducts listening tours at every level of an organization, and why converting your most resistant employees into cultural champions is the key to lasting transformation. Shelley also shares the story of a five-year manufacturing engagement that turned around safety records, retention, and employee engagement across 200+ employees and all shifts. We close with a forward-looking discussion on how COVID permanently elevated the conversation around culture, why AI, when implemented correctly, may actually restore the human connection we've been losing, and what the workforce will look like as we approach 2030. Connect with Shelley D. Smith: Website: https://premierrapport.com [https://premierrapport.com] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shelleydsmithpremierrapport/ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/shelleydsmithpremierrapport/] Latest Book: THIRSTY: Restoring Organizational Flow When Relationship-Culture Runs Dry in the Workplace — available on Amazon All Books: https://premierrapport.com/shelleys-books/ [https://premierrapport.com/shelleys-books/] Keynote Speaking: https://premierrapport.com/services/keynote-speaker/ [https://premierrapport.com/services/keynote-speaker/]