Wantrepreneur to Entrepreneur | Start and Grow Your Own Business

Tired of thinking HR is just expensive bureaucracy for big corporations? This episode will completely change your mind. We sit down with Jeffrey McNeal, founder of Adapt HR, who has cracked the code on making human resources simple, affordable, and practical for lean startups and small businesses. Jeffrey shares his journey from government service to the HR tech world, revealing why most HR tools are overbuilt for entrepreneurs and how he built a solution to bridge the gap. This episode is a masterclass in building a foundational system that supports your business growth, ensuring you’re prepared for success before the growing pains hit.
💡 What You'll Take Away For YOUR Business
🚀 Why building an HR foundation is crucial, even if you only have a few employees, and how it prevents future chaos during growth spurts.
💰 How to get a professional HR system in place for free (yes, actually free for teams of 1-5 people).
🤖 The real future of AI in HR: How a "human and machine" partnership will streamline hiring and operations, moving beyond marketing hype.
📈 A founder's perspective on product roadmaps and deciding what features to build next based on customer pain points, not just shiny objects.
🤝 How to build a culture of ownership and trust within your team by flipping the traditional corporate pyramid upside down.
⚙️ What a lean, software-backed HR function looks like and how it removes administrative headaches from the founder's plate.
📝 About Jeffrey McNeal 
Jeffrey McNeal is the founder of Adapt HR and a product-driven entrepreneur with a uniquely diverse career. He’s navigated the worlds of government administration, software startups, investment banking, and HR tech, giving him a front-row seat to how organizations of all sizes operate—and where they break down. Frustrated by overly complex and expensive enterprise software, Jeffrey decided to build what most small business owners actually need: a simple, practical HR platform that works without the bloat, buzzwords, or overwhelming workflows.
🎯 Jeffrey’s BEST Piece of Advice for Wantrepreneurs and Entrepreneurs 
"When you make that shift from employee to entrepreneur, guess what? You have to know all of it."
📢 Memorable Quotes
"Most small businesses are... an owner trying to run a business which includes the admin side... and they're using spreadsheets and color coded calendars and post-it notes." – Jeffrey McNeal
"Ultimately where HR software needs to go as it relates to AI is a smooth relationship between human and machine... letting the machine do the heavy lifting to allow the user, the human to make the higher level decisions." – Jeffrey McNeal
"So frequently, I see product managers who are focused on building products, they don't learn how to be a salesperson. You ask me how I know." – Jeffrey McNeal
🔗 Links & Resources
Visit AdaptHR’s website
Connect with Jeffrey on LinkedIn
Follow AdaptHR on LinkedIn

Tired of hearing the same generic advice about AI? In this episode, Sara Reece, co-founder and CEO of Workmind, cuts through the noise to reveal what truly matters in the world of business automation. She breaks down the difference between overhyped AI trends and powerful “operational agents” that solve real-world problems. This episode is a masterclass for any entrepreneur looking to innovate responsibly. Sara explains how to introduce game-changing technology without disrupting your existing operations, how to get honest feedback from your ideal customers, and why your non-linear career path might just be your greatest competitive advantage.
💡 What You'll Take Away For YOUR Business
🧠 The Real Difference Between Agentic AI and "Wrapped LLMs": Learn to spot genuine, value-adding AI solutions from the pretenders and understand what makes an operational agent truly powerful for your business.
🚀 How to Innovate Without Disruption: Discover Sara's "inch at a time" philosophy for introducing new technology, ensuring your team and customers adopt changes smoothly without the pain of a total overhaul.
🐒 The “Trained Monkey” Question: Steal Sara’s brilliant discovery question to instantly identify the most tedious, repetitive tasks in any business that are ripe for automation.
🤝 Why Developing in a Vacuum is a Recipe for Failure: Understand the critical importance of co-creating solutions with your target market before you invest heavily in development.
📈 How Your Random Past Experiences Fuel Future Success: Learn how to connect the dots from a diverse, non-linear background to bring unique and powerful insights to your entrepreneurial journey.
💬 The Power of Augmentation Over Replacement: Shift your mindset from seeing AI as a threat that replaces humans to a tool that augments your team's capacity, making them more effective and focused on high-value work.
📝 About Sara Reece
Sara Reece is the co-founder and CEO of Workmind, a company that builds operational agents to automate repetitive work for franchisors and service teams. With a fascinatingly non-linear background that includes journalism, radio, flight school, and even research in national parks, Sara brings a uniquely human and multi-faceted perspective to the world of AI. Her expertise lies in creating practical, non-disruptive AI solutions that integrate seamlessly into the tools businesses already use, helping them grow smarter and more efficiently.
🎯 Sara’s BEST Piece of Advice for Wantrepreneurs and Entrepreneurs
Find something you're passionate about, validate that other people care about it too, and develop the ability to take critical feedback as a business tool, not a personal attack.
📢 Memorable Quotes
“What do you do on a daily basis that makes you feel like a trained monkey? As soon as I ask that question, I get overwhelming responses.” – Sara Reece
“If you are so disruptive that you are destroying work paths… people aren't ready for you. You need to make sure that operationally you have to give them an inch at a time.” – Sara Reece
“You need to be able to take that feedback and you need to take a step back and realize I am presenting this as a company… and if they give me some harsh reality checks, I need to be able to not take a personal offense to it.” – Sara Reece
🔗 Links & Resources
Visit Workmind’s website
Connect with Sara on LinkedIn
Follow Workmind on LinkedIn

Tired of wrestling with complicated, clunky website builders that never quite capture your vision? In this episode, we sit down with Yason Khaburzaniya, a seasoned software engineer turned entrepreneur who is on a mission to make website creation radically simple. Yason shares his journey founding Breba, an agent-native platform that lets you build a website just by describing your business in plain English. This episode is a must-listen for any founder who feels held back by technology. You'll learn how the power of simplicity and focused AI can eliminate one of the biggest hurdles in starting a business, allowing you to launch faster and focus on what you do best.
💡 What You'll Take Away For YOUR Business
🚀 How to leverage AI to build a professional website without learning a complex new platform or writing a single line of code.
🎯 Why focusing on a "simple" problem that others overlook can be your biggest competitive advantage as an entrepreneur.
💰 A simple, powerful framework for integrating back-end functions like lead capture without needing any technical expertise.
🤖 How advanced prompt engineering can turn your simple business description into a fully-realized, custom website design.
📈 The founder's mindset for navigating the overwhelming pace of AI innovation by focusing on simplicity and actionable goals.
🤔 Why your communication skills, not your coding skills, are becoming the most important asset in building with AI tools.
💡 The "Jamstack" architecture explained for non-techies and how it can make your business more secure and scalable.
📝 About Yason Khaburzaniya 
Yason Khaburzaniya is a seasoned software engineer and the founder of Breba, an AI-powered platform designed to empower entrepreneurs. With a background that includes writing code for third-generation GPS satellites and working on advanced AI projects at Intuit, Yason brings a deep understanding of technology to the world of startups. His unique perspective is shaped by his journey from running a local IT business in college to now building tools that make powerful technology accessible to everyone, embodying the principle of making complex things simple to help people succeed.
🎯 Yason’s BEST Piece of Advice for Wantrepreneurs and Entrepreneurs 
"Take action, but be also deliberate about taking action... Make things as simple as possible, but not simpler."
📢 Memorable Quotes
“I narrowed and narrowed it down until I got a problem that looks like a middle schooler could solve it... and I'm like well because this is the thing that I can really excel at.” – Yason Khaburzaniya
“Building is a skill and selling is an art to me at least... Try to go maybe one or two competence levels below where you think you are and then you can excel.” – Yason Khaburzaniya
“If you make these specialized agents that solve very directed specific tasks, they can supersede humans in their competence.” – Yason Khaburzaniya
🔗 Links & Resources
Visit Breba’s website
Connect with Yason on LinkedIn
Follow Breba on LinkedIn

Ever feel like you have a story to tell but don't know where to start or why it even matters for your business? In this powerful episode, Brian sits down with novelist and co-founder of the Experience Writing Conference, Janice Buswell, to uncover why your unique story is your single greatest asset as an entrepreneur. Janice demystifies the writing process, revealing how embracing your personal journey can build an unshakeable brand, connect deeply with customers, and give you the confidence to lead. This episode isn't just for aspiring authors; it’s a masterclass for any entrepreneur who wants to build a business with purpose, passion, and a powerful message that resonates with the world.
💡 What You'll Take Away For YOUR Business
🚀 Why storytelling is the primary way humans learn and how you can leverage it to communicate your business values and vision effectively.
🎯 How to overcome the imposter syndrome that stops you from sharing your message and step into your identity as a leader in your niche.
🤝 The art of using relationships to build your business, from finding your first supporters to meeting the perfect mentors and partners.
💡 A powerful exercise to map out your own "life story" to uncover the unique themes and wisdom you can weave into your brand.
🗣️ How to find your unique voice not by waiting for inspiration, but through the process of taking action and sharing your ideas.
🤖 The right way to use AI as a tool for efficiency without letting it short-circuit the discovery of your authentic message and voice.
📝 About Janice Buswell
Janice Buswell is a multi-talented communicator, speaker, novelist, and blogger who is passionate about helping people tell the stories on their hearts. As the co-founder of the Experience Writing Conference, she has created a community designed to help writers discover their God-given voice and navigate the publishing process without losing their uniqueness. With a diverse background that includes working for a tech startup and as a communications director, Janice brings a powerful perspective on how the art of storytelling intersects with the practical journey of building something from the ground up.
🎯 Janice’s BEST Piece of Advice for Wantrepreneurs and Entrepreneurs
"It's really all about relationships... Don't let [other tasks] squeeze out the need to develop relationships, especially key relationships... taking the time to really connect with people wherever you go, I think is really important to the growth of any organization or any entrepreneur."
📢 Memorable Quotes
“The world actually needs that they need what's in you. That's why you're here on the earth is because there's something in you that the world needs.” – Janice Buswell
“The way you discover your voice is actually through writing... the process is what teaches you.” – Janice Buswell
“There may be a million kinds of versions of this kind of story, but no one will say it the way you said it. And the way you said it is the way that someone else needs to hear it.” – Janice Buswell
🔗 Links & Resources
Visit Experience Writing’s website
Connect with Janice on LinkedIn
Follow Experience Writing on LinkedIn

In a world buzzing with AI fear and confusion, how can you, as an entrepreneur, actually use it as a force for good? Elliott Godwin, founder of EG Integrations, joins the show to demystify AI and automation, showing us how technology can amplify human potential instead of replacing it. He shares his unique journey from a life of service to leading a fast-growing tech company that serves both enterprise clients and nonprofits. This episode is a masterclass for any entrepreneur looking to integrate technology not just for efficiency, but to deepen their impact, serve their community, and build a more meaningful, scalable business.
💡 What You'll Take Away For YOUR Business
🤖 AI as an Amplifier, Not a Replacement: Discover the mindset shift needed to see AI as a tool that frees up humans to do what they do best: be creative, build relationships, and lead with passion.
🚀 The "Systems Architect" Approach: Learn how to look at your own business, identify the core problems and inefficiencies, and devise tech-driven solutions—which aren't always AI.
📈 Why Tech Integration Leads to Team Growth: Hear a counterintuitive take on how automating processes can actually create more opportunities for human capital and lead to hiring more people.
🤝 Balancing Profit and Purpose: Uncover a powerful business model that uses profits from corporate work to fund heavily discounted or pro-bono services for nonprofits, allowing you to scale your impact alongside your revenue.
🧠 Overcoming "You Don't Know What You Don't Know": Get practical tips on using free tools like ChatGPT’s voice feature to brainstorm solutions to business challenges you can't even articulate yet.
🌐 The Power of Being a Generalist: Learn why, in the age of AI, having broad knowledge across different industries can be a massive competitive advantage over niching down.
📝 About Elliott Godwin 
Elliott Godwin is the founder and CEO of EG Integrations, a company dedicated to building intelligent automation and software solutions that make organizations more efficient and effective. Inspired by his parents' life of service, Elliott blends business excellence with a genuine passion for impact. His unique perspective is shaped by a desire to bring transformative, enterprise-level technology to organizations of all sizes, especially nonprofits that are often left behind.
🎯 Elliott’s BEST Piece of Advice for Wantrepreneurs and Entrepreneurs 
"When you see something new come out, don't just watch it idly and be like, 'hey, that's awesome.' Dive into it, figure out how it works, figure out how to use it, figure out what other people are doing with it… and just stay learning, stay curious."
📢 Memorable Quotes
“Let's free up the human side of things to do what humans are best at, and that's being creative and having passion, having a soul, having fervor for whatever it is they're focused on.” – Elliott Godwin
"All these people are creating these tools, but no one's showing people how to use them... Let us show you how to get them to work for you." – Elliott Godwin
“I can't automate a friendship. I can't automate, 'Hey, explain to me your passion for your company and let's figure out how to make it better.'” – Elliott Godwin
🔗 Links & Resources
Visit EG Integrations’ website
Connect with Elliott on LinkedIn
Follow EG Integrations on LinkedIn