The Business of Joy

Hosted by Lisa W. Miller

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Nov 2026

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About the show

Consumer researcher Lisa W. Miller is an expert at telling the story behind the data. The Business of Joy is a business podcast where C-suite leaders and change-makers share real stories and strategies on how joy✨, purpose, and human connection fuel the top line and bottom line.

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60 recent

November 5, 202642 min

The Inventor Who Saw AI Coming in 1998 Says Joy Comes First | Kevin Surace

The average person racks up dozens of complaints daily. You get ONE complaint a day. Use it, and you’re done. I accept this challenge. Will you? Kevin Surace holds 95 patents and is creator of the first AI voice assistant in 1998! Does joy drive success or does success drive joy? When I asked Kevin Surace what’s really behind all that success, his answer was joy! A few gems from this episode: 🔹 Joy isn’t the outcome of success. It’s where success starts. 🔹 Jealousy is the thief of joy, including jealousy of AI. 🔹 In an AI world, you won’t be paid for the tasks a machine can do. You’ll be paid for your taste, your judgment, and your experience. 🔹 Stay curious. When you’re always learning, you can find joy in almost anything, even the meeting you were dreading. Check out Kevin’s new book The Joy–Success Cycle (featuring a foreword from Goldie Hawn): CLICK HERE #BusinessOfJoy #Leadership #AI #Innovation #JoySuccessCycle

October 6, 202640 min

The Restaurant Pricing Lesson We Keep Forgetting | Lane Cardwell

What separates iconic, category-defining restaurant brands from the concepts that stall out when scaling? In this masterclass on hospitality leadership, industry veteran Lane Cardwell joins host Lisa W. Miller to break down the strategic playbook behind building, operating, and scaling some of America’s most recognizable restaurant concepts. Whether you are an emerging restaurant founder, hospitality executive, multi-unit franchise operator, or brand builder, this conversation offers actionable frameworks for sustainable growth, menu innovation, and maintaining brand culture across multiple locations. Episode Highlights & Key Topics: The Category-Defining Blueprint: What market-leading restaurant brands prioritize early that competitors overlook. The Pitfalls of Rapid Expansion: The operational and financial traps founders face when transitioning from local favorite to multi-unit chain. Preserving Brand Equity & Culture: Practical strategies for keeping the guest experience consistent across hundreds of doors. Navigating Evolving Consumer Habits: Where dining trends, consumer behavior, and the future of fast-casual hospitality are headed next.

September 23, 202644 min

Building Things Worth Owning | Ellis Winstanley

Ellis Winstanley was 12 when his parents told him if he wanted his own bedroom, he had to build it himself. He's been building things ever since. Restaurants he turned around while still in college. El Arroyo, with their famous sign that now makes a million people smile every day. A whitewater rafting route. A 58-acre resort in New Braunfels. And Axial Shift, a software platform built on the idea that hospitality people should be doing hospitality, not admin work. His words: "We build things that are worth owning." From meeting his wife while working in a West Campus UT bar, to hiring while most were laying off people in the midst of a global pandemic, and working with Emily Knight and Texas Restaurant Association to legalize margarita delivery, this episode covers so much ground! Learn more about Axial Shift: https://axialshift.com/

August 25, 202640 min

Building a Factory in a Disaster Zone | Julie Colombino Billingham

Ten days after the 2010 Haiti earthquake, she was alone, no safety plan, no contacts and no evacuation plan. Julie Colombino Billingham had quit her job, sold her Florida home and landed in Port-au-Prince with only $7,000 in her pocket. Many days, she only ate an avocado and drank a single coca-cola. THE PIVOT POINT: It came when a woman grabbed her arm: "I don't want your water, I need a job." As a trained disaster responder, she experienced the brutal truth: handing out free aid destroys local economies by undercutting local businesses and local job. JOB CREATION: That moment shifted Julie’s focus from temporary aid to job creation and ultimately building an off-grid factory making beautiful handbags and accessories by hand. I’ve already bought one. Loved it so much, another is on its way. JULIE’S IMPACT: Her stories are absolutely heart wrenching at the same time inspiring. A few of my favorite moments: The Mindset: Her co-founder Jolina, after losing everything: "We're going to take back everything that the earthquake stole." Operational Grit: After four stolen generators, Julie converted the entire facility to solar power to survive total infrastructure collapse. The Scale: Today, a native executive team is tackling a 79% regional unemployment rate and selling products in Nordstrom. From Loss to Legacy is Julie’s new book. Please take a look! Deux Mains: https://deuxmains.com REBUILD Globally: https://rebuildglobally.org Julie's book, "From Loss to Legacy": https://www.amazon.com/Loss-Legacy-Fashion-Business-Haitis-ebook/dp/B0FYBJ3WRN

August 4, 202647 min

The Chaos Strategist: Fred LeFranc on Working Above Your Value

"I don't like mission statements on walls… they have to live in the hearts and minds of the people." — Fred LeFranc Think about that for a second. How many companies have beautiful words framed in the lobby and a working culture that says the opposite? On this week's episode of The Business of Joy, I had the joy of talking with Fred LeFranc (aka "The Chaos Strategist”), founder of Results Thru Strategy. We dive into: 🧠 How pattern recognition helps him stay calm when companies are in chaos ❤️ The "guest journey" — why memorable experiences are activities fused with emotion 🤖 Staying relevant in the age of AI (hint: it starts with curiosity, not fear) 🎨 Why he wears colorful jackets, and what a client's judgmental comment taught him about personal branding #BusinessOfJoy #ChaosStrategist #Leadership #PersonalBranding

July 21, 202640 min

The "Two-Minute Rule" for High-Stakes Leadership | Amy Hom

How do you build a culture where employees stay, guests thrive, and profit follows? In this episode of The Business of Joy, Lisa W. Miller sits down with industry veteran Amy Hom to discuss the "Origin Story" of a fearless leader. From picking peaches in St. Louis to running some of the most iconic restaurant brands in the country, Amy reveals the unconventional strategies that drive true job satisfaction and operational excellence. In this episode, we discuss: The Gen Z Confidence Crisis: Why only 16% of Gen Z feel "capable" at work and how to fix it. The Two-Minute Rule: Amy’s personal framework for navigating high-stakes leadership stress. Autonomy vs. Control: How giving chefs 70% menu autonomy drives massive retention and profit. The "Heart Check": Why every executive meeting should start with a human pulse check. RESOURCES MENTIONED: The GLEAM Network: https://www.gleamnetwork.net/ Barcelona Wine Bar: https://barcelonawinebar.com/ Lisa’s Gen Z Research: https://www.lwm-associates.com/genz-workshop

June 30, 202629 min

Building the Largest Drone Delivery System on Earth | Zipline's Keller Rinaudo Cliffton

What do delivering blood in Rwanda and your Chipotle order have in common? Zipline - the largest automated delivery system on Earth! And they do it with drones, not trucks! You may or may not have heard of this company… but with a $7 Billion valuation, you will soon! I had the honor of interviewing founder/CEO Keller Rinaudo Cliffton on The Business of Joy show! Here are some of my favorite parts: 1. From a walk-in refrigerator to a $7 Billion Valuation: Six bucks an hour. A heavy down jacket in 120-degree Phoenix heat. That's where Keller learned more than he did in four years of high school. 2. Rwanda's blood network to your Chipotle burrito: Same technology. Same objective. "A teleportation service that delivers what you need, when you need it." 3. The curiosity factor: Curiosity is innate… “the challenge is how do you not stamp it out?”

May 19, 202652 min

Joie de Vivre: How La Madeleine's CEO John Dillon Is Bringing Joy Back to Restaurant Leadership

Joie de vivre. It's a French phrase that translates to "the joy of life." And when I sat down with John Dillon, CEO of La Madeleine, it was clear that joy isn't just a concept for this brand. The brand has been carrying joy in its DNA for 43 years. John's gift was seeing it and turning it up a notch. When John took over as CEO, one of the first things he did was create “Spark Joy Sessions” - conversations with frontline employees to figure out the pain points that actually impacted them on a daily basis. And when he went back a year later to report what had changed because of their feedback? He was surprised… they'd done more than he even realized! That's leadership. That’s a wrap for Season 7 - Hard to believe! Season 8 sneak peek will be coming soon!

April 28, 202649 min

Joy is The Strategy (with John Goss)

Most executives don’t put the word "joy" in their personal brand statement. John Goss does! As President of Sally Beauty, a global brand with over 2,400 stores in the US and Canada, John has built his career around the idea that joy and culture aren’t separate from results - it produces them. In this conversation, we talked about what it really means to lead with joy. Not as a feel-good concept, but as a deliberate strategy. Joy attracts the right people, builds real trust, and drives everything else. We also got into the stuff that doesn't always make it into leadership conversations: growing up as the new kid across eight schools graduating high school in Singapore and the early career moments that taught him exactly the kind of leader he never wanted to be

April 14, 202642 min

The CEO Who Cut Prices, Raised Wages, and 12x'd Profit Anyway | Brandon Coleman III

Gravy-powered rocket ship. 12x EBITDA. His dad made him write a P&L for his lemonade stand, even though Brandon Coleman III couldn't pronounce the word "quarters" yet. Same kid. Forty years later. Now he's leading major brands. Another story that shaped his leadership style: Early in his career, he walked into a restaurant and ordered his own promotion. His server looks at him and says: "I wouldn't do that." He waited until the rush died down. Pulled her aside. Asked her why. She told him everything. It's a moment that he never forgot. When you actually listen to your servers, managers, and guests, magic happens. At Cotton Patch Café, Brandon did the unthinkable - lowered prices, increased portions and increased wages! People thought he was nuts! Guess what? It worked, driving 12x EBITDA! Ironically, the best ideas are often not found in the boardroom. They're found at the front line!