Relationships & Revenue Podcast

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Jun 2026

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Life is all about relationships and great leaders heavily invest in those relationships. On the Relationships and Revenue Podcast, we talk about how to improve our most significant relationships at home so we can be better in our business relationships. We talk with experts from all over the world representing many disciplines about the best tips and strategies to become amazing people and amazing leaders. Welcome to the show!

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June 12, 2026Episode 32143 min

Episode 321 How to Earn Trust, Reveal Truth, and Communicate with Brad Beeler (Part 1)

John talks with Brad Beeler — retired United States Secret Service agent, former member of President George H. W. Bush's protective detail, polygraph examiner, keynote speaker, and author of the book "Tell Me Everything: A Secret Service Agent's Proven Strategies for Earning Trust, Revealing Truth, and Communicating with Anyone." Listen to this episode to learn more: [00:00] - Intro [00:53] - Brad's bio [02:05] - What interrogations are really like (not like the movies) [04:30] - Applying interrogation skills to normal life [07:25] - How others code you as friend or foe [09:04] - The right way to give a handshake [10:19] - Remembering names & using them well [11:35] - Brad's journey into law enforcement and the Secret Service [16:20] - The value of practice and repetition [17:46] - The five-star recruit problem [18:56] - Hire people better than you [19:43] - The history of polygraph testing in the Secret Service [23:27] - How frequently polygraph testing is used [24:31] - Working child exploitation cases and the challenges involved [26:52] - How interrogations sharpened Brad's communication skills [31:51] - Most people never get to share their story [33:20] - Creating a confessional space in conversations [36:17] - How Brad's observation made a suspect confess to his crime [39:57] - How Brad handles the internal aftermath of interrogations NOTABLE QUOTES "If you demonstrate tactical empathy and you focus on their why instead of what, you're more likely to get information from people." "Effective communication is almost like effective podcasting." "Entrepreneurs, you don't need to just look at where this person (potential hire) went to school or where they did this. You need to look at who's grinding. Who has not just the skills, but the attributes, those hardworking attributes that make them want to get better every single day." "If you want to hire a team for 25 years, you don't want them where they're at when you hire them on day one. You want them based on the potential of where they're going to be 25 years from now." "If you think somebody has the potential to take over something that you're doing, something you know somebody else could be doing, and when they get 60–65% as good as you, set them free. Let them go. Let them do it." "You give me a bad script and you deliver it well, it's going to be received better than vice versa." "One little tidbit to communication is this: you have to watch yourself without listening, so you can see your body language. And you have to listen to yourself without the video on. If you do those two things, you'll definitely level up your ability to communicate." "Communication is a skill like any other, and if you don't work at it, it will diminish." "They think that by saying, 'Me too,' they're building rapport with you. No, they're doing the exact opposite. They're showing they're not letting that person get that dopamine pumped out of their body and get those neurochemical soups going in the right way." "Secrets are shared with whispers, not with yells." USEFUL LINKS: https://bradleybeeler.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/bradbeeler1865/ https://www.instagram.com/bradbeeler1865 https://www.facebook.com/beelerbrad https://www.youtube.com/@BradBeeler1865 Tell Me Everything: A Secret Service Agent's Proven Strategies for Earning Trust, Revealing Truth, and Communicating with Anyone (https://a.co/d/01BWF62x) CONNECT WITH JOHN Website - https://iamjohnhulen.com LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnhulen Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/johnhulen Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/johnhulen X - https://x.com/johnhulen YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLX_NchE8lisC4NL2GciIWA EPISODE CREDITS Intro and Outro music provided by Jeff Scheetz - https://jeffscheetz.com/

June 5, 2026Episode 32038 min

Episode 320 Flawless Leadership with Christian "Boo" Boucousis (Part 2)

John continues his conversation with Christian "Boo" Boucousis. Boo explains his idea of Flawless Leadership, why destinations are more powerful than goals, how to find purpose in ordinary work, and how AI can be used as a coaching and leadership tool. In Part 1, Christian shared how his childhood dream shaped his entire life, how an autoimmune disease ended his fighter pilot career, and how he now helps leaders and businesses think and perform like fighter pilots. Listen to this episode to learn more: [00:00] - Being realistic with your kids [03:43] - What is Flawless Leadership? [06:03] - The three leadership moments [08:41] - Christian's definition of purpose and why many people misunderstand it [12:49] - Why he wrote The Afterburner Advantage [13:58] - Flawless Leadership: The Perfect Book for The Imperfect Leader [16:24] - How Christian is creating more leaders [17:32] - Building an AI coach [19:54] - Using AI as an extension of yourself [22:46] - How flying shaped Christian's faith and view of the world [26:36] - How Christain's faith shapes his business [31:10] - When is "enough" ever enough? [32:28] - The problem with social media and influencer culture [33:44] - Legacy that Christian wants to leave behind [36:20] - Why failure is one of life's greatest teachers [37:03] - Wrap-up NOTABLE QUOTES: "Flawless isn't perfect. Flawless is the pursuit of perfection." "The domain that you can be perfect in is the domain of the things you can control." "Be aware, and to be aware, you've got to have intention. And to turn intention into action, you've got to have destinations." "If you say, 'This is my destination, and I must arrive,' it forces you to get out of that kind of big black-and-white mindset into something that's a little more granular, and you start to bring meaning to the things you do every day." "A goal is just something nice to have, whereas a destination is different. You have to arrive at it." "As a fighter pilot, we know you're going to make mistakes, and that's okay. But we want to help you minimize that as much as we can because, if you don't, it's going to kill you, or you're going to hurt someone else." "No one gets there without years of investment." "If you live a life that doesn't have a destination or a target, you can't hit it, so you cannot have impact." "If what you do is aligned to a purpose, the byproduct of that is you live a purposeful life." USEFUL LINKS: https://callmeboo.com/ https://www.christianboucousis.com/ https://www.afterburner.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/christian-boo-boucousis/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/afterburner/posts/?feedView=all https://www.instagram.com/christianbooboucousis/ https://www.facebook.com/christian.boucousis https://www.facebook.com/AfterburnerIncPage https://www.youtube.com/@afterburnerinc CONNECT WITH JOHN Website - https://iamjohnhulen.com LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnhulen Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/johnhulen Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/johnhulen X - https://x.com/johnhulen YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLX_NchE8lisC4NL2GciIWA EPISODE CREDITS Intro and Outro music provided by Jeff Scheetz - https://jeffscheetz.com/

May 29, 2026Episode 31941 min

Episode 319 Flawless Leadership with Christian "Boo" Boucousis (Part 1)

John talks with Christian "Boo" Boucousis — former Royal Australian Air Force fighter pilot, CEO of Afterburner, behavior specialist, leadership keynote speaker, author of the best-selling book, The Afterburner Advantage: How a Small Team of Fighter Pilots Transformed 3,500 Companies and Helped an NFL Team Win the Super Bowl, host of The Few Leaders podcast, and devoted dad. Through Afterburner, "Boo" helps individuals and organizations turn intention into reality with less wasted effort. Listen to this episode to learn more: [00:00] - Intro [01:23] - Christian's bio and background [03:39] - Going from fighter pilot to business leader [04:47] - The air show that shaped Christian's life purpose [05:32] - Being diagnosed with ADHD and how it affected him at school [06:38] - Why he transitioned from fighter pilot to entrepreneurship [07:16] - Discovering Afterburner and eventually taking it over [08:48] - Afterburner's coaches are fighter pilots from around the world [09:45] - The two core roles of Afterburner [10:47] - Busy vs. effective and why people avoid thinking [13:00] - Missionizing your life instead of simply making to-do lists [16:28] - The ORCA method: Objective, Result, Cause, and Action [19:31] - Creating habits & avoiding all-or-nothing thinking [21:54] - The Plasma ball brain analogy [24:57] - How small daily actions expand your comfort zone over time [27:24] - The myth of big wins [29:53] - Celebrating wins in a meaningful way [33:54] - Christian's transition from military life to civilian life [35:33] - Balancing his ambition and time with kids NOTABLE QUOTES: "If you have some real clarity around your intention, the path looks after itself." "The problem is, it's really easy to be busy and go nowhere." "That's something that a fighter pilot is trained to do: understand that your job is to hit a target, not to go flying." "Missionize your life." "To missionize your life means every day you have to have a mission. You have to achieve something. And then, when you know what you want to achieve, you can work backwards and prioritize the work. Understand: is this a distraction, or is this focusing on what matters? And you start to reduce the noise each and every day. Otherwise, you're just looking for something to do." "Well, humans are engineered to be busy, and as a result, we reward effort and find work. And then, when we start to get into those paradigms of laziness or procrastination, that's usually the byproduct of too much work, or not knowing where to start, or not really understanding why the work is important and why should I bother." "Habits are just doing something regularly and committing it to motor memory, so you don't have to think about it. It becomes an unconscious behavior." "The habit isn't the goal. The habit is the small thing that just gets you moving towards the goal." "The habit you want to instill is the habit of movement, not the habit of going to the gym." "Your whole life begins to become what it is you identify yourself as in the future." "When you win, you release dopamine, oxytocin, serotonin, and endorphins. It's the byproduct of success, which is why successful people seem to be so incredibly busy and not make it feel like work, because they're busy winning. They're not busy doing work." "Even when you have a bad mission, you debrief, you learn some really great things, and that's a win." "It's not the quantity of time that you have with your children; it's the quality of time." USEFUL LINKS: https://callmeboo.com/ https://www.christianboucousis.com/ https://www.afterburner.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/christian-boo-boucousis/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/afterburner/posts/?feedView=all https://www.instagram.com/christianbooboucousis/ https://www.facebook.com/christian.boucousis https://www.facebook.com/AfterburnerIncPage https://www.youtube.com/@afterburnerinc CONNECT WITH JOHN Website - https://iamjohnhulen.com LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnhulen Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/johnhulen Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/johnhulen X - https://x.com/johnhulen YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLX_NchE8lisC4NL2GciIWA EPISODE CREDITS Intro and Outro music provided by Jeff Scheetz - https://jeffscheetz.com/

May 22, 2026Episode 31847 min

Episode 318 Overcoming Reality TV with Kelly Chase (Part 2)

John continues his conversation with Kelly Chase. They discuss how saying "no" can create better opportunities and Kelly's personal faith journey, from being "spiritual but not religious" to developing a deeper relationship with God, and how it has shifted her mindset, habits, and work. In Part 1, Kelly talked about her experience on Netflix's "Love Is Blind," the emotional struggles that came after the show aired, dealing with online hate, people pleasing, anxiety, and learning how to rebuild her life and mindset. Listen to this episode to learn more: [00:00] - The connection between pain, purpose, and platform [01:59] - Your story matters, even if you don't think it's big enough [04:24] - Collaboration over competition [05:31] - Using your gifts is an act of service [06:21] - How changing perspective helped John handle losing a big client [07:35] - Helping Kelly to define her ideal client [10:32] - Why saying yes to everything can keep you stuck [13:09] - Kelly's growth and its ripple effect on others [16:10] - Why inspiring people works better than forcing change [17:08] - Impact of Kelly's faith on her life and work [26:53] - Faith, religion, and being a follower of Jesus [31:32] - What success means to Kelly [33:19] - Bible app recommendation [34:42] - #1 daily habit [36:51] - Traits of a great leader [38:20] - How Kelly invests in her own growth [39:10] - Best way to connect with Kelly [42:46] - Book recommendations [47:37] - Wrap-up NOTABLE QUOTES: "There is probably something significant that you've been through. You are important, and you're worthy of whatever you want to create. Your story matters too." "If it's not in perfect alignment with who you are and where you want to be, say no." "Rather than viewing them (people in the same business or industry as you) as competition, view them as collaborators." "We just can't shame people for who they are. We have to accept them for who they are, and we can't make someone think a different way, or make someone show up a different way, or believe a certain way as you do. But you can inspire them through your actions without forcing it down someone's throat." "At the end of the day, it's having radical faith that the thing is already here, it's happening, what you're desiring, that or something even better. Maybe you do have to go through a hard and challenging time, but at the other end, there's purpose after pain." "Success is being happy and grateful with where you're at, because if you can't be happy right now, you're not going to be happy at $5 million or $20 million, or with five kids and a house in Vermont." "We can create our own beliefs and our own stories. That's what helps us get through and create our own reality." BOOKS MENTIONED: GOD Works Through You by Robert A Russell (https://a.co/d/0dyNN0KU) Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill (https://a.co/d/0ck9reeI) The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom by Don Miguel Ruiz (https://a.co/d/0ekeXxHG) The Miracle Morning: The Not-So-Obvious Secret Guaranteed to Transform Your Life (Before 8AM) by Hal Elrod (https://a.co/d/02VngcBf) The 7 Love Agreements: Decisions You Can Make on Your Own to Strengthen Your Marriage by Dr. Douglas Weiss (https://a.co/d/00lnfOVD) The Power of Moments: Why Certain Experiences Have Extraordinary Impact by Chip Heath and Dan Heath (https://a.co/d/01lo9n1p) APP MENTIONED: YouVersion Bible App (https://www.youversion.com/bible-app) USEFUL LINKS: https://www.chaselifewithkelly.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-chase-220a796/ https://www.instagram.com/chaselifewithkelly/ https://www.facebook.com/kelly.chase.161 https://tinyurl.com/ChaseLifeWithKellyPodcast https://tinyurl.com/LoveIsBlindTrailer https://www.cameo.com/chaselifewithkelly https://www.youtube.com/@chaselifewithkelly CONNECT WITH JOHN Website - https://iamjohnhulen.com LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnhulen Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/johnhulen Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/johnhulen X - https://x.com/johnhulen YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLX_NchE8lisC4NL2GciIWA EPISODE CREDITS Intro and Outro music provided by Jeff Scheetz - https://jeffscheetz.com/

May 15, 2026Episode 31749 min

Episode 317 Overcoming Reality TV with Kelly Chase (Part 1)

John talks with Kelly Chase — mindset coach, host of the ChaseLife with Kelly podcast, founder of Goddess Magic, entrepreneur, social media influencer, and former cast member of Netflix's "Love Is Blind" Season 1. Kelly shares what really happened behind the scenes of the show, how she dealt with online hate after saying no at the altar, and the emotional toll of having millions of people judge her character. Listen to this episode to learn more: [00:00] - Intro [01:10] - Kelly's bio [03:05] - Kelly's backstory and start in the TV industry [07:41] - Joining "Love Is Blind" [10:02] - How the show's editing affected public perception [12:15] - Dealing with public backlash and online hate [14:08] - Kelly's life after the show aired [16:51] - Transitioning into mindset coaching [20:37] - Balancing multiple careers during COVID [22:34] - "What does this make possible?" [26:46] - Being judged and receiving attacks on her character [29:15] - Online criticism and people questioning her coaching experience [30:56] - The brain surgeon analogy [32:35] - Life and dating after "Love Is Blind" [36:26] - Conversations with her parents about marriage and family [39:30] - Becoming the right person matters more than finding the right person [42:06] - The story behind her Goddess Magic coaching program [45:44] - John encourages Kelly to write her book NOTABLE QUOTES: "I was trying to prove myself and my worth to random strangers on the internet." "Remember, this is happening for me, not to me." "Even when these supposedly horrible things happen, something terrific can come out of it. It depends on your perspective." "Healing is not linear." "Rather than trying to find the right person, be the right person." "As a coach, you only need to be one step ahead of the person you're coaching." "You don't have to have it all figured out. You just have to know the next step." "True leaders, the best leaders, serve." USEFUL LINKS: https://www.chaselifewithkelly.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-chase-220a796/ https://www.instagram.com/chaselifewithkelly/ https://www.facebook.com/kelly.chase.161 https://tinyurl.com/ChaseLifeWithKellyPodcast https://tinyurl.com/LoveIsBlindTrailer https://www.cameo.com/chaselifewithkelly https://www.youtube.com/@chaselifewithkelly CONNECT WITH JOHN Website - https://iamjohnhulen.com LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnhulen Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/johnhulen Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/johnhulen X - https://x.com/johnhulen YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLX_NchE8lisC4NL2GciIWA EPISODE CREDITS Intro and Outro music provided by Jeff Scheetz - https://jeffscheetz.com/

May 8, 2026Episode 31644 min

Episode 316 Financial Literacy for All with Michelle Campbell (Part 2)

John continues his conversation with Michelle Campbell. Michelle talks about all the pain she went through, how she turned it into her purpose, and shares that she would never wish her painful experiences on anyone, but also would not trade them for an easier life. In Part 1, Michelle shared her journey to becoming a serial entrepreneur, the importance of understanding your relationship with money, and why financial literacy is about more than just money. Listen to this episode to learn more: [00:00] - Why Michelle won't trade her pain for an easier life [03:33] - Impact of Michelle's faith on her life and business [05:50] - Starting #Stability with a promise to help others when her life improved [08:54] - Why John doesn't lead with religion or politics in business [12:05] - Why Michelle speaks about spirituality carefully and respectfully [13:34] - Forgiving the people who hurt her [17:35] - Michelle's definition of success [18:59] - #1 daily habit [20:35] - Traits of a great leader [23:43] - What "no boss" really means for entrepreneurs [24:55] - The legacy Michelle wants to leave behind [26:05] - From athletic training to engineering to real estate to finance [32:24] - Best way to connect with Michelle [37:12] - Michelle's love for the Nebraska Cornhuskers [42:39] - Wrap-up NOTABLE QUOTES: "You can lie to the world, but you can't lie to yourself." "To thine own self be true." "You've got to be truthful to yourself; otherwise, you'll never get down to it. You'll never get further." "Me having an easier life — and actually, underneath it all, me and everybody else around me still going through pain, tragedies, and challenges, not knowing how to express them, and feeling alone — that's not a win." "Don't live with any regrets. Don't regret anything. Everything counts. Nothing will be wasted." "Find the lesson ... appreciate what it was ... then just move on." "Success is finding your purpose in life and doing what makes you happy on your level, not to impress or please anybody else." "A good leader has the mind to be neutral enough to do what's best for the masses, and humble enough to take advice, listen, be corrected, and hear what other people want." "I'm not saying you need to be in the gym every day, be a bodybuilder, and eat salads for a living. But be in good health, decent health, so that you can have longevity in your life." "I like to invest in myself by investing in other people. And so, I am very stingy with my time, because it's the only thing that we can't get back." "I make it a point to spend time with people who know different things than me, so that I can feed off their energy, especially people who have done something that I want to do." "I'm grateful for all the people who came into my life, the people I've been friends with for 20 years or more, and I'm grateful for the people who broke my heart, because I wouldn't have learned." USEFUL RESOURCES: https://bymichellecampbell.com/ https://bluebirdmemoir.com/ https://linktr.ee/bluebirdmemoir https://www.instagram.com/bymichellecampbell/ https://www.instagram.com/bluebirdmemoir/ https://hashtagstability.org/ https://www.taxshell.com/ Bluebird: A Memoir of Trauma, Heartbreak, and Divine Beauty in the Struggle (https://a.co/d/04SJIEqJ) CONNECT WITH JOHN Website - https://iamjohnhulen.com LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnhulen Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/johnhulen Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/johnhulen X - https://x.com/johnhulen YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLX_NchE8lisC4NL2GciIWA EPISODE CREDITS Intro and Outro music provided by Jeff Scheetz - https://jeffscheetz.com/

May 1, 2026Episode 31543 min

Episode 315 Financial Literacy for All with Michelle Campbell (Part 1)

John talks with Michelle Campbell — serial entrepreneur with experience across real estate investing, horticulture (interior scaping), commercial trucking, and financial services, founder of a social services non-profit organization, #Stability, author of Bluebird: A Memoir of Trauma, Heartbreak, and Divine Beauty in the Struggle, and a passionate advocate for helping people transform their relationship with money and build more stable lives. Listen to this episode to learn more: [00:00] - Intro [00:48] - Michelle's bio [03:23] - Michelle's entrepreneur journey [05:50] - Getting into real estate [09:22] - What is financial literacy and why is it important? [13:31] - Financial problems can affect mental health [14:53] - Slowing down and being mindful [16:51] - How pain can transform your life [17:53] - Michelle's struggles with identity [20:11] - Overnight success that took 25 years [23:07] - How her struggles help her connect with others [25:01] - Being real on social media and building trust [27:38] - The truism of pain [37:54] - Michelle's book Bluebird and its purpose NOTABLE QUOTES: "Never dismiss anything that you've been through, any of the processes, the journey, any of it, because all of it adds up to what your purpose is ultimately meant to be." "We all need to humble ourselves, have that moment of honesty, and be courageous enough to face whatever it is we're going through." "Everybody needs a budget, whether you make $10,000 a year or $10 million or more, because you have to know what's coming in and what's going out." "A lot of people see our finished work, our finished picture, our finished success, but they don't know the journey. They don't see the failures, the moments we wanted to give up, or all the mess-ups along the way. They just see the end, and sometimes they become jealous." "You can be a more relatable person when you've been in someone else's shoes, and that's what truly connects us and builds compassion for others." "What I was going through was painful, but what was even more painful was keeping it all inside. No one knew what I was dealing with. I was presenting this image that everything was fine, no problems at all, but internally I was panicking. I was scared, anxious, and completely stressed out." "Mindfulness is huge. You need to sit with yourself, be in your own thoughts for a while, and really think things through. The answers will come to you, but not when you're in the middle of chaos." "We've all had something happen to us ... Everybody has been through something. Those experiences are what connect us, not just as a country, but as a world. None of us are perfect. So we need to have compassion for others and be open to sharing our stories to help someone else. That's the mindset we all need to have." USEFUL RESOURCES: https://bymichellecampbell.com/ https://bluebirdmemoir.com/ https://linktr.ee/bluebirdmemoir https://www.instagram.com/bymichellecampbell/ https://www.instagram.com/bluebirdmemoir/ https://hashtagstability.org/ https://www.taxshell.com/ Bluebird: A Memoir of Trauma, Heartbreak, and Divine Beauty in the Struggle (https://a.co/d/04SJIEqJ) CONNECT WITH JOHN Website - https://iamjohnhulen.com LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnhulen Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/johnhulen Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/johnhulen X - https://x.com/johnhulen YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLX_NchE8lisC4NL2GciIWA EPISODE CREDITS Intro and Outro music provided by Jeff Scheetz - https://jeffscheetz.com/

April 24, 2026Episode 31436 min

Episode 314 The Unconditionals with Andy Crocker (Part 2)

John continues his conversation with Andy Crocker. In Part 1, Andy shared his journey to becoming an aerospace engineer, his career working on satellites, launch vehicles, missile defense, and lunar missions, and what it was like to compete with Elon Musk (SpaceX) and Jeff Bezos (Blue Origin) for NASA's lunar lander contracts. In this episode, they talk about what it really means to fail, lead, and grow. They discuss why failing is a prerequisite for success and how companies like SpaceX use failing to learn and improve. Listen to this episode to learn more: [00:00] - Why failing is actually a good thing [01:03] - What SpaceX gets right about failing [03:40] - Why leaders must allow and encourage failing [05:06] - Ritz Carlton way of encouragement [09:13] - Andy's astronaut dream [13:15] - Why Andy went back to school [15:54] - Traits of a great leader [18:12] - The difference between a leader & a boss [19:23] - Moving toward entrepreneurship [21:02] - Role of Andy's faith in his life [24:12] - Andy's definition of success [25:15] - #1 daily habit [26:09] - Legacy Andy wants to leave behind [27:01] - How Andy invests in his growth [28:10] - Leadership book recommendations [30:38] - Best way to connect with Andy [31:53] - John's 2 book rule [35:31] - Wrap-up NOTABLE QUOTES: "Failure is okay, as long as we learn and get better." "Unwillingness to fail, or treating failure as a stopping point, becomes such a constraint that you're not able to succeed, or it certainly slows it way, way down." "Failure is a prerequisite for success ... The people who have been the most successful, in whatever way you want to classify that, have failed the most because they've risked the most. They've failed, they've learned, and then they become successful." "As a leader, you want to encourage risk-taking and innovation, because … if they have to come back and ask a question, or get permission, or be taught how to do it, then they're not going to learn those new and innovative ways." "We've really got to sometimes ignore the no's, even when they seem like physical 'this can't happen.' Some people will prove that it can." "Leadership really is striving to make others better, trying to help other people be the best they can be ... It's really focused on other people, focused on serving, trying to help them be the best they can be." "Love, gratitude, integrity, accountability, and endeavor are critical ... You've got to stay aligned with your values." "A positive that's come for me out of writing the book is gratitude … being present and realizing that I can be appreciative of whatever happens to be going on." BOOKS MENTIONED: Atomic Habits by James Clear (https://a.co/d/0bnOsYDp) Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln by Doris Kearns Goodwin (https://a.co/d/0bmxQK4n) USEFUL RESOURCES: https://andycrockerbooks.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/andycrocker/ https://www.instagram.com/andycrockerbooks/ https://www.facebook.com/andycrockerbooks/ The Unconditionals: Five Timeless Values to Live Without Limits and Ignite Your Superpower (https://a.co/d/0dNbjtKG) Andy's Animal Alphabet Almanac (https://a.co/d/006VHGdl) CONNECT WITH JOHN Website - https://iamjohnhulen.com LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnhulen Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/johnhulen Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/johnhulen X - https://x.com/johnhulen YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLX_NchE8lisC4NL2GciIWA EPISODE CREDITS Intro and Outro music provided by Jeff Scheetz - https://jeffscheetz.com/

April 17, 2026Episode 31337 min

Episode 313 The Unconditionals with Andy Crocker (Part 1)

John talks with Andy Crocker — aerospace engineer and executive with 30+ years experience across human and robotic exploration, hypersonics, and missile defense, contributed to NASA's Human Landing System, leadership development enhanced through coursework at Harvard Business School and The Wharton School, and author of The Unconditionals: Five Timeless Values to Live Without Limits and Ignite Your Superpower. Andy shares his journey to becoming an aerospace engineer and opens up about his career setback, competing with companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin, and how that moment pushed him to rethink his purpose and write his book. Listen to this episode to learn more: [00:00] - Intro [00:40] - Andy's bio and backstory [03:47] - How Andy got into aerospace engineering [05:39] - Why Andy can't talk about some projects [06:48] - Competing with SpaceX and Blue Origin for a NASA project [08:56] - Losing the contract and dealing with a major career setback [10:23] - Caring for the team after loss [13:50] - 5 core values from The Unconditionals [19:30] - Love is the foundation of all values [22:16] - The Fruit of the Spirit [24:28] - How John's understanding of gratitude changed with age and pain [27:19] - Gratitude is the most direct path to happiness [29:09] - Happiness vs. Joy [33:27] - The keys to overcoming self limiting beliefs NOTABLE QUOTES: "Relationships are at the center of everything that we do. We have to connect. That connection is critical to whatever we do. We do almost nothing in solitude." "We're going to deal with hardship, no matter how great we are … and it's realizing that we've got to accept that. It doesn't mean we have to like it, but we have to accept the fact that it's going to be there and appreciate what comes out of it." "Unconditional love is not just romantic love. It's not just friendship. It's not just family. It's really about connection with people. It's about connectedness." "We always want to grow. We always want to have more, but it's: what do we have today? How can we make the best of what we have and be appreciative of what we have? And if you're a leader, it is valuing and appreciating the people who work with you, the team members." "Integrity ties to the word 'integer,' which is a whole number, and integrity means it's about being whole. It's about being uncorrupted. So integrity as a leader means you're consistent and you're authentic." "I'm a human, you're a human. We're all dealing with the same stuff, and therefore you deserve the same respect, kindness, and compassion as I do, or anybody does." "Compassion is more than just sympathy, and it's more than just empathy. It's actually recognizing that someone needs help and then acting on it." "The older we get, the more we realize the power of all the things that happened to us, in particular, the things that we thought were bad, the difficulties. We realize what we got out of those. We got stronger, hopefully, or if we didn't, at some point we're going to learn. You've got to figure out how to get through those in order to grow." "If you really can have unconditional gratitude, what comes out of it is joy. And that doesn't mean that you're always happy. It means that you accept what comes, you deal with it, and you have this unconditional contentedness inside that allows you to get through whatever comes." USEFUL RESOURCES: https://andycrockerbooks.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/andycrocker/ https://www.instagram.com/andycrockerbooks/ https://www.facebook.com/andycrockerbooks/ The Unconditionals: Five Timeless Values to Live Without Limits and Ignite Your Superpower (https://a.co/d/0dNbjtKG) Andy's Animal Alphabet Almanac (https://a.co/d/006VHGdl) CONNECT WITH JOHN Website - https://iamjohnhulen.com LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnhulen Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/johnhulen Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/johnhulen X - https://x.com/johnhulen YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLX_NchE8lisC4NL2GciIWA EPISODE CREDITS Intro and Outro music provided by Jeff Scheetz - https://jeffscheetz.com/

April 10, 2026Episode 3121 hr 2 min

Episode 312 Embrace Your DRIVE with Richie Parker

John talks with Richie Parker — founder of Optimech Solutions, former NASCAR engineer, part of 9 NASCAR championship teams with Hendrick Motorsports, former Chief of Staff for the University of Virginia football team, and motivational speaker who inspires people to embrace challenges and own their road to success. Listen to this episode to learn more: [00:00] - Intro [00:30] - Richie's bio [02:30] - Treating his situation as a challenge, not an obstacle [06:36] - How is Richie invests in his growth [09:39] - How growing up around cars shaped Richie's passion [11:01] - Learning to drive without arms [12:26] - Richie's first retrofit project [14:59] - How an internship changed his entire career path [17:29] - Working at Hendrick Motorsports [18:40] - Why an MBA after a successful engineering career [21:22] - Richie's transition to college athletics [23:50] - Why Richie moved to full-time speaking [25:47] - Richie's thoughts on writing a book [30:00] - John's advice for aspiring writers [31:18] - What Richie speaks about [32:18] - The DRIVE framework [38:18] - Speaking without making it about self [40:00] - Interacting with the audience [42:43] - Transition from employee to entrepreneur [44:50] - Social media vs. reality of entrepreneurship [47:44] - Impact of Richie's faith on his life [52:08] - Why communication matters [54:30] - Richie's definition of success [56:24] - #1 daily habit [57:40] - Traits of a great leader [58:47] - Legacy that Richie wants to leave behind [59:47] - Best way to connect with Richie [1:02:52] - Wrap-up NOTABLE QUOTES: "I learned to find the positive in my physical differences, versus it being a negative thing in my life." "This is life. This is the assignment, and you're going to go out and make the most of it and embrace the challenge of it." "We all have our own journey that we're on. We all have different things in our past and present, and then in our future that makes us all unique." "It's easy to look at someone and say, 'It must be nice.' Well, you don't know what that other person has gone through and what they've endured in their life to get to where they are." "If I feel good about the work that I am doing behind the scenes and I'm staying true to my core values, it doesn't matter what anybody else thinks." "If there's something that I want to do, I just look at it like, okay, eventually I will do that thing. I just have to figure out how to do that thing." "There never was a mindset that I would not be able to drive. It was more about how I was going to do it and what modifications would be involved." "If you want it bad enough, then nothing is gonna stop you." "If you truly want to make a difference in somebody's life, if you can touch just one person, make a difference for one person, then you absolutely need to write it (book)." "You can find your purpose a lot quicker if you step outside of self and start looking at the world through a lens of how you can be of service to others." "If someone has something worthwhile to say, I think it is on that person to get the training they need so that they can become the most effective communicator that they can be." "Everyone's success is different … we don't even realize how much we have accomplished and how far we have come, what we have overcome." BOOK MENTIONED: The Gap and The Gain: The High Achievers' Guide to Happiness, Confidence, and Success by Dan Sullivan & Dr. Benjamin Hardy (https://a.co/d/08uwMDD0) USEFUL RESOURCES: https://www.richieparker.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/richie-parker-ba7ab311/ https://www.instagram.com/richieparker64/ https://www.facebook.com/richie.parker.64 https://www.youtube.com/@RichieParker64 CONNECT WITH JOHN Website - https://iamjohnhulen.com LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnhulen Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/johnhulen Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/johnhulen X - https://x.com/johnhulen YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLX_NchE8lisC4NL2GciIWA EPISODE CREDITS Intro and Outro music provided by Jeff Scheetz - https://jeffscheetz.com/