The Top Brand Builders 🧱

Hosted by Danny Greene

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May 2026

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About the show

Wisdom, stories, and lessons from people who create from a place of purpose and live with enthusiasm!

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55 recent

May 19, 202659 min

Troy Thompson, Serial Entrepreneur

From Door-to-Door Hustle to Scaling Two Companies: Troy Thompson on Sales, VAs, and PresenceSerial entrepreneur Troy Thompson shares how early hustles like door-to-door lemonade and selling books with Southwestern shaped his mindset around rejection, self-talk, social proof, and incentives. He discusses replacing football ambitions after injuries with sales-driven personal development, and why consistency is a daily grind—highlighting habits like writing goals down and locking away his phone to stay present with family. Troy explains his philosophy that money equals freedom, explores the tension between ambition and contentment, and describes running Pinnacle Insurance and STEL, a Pakistan-based virtual assistant company with 250 employees. He covers VA objections (trust, workload, cost), the value of delegating low-value tasks to focus on revenue, lessons from a multi-year insurance “hard market,” and his approach to parenting: delaying phones, emphasizing face-to-face skills, and viewing college as optional.00:00 Entrepreneur Origins00:31 Lemonade Stand Hustle01:06 Southwestern Sales Bootcamp02:11 Finding Housing Door to Door04:17 Is It a Scam06:22 Cold Door Sales Psychology10:19 Rejection and Self Talk13:32 Sports to Self Development15:31 Habits Writing and Phone Lockbox18:56 Money Freedom and Adventure21:02 Contentment Versus Ambition23:56 Goals EOS and Scaling25:05 Alcohol Boundaries and Sobriety28:09 Quitting Drinking for Dreams28:44 Avoiding the Middle Ground29:44 Parenting by Example30:26 Time as the Metric32:16 Building Teams and Culture35:06 Surviving the Hard Market37:24 Customer Care That Retains38:45 Raising Kids in Tech Era42:28 Parting Advice on Connection43:23 Saal Virtual Assistants Explained46:39 Delegation and Trust Objections51:16 Scaling Stories and Buyback Time54:51 Creator Workflow and Quality58:39 Closing Thoughts and Wrap

May 19, 202652 min

Eric Jorgenson, Author - The Book of Elon

Eric Jorgenson on The Book of Elon: High-Effort Optimism, Imagination, and AI SuperpowersDanny hosts Eric Jorgensen to discuss The Book of Elon and how studying Elon Musk reshaped Eric’s imagination through “high effort optimism,” pairing an ambitious vision of the future with the grind to close the gap between fiction and reality. Eric shares practical imagination habits (asking “why/why not,” learning from history like the Wright brothers), his biography-style research process (collecting millions of words of public sources, distilling into a tightly curated 50,000-word “Elon speaks to you” experience), and how he balances memorable sentences with stories. They explore curation vs originality, Elon’s influences (including Napoleon), learning as behavior change, misconceptions about Elon being money-motivated, and a “solarpunk” future blending nature with technological abundance. They also discuss AI as a tool, education models like Alpha School, and adapting careers to rapid AI-driven change.00:00 Welcome and Imagination00:58 High Effort Optimism02:31 Habits to Think Bigger04:29 Research and Curation Method08:15 Memorable Sentences and Stories10:21 Creativity Without Originality14:10 Elon’s Influences and Strategy18:16 Reprogramming Through Practice19:45 Applying Ideas and Teaching22:38 Work Ethic and Tradeoffs28:49 Crisis Mode Mindset29:28 Wealth Versus Mission31:35 Gates Tesla Short Story33:51 Changing Minds On Elon36:13 Writing With AI Tools40:25 Rethinking School With AI43:05 Career Superpowers Era47:36 Solarpunk Future Vision51:28 High Effort Optimism

October 8, 202459 min

Rashad Kennedy - Real Estate Developer

Rashad embodies hardwork and a growth mindset. This episode will get your mind right. ⁠This episode is sponsored by inTouch⁠. Download it now.

October 1, 202452 min

Brent Widman - Keynote Speaker, Partner, Executive Coach

Brent has championship DNA. His words are authentic and inspirational. inTouch is the sponsor of today's episode. Download now: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/intouch-stay-in-touch/id6475792802

September 24, 202436 min

Jeremy Carroll, Founder - Aroris, North House, Latitude

In this podcast episode, Jeremy shares his transition from working in a family printing business to founding Latitude, a company with a philanthropic mission. He discusses his decision to skip college, his experiences in New York City, and a life-changing trip to Haiti that inspired his business's giving model. Jeremy emphasizes the importance of purpose in business, uniting his team around a common goal, and maintaining integrity in personal and professional relationships. The episode concludes with Jeremy advocating for embracing opportunities and the power of community to drive positive change.

June 20, 20241 hr 19 min

Andrew Jacoby, Founder - Good Sheperd Staffing

Andrew Jacoby is a thoughtful, purpose-driven, serial entrepreneur. In this episode, we discuss: Sales stories Long-term travel Building a business on the road Perils of long-term travel Finding meaning Truth, Goodness, and Beauty philosophy Christianity and more Enjoy.

March 12, 202457 min

Mark Morse, Founder - Morsekode

In this podcast episode, Mark Morse, founder of Morsekode, joins to discuss his journey in blending his passions for music and business into his branding agency. He shares the story behind Morsekode's distinctive guitar pick logo and how it symbolizes the company's creative approach to branding, which involves connecting brands with their audiences on an emotional level. Mark also reflects on his career transition from musician to marketer, his education in business, and the formative experiences at a creative agency that shaped his understanding of creativity's role in business success. The episode also touches on the recent merger of Morsekode and Mark's future endeavors, including teaching and coaching, as well as his personal interests like fishing. Throughout the conversation, Mark emphasizes the importance of relationships, creativity, and maintaining a balanced life that integrates personal values and work. This episode is brought to you by inTouch: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/intouch-stay-in-touch/id6475792802

September 28, 202324 min

Daniel Felt, Founder - Kura Home (MN Business Series)

Daniel started his busines as the sole operator, but within a few years, has done millions in revenue and is licensing his brand across the US. Incredible story of never settling & never becoming complacent. There is always another level.

August 15, 20231 hr 6 min

Mark Rubin - Serial Entrepreneur

Sharing the secrets of the bees. Teaching curious people about energy, money, and regenerative business models. Creating habit through games. https://www.markianrubin.life/ https://projecthoneylight.life/

December 15, 202259 min

Daniel Priestly - Entrepreneur, Best-Selling Author and International Speaker

Summary/Abstract Daniel Priestly is the author of Scorecard Marketing, a book that goes hand in hand with his online assessment scorecard called the Key Person of Influence Scorecard. In the book, Daniel explains why he created the scorecard and how it can help people in their businesses. He also discusses the different aspects of marketing, including branding, customer acquisition, and more.  In order to be successful in marketing, businesses need to understand and tap into the tension that their customers are experiencing. Tension exists between a customer's current reality, desired reality, and the amount of obstacles they face to get from current reality to desired reality. If a business can identify and talk about these elements in a way that mirrors what's going on in their customer's head, they will be more successful in making sales.  The tension is the feeling of unease or anxiety that comes from needing a service but not knowing how to get it. In the case of a plumber, the tension is feeling like your toilet is going to break and not knowing how to fix it. This is where content comes in to help businesses. Content can help businesses by providing information that helps people understand their options and make decisions. The plumber who waits for somebody to search plumber in Toronto, that person could also go out and forge relationships with real estate agents that do lettings, and they could be a preferred supplier for a letting agency. This way, they are on the front foot and can proactively figure out what relationships would drive the business and go after those.  The conversation discuss the similarities between why people like a story and why people like a business. Great businesses provide a path of least resistance that resolves tension and offers the customer what they need. In the early days of a business, it is good to tailor a solution to each customer in order to learn what the middle path looks like. Timestamps 0:00:00 The Top Brand Builders: A Conversation with Daniel Priestley 0:02:07 The Power of Scorecards: How Data Analytics Can Help Your Business Grow 0:09:01 The Importance of Content Marketing for Reactive Businesses 0:11:00 The Benefits of a Great Business 0:12:35 Content Creation: An Act of Service 0:18:03 The Benefits and Drawbacks of Consistency in Business 0:19:32 The Purpose of Content Marketing 0:24:09 The Benefits of Creating a Waiting List for Your Business 0:25:39 The Benefits of a Performance-Based Business Model 0:28:14 The Work-Life Balance Struggle for Parents 0:29:54 The Fear and Excitement of AI 0:31:35 The Dangers of TikTok: How the App is Tipping Acid Through Society 0:33:27 The Dangers of AI: How TikTok is Polarizing Society 0:37:34 The Impact of AI on the Future of Work 0:39:20 The Implications of Artificial Intelligence on Society 0:41:10 The Industrial Revolution vs. The Digital Revolution 0:43:50 The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on the Future of Work 0:45:24 The Importance of Data and AI in Business Opportunities 0:47:18 The Importance of Intuition and Data in Business 0:49:21 The Benefits of Hiring an Assistant 0:52:34 The Importance of Pitching Ideas 0:54:27 The Power of Pitching Ideas and Building Teams 0:56:02 Daniel Priestley on How to Create a Million Dollar Business