Caffeinated Convos & Horrible Bosses

I consider myself lucky - I'm lucky because I have the pleasure of working with Aunia Kahn. 

She has been given a very special gift of creating the most spectacular art. She also has a gift of giving ideas life - in art - by designing websites (ahem, like mine). 

When I met her we spent an hour talking about books. We barely even talked about design. But I loved her from the start.

She is kind, she is humble and she opens up in this interview about her experience with not so nice leaders and those that left a positive impact on her life. 

Please listen to Aunia's podcasts: https://auniakahn.com/press/

Please check out her work: https://auniakahn.com/portfolio/

And finally sign for her newsletter: https://auniakahn.com/write-me/

Aunia Kahn is a multi-faceted creative entrepreneur and a globally awarded, collected, and exhibited figurative artist/photographer, graphic/web designer at Auxilium Haus Design, a podcast host at the Auxilium Haus Podcast/Create & Inspire Podcast, a published author (view projects), as well as a teacher and an inspirational speaker.

Her work has been in over 300+ exhibitions in over 10 countries; at places such as San Diego Art Institute, Los Angeles Center for Digital Art, iMOCA, St. Louis Art Museum, Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis, Mitchell Museum, and the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art. She has also been a guest on podcasts like Entrepreneur on Fire, with 70 million downloads & 1 million monthly listens.

Aunia has curated several internationally recognized books and projects, including Silver Era Tarot, Inspirations for Survivors, Obvious Remote Chaos, Minding the Sea: Inviting the Muses Over for Tea, Avalanche of White Reason, XIII: The Art of Aunia Kahn, Witch’s Oracle and the Witch’s Oracle 2nd Edition, Moon Goddess (Modern Eden Gallery) exhibit, Tarot Under Oath (Last Rites Gallery), Lowbrow Tarot Project (La Luz De Jesus Gallery), etc. Her forthcoming projects include; An Epidemic of Retrospective, Disintegrating Stars, and the Ethereal Realms Tarot.

She loves Animals, Prussian blue, Psychology, Design, Miracles, Hummingbirds & Life.

Going out with a *BANG* for 2020

Wawa Holiday Coffee

Body Image

A horrible boss we’ll call “Ursula”

Yep, it’s all in here for our last podcast of 2020. Let’s go out with a bang. In this episode we tackle body image (shout out to all my #curvygirls) and the most delish coffee of the season Wawa Holiday Coffee and Clione’s absolute terror of a boss. A boss that was so bad she could only be described as a literal villain: Ursula.

Cliona Byrne helps Mums to like their bodies so they can raise their kids to be body confident badasses. She's a certified coach and has helped families all over the world to break the cycle of children inheriting their parents' hang-ups and insecurities. She loves carbs, speaks croissant, and loves boobie art.

This is a fun one. 

Branden and I hit it off the very first time we talked. We ended up having the greatest chat and I learned so many great things about him. 

So naturally I asked him to please, please be a guest on Caffeinated Convos & Horrible Bosses. You'll love the story about the best boss (his mom) I know that was my favorite part.  

Branden's work is extremely valuable and necessary for business owners, leaders or people wanting to get something done (the first time). Make sure you check out Maker Bee and the awesome things he is doing!

After working with several sole-proprietor startups through his career, Branden recognized what has become the cornerstone of Maker Bee today: working alone is inefficient, ineffective, and isolating. Nobody chasing their dream should feel like they're alone in their struggles and successes. As a project and accountability manager for these small-businesses, Branden supports founders along each step of the journey by keeping them on track to reach their goals, providing a robust suite of management tools and strategies. Whether you're just starting, growing, or sustaining—we support you along the way.

Talking Martial Arts, cranky bosses and emerging leaders.  Debbie and I have a lot to talk about in this episode. 

Debbie Pickus is the Founder and CEO of Team Fireball, Inc. a company focused on creating power, confidence and a little bit of badass for her clients which include corporate teams, professional organizations and professional women.

Her 20+ years in fitness and martial arts have given Debbie a unique perspective on the mind/body connection and how to use it as a power source. She works with and speaks to groups about harnessing this power to create confidence, energy and success in their business and personal lives.

With a passion to help women knock out the mental bully that limits them and knowing that a powerful mindset is the first step in building confidence and success, she became certified in a Transformational Mindset methodology and has added this programming to her work including coaching, workshops and a forthcoming online Mental Martial Arts Academy.

When not focused on her business, Debbie spends time with her fiancé Bill, her puppy George and her 3 grown kids whenever the opportunity allows.

Workshops and Speaking Topics:

-Owning Your Value/Future Visioning

-Limiting Beliefs Discovery/Power of Decision Workshops

-From Profit Leaks to Killer Profits in Business

-From Undervalued, Unsure and Insecure to Unstoppable, Fierce and Fired Up

-Morning and Daily Rituals to Boost Confidence and Resourcefulness

Self Defense training programs:

-Basic Personal Safety Awareness (virtual or in person)

-Basics of Personal Safety Hands on Workshop**

-When Terminations Go Wrong- Protecting Yourself and Your Team in the Event of a Hostile Termination

BREAKTHROUGHS Board Breaking Workshop**

** Must be in person

Coaching programs-Mindset

These programs are typically customized-pricing varies

3 -month and 6 -month programs

For Individuals and Groups

WOW we are here!!! Season 2. 

You can expect even more terrible boss stories, and I promise you will be left jaw dropped and wondering "why, oh why, would this person lead others"? Season 2 is about THOSE horrible bosses, the ones that make you cringe, the ones you will never forget, and hopefully the ones you will learn from.  We will also continue to drink obscene amounts of coffee BUT since we are big time we are now exclusively drinking Larry's coffee (link below to get you some of that stuff). 

In our first episode of Season 2 we do not hold back on the horrible boss tragedies and we also do not hold back on our coffee!  

Our guest, Alex Hillman has the coolest book out called The Tiny MBA which is what I believe is the book you need as an entrepreneur and leader in 2020. It's everything you need to know and no fluff or exceedingly lengthy diatribes on what business should be. He tells it like it is. 

After graduating from Drexel, Alex started his Co-Op experience working in software development. He worked with a great team and when a portion of that team started a new venture, Alex thought "hey this will be super cool, I'll work with people I know and like and do what I love". 

And there, my friends, lies the rub. Alex learned pretty quickly that his new boss, was not cut out to lead himself, let alone a team.  Alex was left frustrated but still loving what he was doing, but working for a total tool. You can imagine how long that lasted. 

There is a happy ending at the end of this one though, Alex went on to do some pretty big things. Including being a pioneer in the co-working space. And get this, he even let his members stop paying rent but stay a part of their online community when COVID hit freelancers hard. He also wrote The Tiny MBA and you need to get this book now. You can read it over a lunch break, but you'll go back to it again and again. 

To get your caffeine fix on go here: https://larryscoffee.com/

To get to know Alex and get his book (do this, now): https://stackingthebricks.com/tinymba/#bio

In HR Land there are very few idols or Beyonce's if you will.  You are in for a treat listeners because today you will meet a trailblazer in HR Land who you will completely adore. Saying that Domonique Revere is someone I admire is a gross understatement. I soak up everything she says all the time, I lean on her for direction, viewpoint, ideas and guidance. 

Also she is up for HR Person of the YEAR!! Yes, this year, 2020 - the year of complete chaos and new unchartered territory for HR people.  #NBD

Domonique sits down with me to talk about Mexican Velvety Coffee (yum, yes that sounds delish). We also discuss celebratory champagne.  She doesn't hold back on her honest account of how some terrible bosses try to hold employees' back by not letting them shine (ok those may have been my words but I was summarizing). 

Domonique is the Founder and Owner of Rhemedy,  helping clients with their Learning & Development, Education and Diversity, Inclusion and Equality initiatives and programs. She is also going for her PHD, and is humble but extremely intelligent and provides a unique perspective that highlights the importance of strong cultures built on foundations of trust and honesty. 

A dynamic, kind and smart tech founder who makes his own espresso? Yes please!! In this episode Joseph and I get to chat about all the ways he empowers his employees at Kuvio.  He also shares some secrets on perfect espresso brewing.  Kuvio, his euphoria like tech-company is hiring :). 

Joseph A. Young is the founder and director of architecture at Kuvio Creative, a team of gifted thinkers that craft alluring brands and apps for small businesses and nonprofits. Joseph began his own software career building line-of-business applications and data analytics platforms, but he quickly grew tired of the privileges and biases that pervaded his industry, and he felt compelled to find a way to start correcting the immoral imbalance. He dreamed of a work environment where everyone was an equal contributor, each individual could chase their own passion, and mutual trust guided the working culture.

At Kuvio, Joseph serves as the software architect, geeking out in constant pursuit of beautiful patterns that leverage the immense power of tech to do good in the world. His affinity for experimenting allows his team the space to take the path less traveled and find the most creative solutions to the problems they encounter.

In his role as founder, Joseph is persistent in his quest for an equitable workplace that truly elevates and celebrates the potential of each person on his team. Kuvio’s remote team of 21 hails from eight countries, and they are proud to be diverse by default, with over 50% women and over 50% people of color.

Coffee, tea, narcissistic behavior. It's all in this episode when I get to chat with Bret about his experience with his horrible boss. There are always lessons to learn in the aftermath of a horrible boss. 

Bret Anderson, President of Principle Sales Solutions helps small to mid-size businesses put their sales team and processes back on track by doing the following:
• Building a sales infrastructure that will drive breakthrough sales results for your business.
• Assessing your current sales team, sales strategy, sales and coaching process and sales execution. 

Super heroes. Bosses. Those words don't usually go together. In this episode we break down what it means to be a boss with super powers and how to identify that kryptonite. 

Chuck spent years at GE and worked for some really great bosses and a few that just didn't have their pulse on what employees need or how to really effectively communicate with them. 

With over 30 years as a marketer and business leader, Chuck has led a diverse set of teams and programs that have driven business growth in complex organizations. Throughout this experience, Chuck has developed a passion for creating wholistic, integrated strategies and disciplined implementation plans that tie the businesses vision of success to the customer and the market place.

Chuck has successfully created fully integrated marketing and business strategies, commercialized multiple new technologies and enhanced all phases of marketing programs including new product pipeline development.

The Great Outdoors and camping and nature. Three things that Dave talks about and I listen because me and nature are not exactly sympatico. My idea of camping is in a tent in a Marriot with fluffy sheets and air conditioning. I digress. We spend time chatting about so many things. Dave had a great boss and he learned so much from him and he had a terrible boss who he also learned so much from. We also drink coffee out of enormous yeti cups. 

Dave founded The Quantify Group in 2011 out of his passion for providing value to clients and helping them grow. Dave has extensive experience and knowledge in the public accounting sector. Before founding The Quantify Group, Dave worked at a large regional public accounting firm in Pennsylvania. As Managing Director at The Quantify Group, Dave provides high quality accounting solutions to a diverse base of clients.

Dave holds a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting from Widener University. He currently resides in Chester Springs, Pennsylvania. Outside of the office, Dave is an avid outdoorsman who enjoys spending his free time hunting and fishing. He also regularly attends church at Calvary Chapel Chester Springs.

Soda and cold coffee. No judgment over here, whatever it takes to get through a day. 

John Politsky CEO of WeSpeak Easy takes some time to talk about his experience working in a horrible culture lead by a horrible leader.  There were lessons learned and he even found a way to stay motivated through self-determination and grit.

During our convo he shares his values on the important of ongoing education, the right motivation he uses with his team and the ways he is teaching companies about marketing during a crisis.

John Politsky is the Founder and CEO of WeSpeak Easy Digital Marketing.  He has over 25 years of marketing and entrepreneurial experience. In 2018, John also founded the Small Business Academy to educate and empower entrepreneurs and small business owners all over the Delaware Valley.

John is an Adjunct Professor of Marketing at Community College of Philadelphia.  He serves as a classroom instructor for their Power Up Program and also is involved in the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Program as a speaker and as a panelist in the marketing and social media portions of the program.  Prior to becoming an instructor, John also attended and graduated from the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Program.

He specializes in strategy-based marketing.  He currently plans and maps out the marketing strategy for over 100 companies per year.  His goal is to help purpose bound entrepreneurs and small business owners not only increase their traffic and revenue but also their process and profitability.  He is a keynote speaker and ensures that in every class or keynote there are actionable takeaways and not just theory.

John became an entrepreneur at 18 when he started a Disc Jockey\Entertainment company.  He grew this company over 18 years and sold it when he was 36 years old and had 30+ employees.  This is where he built his marketing and customer-centric skills and developed most of his strategic approach to marketing.

This is the one where I get to have some real talk with Georgiana Kovell about bad bosses, shame and leadership that leaves one feeling less than empowered. 

Georgiana Kovell is an International Sales and Performance Coach and all-around badass who’s worked with women around the world to transform their personal and professional lives. Georgiana created Millions of Women Strong in response to a desperate need for a positive, supportive space for women in business.

​After years spent feeling she couldn’t reach her full potential in a masculine-driven corporate environment, Georgiana decided she could be a true “Catalyst for Massive Change” by empowering women entrepreneurs all around the world to play a bigger game: achieve their soul-stirring goals, earn more money more quickly, and create a life they adore.

​Georgiana is passionate about establishing a community of strong female leaders by creating profitable and sustainable businesses with a positive social and economic impact, and that foster an environment where women are educated, supported, and encouraged.

Tom Connolly of TipTop takes a coffee break with me to discuss the ways he has learned true leadership (and maybe a horror story or two about bad bosses).  We discuss how much we love Wawa coffee and why as a true Philly native it's in his DNA to love it. 

Tom is the Founder of TipTop a leading Oracle services provider focused on performance-driven solutions. With decades of experience, they can help  create a future-focused business including migrating your Oracle apps to the cloud.

With over two decades of industry experience, his firm delivers unparalleled solutions that challenge industry norms by delivering an average of 2-10x ROI back to our customers on every investment.

Join us as we discuss Parul's experience with a horrible boss turned shopping partner and how a look into connection on a personal level helped break down communication barriers. Parul also teaches us about "showing up" and what that means and looks like.

Parul is an experienced executive coach known for partnering with talented leaders to create a powerful ripple effect. As a thought partner, Parul helps clients deepen self-awareness, adjust and leverage executive presence, and build critical leadership and communication capabilities that drive performance. She is a Professional Certified Coach (PCC) through the International Coaching Federation (ICF), is certified as a leadership coach through Saint Joseph’s University, and is an Insights Discovery© Licensed Practitioner. Parul’s successful career resume includes being an internal corporate employee, strategic consultant or an executive coach to global, national and local organizations including Morgan Lewis, McDonald’s USA, Deloitte Consulting, Subway, TD Bank, Design Science Consulting, Media Convergence Group, and Malvern Preparatory School. Her clients find her to be creatively resourceful and committed to creating lasting positive change that increases both their leadership success and fulfillment

Who's ready for some boozy caffeine? In the words of Amy Poehler "YES, Please"! Join me and Stu for a lively conversation on everything from caffeine filled whiskey drinks to hand sanitizer (ya know #coronaseason). Stu talks with me about his horrible boss and how having a great boss can impact your career, your own philosophy on professional growth and even make you a follower.  He's worked for some pretty #boss companies too, so he's got great examples of strong leaders.

A little more about Stu Vass and his expansive career. Stu has spent his career working with Fortune 500 companies selling Consumer Packaged Goods with a focus on National Chains such as Albertsons, Mariano’s, Hy-Vee, Meijer, CVS and Walgreens.
He has over 15 years of sales experience with General Mills, Beam Suntory, MillerCoors, KAO USA and Pernod Ricard.  Stu earned his Bachelor’s degree in Marketing from the University of Illinois and holds an MBA in Marketing from DePaul’s Kellstadt School of Management. Stuart continued his partnership with DePaul by teaching Effective Business Communication for four years as an Adjunct Professor.

Sit down and grab your cup of joe, or whiskey, or tea that smells and feels like whiskey but isn't. Rich will tell you more about that. In this episode Rich Smith, Partner of Chief Outsiders shares his horrible boss story and doesn't hold back on letting us know what made them horrible (we like the details over here)! He also shares his best experience with a boss and why that impression lasted much longer than the horrible boss lessons learned. 

Matt and I discuss about all the things we are experiencing during the COVID-19 epidemic and the incredible opportunity that exists to leverage technology effectively. Also we discuss his experience with a horrible leader  (ahem, not a boss) and we dive into what's going on behind the scenes when people say "It's  out of my control". It is a great conversation filled with cold coffee and cold tea and lots of jokes about bad bosses. 

Did you ever work with someone who is your total opposite, but you completely gel with professionally? Yea, me too. Aaron Windle is a wonderful colleague and IT partner in crime. I always appreciate Aaron’s candor and his ability to ask tough questions. He is a true leader, and I was so excited when he agreed to be my guest on Caffeinated Convos & Horrible Bosses. In this episode we get to talk about his horrible boss experience and his organic bullet proof coffee. We also talk about the ways Aaron uses what he has learned to lead his own team in challenging times like we are experiencing now.

Aaron Windle started his journey in IT as a Helpdesk technician and over time has worked his way through various IT roles, growing into his current role as Director of IT for Iron Mountains/Nuna Baby Essentials, a global premium baby gear brand headquartered in Morgantown, Pennsylvania.

His favorite parts and the things he is most passionate about is the opportunity to take something (whether it’s working well or not working at all) and transform it into something great. Aaron has an innate ability to transform teams, technology and solutions to improve business bottom lines and create a path for growth for any one who has the pleasure of being on his team.

He enjoys a hands-on approach to leading his team's, work's hard to manage "people first", and operates his teams with the following guidelines:  "Make it simple, Make it work, Show we care". In his free time Aaron enjoys time with his wife Kristen and their children, Everett, Graham and Eliza. Right now he’s enjoying lots of extra time with them and taking the chaos all in stride.

In this heavily caffeinated convo hear from Brian Thompson of ZS Associates about his horrible boss experience after graduating from Yale (yes, even Ivy League-rs experience horrible bosses).  He also drops some knowledge on oat-milk availability from your favorite baristas. 

Grab your yeti and tune in to hear from this former GM & GE Marketing genius. Rajat share his horrible and fabulous boss stories over the years and why you can scrap half of what's on your to do list. 

Grab your coffee and get ready to have some fun! This week's episode features Chelsea Craig, Founder of Rhino Reviews who shares her horrible boss experience and some valuable take-aways. 

Here's the 411 on Chelsea:

Chelsea launched Rhino Reviews in 2018 with the goal of supporting small businesses in the digital space. As a daughter of a small business owner, she has witnessed first hand the stress and work it takes to build a business and is passionate about helping find solutions that allow businesses to not only grow but thrive.

Chelsea has worked with over 80 businesses in all industries, including luxury construction, digital, energy, property management, healthcare, retail, hospitality, and education, to help build or repair their online reputation by growing and leveraging their online reviews. She is both Google and Reputation Management certified and always looking to expand her knowledge in the field as the digital space is constantly changing. She has been a guest on multiple podcasts and shows allowing her the opportunity to discuss the business growth, strategy, and mission. Additionally, she is a coach for Mike Volkin's masterclass, teaching about how to leverage testimonials for your professional career.

Welcome to Caffeinated Convos & Horrible Bosses - where we dive into horror stories about bosses and work. We also discuss coffee and beverages and maybe highlight a nice boss occasionally.

Who are you, what’s your bag?

What are you drinking right now?

Tell me about your worst boss ever

Tell me about your best boss ever