Mostly Middle Tennessee Business Podcast

What would you do if you were told that you were slowly losing your eyesight? Would you let that define your future, or would you find a way to keep moving forward?On this episode of the Mostly Middle Tennessee Business Podcast, Jim McCarthy sits down with Griffin Pinkow, founder of The Foreseeable Future, a nonprofit dedicated to creating opportunities for individuals who are blind or visually impaired through adaptive sports, recreation, and community programs.Griffin shares his personal journey of being diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa as a child, navigating the challenges of growing up with vision loss, and eventually turning those experiences into a mission to help others.Griffin's story is a powerful reminder that a challenge can become part of your story without becoming your entire identity.CONNECT WITH GRIFFIN & THE FORESEEABLE FUTUREWebsite: https://foreseeablefuture.orgGriffin's website: https://griffinpinkow.comSPONSORS: ItsYourShow.co - Podcast and Short-Form Content Ideation and ProductionMuleTown Bikes :: MuletownBikes.comColumbia, Tennessee (on the square)Christian Brothers Automotive – Spring Hill :: www.cbac.com/spring-hill/Across from Walmart on Highway 31, Spring Hill, Tennessee

You meet someone, exchange business cards, and intend to follow up. Then work gets busy. What happens to that opportunity?Kate Wells of Glimmer Marketing Systems joins Jim McCarthy to discuss revenue recovery, business automation, and building systems that support better follow-through.Kate shares how she found her direction after college, why she embraced AI in her work, and how networking in Middle Tennessee helped her move beyond trying to do everything alone.The conversation also explores her personal experience with mental health challenges, the purpose behind Glimmer, and why relationships and inner peace matter alongside business growth.Connect with Kate: https://glimmermarketingsystems.comExplore the show: https://mmtbp.comSPONSORS:ItsYourShow.co - Podcast and Short-Form Content Ideation and ProductionMuleTown Bikes :: MuletownBikes.comColumbia, Tennessee (on the square)Christian Brothers Automotive – Spring Hill :: www.cbac.com/spring-hill/Across from Walmart on Highway 31, Spring Hill, Tennessee

What happens when a podcast producer interviews his own production manager?Apparently, a lot of movie talk.Jim McCarthy welcomes Jonah Clark of It'sYourShow.co for a conversation about growing up with a passion for movies, discovering video editing at an early age and turning that creative interest into a professional career.Jonah shares how an introductory iMovie lesson at an Apple Store helped spark his interest in production, how he developed his editing skills through personal projects, and why he eventually pursued filmmaking at the Nashville Film Institute.The conversation explores storytelling, production techniques, the appeal of behind-the-scenes content and why ordinary work can be surprisingly entertaining to watch.Then Jim and Jonah take a deep dive into their shared love of movies—with some very different opinions about Batman, Superman, the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Infinity War, Endgame and modern Hollywood.They also discuss television, video games, nostalgia, Jonah's Super NintenBros podcast and the possibility of revisiting Capes and Hammers.A fun, free-flowing conversation about creativity, filmmaking, fandom and the stories that shape us.Learn more at ItsYourShow.co and MMTBP.com.SPONSORS: ItsYourShow.co - Podcast and Short-Form Content Ideation and ProductionMuleTown Bikes :: MuletownBikes.comColumbia, Tennessee (on the square)Christian Brothers Automotive – Spring Hill :: www.cbac.com/spring-hill/Across from Walmart on Highway 31, Spring Hill, Tennessee

What does success really teach us—and what can we only learn by getting things wrong?Entrepreneur, author, speaker and mentor Myron Mullins joins Jim McCarthy for a candid conversation about the lessons learned over decades in business and life.Myron shares how an early mentor helped shape his career, how he helped grow a company's annual sales from $7 million to $28 million, and why working at least 100 hours a week for 14 years ultimately left him questioning his priorities.He also recounts the moment a boss humbled him, why he later apologized to former employees, and how his faith changed his understanding of leadership and service.The conversation moves beyond entrepreneurship into parenting, gratitude, legacy, and a powerful account of the last conversation Myron had with his father.A thoughtful episode about hard work, humility, second chances and using what we've learned to help others.Learn more about Myron at MyronMullins.comNeed a Podcast Produced? Go to www.itsyourshow.co

Lyndsey McDonald didn't grow up dreaming of owning a plumbing company. In fact, she had no professional experience in the trades.After an unwanted divorce changed the trajectory of her life, Lyndsey rebuilt her career, moved her family from Oregon to Middle Tennessee and eventually took an even bigger leap: starting Plumbing Pro.Lyndsey joins Jim McCarthy to talk about rebuilding from difficult circumstances, starting a company in an industry she didn't know, surrounding herself with people smarter than her and creating a workplace designed to treat skilled tradespeople differently.They also discuss five weeks of PTO for plumbers, hiring and work ethic, why skilled trades can offer a path toward financial stability, the impact of AI on white-collar careers and why the trades may be entering one of their biggest periods of opportunity.

What happens when the career you've built for 15 years is suddenly no longer who you are?Donna Leggett spent years in accounting and financial leadership — and once listed sales and retail among the careers she never wanted.Today, she's doing both.Donna is the owner of Pearce Bespoke Nashville, helping clients build custom wardrobes while building an entirely new career and business of her own.In this episode of the Mostly Middle Tennessee Business Podcast, Donna talks with Jim McCarthy about leaving the identity and security of a career she knew inside and out, moving to Nashville, learning how to sell, building a business from the ground up and the morning she sat at her desk wondering, “Who am I now?”They also get into why you shouldn't judge a customer by appearance, the psychology behind how we dress, why Donna refuses to “closet shame,” “budget shame” or “body shame” her clients, common mistakes men make with suits and why simply showing up can create opportunities you never expected.Sometimes changing careers isn't just about learning a new job.It's about discovering who you are without the old one.SPONSORS: ItsYourShow.co - Podcast and Short-Form Content Ideation and ProductionMuleTown Bikes :: MuletownBikes.comColumbia, Tennessee (on the square)Christian Brothers Automotive – Spring Hill :: www.cbac.com/spring-hill/Across from Walmart on Highway 31, Spring Hill, Tennessee

After more than two decades in law enforcement, Chris Morris probably didn't expect his next career to involve coffee — especially considering he originally hated the stuff.But years of overnight shifts, a search for lower-acidity coffee and a lot of experimentation eventually led to Peacemaker Coffee Company.Chris joins Jim McCarthy to talk about making the leap from law enforcement into entrepreneurship, learning the coffee industry, getting rejected by retailers, building a growing business and discovering opportunities in white-label coffee and co-packing.They also get into coffee roasting, caffeine, acidity, Amazon, commodity pricing, business margins and some memorable stories from Chris's years behind the badge.

Jacob Bourque joins Jim McCarthy for a conversation that begins with logistics, cold calling and building a referral-based business — and eventually becomes something far more personal.Jacob talks about spending years making cold calls, learning how genuine relationships create long-term customers, specialty tax strategies and why there may be no such thing as truly passive income.Then the conversation turns to losing his father unexpectedly at 26.Jacob shares the moments when he still wishes he could pick up the phone and call his dad, why he once dialed the old number just to see what would happen, and how his father’s emphasis on experiences rather than possessions left him with something far more valuable: memories.It’s a conversation about business, grief, family, resilience and remembering what all the work is ultimately for.Follow along at www.mmtbp.comSPONSORS: ItsYourShow.co - Podcast and Short-Form Content Ideation and ProductionMuleTown Bikes :: MuletownBikes.comColumbia, Tennessee (on the square)Christian Brothers Automotive – Spring Hill :: www.cbac.com/spring-hill/Across from Walmart on Highway 31, Spring Hill, Tennessee

For decades, skilled trades were often treated as Plan B while college was sold as the path to success. That equation may be changing fast.Electrical-industry sales professional Esteban Legarea joins Jim for a conversation about AI and the future of blue-collar work, college debt, learning through experience, building customer relationships, the realities of sales, and accidentally discovering a career he never knew existed. Esteban shares how he went from waiting tables to the warehouse floor and ultimately found a career he genuinely loves.SPONSORS: ItsYourShow.co - Podcast and Short-Form Content Ideation and ProductionMuleTown Bikes :: MuletownBikes.comColumbia, Tennessee (on the square)Christian Brothers Automotive – Spring Hill :: www.cbac.com/spring-hill/Across from Walmart on Highway 31, Spring Hill, Tennessee

What happens after an autistic child grows up?Meredith Pettigrew joins Jim McCarthy for a candid, funny and deeply human conversation about supporting autistic adults—and why a meaningful life can't always be measured by a traditional job or career.Meredith shares her journey from public-school teacher to leading Autism Career Training, an organization now expanding its mission toward Autism Community Training. The change reflects something Meredith has learned firsthand: every autistic adult is different, and success can look dramatically different from one person to the next.For some, that may mean employment with a job coach. For others, it may mean volunteering, communicating more independently, learning everyday life skills, participating in the community or simply experiencing something they've never done before.Jim and Meredith also talk about the teachers we remember for the rest of our lives, the challenges facing public education, why people sometimes feel uncomfortable around autism, community partnerships with Middle Tennessee businesses and organizations, and the importance of connecting with the person rather than the diagnosis.It's a conversation about autism—but it's also about dignity, purpose, community and what happens when somebody genuinely gives a damn.SPONSORS: ItsYourShow.co - Podcast and Short-Form Content Ideation and ProductionMuleTown Bikes :: MuletownBikes.comColumbia, Tennessee (on the square)Christian Brothers Automotive – Spring Hill :: www.cbac.com/spring-hill/Across from Walmart on Highway 31, Spring Hill, Tennessee