"Nice Business!" Podcast

"Love conquers fear. When we lead from a place of love, we inspire others to bring their best and their whole selves to everything they do."

In this episode of the “Nice Business!” PodcastTM, Richard Train and Jim Bob Howard sit down with Brett Hurt, serial entrepreneur, thought leader, and host of the Love Conquers Fear podcast. Brett shares his journey from discovering a passion for programming at age seven to founding and leading multiple successful ventures, including Core Metrics, Bizarre Voice, and data.world.

Topics Covered:

00:00 – Episode Snippet

01:22 – Introduc...

In this episode of the Nice Business Podcast, Richard Train and Jim Bob Howard sit down with Jacob Johnson, CEO of Calyan Wax Co., a home fragrance company on a mission to combat human trafficking, for an insightful conversation on mission-driven entrepreneurship, purposeful leadership, and building a business that makes a difference.

Topics Covered:

00:00 – Episode Snippet

01:14 – Welcoming our guest, Jacob Johnson

04:40 – The mission came first

11:56 – Math problems vs. drama problems in business

12:56 – Mojo: Right people in the right roles for flow

15:05 – The power of asking op...

In this episode of the Nice Business Podcast, Richard Train and Jim Bob Howard sit down with Laurie Guzman, CEO and Founder of The Inside Story, for an insightful conversation on the power of pivoting, purposeful leadership, and the people side of business.

Together, they discuss the vital role of trust, transparency, and communication in building a strong, supportive team while maintaining leadership effectiveness. Laurie shares her experience navigating business challenges, offering practical insights on recognizing when to pivot and how to embrace change intentionally. She highlights how listening deeply and fostering openness can create a thriving...

When a long anticipated federal funding stream stalled, Compudopt CEO Megan Steckly had to steer a hyper scaling nonprofit through a near reduction in force without breaking culture or momentum. 

In this candid conversation with host Richard Train, Megan walks through the communications playbook her C suite used to realign strategy, reduce 41 roles in one day to avoid lingering fear, and rebuild trust with radical transparency.

Along the way, you will hear how Compudopt grew from a $2M Houston nonprofit to a $62M national organization serving 300,000 people in 66 cities across 28 states, why they b...

Why are your best people leaving? In this live “Nice Business” session, hosts Jim Bob Howard and Richard Train break down the three drivers behind costly turnover: ineffective management, unclear direction, and shallow recognition. 

Then they give you a simple plan to reverse it.

You will learn how to run two “opportunity analysis” meetings that surface smart, specific fixes from managers and staff, how to make your mission real so everyone can connect daily work to the why, and how to tailor recognition so it actually matters. We also share a favorite example from MALK...

When Jason Bronstad stepped in as CEO of MALK Organics, the company had a 45-day shelf life, a thousand stores to serve, and a shrinking team of employees. 

The easy path would have been cutting corners with materials and employees. Instead, Jason doubled down on clean ingredients, transparency with his team, and a culture built on personal dreams.

We ask Jason how he turned chaos into clarity: personally driving payroll checks across Texas, co-manufacturing for national scale, bringing in the right experts at the right time, and creating a “Dreams Wins” culture channel that...

When 14 businesses become one, the hardest part isn’t the org chart… it’s the humans. 

We ask Catalyst MedTech CEO: Marty Shirley about how he rebuilt culture after a seismic merger: opening direct access to leadership, making “everything is personal,” co-authoring performance plans, offboarding with dignity (and welcoming “boomerangs”), and using purpose as a filter for strategy. We get into managers vs. leaders, clarity as kindness, and turning 13 regional playbooks into one “lather, rinse, repeat” operating system, all while keeping the patient at the center.

You’ll learn:

Have you ever had a manager who told you they wanted people to fear them? If so, why? Or, if you are someone who once believed that was the best management method, but want to change, listen for some tips on what you can do to improve that behavior and reap the benefits today!

Introduction to the hosts, Richard Train of Richard L.Train Consulting, and Jim Bob Howard, Technical Consultant. They'll discuss how this podcast series will help business owners, executives and anyone looking to grow learn how to be kind in their business dealings, and also successful. There's always a nicer way to handle any situation.