This perfect blend of substance, fun and inspiration uncovers new pearls of wisdom to put into action. We all have our Insights to Live By.
Be they life lessons, credos, mantras, guiding principles or by any other name, these are those core values most often shared to positively impact others.
Hosted by Matt Zinman, author of Z-isms, the show features both solo and guest episodes. Matt’s book, podcast, courses and speaking engagements represent his devotion as a difference-maker to personally enrich the lives of at least 25 million people by 2030.
Show guests come from all walks of life. These may be celebrities, athletes, musicians, authors, coaches, social media personalities, thought leaders and/or entrepreneurs.
Solo shows delve into Matt’s core focus on self-discovery and mindset, wellbeing (including Mood Health), relationships and interactions, purpose and enrichment and finding "Happierness" – the shortest path to an enriched life.
Listen in.
EPISODE 127 [guest]: Lead in Ways No Machine Can with Joe Topinka
Three-time CIO of the Year Joe Topinka shares how intentional relationships build trust and lead beyond algorithms in this interview.
18 Dec 2025
EPISODE 126 [guest]: What Gets Founders Funded with Chris Halligan
Closing out this four-part series on entrepreneurship is an inside look at the investment side of startup funding. Guiding the way is serial entrepreneur Chris Halligan, co-founder of Good Human Investment Partners. He breaks down what angel investors look for in early-stage companies and why founder character can matter as much as metrics. Then he turns the tables on Matt and puts him and MindRev to the test. Chris also shares stories from his early days of Dell, along with practical guidelines for making meetings matter and several sage Insights to Live By. Here you'll find a sharp, human conversation packed with practical gems.
TOPIC TIME CODES
00:29 – Introduction
01:20 – The Mindset Man
03:03 – An OG of the Ecosystem
04:04 – Origin of Good Human
08:35 – Investment Criteria: product, market, distribution, team
10:25 – What Constitutes an “Unfair Advantage”
18:05 – A Future Self (Wheel of Insights)
19:10 – Family Matters
22:15 – Making Meetings Matter (Dell Roots)
25:00 – Identities in the C-Suite
28:50 – Vibe Coding
32:10 – Favorite Queen City Spot (Wheel of Insights)
34:20 – Big Break (Wheel of Insights)
35:10 – Inside Dell
38:00 – Insight #1: Time and the River Flowing
40:10 – Insight #2: …Hoops of Steal
43:40 – Relationship Matters
44:35 – Insight #3: The Real Cycle You’re Working On
48:15 – Challenging Oneself
50:40 – Advice to Your Younger Self (Wheel of Insights)
52:30 – Self-Kindness
55:10 – Closing Thoughts
SOURCE:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrishalligan/
11 Dec 2025
EPISODE 125 [guest]: Driving Innovation in a Startup Community with Juan Garzón
Launching a new company is among life’s greatest challenges. It demands resilience, decisiveness, adaptability, vision and resourcefulness. The founders who succeed know they cannot do it alone. This is where a strong startup ecosystem can make all the difference. Here to unpack those forces and share a ground-level view of Charlotte’s entrepreneurial landscape is Juan Garzón. He is the Managing Director of Innovate Charlotte, Head of Innovation-Led Entrepreneurship for the City of Charlotte and Executive Director of PitchBreakfast, the Queen City’s premier startup pitching event. Join the conversation for a fascinating inside look at everything from ecosystem building and raising capital and to the art of the pitch and the mindset that separates founders who survive from those who thrive.
TOPIC TIME CODES
00:00 – Intro
00:55 – Charlotte’s entrepreneurial ecosystem maturity and resource gaps
01:37 – Innovate Charlotte’s role and Global Entrepreneurship Week overview
06:07 – Pitch Breakfast history and structure
07:48 – How founders benefit from real investor feedback
09:40 – Quality of pitches increasing and YouTube library of 500–600 past pitches
17:48 – Founder programs: Product Jam, Growth Jam, mentoring initiatives
21:40 – Capacity limits and demand for deeper founder support
22:15 – Evolution of Innovate Charlotte from media to nonprofit ecosystem engine
22:48 – Angel investing realities in the Southeast
24:36 – Funding gaps for early-stage founders who lack traction
26:07 – Need for local innovation funds and current microloan-driven landscape
28:57 – Founder mindset: fall in love with the problem not the solution
31:44 – Storytelling as a competitive advantage in pitching
34:00 – Founder true north: aligning work with deeper purpose
36:47 – Community building as a core strategy not a sideshow
38:48 – The importance of “intentional serendipity” for founders
40:29 – Involving family in ecosystem building and the next generation
41:37 – Upcoming events: monthly Pitch Breakfast and Seed the South 2026
SOURCES:
InnovateCharlotte.org
PitchBreakfast.com
SeedTheSouth.com
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jcgarzon/
Inside a recent episode
EPISODE 127 [guest]: Lead in Ways No Machine Can with Joe Topinka
Published 8 Oct 2026 · Transcript excerpt
[…] They work at home, too. My wife and I talk about these same principles when either of us is off the rails. I'll be reminded that I'm being emotionally expensive now and then, you know, and I'm like, oops, I'm going to have to course correct. That's fair. That's part of it. So the way I've tried to equip teams with a pragmatic way of dealing with these sorts of things is to come up with a set of rules of engagement. I'll just share a few of them. The first one I like is I call it the leadership mindset. It is simply stop judging, start helping. And if you're a leader and you're walking around judging, you're not leading. […]
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