Manic Energy Podcast

About Manic Energy Podcast

Ryan Swor, president and part-owner of Lake Superior Consulting and colleague, Katie Brooks explore the often misunderstood world of energy infrastructure, how it shapes our daily lives, and the passionate, purpose-driven people who keep it all running. Expect stories from the field, honest reflections on leadership and company culture, and a no-BS look at what it takes to deliver safe, reliable energy in an industry under pressure to evolve. This isn’t your typical corporate podcast—this is Manic Energy.

Publisher

Manic Energy Podcast

Category

business

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

25 Aug 2025

Latest episode

5 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

32 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   5 Oct 2026

   Anyone Can Win: Grit, Growth, and Employee Ownership w/ Shane Stolp

   What does it take to build a company where people really win? Shane Stolp has spent more than a decade figuring that out from the field, the office, and a lot of long drives to North Dakota. If you know me, you know I'm all about businesses that bring people together, lift communities, and drive responsible growth. So I was really excited for Katie Brooks and me to welcome Shane Stolp into the studio. Shane is the CEO of Wesscom Inc., an employee owned business right here in Duluth, and the host of the Energizing America podcast. I was lucky enough to be a guest on his show about a year ago, so this one felt like picking the conversation back up. Shane calls his story a normal one. He was number seven of nine kids and the first to go to college. He finished his bachelor's degree with eight kids at home. Then he took over a five person electrical company in North Dakota that he was supposed to grow and sell. It turned out to be too fun to sell, and today it has a few hundred employee owners. WHAT WE TALKED ABOUT Success and fulfillment are different things. The people who win long term are usually doing it for something bigger than a paycheck. You need a plan, and you also need to say yes when opportunity shows up outside of it. Shane never planned to own a business. Opportunity tends to find the people who bring ideas forward. It's on leaders to make that feel safe. If you're going to be vulnerable, you have to be ready to be honest. Shane's anonymous town hall Q&A shows what that looks like. Real engagement means getting out with your team, whether that's a rooftop solar project or a payroll review. Travel is part of this industry. Being upfront early, with your crews and with your family, makes it easier on everyone. When people move on, give them strong wings. A lot of them become your best customers. OUR FAVORITE QUOTES "Every one of you is your own CEO." "If you're just chasing a CEO title instead of a CEO duty, you'll never be a CEO." "Let's give them really strong wings." "Bad news does not age well. So the sooner delivered the better." "By not making it about you, it becomes all about you." CHAPTERS 02:50 From a hot roof to a college degree 06:37 Hard work and grit 13:18 Plan or opportunity? 20:45 You are your own CEO 27:17 Boots on, safety glasses on 42:49 Give them strong wings 53:04 Energy is dynamic YOUR TURN If you were the CEO of your job today, what's one idea you would finally bring forward? CONNECT WITH SHANE Wesscom Inc.: https://wescominc.com/ (https://wescominc.com/) Energizing America Podcast: https://wescominc.com/involvement/podcast/ (https://wescominc.com/involvement/podcast/) LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shane-stolp-49454711/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/shane-stolp-49454711/) Links & Mentions: Lake Superior Consulting – https://www.lsconsulting.com/ (https://www.lsconsulting.com/) 🔥 If this episode sparked something for you, please follow the show, leave a review, or share it with a friend! MB010XUHAGMDWHV

2. 

   21 Sept 2026

   Building The Toughest Pump In The World, Right Here In Duluth

   There is a piece of equipment buried under nearly every city in America that keeps your water running, and most of us have never thought about it once. Today we're pulling back the curtain on it. I've talked about critical infrastructure a lot on this show. We've covered a lot of industries. But today is one of those invisible ones, something we all rely on constantly and almost nobody knows exists. Blake Kolquist is the Distribution Sales Manager at GPM, a Duluth manufacturer of the world's toughest submersible slurry pumps. Blake walked into GPM in 2008 for what he thought was an internship and never really left. He's spent time in manufacturing engineering, safety, marketing, service and sales, and watched the company grow from around 25 people to over 90. Along the way GPM expanded from its roots in mining and power generation into nuclear waste sites and, more recently, municipal water and wastewater. This is a company built right here in Duluth that is quietly showing up in critical systems across the country, and Blake has had a front row seat to almost all of it. KEY THEMES AND TAKEAWAYS What a submersible slurry pump actually is and why GPM builds them different from anything you'd find at the hardware store The invisible system that gets clean water into your house and wastewater back out of it Why the real cost of a pump isn't the price tag, it's the electricity to run it over its lifetime What flushable wipes have actually done to sewer systems nationwide, and why it's worse than you'd guess What it took to walk into a brand new industry after fifteen years of expertise in a completely different one How the Build America Buy America Act is reshaping who gets to bid on public water infrastructure What Blake has learned moving through nearly every seat at GPM, and what it's like becoming the mentor instead of the new hire FAVORITE QUOTES "My opinion is it's all about relationships. The product has to work, but it's the relationships that make the difference." "The fact that people are frustrated means they care. I've seen people who were checked out of a job, and none of that complaining ever showed up at work." "There's not enough time to learn all the things I want to learn, so it's about prioritizing that." "It's the pump. It's always the pump. Except sometimes it isn't, and that's the interesting part." CHAPTER MARKERS 01:38 Blake's path from a Duluth childhood to GPM's front door 07:53 What "world's toughest submersible pump" actually means 14:14 The flushable wipes problem nobody wants to talk about 21:59 Walking into a room where you don't know a single person 25:51 How new funding rules changed who gets to build America's water systems 36:04 Reverse engineering fifty year old equipment with modern scanning tools 41:33 From the new guy to the one training the next generation YOUR TURN This week's reflection: where in your work or your life have you quietly become the person other people now come to for answers, and how does that sit with you? GUEST CONNECT(No links or contact info were given in the transcript for GPM — flagging this so you can drop in a website or careers page link before this publishes. Worth noting Blake mentioned GPM is actively hiring.) Links & Mentions: Lake Superior Consulting – https://www.lsconsulting.com/ (https://www.lsconsulting.com/) 🔥 If this episode sparked something for you, please follow the show, leave a review, or share it with a friend! MB01JSBMUU464ZQ

3. 

   7 Sept 2026

   Behind the Scenes of Talent Recruitment with Anne and Jamie

   Ever applied for a job. Ever hired for one. Either way you have felt what it is like to be on one side of that table wondering what the other side is really thinking. This episode pulls back the curtain on it. Today I am joined by two people who live in that world every single day, our full time recruiters here at Lake Superior Consulting, Jamie Wiggins and Anne Lang. Katie Brooks and I sat down with them in the studio for a conversation that started with their own winding paths into recruiting and turned into one of the most useful conversations we have had about hiring, interviewing, and what it actually takes to stand out right now. Jamie and Anne have a combined career built almost entirely inside two companies, which says something on its own in an industry known for job hopping. We got into how candidates are using AI to generate canned interview answers in real time, how hiring managers can tell the difference between a scripted response and a real one, and why authenticity might be the single biggest differentiator left as AI use becomes normal on both sides of the table. KEY THEMES AND TAKEAWAYS Candidates are increasingly using AI mid interview, typing questions in real time and reading back polished, generic answers. Recruiters can usually tell, and it works against the candidate more than for them. Authenticity is becoming the biggest differentiator in hiring. The people who stand out are the ones willing to give a real, imperfect answer instead of a scripted one. Following up with candidates, even to deliver bad news, builds a company's reputation more than people realize. Ghosting goes both directions and candidates remember who closed the loop. Strong hiring managers think beyond the immediate opening. They consider where a candidate could grow, not just whether every box on the job description is checked today. Pay transparency and posted salary ranges have made compensation conversations less awkward on both sides, though the conversation is still uncomfortable no matter your title. Total compensation now means more than the number. Flexibility, culture, and investment in growth carry real weight, especially for people who value work life balance over a bigger paycheck. Human judgment still catches what a resume or an AI screen cannot. A weak resume with a great in person impression, or a perfect resume that falls apart in conversation, happens more often than you would think. OUR FAVORITE QUOTES "You are not always going to have AI at your fingertips, so I think just being authentic and genuine and having it be more of a conversation is what stands out." "We really want them to speak highly of our company and the interactions they have had with our people, whether or not they get the job." "Good managers are not only thinking about today, they are thinking about what their team is going to look like down the road." "I do feel like our human judgment is what is best when it comes to figuring out if a candidate is a great cultural fit. That is something we cannot replace." CHAPTER MARKERS 07:19 How candidates are now using AI live during interviews, and how recruiters catch it 14:32 What good hiring managers do differently, and the habits that turn candidates off 31:03 How candidates can actually stand out, starting before the interview even happens 44:11 The compensation conversation nobody loves, and why pay transparency is helping 52:19 The bachelorette party story that somehow ended with a Hollywood premiere 58:11 The job offer mix up that still makes Anne double check every offer she sends CONNECT WITH OUR GUESTS Jamie Wiggins and Anne Lang are full time recruiters with Lake Superior Consulting. To learn more about Lake Superior Consulting or explore current openings, visit lakesuperiorconsulting.com. Links & Mentions: Lake Superior Consulting – https://www.lsconsulting.com/ (https://www.lsconsulting.com/) 🔥 If this episode sparked something for you, please follow the show, leave a review, or share it with a friend! MB01SL9EPKR6YQM

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

13 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

17 ratings

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Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.