Stories and Wisdom Podcast

About Stories and Wisdom Podcast

Honest stories. Tough calls. Unexpected laughs. On Stories and Wisdom, host Pradeep U.N., CEO of The Stories and Wisdom Company, sits down with leaders and thinkers to unpack the moments that shaped them. Segments like Memoir Moments, Decision Do Over, Vision Venture, Puzzle Point, and a fun This or That round make each episode personal, playful, and packed with insight. If you like your wisdom with a side of story (and a splash of mischief), hit play.

Publisher

The Stories and Wisdom Company

Category

business

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

20 Aug 2025

Latest episode

9 Nov 2026

Latest episodes

30 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   9 Nov 2026

   S03E06: Team Building Is a Myth (Until You Solve a Murder Together)

   #Storytelling #Creativity #Leadership #TeamBuilding #ImmersiveTheater #LetGo #Entrepreneurship #CreativeCareer #CorporateCulture #Improv #Mindset #PersonalGrowth #LiveInTheatre #LeadershipLessons #PodcastClip Summary The best creative work, and the best teams, are built when people stop watching from the back seat and start to play. Carlo D’Amore, actor, playwright, Drama Desk nominated director, educator, and founder of Live in Theatre, has spent more than fifteen years creating immersive, story-driven experiences that pull audiences into the action. Today his company produces hundreds of virtual events each year for teams around the world. Carlo traces his path back to his mother, an international con artist who lived as hundreds of different personas, and to a high school drama class where a teacher singled him out for the first time and he realized, at fourteen, that he was good at something. He also reflects on a decision he would do over: in the early days of his theater company, he did everything himself, held the bar so tightly that success felt painful, and only later learned that empowering other people makes the work better, not worse. You’ll discover: Why adults forget how to play, and what happens when you give them permission to do it again How a childhood spent around a con artist shaped a career in acting and true crime storytelling The gardening lesson on creating something, tending it, and then letting it go Why catching your overthinking and remembering that “everything changes” loosens your grip How a virtual murder mystery turns coworkers into a real team and reveals sides of colleagues you’ve never seen Why great actors never judge their characters, and what that teaches us about understanding people Carlo also shares his vision for growing Live in Theatre from about 50 actors to as many as 200, the puzzle of marketing a product when you are a creative and not a marketer, and why he believes “companies that laugh together grow together.” Along the way, he explains why most workplaces are groups of individuals rather than true teams, and how play can close that gap. This episode is especially valuable for founders, creatives, team leaders, HR and L&D professionals, and anyone who holds on too tightly to what they build. It is a warm, funny, honest conversation about play, control, and the courage to let your work go out into the world.

2. 

   19 Oct 2026

   S03E05: Valerie with a Y: Why Your “Why” Comes Before Everything Else

   #Gamification #Creativity #Learning #InstructionalDesign #DistanceLearning #Resilience #FailureAndGrowth #FuturesLiteracy #HumanCenteredLearning #Facilitation #CareerTransitions #FindYourWhy #LeadershipLessons #PersonalGrowth #PodcastClip Summary The best learning does not come from points, badges, or a teacher talking at you. It comes from an environment where people can motivate themselves. Valerie Olenik, a past president of the United States Distance Learning Association with more than two decades in training, e-learning, and instructional design, shares how she came to see gamification as a way to make learning more creative, engaging, and human. Valerie traces her path back to a piece of high school advice that stayed with her for over a decade: someday she would have to choose between the arts and academics. She talks about how the work she does now proved that advice wrong, and about the moment of reset after her mother was hit by a car, when she had to rediscover her why. She also reflects on a decision she would do over, staying too long in the safe choice, and why being planful about your own disruption beats being forced into it. You’ll discover: Why gamification done well is a design approach, not a layer of points and badges How one piece of bad advice shaped a decade of career choices, and what finally broke its hold Why scheduling time to reflect matters more than collecting ideas and notes Why engineers rate themselves as “not creative,” and why everyone is creative in their own way How different cultures treat failure, and what futures literacy teaches us about imagining what’s possible The simple breakout room move that taught her how to read what a person needs without being told Valerie also shares her upcoming projects, The Failure Reset and Follow Your Clues, and why, while everyone else leans into AI, she is choosing to focus on the human side of navigating uncertainty. Along the way, she explains why skills like empathy, judgment, and creativity are learned through modeling and practice, not fixed traits you either have or don’t. This episode is especially valuable for learning designers, facilitators, leaders, creatives, and anyone standing at a crossroads between the safe path and the one they know they should take. It is a warm, thoughtful conversation about curiosity, collaboration, and the courage to keep asking “why not?”

3. 

   28 Sept 2026

   S03E04: Why Purpose Is the Real Time Management System

   #Leadership #PurposeDriven #Resilience #Innovation #TeamLeadership #CareerGrowth #PersonalGrowth #ImmigrantStory #WaterInnovation #DecisionMaking #WorkLifeBalance #MindsetShift #LeadershipLessons #EntrepreneurMindset #PodcastClip Summary The advice most leaders need is not how to do more. It is how to stop confusing control, urgency, and productivity. Daniel Benitez, VP and General Manager of Innovation and New Ventures in Water Quality at Veralto, shares the career-defining lessons that shaped how he leads, chooses, and creates space for what matters most. From immigrating to the U.S. during the chaos of 2001 to nearly going bankrupt before finishing graduate school, Daniel opens up about the moments that forced him to stop blaming the environment and start focusing on the next move. He also reflects on a high-pressure relocation to Belfast during an oil downturn, where he learned a hard truth about leadership, mentorship, and separating what is truly under your control from what is not. You’ll discover: Why crisis can become the best training ground for resilience The leadership lesson Daniel learned the hard way after a major acquisition How he thinks about innovation in the water sector and why the space still has decades of opportunity The personal purpose framework that now guides his decisions around family, nature, and community Why saying no is often the real skill behind a meaningful life and career Daniel also shares how he creates room to think in a world that rewards constant busyness, why he believes presence matters more than productivity theater, and what it means to build a life around purpose instead of endless optimization. If you have ever felt stretched between ambition, family, and the pressure to keep moving, this conversation will hit home. This episode is especially valuable for founders, leaders, immigrants, and high performers who are trying to make better decisions without losing themselves in the process. It is a grounded, honest conversation about resilience, focus, and the courage to choose what deserves your time.

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Apple Podcasts (US)

3.0 / 5

2 ratings

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Books guests

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