Heartbeat For Hire with Lyndsay Dowd

Mark Peters is the Chief Executive Officer of Butterball Farms, Inc., which was nationally recognized as one of The Best and Brightest Companies to Work For® from 2018 to 2025. Most recently, named a Top 101 Companies to Work For® in the nation. The second-generation family business, based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, is America's leading producer of culinary butter and margarine and creates custom butter flavors for some of America's biggest brands. Peters began as a factory worker in his father's company at the age of 12: an experience that taught him first-hand about the challenges that frontline workers face. At 30, he took over the company determined to lead a financially successful business that would also enrich the lives of its workers. Socials: Website: https://butterballfarms.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markpetersbutterball/ Instagram: @markpetersbutterball Episode Summary: In this episode of the Heartbeat for Hire Podcast, host Lyndsay Dowd sits down with returning guest Mark Peters, CEO of Butterball Farms, author of The Retention Trap, and founder of a nonprofit workforce support model that has generated a reported 300% ROI for participating organizations. Mark shares how starting on the factory floor at age 12 shaped his leadership philosophy, why traditional retention strategies often miss the mark, and how employers can create environments where employees genuinely thrive. The conversation explores leadership, employee well-being, workforce development, and practical ways businesses can support workers beyond the workplace. Key Takeaways: - Great leaders understand the realities of frontline employees. - Retention should be a byproduct of employee success, not the primary objective. - Financial stability is often a bigger challenge for employees than employers realize. - Building trust requires support systems outside traditional HR structures. - Organizations that invest in employee well-being can create measurable business returns. - Leadership is most effective when it focuses on enriching lives, not just improving performance metrics. Episode Chapters: 00:00 – Introduction & What You'll Learn 00:59 – Meet Mark Peters 02:30 – Starting on the Factory Floor at Age 12 05:00 – Understanding Employees' Real-Life Challenges 08:00 – Building Better Workplace Support Systems 10:00 – The Source: A Different Employee Assistance Model 15:00 – The Business Impact of Employee Support 18:00 – Why Retention Is the Wrong Goal 24:00 – Financial Barriers Facing Workers 27:00 – A New Model for Employer Collaboration 30:00 – The Future of Leadership 34:00 – Final Thoughts & Closing Remarks

Josh Kosnick is a Bridge Builder—a leader forged through fire and guided by faith. As the founder of Kairos Coaching and an EOS Implementer, he empowers individuals and organizations to align vision with execution, transforming struggles into stepping stones toward fulfillment. With firsthand experience in building and exiting three successful businesses, Josh brings a unique perspective on creating sustainable value and long-term impact. Through his masterminds and mentorship, he inspires others to embrace their calling, overcome adversity, and build legacies rooted in authenticity, resilience, and generosity of spirit. Website: www.joshkosnick.com Episode Summary: In this episode of Heartbeat for Hire, Josh Kosnick shares his journey from being denied a raise at Best Buy to building, scaling, and exiting multiple businesses. He opens up about leading a 250-person financial services firm, navigating one of the most difficult seasons of his life after organizational betrayal and career loss, and how faith helped him rebuild his identity and purpose. Key Takeaways: - Success in business doesn't eliminate hardship; every growth story includes setbacks. - Your identity should never be tied solely to your career or business. - Difficult seasons can become the foundation for stronger leadership. - Great businesses should be able to operate without constant founder involvement. - Men's mental health deserves open and honest conversation. - Relationships, community, and real human connection matter more than ever. - Retirement is not the end of purpose—it's an opportunity to redirect it. - Leadership is ultimately about serving others with your unique gifts. Episode Chapters: 00:00 – Introduction & What You'll Learn 01:44 – From Best Buy to Entrepreneurship 02:45 – Building Businesses & Early Exits 03:23 – Scaling a Financial Firm 04:16 – Thriving Through COVID 05:35 – Career Crisis & Leadership Betrayal 08:02 – Faith, Loss, and Rebuilding Identity 10:01 – Discovering a New Purpose 12:15 – The Mission Behind Kairos Coaching 13:46 – Personal Loss & Men's Mental Health 15:01 – The Crisis Facing Young Men 18:03 – Human Connection Matters 21:01 – Leading by Example 26:18 – Life's Three Core Priorities 27:01 – Entrepreneurship, Exits & Purpose After Success 30:01 – Using Your Gifts to Serve Others

Wendy Valentine is an internationally published author of Women Waking Up: The Midlife Manifesto for Passion, Purpose, and Play, an inspiring book that became a #1 Amazon New Release, Founder of Midlifology™, and Keynote Speaker. She's also the host of the top 1% globally ranked podcast, The Midlife Makeover Show, inspiring women worldwide to embrace midlife as a powerful new beginning. After navigating divorce, menopause, job loss, debt, and an empty nest—all at once—Wendy stopped living on autopilot and started designing a life that finally felt like her own. Her journey from breakdown to breakthrough fuels everything she does. Today, Wendy empowers women to kick fear to the curb, reconnect with their purpose, and create bold, joy-fueled lives. She's been featured on Good Day New York, CBS News Los Angeles, NBC News Philadelphia, and numerous top-rated podcasts and media outlets, where she shares her empowering message that midlife isn't a crisis—it's a catalyst. Splitting her time between Portugal and traveling the USA in her RV, Wendy is living proof that life gets better—not smaller—with age. 🌐 Website: wendyvalentine.com 📱 Instagram & Facebook: @hellowendyvalentine Episode Summary: In this episode, host Lyndsay Dowd sits down with Wendy Valentine, founder of Midlifeology, #1 Amazon new release author, keynote speaker, and host of a top 1% globally ranked podcast. Wendy shares her raw, honest journey from a childhood shaped by abandonment to a midlife pile-up at age 46 that left her staring at a stranger in the mirror — broke, sick, divorced, and alone. Instead of disappearing, she made a bold decision: she would bet on herself. Key Takeaways: - Rock bottom can be a launchpad - You can't connect the dots looking forward - The greatest abandonment is self-abandonment - Midlifeology is about self-study, not crisis - Give yourself permission to pivot - The number one regret of the dying is living for everyone else Episode Chapters: 00:00 Teaser — Three things you'll learn from this episode 00:35 Welcome & guest introduction: Who is Wendy Valentine? 01:54 Connecting the dots: Wendy's story begins 02:26 Little Wendy — childhood, intuition, and abandonment 04:12 Fast-forward to 46: the midlife pile-up 05:57 The mirror moment — not recognizing herself 06:19 The breakdown, the vision, and the RV dream 08:02 The crossroads: stay comfortable or chase the dream 09:18 The comeback — real estate, $45M in sales, debt-free 10:07 Healing little Wendy: therapy, yoga, journaling 11:34 Getting the RV and quitting the job 14:46 What is Midlifeology? 17:04 Midlife losses as pivots, not endings 18:25 Life is short — no woulda, shoulda, couldas 19:45 From the RV to Portugal: how Madeira became home 21:06 Living with less — from 5,000 sq ft to 100 23:05 Sponsor break — Cozy Earth 23:39 Back to Portugal: 9–10 months a year on the island 24:06 RV life, Felicia, and US national parks 25:07 What is Women Waking Up? 25:29 What inspires Wendy 26:16 Wendy's legacy: making people smile 26:39 What's next: video podcast, keynote speaking & Netflix dreams 27:08 Where to find Wendy 27:34 Closing thoughts

Meet Meghann Conter, CEO and Visionary of The Dames — the only global business accelerator for 6-, 7-, and 8-figure right-scaling their businesses without sacrificing themselves. Through curated high-caliber connection, strategic scaling Think Tank Circles aligned to revenue stage, and high-caliber collaborations that builds credibility, sharpens strategy, and accelerates results. The Dames helps high-performing women right-size their businesses, amplify their impact, and do it all with radical collaboration, joy, and zero burnout. Because success isn't about being in all the rooms — it's about going deep in the right rooms. And for the women we serve, that room is The Dames. Socials: https://www.linkedin.com/in/meghannconter/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/18630915 https://www.instagram.com/thedamesco https://www.instagram.com/meghannconter https://www.facebook.com/thedamesco Episode Summary: In this episode, host Lyndsay Dowd sits down with Meghann Conter, CEO and Visionary of The Dames — the only global business accelerator connecting women at the top of six, seven, and eight-figure businesses. Meghann shares how she went from running a marketing agency and hustling five nights a week just to fill her pipeline, to building a thriving peer community rooted in radical collaboration, intentional growth, and joy. Meghann challenges the outdated hustle-and-grind model that was built by men, for men, and makes the case for a new paradigm of business — one where women define success on their own terms, scale at their own pace, and win together instead of competing. She introduces The Dames' core philosophy: move beyond referrals and networking to become true "power partners" and "golden geese" for one another. Key Takeaways: - Being in all the rooms costs you everything - Pick one or two rooms — and go deep - Right scaling beats just scaling - Stop chasing golden eggs; find your golden geese - Women were conditioned to compete. It's time to unlearn that - Your nervous system matters more than your revenue number - Your "why" needs to come from within Episode Chapters: 00:00 Cold Open — The Cost of Being in All the Rooms 00:28 What You'll Learn Today (3 Key Promises) 00:46 Welcome to Heartbeat for Hire 01:01 Introducing Meghann Conter & The Dames 01:58 Meghann's Story — From Marketing Agency to Global Accelerator 03:50 Why 2020 Was a Turning Point for The Dames0 5:00 The Problem with "I Have to Be Everywhere" 05:55 The Real Cost of Showing Up in All the Rooms 07:03 Why Spreading Yourself Thin Is the Worst Strategy 08:50 How The Dames Structures Community (Just 2–3 Hours/Month) 09:57 The Business Milestones: $100K, $250K, $500K, Seven & Eight Figures 12:07 Radical Collaboration — What It Is & Why It's Your Unfair Advantage 13:33 Golden Eggs vs. Golden Geese: A New Way to See Your Network 14:11 Power Partners - Referral Partners 15:52 Stop Seeing Other Women as Competitors 16:33 Right Scaling vs. Wrong Scaling 17:09 Redefining Success on Your Own Terms 19:04 Nervous System Regulation & Profits Over Revenue Vanity 20:47 Listener Shoutout & Podcast Awards 21:24 What's Inspiring Meghann Right Now 21:38 Meghann's Legacy: More Women Looking Inward 23:37 Where to Find Meghann & The Dames 24:02 What's Next — Funference (October 7–10, Denver) 24:31 How to Join The Dames 25:24 Closing Thoughts

Nausheen I. Chen is a 3-time TEDx speaker, a Public Speaking instructor for the Executive MBA program at Central European University and Wesleyan, and a LinkedIn Learning Instructor with 600,000+ followers across LinkedIn, Instagram and TikTok. Nausheen coaches leaders at Google, Amazon, NASA and the UN as well as startup founders to speak fearlessly. Her clients have raised more than $115 million through winning investor pitches and successful exits. You can connect with her on: [email protected]. Summary: Public speaking coach Nausheen Chen joins Lyndsay Dowd to break down the real reasons people freeze under the spotlight — and the practical framework she uses to turn nervous executives and introverted entrepreneurs into compelling, confident communicators. Key takeaways: - Nervousness on camera isn't a personality flaw - The three-level speaking framework - Better pitching = better deals - Authenticity is the strategy Episode chapters: 0:00 Intro & episode preview 1:03 Nausheen's origin story 3:33 From filmmaker to speaking coach 6:06 The purple hair strategy 9:39 Speaking to investors: a $65M case study 14:18 Know your story before you tell it 16:39 The speaker's toolkit: voice, energy & body language 20:47 What inspires Nausheen 22:52 Legacy, ideal clients & what's next 24:49 Final advice & how to connect