Proven Podcast

John R. Miles graduated from the Naval Academy and spent years supporting special operations teams, including SEAL units, on ships and in high-risk missions. He later ran technology teams at Dell and Lowe's, and he now writes books and hosts the Passionstruck podcast. Charles talks with him about what he learned leading people where mistakes cost lives and where they only cost money. When John started at Lowe's, the team he inherited ranked last in the company's employee survey. He explains what he found when he talked to the people on that team, why they had stopped speaking up, and the steps he took to turn it around. He also shares the daily habits that keep him steady and why he stopped drinking three years ago. You'll hear how he thinks about autonomy, how to rebuild trust when people are afraid to bring you bad news, why he compares leadership to gardening, and the six signals that show whether people feel they matter at work. KEY TAKEAWAYS: - Why a leader who controls every move becomes the bottleneck, and how clear boundaries let capable people do the work - How to earn trust in a new role by listening to the people closest to the work before you change anything - Why people who fear blame hide problems, and how rewarding early bad news saves time and money - How meaning, autonomy, trust, time, energy, and reciprocity show whether your team feels they matter - Why a daily habit of checking your actions against your values keeps you steady under pressure KEY POINTS: 00:20 - From the Navy to Fortune 50 tech: John explains how burning out as a high performer changed what he thinks drives real results. 02:40 - Leading special operations teams: John shares what he learned supporting SEAL units, and why a leader can never become the bottleneck. 06:01 - Earning trust on a Navy ship: John describes walking onto a ship with broken morale and why he volunteered for any job that needed doing. 13:10 - Self-regulation comes first: John walks through his daily routine of gratitude, mindfulness, exercise, and setting intentions. 16:29 - Tying gratitude to your values: John explains how checking your daily actions against your core values shows you where you fall short. 22:11 - Taking alcohol off the table: John talks about quitting, what it did for his sleep and energy, and why Charles says vulnerability takes strength. 25:50 - Walking into the lowest-ranked team at Lowe's: John shares the call that told him his team finished last in employee engagement. 29:17 - Systemic unmattering: John explains why people stop speaking up after they learn that nothing changes. 33:24 - Gardener leadership: John describes why he sees leadership as creating the right conditions instead of pulling on people. 37:56 - Autonomy means authorship with guardrails: John explains how training the whole team on one shared process gave them a common language. 44:04 - The six signals of mattering: Meaning, autonomy, trust, time, energy, and reciprocity. 46:22 - How to rebuild trust: John explains why hiding bad news leads to bad decisions, and what he did to make it safe to tell the truth. 52:29 - Time as a signal: John explains how a calendar full of meetings tells people what you really value, and how he cut the extra governance. 56:58 - Reciprocity: John shares how he gave his team training, promotions, and visibility, and why he got to know them outside of work. 01:03:48 - What becomes more human in the age of AI: John explains why companies should ask what machines free people up to do, instead of which jobs to cut.

Charles goes one on one with David Goldhill, founder and CEO of Sesame, former president of television at Universal Studios, and author of Catastrophic Care, to tear apart why American healthcare costs so much and what it would actually take to fix it. They walk through why the United States covers 40 percent of the world's healthcare spending while making up just 3 percent of the population, why insurance companies and government payers killed normal pricing, and why the fix isn't one big policy swing. It's a shift back to treating patients like customers. The conversation covers the real economics behind a $900 million pill, why Sesame borrows its pricing model from a stone crab restaurant in Miami, why hospitals are stuck with a broken business model, and why the doctor in your neighborhood is about to compete with the best doctor on the planet. KEY POINTS: 00:34 – Entertainment executive to healthcare founder: David walks through his path from Universal Studios and the Game Show Network to building Sesame, and why Charles calls it a classic swap from one broken industry to another. 01:57 – America is subsidizing world healthcare: David explains why the US pays 70 to 80 percent of the cost of medical innovation while capturing a fraction of the benefit, and why cutting that funding would collapse care standards everywhere. 04:04 – The NATO of medicine: David compares American healthcare spending to defense spending in NATO, and lays out the number that stops most people cold. The US is 3 percent of world population and 40 percent of world healthcare spend. 09:13 – Why the first pill costs $900 million and the second costs a penny: Charles and David break down drug pricing, and why a business model that looks terrible everywhere else works in healthcare because normal competition never gets the chance to bring prices down. 14:42 – The real lifetime cost of healthcare: David shares the number that shocked him while writing his 2012 book, what one employee puts into the healthcare system over a lifetime, and where all of that money actually goes. 27:30 – The Joe's Stone Crab model: Charles and David use a Miami restaurant to explain how Sesame built a cash pay system that gives patients upfront pricing without insurance, and why doctors are lining up to join it. 31:33 – Telemedicine breaks the map: David explains why location is about to stop deciding who gets access to the best doctors, and how remote care strips real cost out of the system instead of just shifting it around. 37:05 – What happens when incentives go wrong: Charles shares a story from his years in hospice about a system that started rewarding shorter patient stays, and David explains why neither side of that story is really about good or evil people. 44:11 – The biggest shifts in the market right now: David breaks down why patients are getting more financially sophisticated, why doctors are leaving independent practice, and why big hospital chains are structurally unable to compete on cost. 52:09 – Fighting conventional wisdom: David walks through the assumptions people in healthcare kept telling him were impossible, like doctors posting real prices, and why more of the best doctors in the country are asking how to get out of insurance entirely. KEY TAKEAWAYS: Why the US being 3 percent of world population and 40 percent of world healthcare spend is the number that explains almost everything else in this conversation How third party payers removed the pressure that normally pushes prices down as a product matures Why Sesame's cash pay, upfront pricing model is pulling in doctors who are tired of spending their time on insurance paperwork Why hospitals keep growing their share of the healthcare dollar even though they play a shrinking role in actual care Why personalized, proactive healthcare cannot run on a payment system built for a world where medicine could only react to problems after they happened

In this dynamic episode, Charles sits down with Ann Kaplan Mulholland. Canadian entrepreneur, business executive, author, and television personality, to explore how bold vision, adaptability, and unapologetic ambition drive success across business, media, and life. Ann shares her unconventional path to building influence and impact, revealing how resilience, reinvention, and strategic risk taking became the foundation of her career. From navigating high stakes industries to building personal brand credibility in the public eye, Ann unpacks what it takes to lead with confidence while staying grounded in purpose. She discusses the realities of modern entrepreneurship, the pressure of visibility, and why owning your narrative is just as important as executing your strategy. Together, they dive into leadership in a fast moving world, how identity shapes decision making, why clarity and conviction matter more than perfection, and how adaptability becomes a competitive advantage. The conversation blends business insight with personal reflection, offering lessons on growth, reinvention, and showing up fully in every arena you choose to play in. This isn't just a conversation about success or visibility. It's a blueprint for building influence with intention, leading boldly through change, and creating a career that reflects who you are, not just what you do. KEY TAKEAWAYS: -How Ann Kaplan Mulholland built a multifaceted career as an entrepreneur, executive, author, and television personality -Why owning your identity and narrative is essential in business and public life -How resilience and reinvention create long-term relevance -The realities of leadership under visibility and public scrutiny Head over to provenpodcast.com to download your exclusive companion guide, designed to guide you step-by-step in implementing the strategies revealed in this episode. KEY POINTS: 01:06 – Building a career across industries: Ann opens up about her unconventional journey, while Charles reflects on how adaptability creates opportunity across different arenas. 04:48 – Reinvention as a leadership skill: Ann explains why growth often demands change, while Charles highlights how identity evolves alongside ambition. 09:35 – Owning your narrative: Ann discusses the importance of controlling your story, while Charles explores why clarity of self builds confidence and trust. 14:22 – Leadership in the public eye: Ann shares the pressure of visibility and criticism, while Charles examines how leaders stay grounded under scrutiny. 19:14 – Confidence without perfection: Ann breaks down why waiting to be "ready" holds people back, while Charles reinforces the power of decisive action. 24:37 – Adaptability in fast-moving markets: Ann reveals how staying flexible fuels longevity, while Charles ties adaptability to competitive advantage. 30:02 – Balancing brand and execution: Ann explains how credibility is built through results, while Charles emphasizes alignment between message and action.

In this insightful episode, Charles sits down with Jessica Kriegel, culture strategist, author, and former Chief Scientist of Workplace Culture at Culture Amp, to explore how values, leadership, and intentional culture drive sustainable performance in modern organizations. Jessica unpacks what workplace culture really is, challenging the idea that it's about perks or slogans, and revealing how shared behaviors and belief systems shape everything from engagement to execution. From helping companies navigate rapid growth and change to decoding why culture breaks down during moments of pressure, Jessica shares what it takes to build environments where people actually thrive. She explains how leaders can translate values into daily actions, create trust at scale, and align teams around a clear sense of purpose, without sacrificing accountability or results. Together, they dive into the future of work, why culture must evolve alongside technology, how transparency and feedback fuel high-performing teams, and why leadership today is less about control and more about connection. This conversation reframes culture as a strategic advantage, not a "soft" concept, and shows how the strongest organizations are built from the inside out. This isn't just a conversation about company culture. It's a blueprint for building workplaces people believe in, contribute to, and choose to stay part of. KEY TAKEAWAYS: -How Jessica Kriegel became a leading culture strategist by turning data, behavior, and psychology into actionable workplace insights -Why company culture isn't about perks or slogans—but about consistent behaviors and shared beliefs -How leaders unintentionally break culture during periods of growth, pressure, or change -Why values only matter when they show up in daily decisions and actions Head over to provenpodcast.com to download your exclusive companion guide, designed to guide you step-by-step in implementing the strategies revealed in this episode. KEY POINTS: 01:10 – What culture really means: Jessica challenges the idea that culture is about perks and slogans, while Charles reframes culture as the invisible system driving behavior, trust, and results. 04:55 – How leaders unintentionally break culture: Jessica explains how growth, pressure, and misaligned incentives erode culture, while Charles reflects on why leadership behavior sets the tone more than any mission statement. 09:42 – Values vs. behaviors: Jessica breaks down why values only matter when they show up in daily actions, while Charles emphasizes the gap between what companies say and what they actually reward. 14:28 – Culture as a strategic advantage: Jessica reveals how strong culture directly impacts performance and retention, while Charles explores why culture should be treated like any other core business system. 19:36 – Trust, transparency, and feedback: Jessica explains how open communication fuels engagement, while Charles highlights why feedback loops are essential for high-performing teams. 24:51 – Leadership in the modern workplace: Jessica discusses the shift from control to connection, while Charles ties this evolution to empathy, accountability, and clarity. 30:14 – Navigating change without losing alignment: Jessica shares how organizations can scale without cultural breakdown, while Charles reflects on the importance of consistency during uncertainty.

In this eye-opening episode, Charles sits down with Chris Naugle—former pro snowboarder turned wealth strategist and founder of The Money Multiplier—to unpack the unconventional mindset behind true financial freedom. From humble beginnings in Buffalo to building a career on Wall Street and beyond, Chris shares how a series of hard-won lessons led him to one radical idea: become your own bank. Together, they break down how infinite banking works in plain English—why it's not about chasing crypto or timing the market, but about understanding how money actually moves. Chris reveals how he helps entrepreneurs, investors, and everyday people recapture control of their finances, earn uninterrupted compounding returns, and build wealth that's protected from market chaos. They go deep into real estate investing, tax strategy, and the future of money—from cost segregation and private banking to how digital currency and policy shifts could reshape financial systems forever. Through it all, Charles and Chris challenge traditional beliefs about debt, risk, and what "security" really means. This isn't just a conversation about money—it's a blueprint for reclaiming control, mastering cash flow, and building generational wealth that works for you, not against you. KEY TAKEAWAYS: -How Chris Naugle went from pro snowboarder to multimillionaire wealth strategist -Why the "infinite banking concept" can help you become your own source of financing -The difference between saving money and making money work for you -How to recapture interest you're giving away to banks and lenders Head over to provenpodcast.com to download your exclusive companion guide, designed to guide you step-by-step in implementing the strategies revealed in this episode. KEY POINTS: 01:12 – From snowboarder to wealth strategist: Chris opens up about his early days chasing adrenaline on the slopes—and how a career-ending fall pushed him into the world of finance. Charles draws parallels between risk on the mountain and risk in money. 05:40 – Losing it all—and learning the rules of money: Chris shares how the 2008 crash wiped out everything he'd built—and how it became the turning point that led him to rethink everything he knew about wealth. 09:25 – The money multiplier mindset: Chris explains how he discovered the principles behind infinite banking—while Charles explores why most people never learn how money actually works. 14:18 – Becoming your own bank: Chris breaks down the strategy of using properly structured whole life insurance to create liquidity, control, and uninterrupted compounding—while Charles connects it to entrepreneurial freedom. 20:46 – Breaking the myth of debt: Chris challenges the belief that all debt is bad—while Charles highlights how strategic leverage can accelerate financial independence. 26:10 – The power of cash flow over net worth: Chris shows why it's not about how much you have, but how efficiently your money moves—while Charles dives into how mindset determines financial destiny. 31:33 – Creating generational wealth: Chris unpacks how families can pass down knowledge, not just money—while Charles emphasizes the role of discipline, education, and purpose.

In this powerhouse episode, Charles sits down with Setema Gali—former NFL Super Bowl champion turned elite coach, speaker, and entrepreneur—to unpack the raw truth about what it really takes to win in business, leadership, and life. Setema shares his transformation from professional athlete to purpose-driven mentor, revealing how the same mindset that wins championships also builds unstoppable leaders. He dives deep into the "dragon-slaying" philosophy—facing hard truths, confronting excuses, and building habits that create sustainable success across every area of life. From calling out toxic comfort and fake positivity to breaking down the power of radical accountability, Setema and Charles strip away the fluff and expose the realities of high performance. Together, they explore the price of true transformation—why most people never achieve it, and how those who do build unshakable confidence, discipline, and integrity through consistent, uncomfortable action. This isn't motivational talk—it's a masterclass in mental toughness, ownership, and the psychology of winning long after the game ends. KEY TAKEAWAYS: -How Setema Gali transformed his identity from Super Bowl champion to world-class coach by redefining what real winning means -Why true greatness isn't about talent or trophies—but about integrity, consistency, and inner mastery -The power of "dragon slaying": confronting your fears, excuses, and self-sabotage to unlock purpose and power -How to lead yourself before leading others—through discipline, accountability, and emotional control Head over to provenpodcast.com to download your exclusive companion guide, designed to guide you step-by-step in implementing the strategies revealed in this episode. KEY POINTS: 01:05 – From the NFL to a new mission: Setema shares his journey from Super Bowl champion to transformational coach—while Charles highlights how reinvention begins when identity no longer depends on titles or trophies. 04:28 – Redefining what it means to win: Setema breaks down the difference between external success and internal fulfillment—while Charles reflects on how chasing validation keeps many high achievers stuck. 08:15 – The power of personal standards: Setema explains why discipline and integrity are the true markers of greatness—while Charles connects this to how leaders create culture through consistency, not charisma. 12:40 – Slaying the internal dragons: Setema reveals his framework for confronting fear, pride, and self-sabotage—while Charles notes how facing your "dragons" becomes the path to freedom and clarity. 16:10 – Leading yourself first: Setema emphasizes that leadership starts with self-mastery—while Charles points out that emotional regulation and humility separate good leaders from exceptional ones. 20:30 – Sustaining success through structure and spirit: Setema discusses how faith, family, and focus form the foundation of lasting achievement—while Charles ties it to the balance between grind and grace. 25:45 – Legacy over lifestyle: Setema closes with a call to pursue impact over image—while Charles reminds listeners that real success is measured not by what you gain, but by who you become.