Secret Thoughts of CEOS Ep. 136 What if growth isn't the goal? with Perrin DesPortes In this deeply reflective and energizing episode, Chris Yonker and Perrin DesPortes engage in a rare bidirectional dialogue, unpacking the hidden costs of ambition, the personal reckoning that comes with burnout, and the awakening that’s possible when business success is aligned with inner fulfillment. Perrin, founder of The Next Level Executive, shares his evolution from a high-powered career in dental distribu...
Jun 17, 2025•54 min•Season 1Ep. 136
Secret Thoughts of CEOS Ep. 135 Legacy in Limbo: Why So Many Leaders Avoid Succession Planning with Dr. Mohanakrishnan Raman In this eye-opening episode, host Chris Yonker speaks with Dr. Mohanakrishnan Raman, an organizational psychologist and international expert on family business dynamics. With decades of experience consulting Indian family enterprises, Dr. Raman shares how cultural norms, succession planning, and next-gen development intersect in often overlooked ways. The conversation touc...
Jun 02, 2025•50 min•Season 1Ep. 135
Secret Thoughts of CEOS Ep. 134 Navigating Change: Insights for Family Business Leaders with Dr. Barrett C. Brown In this powerful episode, Chris Yonker is joined by global executive advisor and developmental strategist, Dr. Barrett Brown, for a profound and eye-opening conversation about what it really takes to lead in today’s ever-accelerating world. With experience working across six continents and coaching C-suite executives through high-stakes transformation, Dr. Brown brings hard-earned wi...
May 19, 2025•1 hr 14 min•Season 1Ep. 134
Secret Thoughts of CEOS Ep. 133 Navigating Legacy and Wealth in Family Business with Jason Smith In this powerful episode, host Chris Yonker sits down with Jason L Smith, founder of JL Smith Group, author of The Bucket Plan , and a nationally recognized financial advisor. Jason opens up about being fired by his own father, building a purpose-driven business from the ground up, and the holistic philosophy that now guides his wealth management firm—which oversees more than $4 billion in assets. Ja...
May 05, 2025•54 min•Season 1Ep. 133
Secret Thoughts of CEOS Ep. 132 Priorities for Family Offices Working in a Fractured World with Angelo Robles In this episode of the Secret Thoughts of CEOs and Business Leaders podcast, host Chris Yonker interviews Angelo Robles, a prominent figure in the family office sector. The discussion covers various topics crucial to family businesses, such as the importance of hiring the right people, the disruptive impact of AI, and how geopolitical changes are reshaping the business landscape. Angelo ...
Apr 21, 2025•1 hr 1 min•Season 1Ep. 132
Secret Thoughts of CEOS Ep. 131 Unlocking Leadership Potential: How Shadow Work Transforms Leaders with Kim Barta In this episode of 'Secret Thoughts of CEOs and Business Leaders’, host Chris Yonker delves into deep discussions with Kim Barta, a renowned psychotherapist and thought leader. Kim shares insights into his work around shadow therapy, explaining how our unconscious beliefs and patterns shape our lives. He talks about the nuances of family dynamics, personal growth, and healing from tr...
Apr 07, 2025•55 min
Unlocking Family Business Potential Through Advisory Teams with Dr. Jeremy Lurey In this episode of the 'Secret Thoughts of CEOs and Business Leaders' podcast, host Chris Yonker discusses the complexities of managing family business transitions with Dr. Jeremy Lurey. The episode covers key topics such as building effective advisory teams, succession planning, and the nuances of family dynamics in business settings. Chris and Jeremy explore the importance of external advisors, the challenges of s...
Mar 24, 2025•1 hr•Season 1Ep. 130
STOC 129: Balancing Tradition & Innovation: What Businesses Can Learn from Harley Davidson with Ken Schmidt In this episode of 'Secret Thoughts of CEOs and Business Leaders,' host Chris Yonker interviews Ken Schmidt, a former Harley Davidson executive renowned for his innovative repositioning strategy. They discuss the key elements holding back family businesses and privately held companies, including family harmony, succession, financial management, and innovation. Ken shares insights into ...
Mar 10, 2025•50 min•Season 1Ep. 129
Building Family Legacy and the Keys to Early Education Success with Richie Huffman In this episode of 'Secret Thoughts of CEOs and Business Leaders,' host Chris Yonker talks with Richie Huffman, the founder, president, and CEO of Celebrate Schools, and a leader in early childhood education. The discussion delves into Richie's entrepreneurial journey, approaches to building a family legacy, and the innovative ways he runs his family akin to a business. The conversation highlights the importance o...
Feb 24, 2025•42 min•Season 1Ep. 127
Trust, Transparency, and Culture: The Cornerstones of Leadership with Susan Riley Susan Riley is a resident of Exeter, NH and is married with two children. She started her career with a technical foundation (undergraduate and graduate education in Chemistry (Boston College, Brandeis University), followed later by an MBA at Babson College. She then spent the majority of her 40-year career in the life sciences industry. Having started in research and development, Susan gradually expanded her skill...
Feb 10, 2025•46 min•Season 1Ep. 127
Holistic Success: Mind, Body, Spirit, and Leadership with Shane Carter Shane is President and CEO of Hampshire Capital, LLC based in NH. Hampshire Capital, LLC buys, develops, renovates, repositions and holds apartment buildings, commercial assets and land in New England and the Southern states. Since 1996, Shane has acquired and managed more than $315M in multi-family and commercial assets and has developed and built over $120M in real estate through his construction and development firm. Shane...
Jan 27, 2025•50 min•Season 1Ep. 126
The Addicted Brain: Rewriting the Narrative on Alcohol with Dave Andrews Dave Andrews, “America’s #1 Sobriety Coach,” CEO of The 30-Day Solution, and Co-Author of The 30-Day Sobriety Solution , is the leading expert in helping others recover, reclaim, and reinvent their lives without alcohol, and serves on the Board of Directors of the nonprofit organizations, Young People in Recovery, and Advocates for Recovery. As a speaker, sobriety coach, author, and Certified Coach in Positive Psychology, N...
Jan 13, 2025•1 hr 16 min•Season 1Ep. 125
From Gaming to Growth: Volodymyr Panchenko’s AI-Powered Blueprint with Volodymyr Panchenko With a career spanning over 17 years in the gaming and tech sector, Vlad has a record of turning his passion for gaming into groundbreaking businesses. His current mission is to chart the course for the in-game items industry, with a keen focus on meeting the expansive needs of the global gaming community. The power of disruptive technologies, such as AI and Blockchain, is no stranger to Vlad. After the sa...
Dec 30, 2024•47 min•Season 1Ep. 124
Why Coaching Beats Training for Lasting Leadership Impact with Ted Kulawiak, Kristi Baxter, & Thomas Ted Kulawiak is a highly respected sought-after sales management, leadership coach, and business consultant. As the president of Ted Kaye Sales Management Training LLC, Ted utilizes his significant business experience coupled with a personalized and innovative problem-solving approach to guide clients to reach their desired business goals. He held senior sales leadership and training position...
Dec 16, 2024•56 min
How Can You Redesign Your Internal Programming a Live a Full(er) Life ? On today's episode I was a guest on Steven Lawson’s podcast Potent , and we dive into overcoming trauma, the power of spirituality and self-awareness, the impact of mentorship, and the journey toward self-acceptance and deeper connections. About Today's Guest Chris is a Certified Family Business Advisor accredited through The Family Firm Institute. Chris helps to consciously navigate the challenges of succession, leadership ...
Dec 02, 2024•47 min•Season 1Ep. 122
Stephanie Craig is the President of Kith.co, and elite crisis preparation, response, and recovery firm. She has built her reputation as a crisis expert by guiding some of the world’s most prominent people and organizations through their most trying moments. Before Kith, Stephanie founded the Apeiron Strategy Group. With decades of experience in media and politics, she has served as a trusted advisor to former First Ladies, Senators, Members of Congress, and C-suite officers. What You’ll Learn ● ...
Nov 18, 2024•31 min•Season 1Ep. 121
In this episode, Chris Yonker talks about the importance of finding and hiring a business coach. Hear about investing in a coach, determining the right type of coach for your needs, warning signs to look out for, questions to ask yourself before finding a coach, and the true value of hiring a coach for your business. What You’ll Learn ● What a coach can bring to your business. ● How to find the right coach. ● What makes a good coach. ● When to find a coach. Timestamps · [03:28] Chris’s experienc...
Nov 04, 2024•22 min•Season 1Ep. 120
Clement Decrop is a Belgium-born inventor, entrepreneur, and author of The Idea Space: The Science of Awakening Your Non-Self. He has collaborated with numerous inventors from Wikipedia’s Most Prolific Inventors List, resulting in 130+ patent disclosures within one year, 50+ filed, and 20+ issued. Outside these professional spheres, Decrop finds joy in the simpler pleasures of life. He’s an avid reader—from textbooks on semiconductors and rockets to general fiction—an experimental cook, a global...
Oct 21, 2024•43 min•Season 1Ep. 119
Kathleen O’Hara, MA, LPC, is a psychotherapist and senior consultant to families, individuals, and family offices. She is the Founder of Integral Health Services, and specializes in helping individuals and families navigate the complex issues of living in the 21st century, including mental health, relational issues, difficult family dynamics, personal growth/development, life-stages, finding meaning and purpose, and building anti-fragility in an ever-changing world. She is an expert in crisis ma...
Oct 07, 2024•49 min•Season 1Ep. 118
Thomas Hübl, PhD, is a renowned teacher, author, and international facilitator who works within the complexity of systems and cultural change, integrating the core insights of the great wisdom traditions and mysticism with the discoveries of science. Since the early 2000s, he has led large-scale events and courses on the healing of collective trauma. He is the author of Attuned: Practicing Interdependence to Heal Our Trauma—and Our World, and Healing Collective Trauma: A Process for Integrating ...
Sep 23, 2024•1 hr 4 min•Season 1Ep. 117
Based in Florida, Sylvia Benito is a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with more than two decades of portfolio management experience. She has diverse experience in wealth management, having worked as a hedge fund analyst and managing portfolios for family offices and ultra-high-net- worth clients with more than $1 billion in assets. A thought leader and public speaker committed to helping companies and investors leverage capital for transformative societal impact, Sylvia works with founders, fam...
Sep 09, 2024•35 min•Season 1Ep. 116
Carol Horton is the Founder and CEO of Lily Grace Homes, the CEO of The Ten13 Company, and on the board of directors of Habitat for Humanity of Collin County. At Lily Grace Homes, she is striving to bring a balance to beautiful design and functional living. She brings over 15 years of experience in the residential construction industry, a strategic mindset, and an unwavering commitment to excellence. With a proven track record of achieving exceptional results in challenging markets and turnaroun...
Aug 26, 2024•50 min•Season 1Ep. 115
With a unique background in finance and mediation, coupled with a passion for culture and education, Monica has traveled the globe extensively – exploring all opportunities to continuously enhance her skill set and personal growth. Around the world, she has had the good fortune to learn from some of the most renowned names in her field. Having previously worked in accounting and finance with corporate giants, Coopers and Lybrand (now PwC), and Rogers Cablesystems, Monica’s initial foray into bus...
Aug 12, 2024•52 min•Season 1Ep. 114
David Vanderveen has a successful 30-year track record in beverage and technology-leading disruptive change, at both private and public companies. Since September 2022, he has been the CEO of Nirvana Water Sciences and has worked with a team of industry beverage, functional beverage, and supplement experts to transform the brand, product portfolio, go-to-market strategy, and execution of the business. During this time, Nirvana has launched a new brand, Nirvana SUPER™, and its wellness extension,...
Jul 29, 2024•50 min•Season 1Ep. 113
This forum featured guest experts Natasha Silverbell and Jane Mintz, along with our host Chris Yonker, CFBA to discuss mental health and addiction in the context of personal development and family dynamics. We emphasized the importance of not merely labeling behaviors but understanding their impacts on families and businesses. Our discussion highlighted the need for empathy, open communication, and self-regulation, stressing that everyone—from family members to business advisors—plays a crucial ...
Jul 15, 2024•53 min•Season 1Ep. 112
How to Find a Higher Sense of Flow with Achim Feige Achim Feige is a personal performance and transformation coach to the German business elite. As a transformation architect, human potential coach, and author of several management books, he enables entrepreneurs, CEOs, and top executives to access higher states of consciousness and flow, and personal growth, using the latest neuroscientific findings and techniques, aligned with ancient wisdom, from which you - having grown inwardly and equipped...
Jul 01, 2024•57 min•Season 1Ep. 111
Irina Serebryakova is Nurse Practitioner and Founder of You Holistic Functional Medicine and Longevity Center in Exeter, NH. She has been practicing Functional Medicine for more than 15 years. Functional Medicine addresses the whole body and focuses on disease prevention, and considers the full picture of your physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health. You Holistic helps patients reduce or eliminate the need for pharmaceutical medications by addressing digestive problems, inflammation, w...
Jun 17, 2024•52 min•Season 1Ep. 110
Kristin Lytle is CEO of The Leader’s Edge and has significant experience in talent assessment, leadership development, succession planning, and organizational design. Over the span of her career, she has worked with top organizations, such as Vanguard, Kohler Company, Whirlpool, and Target. Kristin has held leadership roles in business operations and human resources, in both domestic and global capacities, throughout her career. She has a proven track record for developing scalable and sustainab...
Jun 03, 2024•47 min•Season 1Ep. 109
Dr. Stacy Feiner is an accomplished psychologist, business leader, innovator, author, and mom. She advises private and family-owned businesses with a pro-growth, pro-health approach that ensures leaders solve emotionally charged situations, move forward, and increase enterprise value and family connection. Curious about people and culture, Stacy has lived in 8 US cities and traveled through 9 countries. A Doctor of Psychology (PsyD), Stacy is an expert at helping complex people systems shape the...
May 20, 2024•54 min•Season 1Ep. 108
Dr. Lise Janelle is a renowned growth accelerator coach who empowers her clients with her groundbreaking Heart Freedom Method, facilitating rapid transformation by dismantling subconscious barriers to success. She’s been featured in many radio and TV interviews, including on CBC News and CTV’s Canada AM. She shares insights on overcoming inner resistance. A former championship rower and pioneer in women’s Ice Canoeing, Lise embraces outdoor challenges like scaling Kilimanjaro and La Haute Route ...
May 06, 2024•40 min•Season 1Ep. 107
