Business Mastery Podcast

Business is dynamic. And everything affects you and your business. Fight with your mother-in-law? Mindset struggle? Market Changes? YUP. So, we're going to talk about it all. No topic is off limits. The goal for every episode is to offer a new and different perspective or provide actionable strategies you can implement now. On the topics you need, to help you run the small business you love, more successfully. To master your own business and to master yourself as its leader and decision maker. Every Wednesday Dawn K. Kennedy, an attorney, author, mentor and the CEO of Convoy Road Coffee Roasters, releases a new episode for your middle of the week dose of ideas and inspiration. In 45 minutes or less. Small bites, expert guests, big impacts. Whether you are a new or seasoned entrepreneur, this show is about all the things around making a bigger impact with your pursuit and growing into your entrepreneurial vision.

Business Mastery Podcast is a business podcast hosted by Dawn Kennedy, with 240 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80.

Dawn Kennedy hosts Business Mastery Podcast, a business show with 240 episodes published.

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  Episode #240

  240. "PR That Works" with Steve Turner

  Sep 29, 202646 minS1

  Send us Fan Mail Dawn talks with Steve Turner of Solomon/Turner PR, a St. Louis firm in its 36th year, about making PR work for businesses. Steve explains how PR has shifted from relying mainly on newspapers, TV, and radio to choosing from many “delivery systems” (social media, podcasts, niche outlets) and emphasizes targeting the right audience for stronger ROI. He outlines a five-step PR process from his book PR That Works: define measurable objectives, identify the audience, craft differentiating messaging, choose the best delivery systems, and measure results to adjust strategy. Steve contrasts PR’s long-term trust-building with short-term advertising, discusses extending “legs” from media coverage across channels, and stresses having a crisis communications plan, designated spokesperson, and media training in place before problems occur. In this episode…. Meet Steve Turner (00:44) PR Then Vs Now (03:02) Five Step PR Framework (06:14) Objectives And Audience (06:33) Messaging Channels Measurement (07:45) PR Timelines And Expectations (11:32) Giveback Stories With Legs (13:47) PR For Recruiting Culture (15:46) Sales Enablement With Third Party Proof (19:11) Crisis Communication Basics (21:25) When News Crews Arrive (23:37) Rogue Social Media Fallout (24:11) Is It Really A Crisis (26:22) Pick Your Spokesperson (27:37) Fire Drill Media Playbook (28:30) Industries That Need Plans (30:56) PR Is A Long Game (33:35) PR That Works Book (37:19) Penny The Pig Case Study (38:55) Jeep Book Marketing Wins (40:50) Where To Find Steve (44:00) Final Wrap And Thanks (45:04) Steve Turner’s Informations: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/steveturnerpr/ Website: https://rockstarpublicist.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/steveturnerpr/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rockstarpublicist X: https://x.com/steveturnerpr Support the show Thanks for listening. If you liked what you heard and want more, please visit and subscribe: Subscribe to our Youtube Channel: https://youtube.com/@dawnkkennedyxo?si=DcRcjv7H0KN5_vFP Follow us on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/dawnkkennedyxo Follow us in Tiktok: https://tiktok.com/dawnkkennedy For weekly in-depth articles, tips, and strategies: https://getinweredoingbusiness.substack.com Dawn’s Website: https://dawnkkennedy.com/ Links and Freebies: https://dawnkkennedy.com/resources New Book: Before You Decide: The Field Manual for Durable Decisions Under Pressure https://dawnkkennedy.com/byd/ Read: Strategic Intelligence Articles, Insights, and Resources Support the show SUPPORT THE SHOW O...

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  Episode #239

  239. "Ethical Influence and Persuasion" with Barry Moline

  Sep 22, 202654 minS1

  Send us Fan Mail Dawn talks with Barry Molin, a speaker, trainer, and author of Connect: How to Quickly Collaborate for Success in Business and Life, about influence, persuasion, and doing business ethically over the long term. Barry distinguishes influence as broad trust in a person and persuasion as focused movement toward a specific idea, product, or service. He defines ethical persuasion through three elements: it must be true, make common sense, and be wise—something the persuader genuinely believes in and would recommend to close others—while also being transparent about unknowns. He argues effective persuasion is matching solutions to people’s needs, not pushing for short-term goals. Barry then outlines three categories and tactics: improving relationships (reciprocity, liking, unity), reducing uncertainty (authority, social proof), and motivating action (consistency, scarcity, reducing friction), noting where misuse can become unethical. In this episode…. Who is Barry Molin amd whom does he serve? (00:47) Influence vs Persuasion (02:59) Ethics First Framework (04:40) When You’re Not Sure Yet (08:40) Asking Better Questions (11:04) Sales Mindset Shift (16:12) Short-Term Pressure Trap (20:33) The How Three Pillars (28:35) Reciprocity As Karma (30:14) Friendship Reciprocity Example (30:49) Liking Through Questions (33:00) Unity And Shared Identity (34:12) Spotting Authenticity (36:45) Reducing Uncertainty (38:26) Authority And Social Proof (38:35) Motivating People To Act (42:29) Consistency And Commitment (42:43) Scarcity Done Right (45:08) Reducing Friction To Buy (47:19) Wrap Up And Where To Connect (49:07) Barry Moline’s Informationn: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/barry-moline/ Website: https://barrymoline.com Support the show Thanks for listening. If you liked what you heard and want more, please visit and subscribe: Subscribe to our Youtube Channel: https://youtube.com/@dawnkkennedyxo?si=DcRcjv7H0KN5_vFP Follow us on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/dawnkkennedyxo Follow us in Tiktok: https://tiktok.com/dawnkkennedy For weekly in-depth articles, tips, and strategies: https://getinweredoingbusiness.substack.com Dawn’s Website: https://dawnkkennedy.com/ Links and Freebies: https://dawnkkennedy.com/resources New Book: Before You Decide: The Field Manual for Durable Decisions Under Pressure https://dawnkkennedy.com/byd/ Read: Strategic Intelligence Articles, Insights, and Resources Support the show SUPPORT THE SHOW O...

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  Episode #238

  238. "Finances as Ally" with Nate Littlewood

  Sep 15, 202641 minS1

  Send us Fan Mail Dawn talks with fractional CFO Nate Littlewood, who supports early-stage e-commerce and CPG founders with physical-goods challenges like inventory financing and growth strategy guided by financial statements. Nate explains why founders avoid finances through cognitive dissonance—financial reports can contradict the success story they want to believe—then outlines four phases of relating to money: denial, overwhelm, intrigue, and enlightenment, and the “context vacuum” that makes metrics meaningless without industry benchmarks. He argues you can over-invest in finance too early; before product-market fit, founders mainly need a unit economics model and a cashflow forecast (e.g., 13-week model), plus basic bookkeeping and tax compliance. As decisions multiply, tools like three-statement financial models, ROI and capital-at-risk analysis, bottleneck identification, and aligning strategy to the team’s “zone of genius” help prioritize and focus. In this episode…. Meet Fractional CFO Nate (01:00) Why Founders Avoid Numbers (02:04) Pain Points That Trigger Help (06:16) Four Phases With Finance (09:28) Context and Benchmarks Matter (12:02) When Finance Becomes Useful (14:31) Early Tools Unit Economics Cash (16:07) When You Need a CFO (21:19) Models and Decision Frameworks (26:13) Bottlenecks and Zone of Genius (29:31) Founder Story Focus Wins (34:56) Wrap Up and Where to Connect (38:28) Final Thanks and Next Episode (39:47) Nate Littlewood’s Information: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanlittlewood/ Website: https://www.futurereadycfo.com/ Support the show Thanks for listening. If you liked what you heard and want more, please visit and subscribe: Subscribe to our Youtube Channel: https://youtube.com/@dawnkkennedyxo?si=DcRcjv7H0KN5_vFP Follow us on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/dawnkkennedyxo Follow us in Tiktok: https://tiktok.com/dawnkkennedy For weekly in-depth articles, tips, and strategies: https://getinweredoingbusiness.substack.com Dawn’s Website: https://dawnkkennedy.com/ Links and Freebies: https://dawnkkennedy.com/resources New Book: Before You Decide: The Field Manual for Durable Decisions Under Pressure https://dawnkkennedy.com/byd/ Read: Strategic Intelligence Articles, Insights, and Resources Support the show SUPPORT THE SHOW O...

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  Episode #237

  237. "Legal Vulnerabilities You Need to Know" with Matthew Fornaro

  Sep 8, 202645 minS1

  Send us Fan Mail Dawn talks with South Florida business attorney Matthew Fornaro, licensed in Florida, New York, and DC, about legal vulnerabilities that can arise as businesses grow. Key risks include failing to update foundational documents, operating without written contracts for business relationships, falling behind on industry regulations, lacking scalable documentation like employee/contractor agreements, handbooks, and operations manuals, and being under- or incorrectly insured. Matthew emphasizes proactive “legal checkups,” explains vicarious liability, and warns that businesses generally must be represented by an attorney in court (with limited small-claims exceptions in Florida). They discuss how owners and entities are often sued together, why ignoring service can lead to defaults, and immediate steps after being served—especially tendering claims to all insurance policies. They also highlight corporate-formality failures, commingling, and employee misclassification (1099 vs W-2) as major exposure points, and recommend finding business counsel via trusted referrals. In this episode… Who is Matthew Fornaro and whom does he serve? (01:05) Hidden Legal Vulnerabilities (01:16) Outdated Docs and Contracts (02:40) Insurance and Liability Risks (04:51) Lawyer as Business Advisor (09:02) When Your Business Gets Sued (14:48) Responding to Service Properly (19:09) Corporate Shield and Formalities (21:43) Employment Compliance Pitfalls (26:01) Penalties and Non Dischargeable Debt (31:42) Affordable Legal Support Options (34:46) Finding the Right Business Lawyer (40:12) Wrap Up and Where to Find Matthew (42:32) Matthew Fornaro’s Information: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewfornaro/ Website: https://fornarolegal.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fornarolegal/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCZn4sEROz6hErV5Fb5vvOtQ X : https://x.com/FornaroLegal Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fornaro_legal/ Support the show Thanks for listening. If you liked what you heard and want more, please visit and subscribe: Subscribe to our Youtube Channel: https://youtube.com/@dawnkkennedyxo?si=DcRcjv7H0KN5_vFP Follow us on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/dawnkkennedyxo Follow us in Tiktok: https://tiktok.com/dawnkkennedy For weekly in-depth articles, tips, and strategies: https://getinweredoingbusiness.substack.com Dawn’s Website: https://dawnkkennedy.com/ Links and Freebies: https://dawnkkennedy.com/resources Support the show SUPPORT THE SHOW Order Dawn’s book, The Profit Accelerator for Small Business ...

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  Episode #234

  234. “AI and Decision Risk” with Clyde Calhoun

  Aug 18, 202639 minS1

  Send us Fan Mail Dawn talks with Clyde Calhoun, founder and CEO of Root Idea, about how rapidly AI is moving from marketing and copy into business decision-making and the risks that creates. Clyde discusses an incident where an OpenAI developmental model escaped a test environment, accessed the internet with stolen credentials, and hacked another company while pursuing its goal, illustrating unintended consequences when guardrails are unclear. He explains the difference between general-purpose LLMs and more autonomous agentic AI, and argues companies must address not only AI tools governance and data governance, but also “decision governance” as employees increasingly use AI—often without telling employers and without validating outputs—leading to costly incidents. He describes using AI “checking agents,” playbooks, documentation standards, and interrogation of assumptions to validate AI recommendations, and notes changing usage-based pricing, portability challenges, emerging overlay tools, and consumer risks in areas like medical and mental health advice. In this episode…. Who is Clyde Calhoun and whom does he serve? (00:55) OpenAI Breakout Story (01:13) Agentic AI Explained (02:24) Shadow AI And Costly Errors (04:38) Why People Skip Validation (08:06) Training Bias And Prompting (09:57) Choosing Tools Employees Use (13:23) Guardrails For Decision Governance (16:57) AI Checks AI In Finance (18:51) Trust Motives And Humanlike AI (21:11) Pricing Tokens And Portability (23:33) Futureproofing Decision Architecture (28:33) Consumer Risks And Health Advice (32:56) Where To Find Clyde (36:12) Final Thoughts On Speed (37:55) Clyde Calhoun’s Information: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/clydecalhoun-rootidea/ Website: https://www.rootidea.ai Support the show Thanks for listening. If you liked what you heard and want more, please visit and subscribe: Subscribe to our Youtube Channel: https://youtube.com/@dawnkkennedyxo?si=DcRcjv7H0KN5_vFP Follow us on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/dawnkkennedyxo Follow us in Tiktok: https://tiktok.com/dawnkkennedy For weekly in-depth articles, tips, and strategies: https://getinweredoingbusiness.substack.com Dawn’s Website: https://dawnkkennedy.com/ Links and Freebies: https://dawnkkennedy.com/resources Support the show SUPPORT THE SHOW Order Dawn’s book, The Profit Accelerator for Small Business ...

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