Badass Softie

Some businesses do exceptional work and still struggle to stand out.
In this conversation, Dr. J.J. Peterson sits down with Julie Firth and Sonya Whittam, founders of Story22, to explore the hidden gap between the value a business delivers and the way customers actually experience it.
They talk about why so many growing companies accidentally start blending into the market, how businesses outgrow their messaging without realizing it, and why thoughtful customer experience has become one of the strongest competitive advantages a leader can build.
The conversation also explores the connection between StoryBrand and Unreasonable Hospitality—and why clear messaging means very little if the experience behind it doesn’t make people feel seen.
Because customers rarely remember perfect transactions.They remember how your business made them feel.
 
Join us on June 10th and 11th in London for our two-day intensive workshop - Become the Obvious Choice! - https://www.story22.co.uk/storybrand-unreasonable-hospitality-workshop-in-london-2026/
What This Explores
Why great businesses still get overlooked
When your business outgrows its messaging
Why customers don’t always feel what makes you different
The gap between marketing promises and customer experience
How thoughtful service turns customers into advocates
Why people remember businesses that make them feel seen
Continue The Conversation
If these ideas resonate, Dr. J.J. Peterson has explored both of these frameworks more deeply in previous conversations:
If You Confuse, You LoseWhy clarity is one of the most overlooked forms of service in business.
Why Good Service Isn’t Enough Anymore (and What To Do Instead)A deeper look at why memorable customer experience creates loyalty long after the transaction ends.
Mentioned In This Episode
Story22 Building a StoryBrand by Donald MillerUnreasonable Hospitality by Will Guidara
 
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You can know your work helps people and still feel weird promoting yourself.The pressure to stay visible, market yourself online, and constantly talk about what you do can quickly start to feel performative, especially for leaders who care deeply about authenticity.In this episode, Dr. J.J. Peterson sits down with Heather Adams to talk about why so many thoughtful leaders struggle with visibility, and how to grow your influence without losing yourself in the process.After decades of helping authors, founders, and entrepreneurs build their platforms, Heather has seen how easy it is for people to believe they need to become louder or more polished in order to succeed.They explore the difference between visibility and performance—and how showing up honestly can become an act of service instead of self-promotion.
What This Explores
The difference between visibility vs. performance
Why you don’t need to become louder to grow your influence
The pressure to market yourself online without losing yourself
Why trying to copy other leaders often backfires
How to “baby step” into visibility in a way that feels authentic
Join Heather's upcoming Substack Strategy Workshop: Clarify Your Message, Map Your Content & Create Your Launch Plan. Learn more here - https://choicemediacommunications.com/substack-strategyMentioned In This Episode
Choice Media:  choicemediacommunications.com Instagram: instagram.com/heatherdixonadams 
 
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What if the problem isn’t discipline — but understanding how your brain actually works?
In this conversation, Dr. JJ Peterson sits down with licensed therapist and co-host of the Something Shiny ADHD Podcast, Isabelle Richards, to explore how ADHD, neurodivergence, and what Isabelle calls being “neuro-spicy” can shape the way people lead, make decisions, manage pressure, and move through the world.
Together, they unpack the difference between self-discipline and self-awareness — and why many leaders spend years trying to force themselves into systems that don’t actually fit how they think or function.
This conversation reframes accommodations not as weakness, but as self-understanding in action.
What You’ll Reflect On
Why some people thrive under pressure but struggle with everyday decisions
How ADHD and executive functioning differences can affect leadership and work
The role shame plays in productivity, motivation, and self-worth
What “meta-awareness” means and why it matters
How leaders can create more psychologically safe environments
Why understanding your needs can be more powerful than pushing harder
For leaders navigating pressure, burnout, or the feeling that simple things shouldn’t feel this hard, this conversation offers language, clarity, and a more compassionate way forward.
Resources Mentioned
Download the ADHD Focus & Flow Finder to better understand the accommodations that support how you work best: https://www.somethingshinypodcast.com/finder
Explore more conversations from the Something Shiny ADHD Podcast: https://www.somethingshinypodcast.com
If this resonates, share it with someone who may be trying to succeed while quietly fighting the way they naturally work.

Most experiences don’t stay with you.
You go to a conference, an event, a workshop, and within a few days, most of it is gone. Not because it wasn’t good, but nothing made it stick.
Dr. J.J. Peterson sits down with Matt Ford, experiential marketing expert behind activations for Adidas, Cartoon Network, and HGTV, to talk about the part most leaders overlook: what actually makes an experience stick.
They get into why small details often carry more weight than big production budgets, how core memories form, and why most experiences lose their impact right when people walk out the door.
What This Explores
What experiential marketing looks like beyond big brand activations
Why certain moments stick—and most don't
What makes an experience feel worth it
How to extend the connection instead of starting over every time
Experience design without a big budget
If you’re leading client work, hosting events, or building something where people show up in person, this is the part that determines whether they come back.
 
Mentioned In This Episode
Collab Experiential: https://www.collabexperiential.com 
 
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What happens when you get what you wanted and it doesn’t fix what you thought it would?
 
You can spend years working toward something, only to realize it doesn’t feel the way you expected.
 
In this episode, Dr. J.J. Peterson sits down with Al Andrews, founder of Porter’s Call, to talk about what success actually does to people—and why it doesn’t always bring the fulfillment we expect.
 
After decades of working with artists at every level, Al has seen the patterns of how success can isolate, identity can drift, and how easy it is to lose yourself while building something big.
 
They explore what it takes to stay grounded, close the gap between who you are and who people think you are, and lead in a way that doesn’t cost you your relationships or your sense of self.
 
Because the goal isn’t just to succeed, it’s to stay yourself while you do it.What This Explores
Why success can feel empty—even when you get what you want
The gap between your public image and your private life
How isolation shows up as you grow
What it means to “share your stage” as a leader
How to lead with both strength and vulnerability
If this resonates, share it with someone who’s building something meaningful and trying to hold onto who they are in the process.
 
Mentioned In This EpisodePorter’s Call: https://porterscall.com 
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Selling shouldn’t feel like pressure, persuasion, or pretending to be someone you’re not.
But for a lot of leaders, it does. In this episode, Dr. J.J. Peterson sits down with Bob Burg, co-author of The Go-Giver, to unpack why so many people feel uncomfortable with sales—and how a simple shift in perspective can change everything.
They explore what happens when you stop trying to “get” the sale and start focusing on creating value, building trust, and actually helping the person in front of you.
Because the problem isn’t selling, it’s how we’ve been taught to think about it.
What This Explores
Why so many leaders feel resistance or discomfort around selling
The belief systems that shape how we show up in sales conversations
The difference between trying to convince vs. trying to serve
What it actually means to “provide value” (beyond just your product or service)
Why people are often willing to pay more for a better experience
The difference between price and value—and why it matters
If this perspective resonates, share it with someone who has ever felt that tension—the pull between wanting to serve and feeling like they have to sell.
They may not need better tactics.
They may just need a better definition.
Mentioned in This Episode
The Go-Giver by Bob Burg & John David Mann: https://thegogiver.com/the-go-giver 
The Go-Giver Sells More by Bob Burg & John David Mann: https://thegogiver.com/the-go-giver 
Website: https://burg.com 
Substack: https://bobburg.substack.com 
The Speed of Trust by Stephen Covey: https://speedoftrust.com 
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So many leaders feel like they’re saying the right things… and still not being heard.
They create content. They follow the strategies. They build what they’ve been told will work.And yet—something doesn’t land.
In this conversation, Dr. J.J. Peterson sits down with Macy Robison, a strategist behind the resonant thought leadership system, to explore why that disconnect happens—and what to do about it.
Macy has spent years helping experts, authors, and entrepreneurs translate their ideas into messaging that actually resonates. Not by teaching them to be louder or more polished—but by helping them align how they communicate with how they naturally think, express, and lead.
Because the truth is, not every voice is meant to show up the same way.
Some leaders create transformation through speaking. Others through writing. Others through guiding experiences or solving problems in real time. And when you try to force yourself into a format that doesn’t fit, your message doesn’t just weaken—it disappears.
This conversation unpacks the hidden reason so many messages fall flat, why traditional marketing tactics don’t work for everyone, and how understanding your natural communication style can completely change how you build your business and connect with others.
It also challenges a belief many leaders quietly carry: that there’s a “right” way to show up.
There isn’t.
There’s only the way that actually works for you.If you’re curious how you naturally show up and communicate, Macy’s assessment is a powerful place to start: https://macyrobison.com/quiz
What This Explores
Why your message can be strong—but still not resonate
The hidden mismatch between your voice and your strategy
Why some marketing tactics feel ineffective (even when they work for others)
Different ways leaders naturally communicate and create impact
How to translate “in-the-room” magic into content that connects 

Dr. J.J. Peterson sits down with designer, strategist, and storyteller Justin Ahrens to explore a part of leadership most people try to avoid: tension.
There’s a natural pull to resolve things quickly—to choose a side, simplify the path, or chase clarity. But some of the most meaningful leadership doesn’t come from eliminating tension. It comes from learning how to stay present inside it.
This conversation moves through the reality of holding competing priorities at the same time—the weight of doing meaningful work while navigating everyday responsibilities, the balance between ambition and humanity, and the challenge of staying grounded in a world that keeps speeding up.
At the center of it all is a simple but difficult idea: the work itself isn’t what makes it meaningful. It’s how you show up while doing it.
What This Explores
Why tension isn’t something to fix, but something to pay attention to
The difference between “important work” and meaningful leadership
How to stay human while still pursuing ambitious goals
What it looks like to lead with curiosity instead of certainty
The role tension plays in growth, awareness, and better decision-making
This conversation may resonate with you if you’ve ever questioned whether you’re doing the “right” kind of work, or felt the pull between who you want to be and what’s required of you.
If it does, consider sharing it with someone who’s navigating that same tension—quietly trying to lead well without losing themselves in the process.
Mentioned In This EpisodeBook: Be HumanKind: https://www.behumankind.today/At The Table: https://www.atthetable.is/Podcast: Running Aherns (Dr. J.J.’s episode): https://www.runningahrens.today/podcast/when-your-story-changes-how-jj-and-jamie-rebuilt-life-love-and-home
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There are things happening right in front of us that we can’t see.
Not because we’re ignoring them. Not because we don’t care. But because our experience has never required us to notice them.
Dr. JJ Peterson explores how two people can look at the same situation, care about the same outcome, and still walk away with completely different conclusions—not because one of them is wrong, but because they’re standing in a different place.
Drawing on standpoint theory and real-world examples, Dr. JJ Peterson unpacks how lived experience shapes what feels normal, what feels like a problem, and what often goes unnoticed entirely.
For leaders, this creates a critical challenge.
Because the things we don’t have to think about are often the very things someone else is navigating every single day. And when those differences go unseen, they don’t just create misunderstanding—they create blind spots in leadership, communication, and decision-making.
This perspective invites a shift away from certainty and toward curiosity, offering a more grounded and human way to lead, listen, and connect.
What This Explores
Why thoughtful, intelligent people can see the same situation differently
How lived experience shapes perception and decision-making
The blind spots that show up in leadership and communication
Why empathy alone doesn’t replace lived experience
How expanding perspective leads to stronger connections and better leadership 
This may resonate with leaders who are striving to make thoughtful decisions while recognizing there may still be perspectives they haven’t yet seen.
It may also resonate with those who often find themselves seeing things others don’t—and carrying the weight of that awareness.
If this brought someone to mind, consider sharing it with them. Not to change their perspective, but to better understand where they’re standing.

In a world overflowing with information, what actually makes a leader stand out?
It isn’t having more knowledge, better data, or more polished content. What separates leaders who shape the world from those who simply repeat what others say is something deeper: a clear point of view.
But developing a point of view isn’t about trying to sound original or inventing ideas no one has ever heard before. It’s about understanding the experiences, insights, and beliefs that have shaped how you see the world.
Dr. JJ Peterson explores how leaders develop perspectives that are uniquely their own — perspectives that guide decisions, shape culture, and influence others in meaningful ways.
At the heart of that process are three places where powerful ideas are born: lived wisdom, paradigm shifts that change how we see familiar problems, and the layering of ideas that creates something new.
When leaders learn to recognize and articulate those elements, their voice becomes clearer — and their leadership becomes more impactful.
What This Explores
Why information alone doesn’t create meaningful thought leadership
How personal experiences and hard-earned wisdom shape perspective
The power of paradigm shifts in leadership thinking
How layering ideas can help you develop a unique voice
Why developing a point of view requires courage as much as insight
If this reflection resonates with you, it may also resonate with someone in your life who is trying to lead with both ambition and heart.
Consider sharing it with a colleague, a friend, or a leader who is still discovering the perspective they bring to the world.
Mentioned in This Episode:
Learn more about Dr. JJ’s workshop: Become the Obvious Choice - https://www.story22.co.uk/storybrand-unreasonable-hospitality-workshop-in-london-2026/
 
If you are interested in doing this work with Dr. JJ, learn more on my website at - https://www.drjjpeterson.com/