Best Gordon Sheppard Podcasts (2025)

1
How A 27-Old Business Owner Built An Unbreakable Mindset Through Adversity And Growth - How President Chris Vasiliou Helps CTK To Win Everyday 34:55

2d ago34:55

34:55

In this conversation, Chris Vasiliou shares his inspiring journey as a young entrepreneur and president of CTK, an electrical and security contracting company. He discusses the challenges he faced, including a toxic partnership and a significant lawsuit, and how he developed resilience and an unbreakable mindset to overcome these obstacles. Chris e…

1
Korshi Dosoo and Markéta Preininger, "Papyri Copticae Magicae: Coptic Magical Texts, Volume 1: Formularies" (de Gruyter, 2023) 1:28:50

9d ago1:28:50

1:28:50

Papyri Copticae Magicae: Coptic Magical Texts, Volume 1: Formularies (de Gruyter, 2023) offers an accessible repository of edited Coptic magical texts. The book is a careful and thorough edition and philological study of thirty-seven distinct Coptic manuscripts, covering a wide range of magical applications—from love spells, to curses, to exorcisms…

1
Dagrún Ósk Jónsdóttir, "Ghosts, Trolls, and the Hidden People: An Anthology of Icelandic Folk Legends" (Reaktion, 2025) 49:44

15d ago49:44

49:44

Dagrún Ósk Jónsdóttir joins Jana Byars to talk about her new book, Ghosts, Trolls, and Hidden People: An Anthology of Icelandic Folk Legends (Reaktion, 2025). This unique and enchanting book opens the door to a captivating world of Icelandic folk legends. The six chapters of this anthology are each based on a different setting: farm, wilderness, da…

1
How An Executive Medical Can Help Senior Leaders Win - with Dale Plett, Business Manager for Unlimited Medical Centres 44:47

17d ago44:47

44:47

In this episode, Gordon Sheppard interviews Dale Plett, the Business Development Manager at Unlimited Medical Clinic. They talk about the Executive Medical and how it can help help busy executives prioritize their health. Dale shares insights into the Unlimited Medical Clinic's approach, which combines occupational health with a focus on preventati…

1
James B. Haile III, "The Dark Delight of Being Strange: Black Stories of Freedom" (Columbia UP, 2024) 1:18:30

19d ago1:18:30

1:18:30

An ambitious genre-crossing exploration of Black speculative imagination, The Dark Delight of Being Strange: Black Stories of Freedom (Columbia University Press 2024) combines fiction, historical accounts, and philosophical prose to unveil the extraordinary and the surreal in everyday Black life. In a series of stories and essays, James B. Haile, I…

1
How A Self-Taught Entrepreneur Bought A Manufacturing Business And Made It More Profitable - with Owner Colin Harms from Hypervac Technologies 55:57

24d ago55:57

55:57

In this conversation, Colin Harms shares his entrepreneurial journey, highlighting his diverse background, the importance of mentorship, and the challenges he faced while transitioning from corporate life to owning a manufacturing business. He emphasizes the significance of values-driven leadership, customer-centric innovations, and the need for op…

1
How To Build A Multi-Million Dollar Software Business - How Founder Dan McDonald And His Team Are Winning At BIS Safety Software 48:24

1M ago48:24

48:24

In this conversation, Dan MacDonald shares his entrepreneurial journey, detailing his transition from working at The Brick to founding BIS Safety Training, a company focused on online safety training. He discusses the challenges faced during the 2008 financial crisis, the importance of building a strong team, and the strategies that have led to his…

1
How To Transform Healthcare By Fundraising Like A Business - How CEO Jodi Abbott Is Helping The University Hospital Foundation Win Big 43:21

2M ago43:21

43:21

In this conversation, Jodi Abbott, President and CEO of the University Hospital Foundation, discusses her journey in transforming philanthropy into a business model that focuses on health system innovation. She emphasizes the importance of hope and purpose in healthcare, shares a compelling case study about donor engagement, and outlines her strate…

1
Christian Sheppard, "The Ancient Wisdom of Baseball: Lessons for Life from Homer's Odyssey to the World Series" (Greenleaf, 2025) 1:01:28

2M ago1:01:28

1:01:28

Who are you, how are you supposed to live, and what about happiness? Answers to age-old questions are offered in classic myths about heroes, gods, and monsters, and at the ballgame. In The Ancient Wisdom of Baseball (Greenleaf, 2025), author Christian Sheppard interweaves Homer’s epics with glorious stories from the green fields of America’s pastim…

1
Nicholas Jubber, "Monsterland: A Journey Around the World’s Dark Imagination" (Scribe, 2025) 40:58

2M ago40:58

40:58

Monsters, in all their terrifying glory, have preoccupied humans since we began telling stories. But where did these stories come from? In Monsterland: A Journey Around the World’s Dark Imagination (Scribe, 2025), award-winning author Nicholas Jubber goes on a journey to discover more about the monsters we’ve invented, lurking in the dark and the w…

1
How To Grow Your Business To A National Level With The Right Acquisition - How CEO Mike Schoenberger And His Team Got A Win For Sunco 34:42

2M ago34:42

34:42

In this conversation, Mike Schoenberger, CEO of Sunco Communications, shares insights into his journey of leading a successful acquisition that transformed his company from a regional player to a national telecommunications provider. He discusses the importance of curiosity, strategic planning, and cultural integration in achieving business growth.…

1
How To Build A Cutting-Edge Software Solution To Disrupt The Recruitment Industry - How CEO Terri Davis Is Winning with Profound Talent 49:45

2M ago49:45

49:45

In this conversation, Terri Davis shares her inspiring journey from working in recruitment to becoming an entrepreneur with her company, Profound Talent, and the upcoming launch of her new technology, Oolu. She discusses her core values, the importance of authenticity in business, and the innovative strategies behind Oolu's development. Terri empha…

1
Liz William, "Rough Music: Folk Customs, Transgression and Alternative Britain" (Reaktion, 2025) 40:28

2M ago40:28

40:28

Rough Music: Folk Customs, Transgression and Alternative Britain (Reaktion, 2025) by Liz Williams explores transgression and shame in British folklore and customs from ancient Britain to the present day. From Bonfire Night to Wassail, Morris dancing, Mari Lwyd and Twelfth Night, along with events like street football and the Cooper’s Hill Cheese-Ro…

1
How A Confident Leader Can Raise Capital First And Then Buy The Right Company - How CEO Petros Kusmu Got A Win For Alpine Vistas Capital 43:20

2M ago43:20

43:20

In this engaging conversation, Petros Kusmu shares his journey from a diverse background to becoming the founder and CEO of Alpine Business Capital. He discusses the challenges and triumphs of entrepreneurship, particularly in raising funds for business acquisitions. Petros emphasizes the importance of confidence, relationship building, and having …

1
How To Build A Successful Business Development Program To Win New Clients with CEO Kelly Kennedy from Capital Business Development 51:11

3M ago51:11

51:11

In this conversation, Kelly Kennedy, a business development coach, shares insights on the importance of consistency, mindset, and strategic approaches in achieving success in business development. He emphasizes the need for a structured process, the role of digital introductions, and the significance of using a CRM to track progress. Kelly also dis…

1
Jennifer L. Freeman Marshall, "Ain't I an Anthropologist: Zora Neale Hurston Beyond the Literary Icon" (U Illinois Press, 2023) 1:15:43

3M ago1:15:43

1:15:43

Iconic as a novelist and popular cultural figure, Zora Neale Hurston remains underappreciated as an anthropologist. Is it inevitable that Hurston's literary authority should eclipse her anthropological authority? If not, what socio-cultural and institutional values and processes shape the different ways we read her work? Jennifer L. Freeman Marshal…

1
Daemons, Tantra, and Cultural Exchange with David Gordon White 1:02:16

3M ago1:02:16

1:02:16

In this episode, Dr. Pierce Salguero sits down with David Gordon White, a distinguished indologist and scholar of Tantra. Our conversation focuses on David’s most recent project tracing the transregional histories of spirits, gods, demons, and their associated rituals across Eurasia. Along the way, we dive into an intellectual conversation about do…

1
How To Unapologetically Build An Effective Team To Commercialize A New Technology - How President Trevor Kloeck Helps Plantae Technologies Win Every Day 35:08

3M ago35:08

35:08

In this episode Trevor Kloeck, President of Plantae talks about how proud he is of helping to build a team that can thrive as they go through the ups and downs of building a technology driven company. He emphasizes the importance of team culture, values, and continuous improvement in driving the company's success. Trevor shares insights on the chal…

1
How To Raise 25 Million Dollars To Acquire A Company That Fits Your Vision - How Former CEO Alvin Pyke Got A Win With Helical Pier Systems 47:33

3M ago47:33

47:33

In this episode, Alvin Pyke shares the story of how he raised 25 million dollars to buy a screw piling business because he had a vision about how to grow the company from 10 to 50 million dollars in revenue. He also shares his early experiences with business, the transition from engineering to entrepreneurship, and the perseverance he demonstrated …

1
Audun Kjus et al., "Adventures in the Play-Ritual Continuum" (Utah State UP, 2024) 51:07

3M ago51:07

51:07

Audun Kjus joins Jana Byars to talk about Adventures in the Play-Ritual Continuum (Utah State Press, 2025), eds. Audun Kjus, Jakob Löfgren, Cliona O’Carroll, Simon Poole & Ida Tolgensbakk. Utah State Press, 2025). The junctions between play and ritual are many and complex. Play is for fun and joy, but it also demands a total commitment and serious …

1
How To Bring An Innovative Medical Device To Market In The United States - How CEO Kelly Mottet And Her Team Got A Win For Mach32 30:19

3M ago30:19

30:19

In this episode, Kelly Mottet, COO of Mach32, talks about how to bring an innovative medical device to market in the United States. She shares insights into the journey of securing a significant government contract with BARDA, the strategies employed to navigate the medical device landscape, and the importance of team dynamics and stakeholder engag…

1
Finding A Better Way To Execute A Major Infrastructure Project: How CAO Jodi Brown Got A Win For The Town Of Bon Accord 29:21

4M ago29:21

29:21

If you were a Chief Administrative Officer, and you knew that you had to find a better solution for a major infrastructure project, what would you do? In this episode of the Executive Wins Podcast, Jodi Brown, the Chief Administrative Officer for the Town of Bon Accord, talks about how she and her team found an environmentally friendly solution for…

1
Built To Conquer w/ Caleb Gordon 1:43:44

4M ago1:43:44

1:43:44

By Braden Patterson and Tom Sheppard

1
Ann Schmiesing, "The Brothers Grimm: A Biography" (Yale UP, 2024) 51:42

4M ago51:42

51:42

Ann Schmiesing, Ph.D. is Professor of German and Scandinavian Studies at the University of Colorado-Boulder, with research interests spanning 18th and 19th-century German and Norwegian literature and culture. In our interview we discuss her new book, The Brothers Grimm: A Biography (Yale UP, 2024), their first biography in over half a century. We t…

1
Sara Burdorff, "Maternity, Monstrosity, and Heroic (Im)mortality from Homer to Shakespeare" (Amsterdam UP, 2025) 38:13

4M ago38:13

38:13

Sara Burdorff joins Jana Byars to talk about her new book, Maternity, Monstrosity and Heroic (Im)mortality from Homer to Shakespeare (Amsterdam University Press, 2025). This work uses an adaptation of monster theory to rethink the foundations of epic-heroic immortality. Rather than focusing on a specific monster or monsters, the author identifies t…

1
Everything John Knox w/ Jacob Tanner 1:29:45

4M ago1:29:45

1:29:45

By Braden Patterson and Tom Sheppard

1
From Asset Based Lending to Traditional Financing: How Director of Finance Chelsea Yarmuch Got A Win For McKillican 33:40

4M ago33:40

33:40

Are you an Executive who wants to save their company a lot of time and money? In this episode of the Executive Wins podcast, Chelsea Yarmuch, Director of Finance at McKillican, shares her journey of transitioning the company from asset-based lending to traditional financing. She discusses the significant cost savings and operational efficiencies ga…

1
Winning With Wellness Check-Ins: How To Attract And Retain Top Talent with Co-Founder Karen Unland From Taproot Publishing 33:46

4M ago33:46

33:46

As a leader, do you really care about how your staff is feeing at the beginning of the day? If so, how do you show that you care? In this episode you’re going to learn how to improve attraction and retention of top talent by doing a wellness check-in at the beginning of every meeting. That’s because our guest is Co-Founder Karen Unland from Taproot…

1
Executive Wins Podcast Introduction with CEO Gordon Sheppard from Executive Wins 5:43

5M ago5:43

5:43

Welcome to episode 1 of the Executive Wins Podcast! In this introduction you’ll find out why senior leaders who listen will be able to grow themselves and their businesses. That’s because podcast host Gordon Sheppard explains the format of the show which is to interview highly accomplished executives and help them share their biggest wins so you ca…

1
Veronica Strang, "Water Beings: From Nature Worship to the Environmental Crisis" (Reaktion, 2023) 39:06

5M ago39:06

39:06

Jana Byars talks to Veronica Strang about her new book Water Beings: From Nature Worship to the Environmental Crisis (Reaktion, 2023). Looking to the vast human history of water worship, a crucial study of our broken relationship with all things aquatic—and how we might mend it. Early human relationships with water were expressed through beliefs in…

1
A. L. McClanan, "Griffinology: The Griffin's Place in Myth, History and Art" (Reaktion, 2024) 46:28

6M ago46:28

46:28

A. L. McClanan's Griffinology: The Griffin's Place in Myth, History and Art (Reaktion, 2024) is a fascinating exploration of the mythical creature's many depictions in human culture. Drawing on a wealth of historical and literary sources, this book shows how the griffin has captured the imagination of people for over 5,000 years, representing power…

1
Ibn al-Muqaffaʿs "Kalīlah and Dimnah: Fables of Virtue and Vice" 1:13:51

6M ago1:13:51

1:13:51

Kalīlah and Dimnah: Fables of Virtue and Vice by Ibn al-Muqaffaʿ, translated by Michael Fishbein and James E. Montgomery, with a foreword by Marina Warner (Library of Arabic Literature, NYU Press, 2022), is a vibrant new rendition of a literary classic that has captivated readers for centuries. Rooted in ancient Indian storytelling and adapted into…

1
Vaughn Scribner, "Merpeople: A Human History" (Reaktion Books, 2020) 50:00

7M ago50:00

50:00

Vaughn Scribner joins Jana Byars on the occasion of the paperback edition of Merpeople: A Human History (Reaktion, 2024) People have been fascinated by merpeople and merfolk since ancient times. From the sirens of Homer’s Odyssey to Hans Christian Andersen’s The Little Mermaid and the film Splash, myths, stories, and legends of half-human, half-fis…

1
Sharonah Esther Fredrick, "An Unholy Rebellion, Killing the Gods: Political Ideology and Insurrection in the Mayan Popul Vuh and the Andean Huarochiri Manuscript" (U Nebraska Press, 2024) 59:58

7M ago59:58

59:58

An Unholy Rebellion, Killing the Gods: Political Ideology and Insurrection in the Mayan Popul Vuh and the Andean Huarochiri Manuscript (University of Nebraska Press, 2024) is the first comprehensive comparison of two of the greatest epics of the Indigenous peoples of Latin America: the Popul Vuh of the Quiché Maya of Guatemala and the Huarochiri Ma…

1
Erika Engelhaupt, "Go to Hell: A Traveler's Guide to Earth's Most Otherworldly Destinations" (National Geographic, 2024) 55:58

7M ago55:58

55:58

With Go to Hell: A Traveler's Guide to Earth's Most Otherworldly Destinations (National Geographic, 2024) by Erika Engelhaupt, you can go to hell and back with the help of this one-of-a-kind illustrated travel guide to real-life underworld destinations around the globe. Full of intrigue, lore, and plenty of brimstone and fire, each of the 54 destin…

1
Cami D. Agan, "Cities and Strongholds of Middle-earth: Essays on the Habitations of Tolkien's Legendarium" (Mythopoeic Press, 2024) 39:10

8M ago39:10

39:10

The 13 essays collected in Cities and Strongholds of Middle-earth: Essays on the Habitations of Tolkien's Legendarium (Mythopoeic Press, 2024) foreground processes of making and constructing Arda -- either within the Secondary world or for readers/viewers -- and thus continually assert that the habitations form a vital part of the tales within that…

1
Jason Ramsey, "Reckoning with Change in Yucatán: Histories of Care and Threat on a Former Hacienda" (Routledge, 2023) 1:32:40

9M ago1:32:40

1:32:40

A perpetual tension exists between history and change, which is an issue long explored by historians and social scientists. Reckoning with Change in Yucatán: Histories of Care and Threat on a Former Hacienda (Routledge, 2023) engages with how best to look upon and respond to change, arguing that this debate is an important arena for negotiating loc…

1
Greg Eghigian, "After the Flying Saucers Came: A Global History of the UFO Phenomenon" (Oxford UP, 2024) 1:01:45

9M ago1:01:45

1:01:45

Roswell, 1947. Washington, DC, 1952. Quarouble, 1954. New Hampshire, 1961. Pascagoula, 1973. Petrozavodsk, 1977. Copley Woods, 1983. Explore how sightings of UFOs and aliens seized the world's attention and discover what the fascination with flying saucers and extraterrestrial visitors says about our changing views on science, technology, and the p…

1
David Zeitlyn, "Mambila Divination: Framing Questions, Constructing Answers" (Routledge, 2021) 1:05:12

9M ago1:05:12

1:05:12

Professor David Zeitlyn’s book offers a major contribution to the study and analysis of divination, based on continuing fieldwork with the Mambila in Cameroon. It seeks to return attention to the details of divinatory practice, using the questions asked and life histories to help understand the perspective of the clients rather than that of the div…

1
Julia Kindt, "The Trojan Horse and Other Stories: Ten Ancient Creatures That Make Us Human" (Cambridge UP, 2024) 46:37

9M ago46:37

46:37

What makes us human? What, if anything, sets us apart from all other creatures? Ever since Charles Darwin's theory of evolution, the answer to these questions has pointed to our own intrinsic animal nature. Yet the idea that, in one way or another, our humanity is entangled with the non-human has a much longer and more venerable history. In the Wes…

1
Fabio Rambelli, "Spirits and Animism in Contemporary Japan" (Bloomsbury Academic, 2019) 57:24

9M ago57:24

57:24

In Japan, a country popularly perceived as highly secularized and technologically advanced, ontological assumptions about spirits (tama or tamashii) seem to be quite deeply ingrained in the cultural fabric. From ancestor cults to anime, spirits, ghosts, and other invisible dimensions of reality appear to be pervasive. In Spirits and Animism in Cont…

1
James P. Leary, “Folksongs of Another America: Field Recordings from the Upper Midwest, 1937–1946” (U Wisconsin Press, 2015) 58:07

9M ago58:07

58:07

Folksongs of Another America: Field Recordings from the Upper Midwest, 1937–1946 (University of Wisconsin Press) first appeared in 2015 when it comprised of a hardback book, five CDs, and one DVD. It went on to win the “Best Historical Research in Folk or World Music” award from the Association for Recorded Sound Collections, was nominated for a Gr…

1
The Dragon and the Nguzunguzu 20:08

10M ago20:08

20:08

Nguzunguzu is the traditional figurehead which was formerly affixed to canoes in the Solomon Islands. In this episode, Julie Yu-Wen Chen talks to Rodolfo Maggio, a senior researcher at the University of Helsinki about his book project on the dragon and the nguzunguzu, namely the relationship between China and the Soloman Islands. The dragon and the…

1
Tabitha Stanmore, "Cunning Folk: Life in the Era of Practical Magic" (Bloombury, 2024) 33:13

11M ago33:13

33:13

Imagine: it's the year 1600 and you've lost your precious silver spoons, or maybe they've been stolen. Perhaps your child has a fever. Or you're facing a trial. Maybe you're looking for love or escaping a husband. What do you do? In medieval and early modern Europe, your first port of call might have been cunning folk: practitioners of “service mag…

1
Aaron Sherraden, "Śambūka's Death Toll: A History of Motives and Motifs in an Evolving Rāmāyaṇa Narrative" (Anthem Press, 2023) 35:03

11M ago35:03

35:03

According to Vālmīki's Sanskrit Rāmāyaṇa (early centuries CE), Śambūka was practicing severe acts of austerity to enter heaven. In engaging in these acts as a Śūdra, Śambūka was in violation of class- and caste-based societal norms prescribed exclusively by the ruling and religious elite. Rāma, the hero of the Rāmāyaṇa epic, is dispatched to kill Ś…

1
Thersa Matsuura, "The Book of Japanese Folklore: An Encyclopedia of the Spirits, Monsters, and Yokai of Japanese Myth" (Adams Media, 2024) 30:36

12M ago30:36

30:36

Discover everything you’ve ever wondered about the legendary spirits, creatures, and figures of Japanese folklore including how they have found their way into every corner of our pop culture from the creator of the podcast Uncanny Japan. Welcome to The Book of Japanese Folklore: An Encyclopedia of the Spirits, Monsters, and Yokai of Japanese Myth (…

1
Sohini Pillai, "Krishna's Mahabharatas: Devotional Retellings of an Epic Narrative" (Oxford UP, 2024) 43:19

1y ago43:19

43:19

Between 800 and 1700 CE, a plethora of Mahabharatas were created in Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Konkani, Malayalam, Marathi, Oriya, Tamil, Telugu, and several other regional South Asian languages. Sohini Pillai's Krishna's Mahabharatas: Devotional Retellings of an Epic Narrative (Oxford UP, 2024) is a comprehensive study of premode…

1
Cathy Yue Wang, "Snake Sisters and Ghost Daughters: Feminist Adaptations of Traditional Tales in Chinese Fantasy" (Wayne State UP, 2023) 36:07

1y ago36:07

36:07

Contemporary Chinese film and literature often draw on time-honored fantastical texts and tales which were founded in the milieu of patriarchy, parental authority, heteronormativity, nationalism, and anthropocentrism. Cathy Yue Wang's Snake Sisters and Ghost Daughters: Feminist Adaptations of Traditional Tales in Chinese Fantasy (Wayne State Univer…

1
Shakuntala Gawde, "Narrative Analysis of Bhagavata Purana: Selected Episodes from the Tenth Skandha" (Dev Publishers, 2023) 32:58

1y ago32:58

32:58

Shakuntala Gawde's book Narrative Analysis of Bhagavata Purana: Selected Episodes from the Tenth Skandha (Dev Publishers, 2023) presents an analytical study of selected narratives of the tenth skandha of the Bhāgavata Purāṇa with the framework of Narratology. It checks the possibilities of interpretation of some popular narratives from Kṛṣṇa saga. …

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