The Bigger Stage w/ Matt Stone

Matt Stone Enterprises
  • 5.0 (1)
  • Entrepreneurship
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The Bigger Stage w/ Matt Stone is a conversation series about leadership, relationships, and the stories that expand influence. Matt Stone sits down with CEOs, founders, leaders, and creatives to explore the human moments behind growth—how trust is built, how visibility changes responsibility, and how storytelling becomes a leadership skill as stakes rise. This show is for entrepreneurs and leaders stepping into bigger roles, bigger audiences, and bigger impact—who want to lead with clarity, credibility, and connection, not performance.

  1. Aug 8

    Jacqueline Wales — Fearless Is a Fantasy: Reading Fear as Data

    Jacqueline Wales stopped believing in "fearless" a long time ago. After a financial collapse at 54 wiped out the life she'd built, she excavated a different idea — fear isn't something to kill or outrun, it's data. In this conversation she breaks down Fear Intelligence, the F.E.A.R. framework, the TEDx talk that nearly broke her, and the one question she puts to CEOs that nobody else asks. For any founder staring down a bigger stage, this is about making the fear the thing that moves you forward.--Jacqueline Wales built a career on a move most people never learn: don't kill the fear, read it. At 54, she watched the life she'd built vanish in the 2008 crash — fortune gone, four kids still looking to her. Most people would call that the end. She called it research. What she excavated became Fear Intelligence, the work she now brings to founders, CEOs, and executive teams worldwide. In this episode, Jacqueline and Matt get into the difference between being fearless and being fear smart, and why she now calls the first one a fantasy. She walks through her F.E.A.R. framework — Face, Explore, Act, Rise — and the idea underneath all of it: fear is data, not disaster. Read it, and it becomes the sharpest signal you have. We also get into: - The TEDx talk ("Unleash the Power of Fear") that nearly broke her — the dress-rehearsal that fell apart, and what she did the morning of- Why "what other people are thinking is none of your business"- The four fears every founder carries: inadequacy, rejection, uncertainty, and loss- The question she puts to CEOs that stops them cold: what decision are you avoiding right now?- The 90-second rule for catching yourself before fear runs the show- Why the world feels more afraid now — and where to point your attention instead- Black belt at 49, CrossFit at 63, and the driver behind all of it Her closing message is the whole episode in one line: analyze the fear, notice the fear, and do it anyway. — CHAPTERS —00:00 Cold Open00:00 Welcome to The Bigger Stage02:47 The Signature Red03:23 Fearless Is a Fantasy04:16 Fear as Data — The F.E.A.R. Framework06:40 You Weren't Born Afraid11:21 The TEDx Talk That Nearly Broke Her19:20 The Physical Tells of Fear29:14 Black Belt at 49, CrossFit at 6330:30 The Question CEOs Never Get Asked36:32 The 90-Second Rule40:07 Why the World Feels More Afraid Now46:18 Where to Find Jacqueline51:00 Analyze the Fear. Do It Anyway. — ABOUT JACQUELINE WALES —Four-time author, TEDx speaker, and a black belt who earned it at 49. She teaches Fear Intelligence not from theory, but from the floor she had to climb up off of. Website & free Fear Intelligence Assessment: https://fearintelligence.coDaily Insights email: sign up at https://fearintelligence.coLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacquelinewales/ — ABOUT THE SHOW —The Bigger Stage is a show for founders, operators, and builders — conversations about the moves that get them to bigger stages. Hosted by Matt Stone. New episodes on a rolling basis. Follow the show so you don't miss one.

    Jacqueline Wales — Fearless Is a Fantasy: Reading Fear as Data

  2. Jul 25

    Eric Light — He Left 20 Years in Banking to Buy an HVAC Company

    A 20-year banker walked away from a senior VP title to buy a 33-year-old mom-and-pop HVAC company that wasn't even for sale. Eric Light on calculated risk, a brutal first year, and the rule he's built two careers on. -- Eric Light spent nearly two decades in banking, working his way up to senior vice president, embedded in the Chester County, PA business community — exactly where he was supposed to stay. Then he bought an HVAC company. It wasn't a detour. Eric took everything he'd built — the relationships, the trust, the front-row view of how hundreds of businesses actually work — and bet it all on Precision Air Heating & Cooling, a 33-year-old shop in West Chester that technically wasn't for sale. In his words: "One day I was a banker, and the next morning I woke up president of this company." He and Matt get into the calculated-risk framework Eric used to coach owners for years and now lives himself, the brutal first 90 days, why he still gets out of bed "a little bit scared" four years in, and the rule he's built two careers on since 2008: chase honest, passionate, successful people, and the business follows. If you're a founder sitting on a leap you haven't taken yet, start here. --CONNECT WITH ERICEmail: elight@precisionairhc.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ericlight/Precision Air: https://precisionairhc.com ABOUT THE SHOWThe Bigger Stage is the show for founders, operators, and builders chasing a bigger vision. Follow in your podcast app so new episodes land automatically.

    Eric Light — He Left 20 Years in Banking to Buy an HVAC Company

  3. Jul 11

    The Night I Walked Off a TEDx Stage | Bobby Umar (5x TEDx Speaker)

    Bobby Umar has done TEDx five times. In this episode, he breaks down how to actually get accepted, what makes a talk land, and the leverage move almost nobody makes after the applause dies down — plus the night he walked off the TEDx stage mid-talk and why he did it on purpose. SHOW NOTES: He walked off the TEDx stage mid-talk — slides broken, screen blank, audience watching. Then he went back out and delivered the talk that became one of his best. Bobby Umar has stood on the TEDx stage five times, coached founders and executives on how to turn their story into stage-ready authority, and built a 25-year speaking career out of four careers that didn't fit. In this episode, he walks through what actually gets a TEDx application accepted, why most pitches get rejected, how to mine your own life story for the idea worth pitching, and the three-part framework almost no one completes: land it, deliver it, leverage it. You'll hear: What separates a TEDx idea that gets accepted from one that gets ignoredHow to turn your life story into a pitch-ready TEDx conceptWhy the application itself is where most people lose the opportunityThe full story of the night Bobby walked off a TEDx stage — and whyHow to build buzz around a talk before it's even liveWhere founders should be putting their energy beyond TEDx in 2026Bobby Umar is a 5x TEDx speaker, Inc. Magazine Top 100 Leadership Speaker, and two-time LinkedIn Top Voice with 1,000+ keynotes across four continents. Connect with Bobby Umar:Website: https://raeallan.comLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bobbyumar/Substack: https://substack.com/@bobbyumar

    The Night I Walked Off a TEDx Stage | Bobby Umar (5x TEDx Speaker)

  4. Jun 27

    Jeremy Sirota — The Lawyer Who Worked His Way Into Music (Suno, Merlin, Warner)

    From tech lawyer to Warner, Meta, and CEO of Merlin — now Chief Commercial Officer at Suno. Jeremy Sirota on never being the smartest person in the room, the book he'd never talked about, and why AI can't help you if you've got nothing to say. FULL DESCRIPTION  "I've never been the smartest person in the room. So I've always had to pull at something else." Jeremy Sirota has a career that refuses to sit on a straight line. Tech lawyer at Morrison & Foerster. Record exec at Warner Music. Global licensing deals at Meta. CEO of Merlin, where he took annual revenue from $900M to $1.8B. Now Chief Commercial Officer at Suno, one of the most-watched generative AI music companies on the planet. But he didn't talk his way in — he worked his way in. The through-line was never the title. It was a way of operating: build the room where genius happens instead of trying to be the genius in it. It took his ten-year-old daughter cutting him off mid-lecture — "Dad, no more TED Talks today" — to make that click. In this conversation, Jeremy gets into the class that nearly ended his law career, the book he'd never talked about publicly until now, why he keeps a "captain's log" of half-formed ideas, the "make this worse" game he uses to break a room open, and the one thing AI can't do for you: have something to say. For founders, operators, and builders working the move from operator to authority to icon — this one's worth your time. — Guest: Jeremy Sirota, Chief Commercial Officer at Suno Host: Matt Stone

    Jeremy Sirota — The Lawyer Who Worked His Way Into Music (Suno, Merlin, Warner)

  5. Jun 13

    He Pitched a Fintech Startup at a Funeral. It Worked. | Ricky Michel Presbot, Co-Founder of Ualett

    Millions of people drive, deliver, and hustle to power the American economy — and most of them are invisible to the financial system that's supposed to serve them. Ricky Michel Presbot, co-founder and CEO of Ualett, decided to do something about it. In this episode, Ricky shares how a failed early venture, a cab ride from JFK, and a chance encounter at a funeral led to the creation of a bilingual fintech platform now serving gig workers across the United States — with a $150 million credit facility to grow nationwide. We go deep on the idea of the "multi-hustler economy," why niche is the X factor for any business, what Ricky learned driving Uber for three months before building his product, and why the company's central value isn't "believe in us" — it's "we believe in you." This is a story about trust, dignity, and building something for people who've been left behind. Topics covered: The cab ride from JFK that revealed a $150M opportunityWhy the gig economy is everyone's economyThe "multi-hustler" — a new category beyond the gig workerHow Ualett works (and why it's not a predatory cash advance)The funeral pitch that started everythingBuilding company values from a mentor relationshipWhy going to the field is non-negotiable before building a productWhat "we believe in you" actually means as a business modelConnect with Ricky: Ualett — https://ualett.com LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/ricky-michel-presbot-14964472

    He Pitched a Fintech Startup at a Funeral. It Worked. | Ricky Michel Presbot, Co-Founder of Ualett

  6. May 30

    He Bet His Career on a "Boring" $100 Trillion Problem — Duncan Barrigan

    What do you do when the most important problem you can solve is also the least glamorous one? Duncan Barrigan spent 8 years helping build GoCardless into a global payments unicorn — then walked away to tackle something most founders walk right past: getting businesses paid. Not sexy. Not shiny. Just a $100 trillion problem that's been solved the same way, by humans, for 6,000 years. In this conversation, Duncan breaks down why accounts receivable is actually a communication and negotiation problem (not a payments problem), how he brought a real cowboy and horse to lasso the Wall Street Bull for Lunos' launch, and what it really means to build a company around three values: curious, courageous, and relentless. We also get into the identity shift that hit when he left a CXO role at a billion-dollar company, moved to New York in January, and had to rediscover who he was before Lunos existed. If you're a founder choosing between the bold idea and the safe one — this one's for you. —— TIMESTAMPS 0:00 — Cold open: the horse that got stopped at the Manhattan border0:23 — Introducing Duncan Barrigan & Lunos1:48 — Lunos or Lunos? The definitive answer3:05 — The $100 trillion problem hiding in plain sight5:03 — The epiphany: it's not a payments problem6:20 — Moving continent, quitting his job, and starting in January8:29 — London vs New York startup culture12:33 — The stifled entrepreneur: Pokémon cards & astronaut dreams14:17 — Space cowboys & bright pink: building the Lunos brand17:35 — The Wall Street Bull stunt (and the Guardian article)21:57 — Curious, courageous, relentless: the three values29:33 — Good mistakes vs bad mistakes (poker & Napoleon)32:15 — The identity crisis before Lunos existed33:49 — What kind of company does he want to build?38:03 — Building self-awareness as a founder40:53 — What's coming next: the agent-to-agent network43:36 — Flying planes, barrel rolls & personal challenges46:29 — Who should work with Lunos? —— CONNECT WITH DUNCANLunos: lunos.ai CONNECT WITH MATT STONE & THE BIGGER STAGEWebsite: thebiggerstage.comYouTube: youtube.com/@thebiggerstage —— The Bigger Stage is for founders whose reputation is stronger than their messaging. New episodes drop every other Saturday.

  7. May 16

    The Bears Fan Who Hated His Job

    Pat Miller spent 20 years on the radio under a name that wasn't his. He went on the air as "J Pat". He was forced to cheer for the Green Bay Packerswhile his actual loyalty stayed with the Chicago Bears and Cubs. Heprogrammed a country station he didn't connect with. And the wholetime, he was getting really good at being someone else. In 2018 he walked away. No six-month runway. No clients lined up.Just a hunch that life was too short to build someone else's dream —the line that later became his TEDx talk. Two years later, on March 18, 2020, the world shut down. The nextday, Pat went live on LinkedIn and hosted a show he called SmallBusiness Rally Point. 90 days later, it was a community. Today,the Small Business Owners Community (SBOC) is a membership, anannual conference that's drawn Mel Robbins, Mike Michalowicz, andSahil Bloom, and a daily show called Businessing with Pat Miller. This conversation is about what it actually takes — on the inside —to step out of a professional identity you spent two decadesconstructing. About how a strength becomes a hindrance. About"chiseling your way out" toward who you actually are. And aboutexcavating the room you wish you could walk into when you realizefounding a business is the loneliest job in the world. If you're building on your own, this one will land. CONNECT WITH PATLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jpatmiller/SBOC: https://smallbusinesscommunity.com/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BusinessingShow THE BIGGER STAGEConversations with founders excavating the story underneath whatthey've already built. The shift from operator to authority to icon,captured on camera. Hosted by Matt Stone. Watch the video version: https://www.youtube.com/@thebiggerstageLearn more: https://thebiggerstage.com

  8. May 2

    Ask Two People This Question To Find Your Real Values — with John Durso

    Leadership consultant John Durso shares a deceptively simple exercise that reveals what your values actually are — not the ones on your website. Most leaders can't actually name their real values. They list the words on their website — honesty, integrity, loyalty — and call it a day. John Durso says those aren't values. They're table stakes. In this episode, John walks Matt through a deceptively simple exercise that reveals what your values actually are: ask one or two people who know you well to describe you in one word, then ask them to tell a story that backs it up. What comes back is rarely what you'd predict. John's wife described him as "unstoppable." Matt's two people landed on "charisma" and "generous." And the magic of the exercise isn't just learning what others see in you — it's that the word they choose tells you what they value most, which is critical leadership intel. John spent over 22 years in retail banking working with hundreds of small businesses and nonprofits across the greater Philadelphia region. Today he runs Brilliant Business Strategies, helping community banks, credit unions, nonprofits, and small businesses build stronger leadership, healthier cultures, and better team performance. In this conversation: - Why "honesty" and "integrity" don't count as real values- The one-word exercise — and why the story matters more than the word- How perception becomes reality inside your company- What Disney's Winnie the Pooh casting reveals about hiring for values- How a new leader can use this exercise in their first 30 days If you're a founder or CEO stepping into a bigger role — whether that's a hypergrowth season, a succession moment, or a move into thought leadership — this is foundational work. The kind serious leaders do at the start and return to when things get complicated. CONNECT WITH JOHN DURSOWebsite: brilliantbusinessstrategies.comLinkedIn: search "John Durso Brilliant Business Strategies" CONNECT WITH MATT STONE & THE BIGGER STAGEThe Bigger Stage helps founder-CEOs make the operator-to-icon transition.Website: thebiggerstage.comLinkedIn: search "Matt Stone Bigger Stage" Subscribe wherever you listen for more conversations with leaders stepping onto bigger stages.

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The Bigger Stage w/ Matt Stone is a conversation series about leadership, relationships, and the stories that expand influence. Matt Stone sits down with CEOs, founders, leaders, and creatives to explore the human moments behind growth—how trust is built, how visibility changes responsibility, and how storytelling becomes a leadership skill as stakes rise. This show is for entrepreneurs and leaders stepping into bigger roles, bigger audiences, and bigger impact—who want to lead with clarity, credibility, and connection, not performance.

Information

  • Creator
    Matt Stone Enterprises
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    32
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Matt Stone Enterprises LLC
  • Show Website
    The Bigger Stage w/ Matt Stone