Is Anything Real?

Adam W. Barney
  • 5.0 (10)
  • MANAGEMENT
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

Is Anything Real? is the Reality-First Leadership podcast for builder-leaders who want outcomes, not optics. Each week, Adam W. Barney sits down with founders and operators to unpack positioning, marketing, community, energy management, and influence - plus the numbers behind what actually worked. You’ll hear: a quick Reality Check, a practical Proof Stack (inputs → actions → outcomes), and one EnergyOS habit you can run this week. Specifics over slogans; humane systems over hustle cosplay. New episodes every Wednesday at 12:00 PM ET. 👉 Book your 20-min Exploration Call: https://calendly.com/adamwbarney/explorationplugin-20min

  1. Clicks Aren’t Customers: $5,266 in Ads, 1 Call | Ep. 34 w/Dan Newman (Learn to Scale)

    4D AGO

    Clicks Aren’t Customers: $5,266 in Ads, 1 Call | Ep. 34 w/Dan Newman (Learn to Scale)

    Founder/operator Dan Newman breaks down a six-month Meta ads test (spoiler: $5,266 in spend for one sales call) and the lessons that matter for small teams: validate the offer first, track outcomes not optics, and invest in outbound + relationships until the engine is repeatable. We also cover persona pitfalls, “free” messaging traps, and where he’d deploy a fresh $5k right now (search + events).   Takeaways Proof over dashboards: engagement didn’t translate to pipeline.  Persona/offer misalignment beats ad tinkering every time.  Use paid after you have a validated, repeatable sales motion.  Practical reallocations: Google search + niche events/sponsorships.  Connect with Dan • Site: https://www.learntoscale.us/ • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dansnewman/ • Email: dan@learntoscale.us Work with Adam 👉 Book your 20-min Exploration Call

    22 min
  2. Creative Angle over Dashboards: Full Journey Growth | Ep. 33 w/Gabe Wolff (Everything Bagel)

    12/24/2025

    Creative Angle over Dashboards: Full Journey Growth | Ep. 33 w/Gabe Wolff (Everything Bagel)

    Brand-side veteran turned collective leader Gabe Wolff makes the case that tidy ROAS and over-engineered account structures distract from what actually scales: a sharp creative angle, a full user journey, and profit-first measurement. We cover misaligned agency incentives, post-iOS14 realities, practical ways to structure campaigns by angle/ICP, and why entry products and retention paths drive LTV more than day-to-day CPA swings.   You’ll learn: How outcome-aligned compensation changes behavior and results.  Why algorithms do the heavy lifting—and how to give them better angles.  When to keep one “scale” campaign vs. adding controls for inventory/LTV.  Persona-driven creative that sells (not just formats and hacks).  The LTV math of entry products, cross-sell, and retention.   Connect with Gabe • Everything Bagel: https://www.everythingbagel.com/ • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gabriel-wolff/ • Email: gabe@everythingbagel.com Work with Adam 👉 Book your 20-min Exploration Call Unpacking real. Ditching noise.

    20 min
  3. Lead with Humanity: Caregiving, Clarity & Real Growth | Ep. 32 w/Yasmine de Aranda (360ANGLE)

    12/19/2025

    Lead with Humanity: Caregiving, Clarity & Real Growth | Ep. 32 w/Yasmine de Aranda (360ANGLE)

    What happens when the glossy leadership myth meets real life - kids, partners’ health, and aging parents? Yasmine de Aranda argues that caregiving is a leadership superpower and that humane companies outperform hustle cosplay. We map marketing’s role as organizational glue, why growth-at-all-cost fails humans and strategy, and how to build flexible, trust-based teams that still deliver. We close with a protect-your-energy cadence any leader can adopt this week.   You’ll learn: How to design marketing to serve sales, success, and product (service over silos)  Policies and practices that support the sandwich generation without losing performance  Why empathy is an operational advantage—and how pressure erodes it if you’re not careful  Practical leadership OS: flexibility, clear values, and energy protection habits  Connect with Yasmine • Website: https://360angle.ca/ • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yasminedearanda/ • Email: yasminedearanda@gmail.com Work with Adam 👉 Book your 20-min Exploration Call: https://calendly.com/adamwbarney/explorationplugin-20min Check on your people today. Care is strategy. Exclusive holiday release: 12/19. Unpacking real. Ditching noise.

    26 min
  4. Break the Agency Mold: Right-Sized Teams, Real Results | Ep. 31 w/Jamie Read (BriteBirch)

    12/17/2025

    Break the Agency Mold: Right-Sized Teams, Real Results | Ep. 31 w/Jamie Read (BriteBirch)

    Agency polish without agency baggage. Jamie Read unpacks how BriteBirch Collective builds project-led, specialist teams that scale up or down fast, why fractional talent creates anti-fragile organizations, and how the commoditization of paid media plus AI content noise makes earned, community-driven attention the smartest bet. We also cover earned-first launches with $0 ad spend, BriteBirch’s BriteStart community for freelancers, and a simple practice for better creative decisions: seek perspective on purpose.   You’ll learn: The “freelance collective” operating system (assemble specialists → deliver → unplug)Fractional staffing vs. six-month hires (speed, expertise, flexibility)When paid helps, when it adds to noise, and how AI should (and shouldn’t) be usedEarned attention plays: PR, timely cultural moments, and community buildingA perspective-seeking workflow to reduce brand risk and improve creative qualityConnect with Jamie • BriteBirch Collective: https://britebirch.com/• BriteStart Community: https://britestart-community.circle.so/ • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/iamjamieread/ • Email: jamie.read@britebirch.com Work with Adam 👉 Book your 20-min Exploration Call: https://calendly.com/adamwbarney/explorationplugin-20min Unpacking real. Ditching noise.

    23 min
  5. Community over Audience: Measurable ROI & CQLs | Ep. 30 w/Yurii Lazaruk (Community ROI)

    12/10/2025

    Community over Audience: Measurable ROI & CQLs | Ep. 30 w/Yurii Lazaruk (Community ROI)

    Most teams confuse audience with community. Yurii Lazaruk explains the difference (one-to-many vs. many-to-many) and maps a measurable framework for community’s impact on support, product, marketing, and sales—including Community-Qualified Leads that move members into the right offer at the right time. We get into avoiding “fandom” traps, when to build audience first, why intentional facilitation matters, and a simple habit to start today: one real conversation a day.   You’ll learn: How to design for member-to-member connection (not just broadcasts)  Metrics that matter: ticket deflection, feature input/beta, UGC/advocacy, CQLs tied to revenue  When audience precedes community—and the role of a community manager  Tactics to avoid echo chambers and spark diverse, useful dialogue (ask better questions)  A practical cadence founders can sustain without burnout  Connect with Yurii • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yurii-lazaruk-community-consultant/ • Email: yuralazaruk@gmail.com Work with Adam 👉 Book your 20-min Exploration Call: https://calendly.com/adamwbarney/explorationplugin-20min

    27 min
  6. Do the Homework: Foundations Before Ads | Ep. 29 w/Nikhil Vaish (BoostSolo)

    12/05/2025

    Do the Homework: Foundations Before Ads | Ep. 29 w/Nikhil Vaish (BoostSolo)

    Agency veteran Nikhil Vaish, founder of BoostSolo, argues that most ad failures start upstream. We walk through his three-step model: Offer > Homework > Execution, show how AI can amplify both good and bad strategy, and detail a practical voice-of-customer workflow using your own sales calls. Expect a frank conversation about niching down, pricing power, and building the right foundation so ads can finally do their job. You will learn The Step Two foundation that most skip and how to build it fastHow to balance brand and performance without chasing vanity metricsWhy AI without clarity equals faster failureSpecialist positioning for higher fees and better fitA simple VOC loop: record calls, extract language, ship copyConnect with Nikhil • BoostSolo: https://boostsolo.com • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nikhilvaish/ Work with Adam 👉 Book your 20-min Exploration Call: https://calendly.com/adamwbarney/explorationplugin-20min Special Friday drop. Unpacking real. Ditching noise.

    21 min
  7. Attribution Is Fiction: Profit Over Dashboards | Ep. 28 w/Andrew Maffettone (BlueTuskr)

    12/03/2025

    Attribution Is Fiction: Profit Over Dashboards | Ep. 28 w/Andrew Maffettone (BlueTuskr)

    E-commerce isn’t single-touch - and your reporting shouldn’t pretend it is. Growth leader Andrew Maffettone breaks down how marketplace spillover (Amazon, Walmart, DTC, social) makes ROAS tidy but wrong, why profit beats channel vanity metrics, and how to design campaigns by channel purpose (education vs. capture). He shares a surprising SEO play—using low-cost Google Ads to accelerate rankings—then retargeting for conversion, plus a blunt take on why driving ads straight to Amazon often hurts organic rank. You’ll learn: How to evaluate spend, revenue, and profit across channels, not in silosWhy last-click is broken—and what holistic measurement looks likeWhen Meta/TikTok work (and what to do when budgets are small)The SEO “quick lift” loop: traffic → rankings → retargeting → salesWhy “send paid to Amazon” backfires and better ways to support listingsConnect with Andrew • BlueTuskr: https://bluetuskr.com • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrewmaff Work with Adam 👉 Book your 20-min Exploration Call: https://calendly.com/adamwbarney/explorationplugin-20min 🎧 Subscribe to Is Anything Real in Paid Advertising? wherever you listen — and if this episode hit home, share it with someone who needs to hear that you can scale without selling your soul.

    24 min
  8. Community over Clicks: Women, Talent & Real Influence | Ep. 27 w/Shraddha Varma (Fuzia)

    11/26/2025

    Community over Clicks: Women, Talent & Real Influence | Ep. 27 w/Shraddha Varma (Fuzia)

    Community isn’t a channel—it’s an operating system. Shraddha Varma, Co-Founder of Fuzia, shares how a women-centered platform turns creators into contributors, and contributors into careers. We map the community → credibility → opportunity flywheel, plus a pragmatic view of paid media once audience and offer are proven. You’ll learn: How to build a values-driven community that compounds trustConverting community energy into a talent + partnerships pipelineThe right (and wrong) moments to use paid adsActivation ideas: storytelling, spotlights, and serviceMetrics that matter beyond impressionsConnect with Shraddha • Fuzia: https://www.fuzia.com/ • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shraddhavarma/ • Email: shraddha@fuzia.com Work with Adam 👉 Book your 20-min Exploration Call: https://calendly.com/adamwbarney/explorationplugin-20min

    18 min
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Trailer

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About

Is Anything Real? is the Reality-First Leadership podcast for builder-leaders who want outcomes, not optics. Each week, Adam W. Barney sits down with founders and operators to unpack positioning, marketing, community, energy management, and influence - plus the numbers behind what actually worked. You’ll hear: a quick Reality Check, a practical Proof Stack (inputs → actions → outcomes), and one EnergyOS habit you can run this week. Specifics over slogans; humane systems over hustle cosplay. New episodes every Wednesday at 12:00 PM ET. 👉 Book your 20-min Exploration Call: https://calendly.com/adamwbarney/explorationplugin-20min

Information

  • Creator
    Adam W. Barney
  • Years Active
    2K
  • Episodes
    35
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2025 Adam W. Barney. All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    Is Anything Real?