Never Been Asked That

BeTold

Most leadership interviews ask the same questions. Never Been Asked That doesn't.This show goes looking for the question nobody thought to ask, and sits inside the answer. Guests are leaders who have navigated real stakes, made decisions in the dark, and learned things they couldn't have predicted. The conversations are honest, unhurried, and often surprising, No highlight reel. No polished talking points. Just the moment behind the moment. Produced by BeTold. New episodes available wherever you listen.

Episodes

  1. Episode 5 • You Can Write Your Own Story

    18h ago

    Episode 5 • You Can Write Your Own Story

    He built the life he wanted. The foundation was poured before he could walk. Jack has never known a single day on earth where he wasn't loved... but the confidence people see in him now was earned through redlined papers, rejection reps, and a $20,000 pay cut. Jack Yakowicz is Director of Operations at AdShark and a writer, musician, and speaker in the Fargo-Moorhead community. He's built marketing teams from scratch, written his own job description - twice - and turned "what's the worst that could happen?" into a career philosophy. In this episode of Never Been Asked That, we get into: Growing up under a "cloak of protection," and why a loving circle is the real backdrop of successA published-author mom who redlined his childhood writing, and how early critique built his voiceWalking into two companies with no open positions and creating the roles himself, including a $20,000 pay cut at 26 to bet on himselfThe Snapchat message to Riley that was never about dating, only the endgameFatherhood, faith, and why he now fears death differently: "the legacy lives on"Key moments: (00:00) Intro(00:00:28) Built or discovered: a life that started with love(00:14:31) The mom who redlined everything(00:33:26) Writing his own job description, twice(00:55:25) The Snapchat that went straight to endgame(01:10:03) The birthday gift and the delivery room(01:23:08) Build the life you want outside of workCurious what you think we should have asked. Follow Jack Yakowicz: www.adshark.com https://www.linkedin.com/in/jack-yakowicz-0028b487/ https://www.instagram.com/jacksunyak/

    1h 34m
  2. Episode 4 • Your Hustle Has a Breaking Point

    Jun 26

    Episode 4 • Your Hustle Has a Breaking Point

    She built a company, raised kids, and cared for her dying mother, all at once. Then she won an award and felt nothing. She had proven everything she set out to prove... but the people she was trying to prove it to were never going to give her what she needed. Alexandra Lund is an entrepreneur, author, and founder who built a sign company from the ground up in Bismarck, ND. She scaled it, got featured in national trade publications, and eventually sold it. But the most interesting part of her story is not what she built. It is what it cost her, what she learned while she was in it, and how she figured out what she actually wanted. In this episode of Never Been Asked That, we get into: Growing up in a small town with a dad she could never please and a mom who named her Alexandra so she could go by Alex on a resume and no one could discriminate before she got in the roomWhat it was like to be a woman in a male-dominated industry where men would walk in expecting to meet someone at the front desk, and she was the ownerRunning a business, installing wraps three weeks postpartum, nearly backing over a light post at the bus depot because she hadn't slept, and still not asking for helpThe garage moment: one disrespectful comment, a crying breakdown, a call to her husband, and a Monday morning conversation with her partners that changed everythingWhat she found on her neck three days before her last day of ownership, what the doctor said, and what she thought about on the way to the emergency roomKey moments: (00:00) Intro(01:01:00) The Season After the Sale(01:12:56) The Drive to Prove(01:31:25) Achievement Without Fulfillment(01:48:49) The Health Scare and the Wake-up Call(01:59:31) The Hidden Weight of Motherhood and Leadership(02:14:13) Introvert, Visionary, Operator(02:26:19) Redefining Success(02:28:28) The Story You Are Living NowCurious what you think we should have asked. Follow Alexandra Lund: Alex's Website Alex on LinkedIn Alex on Instagram

    1h 33m
  3. Episode 3 • You Won't Ever Feel Ready, So Start Now

    Jun 12

    Episode 3 • You Won't Ever Feel Ready, So Start Now

    He's spent eight years convincing nonprofits to believe in themselves. The harder sell has always been himself. Patrick is one of those people who walks into rooms radiating certainty. But the version of him that wakes up before a keynote, quietly running through every reason it could fall apart, is just as real... and he thinks that version is actually the better one. Patrick Kirby is a fundraising consultant, speaker, and author based in Fargo, ND. Over nearly a decade, he has helped hundreds of nonprofits raise more money, build better cultures, and stop doing things the way they have always been done. In this episode of Never Been Asked That, we get into: Why the most confident person in the room is usually fighting the hardest internal battleHow theater, Les Miserables, and a hallway at Anne Carlson Center permanently rewired how he sees the workThe moment a new boss asked 'Is this a bit?' and accidentally handed Patrick his exit rampWhy donors are exhausted by tragedy and what joy has to do with fundraisingWhat Rick Rubin got right about audiences, and why Patrick stopped writing for anyone but himselfKey moments: (01:00:00) Intro(01:00:40) Presence Over Pitch: What people get wrong about Patrick first(01:03:08) The Introvert Few People See: The reset time behind the stage(01:09:02) Story Is the Strategy: Theater, musicals, and learning to be uncomfortable(01:13:10) Losing the Race, Finding the Gift: From sales rep to healthcare recruiter to nothing(01:19:24) The Humor and the Edge: When personality became the differentiator(01:23:36) The Discipline Behind the Energy: Standards, curiosity, and letting clients go(01:47:58) The Hallway Moment: Anne Carlson, the kid who wasn't supposed to walk, and the boss who asked the wrong question(01:55:00) People Are the Real Work: The obsessive balance between care and business(02:01:38) The Audience Comes Last: Joy, storytelling, and why sad isn't a fundraising strategy(02:14:53) Audacity and Self-Belief: Rick Rubin, unreasonable confidence, and what happens when you stop caring what people think(02:35:45) Leading beyond motivation into actionCurious what you think we should have asked. Follow Patrick Kirby: Patrick Kirby’s WebsiteGet one of Patrick’s BooksPatrick Kirby on LinkedInDoGoodBetter on YouTubePatrick Kirby on Instagram

    1h 56m
  4. Episode 2 • You're Not Supposed to Love it First

    Jun 9

    Episode 2 • You're Not Supposed to Love it First

    He built one of the most recognizable brand universes in his city... but nobody asked him to. Nathaniel Navratil is a designer, creative director, and equity partner at Drekker and Brewhalla in Fargo, ND. He's the hand behind the identity, the merch, the labels, and the culture that turned a hotel and brewery into a destination. In this episode of Never Been Asked That, we get into: Why "follow your passion" might be the worst advice you've ever been givenWhat it actually feels like to walk into a room and know you've outgrown itThe difference between building your castle and building someone else'sHow he landed one of the most creatively ambitious projects in his city before anyone else even triedWhy the through line across everything he's made isn't skill or strategy. It's fun.Key moments: (00:00) Intro(00:42) Identity Before the Work(00:20:09) Skill Over Passion(00:57:29) The Work Ethic Origin Story(01:00:17) When Effort and Skill Weren't Enough(01:04:38) Misalignment & Environment(01:07:22) The Reset Year(01:28:41) The Craft Behind the "Goofy"(01:33:31) Alignment(01:37:06) The Universal Lesson(01:48:26) The Brewhalla MomentCurious what you think we should have asked. Follow Nathaniel: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/nathanielnavratil/⁠ ⁠https://www.instagram.com/studio.foley/⁠ ⁠https://dribbble.com/nathaniel-navratil⁠ ⁠https://www.behance.net/nathaninavrati⁠

    2h 2m
  5. Episode 1 • You've Celebrated His Work and Never Knew His Name

    Jun 9

    Episode 1 • You've Celebrated His Work and Never Knew His Name

    He reaches a billion people a day from a small town in North Dakota… but most of them have no idea he exists. Marlo Anderson is the founder of National Day Calendar, the platform behind nearly every national day you've ever seen trending, shared, or celebrated. They've grown from 20–30 national days in 2013 to over 1,700 on the calendar today, with a reach that's been featured on CBS Sunday Morning, cited by the Today Show, and built without a single dollar of outside funding. In this episode of Never Been Asked That, we get into: • How a curiosity about National Popcorn Day became a billion-person platform • What the "school of hard knocks" actually taught Marlo about failure, risk, and timing • Why AI has completely reinvigorated him and what it means for small business • The real reason people celebrate national days (it's not about the food) • What it felt like to get a late-night call from someone in crisis who dialed National Day Calendar Key moments: (00:00) Intro (00:49) Who is Marlo? Curiosity, failure, and the “can-do” spirit (10:39) Artificial photosynthesis, AI, and the falling cost of big ideas (27:22) How National Day Calendar started and almost didn't survive (53:39) What celebration really does for people in a divided world Curious what you would have asked. Follow Marlo Anderson: ⁠National Day Calendar⁠ ⁠Marlo Anderson on Instagram⁠ ⁠Marlo Anderson's Website⁠ ⁠Marlo Anderson on LinkedIn

    2h 12m
  • 5 Episodes

About

Most leadership interviews ask the same questions. Never Been Asked That doesn't.This show goes looking for the question nobody thought to ask, and sits inside the answer. Guests are leaders who have navigated real stakes, made decisions in the dark, and learned things they couldn't have predicted. The conversations are honest, unhurried, and often surprising, No highlight reel. No polished talking points. Just the moment behind the moment. Produced by BeTold. New episodes available wherever you listen.

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