On The Brink Podcast

John A. Brink
  • 5.0 (21)
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Updated Daily

“ON THE BRINK” is a top 1% global podcast hosted by John A. Brink - a self-made entrepreneur, best-selling author, ADHD advocate, and North America’s oldest competitive bodybuilder. With curiosity and candor, John sits down with experts, changemakers, and trailblazers from every walk of life to uncover the stories behind their success, struggles, and defining moments.

  1. 3d ago

    Episode #583: Matt Friedman

    Matt Friedman founded Wing Zone in his fraternity house kitchen in 1992 with just a $500 investment. What started as a college experiment became a global brand — Wing Zone opened its first storefront steps from the University of Florida campus in 1993, and by 2000, Matt and his partner had expanded into six major college markets.   In 2001, Matt launched the Wing Zone Franchise System, eventually leading a team that opened over 140 locations across the U.S. and six countries. After selling a majority interest in Wing Zone in late 2020, Matt channeled nearly three decades of franchise expertise into his next venture.   Today, he serves as Managing Partner at Friedman Consulting, a franchise incubator helping emerging franchisors scale and grow. His team provides end-to-end support across franchise recruitment, branding, marketing, real estate, operations, and IT business intelligence.   Matt is also the author of From Frat House to Franchising: The Wing Zone Story — an honest, behind-the-scenes look at what it truly takes to build something from nothing.

  2. 4d ago

    Episode #582: Edward Howard

    Ed Howard is the founder of One Breath Leadership, a new human-centred leadership framework combining neuroscience, psychology, AI and three decades of Zen training. Before becoming a founder, Ed spent 20 years as a Regional Head of Compliance in global investment banking, where he saw firsthand how burnout, overwhelm, and cognitive overload were affecting leaders. Today he teaches practical tools for clarity, resilience, and peak decision-making in the age of AI. He’s also the author of the upcoming book One Breath Leadership, and he helps leaders apply ancient wisdom and modern science to perform at their best.

  3. 4d ago

    Episode #581: Ravi Parmar

    The Honourable Ravi Parmar is British Columbia’s Minister of Forests, Deputy Government House Leader and the Member of the Legislative Assembly for Langford–Highlands. One of the youngest people ever appointed to the provincial cabinet, he is currently the youngest MLA serving in the British Columbia Legislature.  Born and raised in Langford, Ravi is the son of parents who immigrated to Canada from India in the early 1990s. His parents worked in health care and experienced significant employment uncertainty while raising their family. Those early experiences helped shape Ravi’s belief in the importance of secure employment, strong public services and governments that deliver meaningful results for working people and their communities.   Ravi’s commitment to public service began at a remarkably young age. While attending Belmont Secondary School, he helped lead a student campaign calling for new schools to address the West Shore’s rapidly growing population. That advocacy contributed to the construction of a new Belmont Secondary School and Royal Bay Secondary School.   Ravi went on to earn a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Victoria. In 2014, at just 20 years old, he was elected as a trustee with the Sooke School District Board of Education—becoming one of the youngest elected officials in Canada. Two years later, he was selected as board chair.   During nearly a decade with the school board, including six years as chair, Ravi helped oversee the largest expansion of public education in the district’s history. This included thousands of new student spaces, the construction of several schools—including PEXSISEṈ Elementary and Centre Mountain Lellum Middle School—and the development of an innovative post-secondary campus in downtown Langford. His work was guided by a determination to ensure that public infrastructure kept pace with the needs of one of British Columbia’s fastest-growing communities.   Ravi’s connection with former Premier John Horgan began when he was still a middle-school student and invited the local MLA to speak to his class. That encounter developed into a lasting mentorship and helped inspire Ravi’s journey into public life. He later worked as a constituency assistant, campaign manager, senior ministerial advisor and chief of staff within the Government of British Columbia.   Through those roles, Ravi contributed to several major provincial initiatives. He helped support the development of the StrongerBC Economic Plan following the COVID-19 pandemic and worked on British Columbia’s Mass Timber Action Plan, gaining valuable experience in economic development, forestry policy, innovation and the challenges facing resource-dependent communities.   In June 2023, Ravi was elected MLA for Langford–Juan de Fuca in the by-election held following John Horgan’s retirement from provincial politics. He was re-elected in the 2024 provincial election as the MLA for the newly established riding of Langford–Highlands.   Before joining cabinet, Ravi served as Parliamentary Secretary for International Credentials. In that position, he led the implementation of British Columbia’s International Credentials Recognition Act, helping reduce barriers and create clearer, fairer pathways for internationally trained professionals seeking to put their skills and experience to work in the province.   Premier David Eby appointed Ravi as British Columbia’s Minister of Forests in November 2024. Ravi specifically requested the forestry portfolio, recognizing the sector’s deep importance to workers, families, First Nations and communities throughout the province. As minister, his priorities include restoring confidence in the sector, improving access to fibre, encouraging investment and value-added manufacturing, advancing reconciliation with First Nations, strengthening forestry-dependent communities and helping British Columbia remain a global leader in sustainable forest management.

  4. Jul 23

    Episode #580: Anna Rikka Aborro

    Anna is the founder of TAP Virtual Solutions and TAP OBM. She has 18 years of experience in operations and project management, helping business owners organize the messy backend of their business. She works with founders, coaches, consultants, and service-based businesses that already have clients, revenue, ideas, and a team, but still feel like everything runs through the owner. They are growing, but their systems, workflows, SOPs, accountability, and team structure have not caught up yet. That is where Anna Rikka comes in. She helps turn vision into actual execution. Not just ideas sitting in someone’s head. Not just random tasks scattered in Slack. She helps create real systems, clear ownership, better workflows, and a business that does not depend on the founder holding everything together every single day. She is also passionate about helping VAs grow into stronger operational roles because she believes there is a big difference between being a task doer and becoming a true strategic partner.   On podcasts, Anna Rikka enjoys talking about operations, leadership, delegation, building teams, scaling without chaos, and what it really takes to create a business that can run without the founder rescuing everything.

  5. Jul 22

    Episode #579: Bill Korman

    Bill Korman is a retired Navy Chief who served for 20 years. He is a leadership strategist and resilience expert who has spent his career helping people succeed in high-pressure environments. Drawing from decades of military leadership and experience advising organizations, Bill shares practical lessons on leadership, discipline, adaptability, and what it takes to thrive when the stakes are high. Bill is passionate about helping people take control of their time, create structure in their lives and perform at their best, even in the midst of chaos and uncertainty. He is author of the book "The 168 Game: Time Ownership vs. Time Management.

  6. Jul 21

    Episode #578: Nic McLaughlin

    Nic McLaughlin is an ADHD coach, executive function specialist, and Harvard certified leadership expert who helps ADHD adults become stronger leaders at home and in the workplace by building real, lasting consistency. After 20+ years supporting people struggling with consistency, Nic built a proven system for anyone who struggles with follow through and executive functioning, with clients averaging a 200 to 900% measurable improvement in just 8 weeks, no stimulants or willpower required.   Most people with ADHD have been told their entire lives that they simply need to try harder, be more disciplined, or find the right medication. Nic's clients have heard those messages too. Many have already tried every conventional solution and still find themselves struggling with consistency, follow-through, and executive dysfunction.   Before becoming a coach, Nic spent 14 years voluntarily supporting people experiencing depression—not because it was a career path, but because he had lived through it himself and understood how isolating it can feel to struggle while the rest of the world seems to function effortlessly. Those years gave him insights that extend beyond traditional approaches, including the hidden shame cycles that make standard advice backfire, the patterns behind executive dysfunction, and the practical strategies that create meaningful change for differently wired brains.   When Nic developed his coaching system, he didn't build it from a textbook. He built it from more than 20 years of real-world experience, combined with Harvard-certified leadership education, extensive year-long professional training, and a relentless commitment to measuring what actually works.   The result is a gamified, low-friction framework that helps adults with ADHD consistently follow through—without stimulants, without relying on willpower alone, and without turning their entire lives upside down overnight.   The results speak for themselves. Nic's clients achieve an average 200% to 900% measurable improvement in executive functioning and follow-through in just eight weeks. His clients include multimillion-dollar executives, engineers, therapists, managers, entrepreneurs, and parents who simply want a system that works with their brain instead of against it.

  7. Jul 17

    Episode #577: BC Forestry - Crisis/Disaster

    The announcement of the Northwood Pulp closure has sent shockwaves through British Columbia's forest sector and the communities that depend on it. In this solo episode, entrepreneur and forestry advocate John Brink shares his perspective on what led to this moment, the challenges facing the industry, and what must happen to secure a stronger future for forestry in BC.

  8. Jul 16

    Episode #576: Gloria Vanderhorst

    Gloria Vanderhorst began her career as a psychologist working with preschool children, primarily boys who were often perceived by female teachers as problematic because of their exuberance and physical energy. Many of these boys were labeled as hyperactive or attention-deficient, leading Gloria to explore the deeper emotional and developmental factors influencing their behaviour.   Her work frequently brought fathers into the therapeutic process, where they examined their own emotional struggles. Through these experiences, Gloria gained unique insight into how society often limits boys' and men's access to the full range of emotions necessary for developing a healthy sense of self and meaningful relationships.

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5
out of 5
21 Ratings

About

“ON THE BRINK” is a top 1% global podcast hosted by John A. Brink - a self-made entrepreneur, best-selling author, ADHD advocate, and North America’s oldest competitive bodybuilder. With curiosity and candor, John sits down with experts, changemakers, and trailblazers from every walk of life to uncover the stories behind their success, struggles, and defining moments.

Information

  • Creator
    John A. Brink
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2026
  • Episodes
    582
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © John A. Brink
  • Show Website
    On The Brink Podcast

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