Reanimated Stories

Roger Jorns - Reanimation Design

Is your business’s best story the one you haven't told yet? Every business has a heartbeat, but not everyone knows how to make it heard. Reanimated Stories is the antidote to boring business talk, we bring the journeys of local business leaders and entrepreneurs back to life. From the initial spark to the daily grind, Roger Jorns founder of Reanimation Design, gets to interview and explore how successful owners use their unique stories to build trust, connect with their community, and grow their bottom line. Reanimated Stories is here to prove that when you tell the right story, you don’t just get customers—you build a legacy. Tune in, get inspired, and let’s reanimate your business.

  1. The Invisible Employee: The Hidden Cost of Being a Caregiver and a Professional w/Zack Dempoulos

    5d ago

    The Invisible Employee: The Hidden Cost of Being a Caregiver and a Professional w/Zack Dempoulos

    Did you know that 1 in 5 employees in your workforce is quietly working a second, unpaid job? There are 63 million caregivers in America. That's a 45% jump from ten years ago. And most of them? They're working full-time jobs too. They are Professionals...who are also Caregivers. Zack Demopoulos has been a caregiver since 2011, first for his father, now for his mother. He spent years in HR. He ran a home care business for 13 years. And now he's a caregiver advocate working with large employers to build workplaces where people don't have to choose between their job and caring for someone they love. Zack explains why this is no longer an issue businesses can ignore. We dive into the physical, mental, and financial toll caregiving takes on high-performing professionals and how it directly impacts a company's bottom line through absenteeism, presenteeism, and rising healthcare costs. This is not an episode you want to miss. Especially if you are a caregiver who also is a professional. Check out this episode and please reach out to Zack! --------------- Connect with Zack Website: https://www.invisibleemployeesbook.com/ Newsletter: https://zacks-newsletter-4a359b.beehiiv.com/subscribe Podcast: https://www.invisibleemployeesbook.com/podcast LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zackdemopoulos/ --------------- About Reanimated Stories: Hosted by Roger Jorns, I talk with awesome business leaders about their story and we explore how to reimagine work, life, and design. Connect with Roger: LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/roger-jorns Website: reanimationdesign.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@reanimationdesign Podcast: https://rss.com/podcasts/reanimated-stories/ --------------- 00:00 Intro 01:08 Meet The Hosts 02:39 Zack Caregiver Advocate 04:31 Who Counts As Caregiver 06:42 Roger Family Story 09:31 How Zack Supports Caregivers 16:06 Workplace Caregiving Costs 21:26 Building Culture Of Care 24:14 Family vs Work Choice 25:19 Flexibility Keeps Talent 26:28 Why Caregivers Stay Quiet 28:22 Empathy Tools for Managers 29:53 Better Check In Questions 32:50 Leaders Sharing Stories 35:13 Caregiver Resources and ERGs 40:03 Outro

    42 min
  2. Cold calling isn't dead (You're just doing it wrong): How to Build Relationships Before You Pitch w/Ashley Beck Cuellar

    May 22

    Cold calling isn't dead (You're just doing it wrong): How to Build Relationships Before You Pitch w/Ashley Beck Cuellar

    Cold calling does not look anything like it did 20 years ago...honestly, even 5 years ago. If you are relying on high-velocity, unpersonalized AI spam to hit your sales numbers, you are going to get ignored. Meet Ashley Beck Cuellar (Kway-ar), she spent 17 years in automotive marketing.... Then she walked away. No plan. Just knew it was time. What happened next? She ended up running the entire go-to-market motion for a commercial roofing company. Without ever planning to be in roofing. Ashley explains exactly how she researches her Ideal Customer Profile (ICP), why she uses Google Earth before she ever picks up the phone, and why telling a prospect they can hang up on her actually builds immediate trust. Ashley breaks down how she built a $50 million book of business in her last career, through (wait for it)...cold calls and relationships, and o she never sits across the table from her clients. We also talk some LinkedIn strategy and why video DMs are so powerful. If you do any kind of cold outreach....or, like me you've been avoiding it because it feels icky...well, this episode will change how you think about it! --------------- Connect with Ashley Website: https://www.seamlessroofingllc.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashley-beck-cuellar/ --------------- About Reanimated Stories: Hosted by Roger Jorns, I talk with awesome business leaders about their story and we explore how to reimagine work, life, and design. Connect with Roger: LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/roger-jorns Website: reanimationdesign.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@reanimationdesign Podcast: https://rss.com/podcasts/reanimated-stories/ --------------- 00:00 Intro 00:27 Meet Ashley Beck Cuellar 00:41 Name Pronunciation Banter 03:31 Ashley’s Career Pivot 05:28 Joining Commercial Roofing 06:51 CRM Chaos in Construction 08:49 Direct Mail Lessons Learned 10:01 Building Relationships Remotely 11:27 First Cold Call Win 14:05 Follow Up Strategy Breakdown 15:03 Finding Your ICP and Lists 17:31 Research Workflow and Video DMs 19:12 Google Maps Sizing and Targeting 21:23 Sports Research Hook 22:52 Warm Intros Via Network 24:12 Value First Follow Ups 24:52 Cold Call Trust Tactic 26:51 Human In An AI World 30:32 SEO And AI Discovery 33:54 Always Be Learning 35:14 Personality Assessments 37:43 Outro

    39 min
  3. She Lost Her Job, Lost Her Identity, and Found Both Again on LinkedIn w/Melissa Beth Cohen

    May 13

    She Lost Her Job, Lost Her Identity, and Found Both Again on LinkedIn w/Melissa Beth Cohen

    "I had never realized how much of my own self-identity and self-worth was tied up in what my title was and who I worked for." Melissa Cohen spent 30 years in fashion where she was a VP at Ralph Lauren. She thought that's where she'd retire. Then 2020 hit. The whole industry shut down and Melissa lost her job. What she didn't expect? Losing her sense of self right along with it. Suddenly, the title that defined her was gone. Facing ageism in the corporate job market and getting ghosted after final-round executive interviews, Melissa decided to stop fighting a broken system. So...She turned to LinkedIn. In this episode, Melissa shares how she went from a corporate fashion exec who never used LinkedIn to becoming a personal branding strategist helping executives, founders, and business owners stand out. She talks about the first post she ever wrote (and almost deleted..honestly I felt this one to my soul), the hard truth about ageism in hiring, and why your LinkedIn profile is doing more for...or against...you than you might think. She also opens up about her new collaborative book, Letters to Lily, an anthology of letters that people from all over the world wrote to their younger selves and where she wrote a deeply personal letter to her younger self about the heavy guilt of traveling for corporate work while raising a family....It's powerful. And it's worth your time. --------------- Connect with Melissa Beth Cohen Website: melissabethcohen.com Letters to Lily: https://a.co/d/02ajely9 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/melissa-beth-cohen/ --------------- About Reanimated Stories: Hosted by Roger Jorns, I talk with awesome business leaders about their story and we explore how to reimagine work, life, and design. Connect with Roger: LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/roger-jorns Website: reanimationdesign.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@reanimationdesign Podcast: https://rss.com/podcasts/reanimated-stories/ --------------- 00:00 Intro 01:07 Welcome and Guest Intro 01:36 How They Met at SCN 02:44 Melissa’s LinkedIn Mission 03:20 Letters to Lily Book 05:49 Feeling Alone in Leadership 06:39 From Fashion to LinkedIn 09:47 Personal Branding Explained 12:24 Turning LinkedIn Into Business 16:59 Who She Helps Most 18:43 Stand Out With Insights 20:18 Letters To Lily Origins 22:19 Connection In A Digital Age 23:28 Letter One It Works Out 24:35 Letter Two Working Mom Guilt 27:41 Personal Branding Not Influencing 28:54 Avoid AI Sea Of Sameness 30:56 People Hire People 33:03 LinkedIn Nuggets And Community 34:10 Where To Find Melissa 35:31 Outro

    36 min
  4. Google Ad Management for Dad-Owned Businesses. Why Being Present Online Means Being Present at Home w/Anneliese

    May 6

    Google Ad Management for Dad-Owned Businesses. Why Being Present Online Means Being Present at Home w/Anneliese

    "We had this crazy thought that if they could have advertising taken off their plate... they could go spend some time with their children and be present, guilt-free." Anneliese is a fourth-generation entrepreneur who never planned on running her own business. After 14 years in the corporate advertising world, the pandemic hit. When she was wrongfully terminated for refusing to make 50 cold calls a week while raising an infant, she took her settlement money and launched an ad agency with her husband. Her mission and driving force? What if being present online was the whole reason you could be present at home? That's not just a tagline for Anneliese. It's her whole mission. In this episode of Reanimated Stories, I chat with Anneliese as she shares why she niched down to dads, what it really means to be a marketing vendor broker, and how she helped one client catch bots eating 40% of his ad budget...before it put his family's livelihood out of business! She explains her transition from Never Miss a Moment Consulting to Be Present Advertising, highlighting her mission to take the burden of Google Ads off the shoulders of family-oriented business owners. We also discuss why you should never run Google Ads if you do not know where your clients are actually hanging out, why bots are eating your advertising budget, and what it means to be a "Marketing Vendor Broker." --------------- Connect with Anneliese Website: www.bepresentads.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anneliesemvance/ --------------- About Reanimated Stories: Hosted by Roger Jorns, I talk with awesome business leaders about their story and we explore how to reimagine work, life, and design. Connect with Roger: LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/roger-jorns Website: reanimationdesign.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@reanimationdesign Podcast: https://rss.com/podcasts/reanimated-stories/ --------------- 00:00 Intro 00:42 Show Intro and Networking 01:11 Anneliese Background and Niche 02:23 Family Entrepreneur Roots 03:46 Parents Pivot to Business 06:21 Childhood Lessons on Presence 08:12 Corporate Sales and COVID Clash 10:19 Wrongful Termination to Startup 11:44 Homeschooling and New Roles 12:32 Rebrand to Be Present 16:05 Why Niche Down to Families 16:58 Client Story Moving Company 18:57 Generational Growth Mindset 19:15 Helping Clients Grow 20:18 No Contracts Results First 22:17 Marketing Vendor Broker 26:10 Data Driven Ad Strategy 30:45 Lead Quality Call Tracking 33:12 Outro

    36 min
  5. Emotional Intelligence is Not About Being Nice, It’s About Data. Why Emotional Intelligence Is the Missing Piece in Modern Leadership w/Dana Echert

    Apr 29

    Emotional Intelligence is Not About Being Nice, It’s About Data. Why Emotional Intelligence Is the Missing Piece in Modern Leadership w/Dana Echert

    "It is a whole different skillset to be a leader than it is just to be good at your job. Technical skills are about looking at the work of one... leadership skills are about amplifying the work of many." Dana Echert is the founder of Inspire, where she helps grow leaders with high emotional intelligence. Her background is in HR and learning and development. After years of watching companies build trainings to fix "accountability issues" and "conflict issues," she figured out what was actually broken..... It wasn't the people. It was the system. In this episode of Reanimated Stories, I talk with Dana as she breaks down why the traditional model of promoting top performers into management roles is broken, and why Technical Intelligence (TQ) does not automatically translate to Emotional Intelligence (EQ). Dana explains how the pandemic and the rise of remote work completely shifted the weight of organizational policy onto the shoulders of mid-level managers. If you want to stop treating emotional intelligence as a "nice to have" and start using it as a data-driven tool for business growth, listen to Dana's insights. --------------- Connect with Dana Website: www.INSPIREskillstraining.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dana-echert/ --------------- About Reanimated Stories: Hosted by Roger Jorns, I talk with awesome business leaders about their story and we explore how to reimagine work, life, and design. Connect with Roger: LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/roger-jorns Website: reanimationdesign.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@reanimationdesign Podcast: https://rss.com/podcasts/reanimated-stories/ --------------- 00:00 Intro 00:25 Meet The Host And Guest 01:09 Dana And Inspire Mission 02:19 Leadership Shift Since 2020 06:54 EQ Versus Technical Skills 09:39 Trust And Retention Costs 13:48 Assessments And EQ Lab 17:11 Lead Yourself First 18:50 Leadership Pipeline And Burnout 24:27 Unlimited PTO Example 26:13 Getting Started And Snapshot Tool 30:07 Connect And Spotlight Series 31:35 Outro

    32 min
  6. Winning the Workout to Win the Day: High-Performance Coaching w/ Jayme Shiarla

    Apr 22

    Winning the Workout to Win the Day: High-Performance Coaching w/ Jayme Shiarla

    What time do you wake up? Well if you like waking up before the crack of dawn, you're in luck! So does my next guest Jayme Shiarla! Jayme is an executive wellness coach, NLP practitioner, and community builder. She wakes up at 4:03 AM every day to train her body and her brain. (Ya she is into Crossfit!) She explains how pushing through a grueling CrossFit workout sets the tone for the rest of her day. If she can conquer her own demons first thing in the morning (because let's face it...that is EARLY!, nothing the day throws at her feels insurmountable. We chat about how she uses Neurolinguistic Programming (NLP) to help high-performers rewire their brains. She specializes in coaching leaders who look incredibly successful on the outside but feel unfulfilled on the inside. On top of all that, Jayme also shares the heart behind her book, 123 Quotes. A deeply personal collection of the words that saved her life through her darkest moments. Then to wrap it up we talk about her role helping organize The Table Network here in Austin. This is a great episode and one you will have a hard time walking away from feeling anything less than energized! --------------- Connect with Jayme: Website: www.coachjayme.com Instagram: www.instagram.com/jaymethecoach LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jaymethecoach/ Book: Beyond the Words: 123 Quotes to Inspire Action and Growth Discovery Call: https://jaymeshiarlacoaching.com/client-application --------------- About Reanimated Stories: Hosted by Roger Jorns, I talk with awesome business leaders about their story and we explore how to reimagine work, life, and design. Connect with Roger: LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/roger-jorns Website: reanimationdesign.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@reanimationdesign Podcast: https://rss.com/podcasts/reanimated-stories/ --------------- 00:00 Intro 00:23 Meeting Jayme at Table Network 01:44 Jayme’s Coaching Background 02:42 What NLP Really Means 04:18 How Jayme Got Into NLP 05:46 Coaching High Performers 07:47 CrossFit as Mental Training 10:41 Challenge Creates Change 13:07 Book Born From Darkness 17:02 Book Concept Wrap Up 17:29 Joining Table Network 18:47 Why It Feels Different 20:28 How The Event Works 22:18 Host Perspective 24:45 CrossFit Midyear Workshop 26:07 Big Vision For Tables 28:37 Challenge & Outro

    33 min
  7. Hard Truth About Freedom: What Nobody Tells You About Running Your Own Business w/Stephen Crockett

    Apr 16

    Hard Truth About Freedom: What Nobody Tells You About Running Your Own Business w/Stephen Crockett

    Everyone talks about the freedom of owning a business. Nobody talks about what it actually costs you. Stephen Crockett has been in telecom sales since the beginning. Entry-level rep. A hundred cold calls a day. All the way up to VP at a large corporation. Then Stephen realized that playing corporate politics was not for him. So, he decided to build his own thing: Evolve Network Solutions, a cloud-based communication provider built specifically for small and mid-size businesses. In this episode, Stephen gets real about entrepreneurship and owning a business. The freedom is real. But so is the accountability. Nobody's grading you. Nobody's setting your KPIs. You have to do that yourself. Every. Single. Week. On top of that, we also dive into the massive evolution of the telecom industry. Stephen explains how the pandemic turned platforms like Zoom into household names and making enterprise-level tools accessible to small businesses. COVID didn't just change the way we work. It accelerated 10 years of tech adoption into about 10 months! If you are a business owner trying to scale your operations or someone debating leaving the 9-to-5 grind to start your own company, Stephen's advice is a must-listen. --------------- Connect with Stephen Website: https://evolvesolutionsinc.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephen-crockett-111b2215b/ --------------- About Reanimated Stories: Hosted by Roger Jorns, I talk with awesome business leaders about their story and we explore how to reimagine work, life, and design. Connect with Roger: LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/roger-jorns Website: reanimationdesign.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@reanimationdesign Podcast: https://rss.com/podcasts/reanimated-stories/ --------------- 00:00 Intro 00:20 Welcome and Networking Guest 00:50 Texas Ice and Driving Lessons 04:08 Telecom Career Origin Story 05:47 Cloud Shift and Channel Sales 07:45 Cloud Misconceptions and Servers 09:42 Corporate vs Entrepreneurship Reality 14:08 Honoring Your Business KPIs 16:20 COVID Accelerates Cloud Work 18:22 Cloud Boom After COVID 18:44 APIs and CRM Integrations 19:49 Zoom Becomes a Verb 20:52 RingCentral vs Zoom Story 22:18 Telehealth and New Use Cases 23:23 Mobile App for Sales Teams 25:47 Business Texting Ring Groups 27:07 Should You Switch Providers 30:43 Onboarding and Ongoing Support 32:17 Where to Find Stephen 33:31 Outro

    34 min
  8. Stop Sacrificing Your Life for Your Business: A Blueprint for Blue-Collar Entrepreneurs w/ Dan Dowdy

    Apr 8

    Stop Sacrificing Your Life for Your Business: A Blueprint for Blue-Collar Entrepreneurs w/ Dan Dowdy

    I am sure you have the expression: 'He had it all'.... Well, Dan Dowdy did have it all: A successful family plumbing business, a dream home, and a comfortable life... Then, he sold it all, moved his wife and four kids into a camper, and launched a coaching business for tradesmen in January 2020....yup, then the world shut down. In this episode of Reanimated Stories, I chat with Dan to talk about why he built Built for the Trades. We talk about why the blue-collar world desperately needs leadership coaching that focuses on more than just profit. As well as discuss the trap of sacrificing your faith, family, and health to scale a business, and how to build a company that can actually run without you. Dan also shares his personal testimony, explaining how a series of tragic losses led him to a radical faith in God, and how a John Maxwell audiobook on a morning run changed the entire trajectory of his career. If you are a plumber, roofer, electrician, or any other small business owner who feels like you have hit a wall, this episode will show you how to beat the bottleneck and reclaim your time! --------------- Connect with Dan Website: https://builtforthetrades.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BuiltForTheTrades/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/builtforthetrades/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@builtforthetrades LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/dan-dowdy-989b8111a TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@built4trades X: https://x.com/Built4theTrades --------------- About Reanimated Stories: Hosted by Roger Jorns, I talk with awesome business leaders about their story and we explore how to reimagine work, life, and design. Connect with Roger: LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/roger-jorns Website: reanimationdesign.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@reanimationdesign Podcast: https://rss.com/podcasts/reanimated-stories/ --------------- 00:00 Intro 00:34 Meet Dan Dowdy 01:17 Built For The Trades Origin 02:58 Launching During Covid 05:15 Why Trades Need Coaching 07:04 Leadership Lessons Learned 10:27 Faith Driven Mission 15:38 Programs And Community 19:53 Systems For Self Operating 23:42 Is Coaching Right Now 26:07 Who Fits The Trades 28:15 Where To Find Dan 29:11 Outro

    30 min
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Is your business’s best story the one you haven't told yet? Every business has a heartbeat, but not everyone knows how to make it heard. Reanimated Stories is the antidote to boring business talk, we bring the journeys of local business leaders and entrepreneurs back to life. From the initial spark to the daily grind, Roger Jorns founder of Reanimation Design, gets to interview and explore how successful owners use their unique stories to build trust, connect with their community, and grow their bottom line. Reanimated Stories is here to prove that when you tell the right story, you don’t just get customers—you build a legacy. Tune in, get inspired, and let’s reanimate your business.

Information

  • Creator
    Roger Jorns - Reanimation Design
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    33
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Show Website
    Reanimated Stories