The Builders

Matt Levenhagen

"The Builders" Podcast is designed for those that are 'building' stuff on the web. Whether that's building a business, an agency, building teams, building products, services.. or building websites.. if it's related to building something, it's fair game.

  1. 4h ago

    Rachel Lee – Learning What Fits (and What Doesn't) on the Way to a Creative Business

    Building a creative business rarely follows the path you imagine when you start. For Rachel Lee, co-founder of Neo Genesis, it began with a love of making things, a degree in design, and what was supposed to be her dream job. A few weeks into that job, though, she realized something was missing. She didn't just want to make things look good. She wanted to be part of solving the problem. That realization eventually pushed Rachel into freelancing, entrepreneurship, partnerships, joint ventures, branding, coaching, strategy, websites, and plenty of experiments that didn't quite fit. Along the way, she learned that building the right business isn't always about knowing exactly where you're headed. Sometimes it's about trying things, paying attention to what gives you energy, and being willing to remove what doesn't belong. In this episode of The Builders Podcast, Matt and Rachel talk about the messy process of turning creative skill into a sustainable business, finding a partner whose strengths complement your own, and gradually narrowing your focus until the work starts to feel like yours. It's a conversation about creativity and branding, but underneath it is a larger builder lesson: you don't have to have the whole path figured out before you start building. Key Takeaways Your craft and your business are two different skill sets. Being great at the work doesn't automatically mean knowing how to build the systems, workflows, sales, and structure around it.Finding the right fit often requires discovering the wrong ones first. Jobs, services, projects, and experiments can all teach you something about the work you actually want to do.Design is a problem-solving tool, not just an aesthetic one. Rachel's approach grew from wanting to understand the problem behind the work and create something specifically designed to solve it.The right partner can complement what you don't naturally bring to the table. Rachel's creative strengths paired with her business partner's systems and business mindset helped create a stronger foundation.Experimentation creates clarity. Freelancing, joint ventures, coaching, strategy, messaging, and web work all helped Rachel gradually sharpen the focus of the business.A business doesn't have to emerge fully formed. Neo Genesis grew through years of testing, refining, removing, and rebuilding until Rachel and her partner found a model that fit their strengths. Tune in for a story about creativity, experimentation, and learning your way toward a business that actually fits.

  2. Aug 10

    T. Christian Helms – Building Brands and a Creative Life Through Relationships and Resilience

    T. Christian Helms didn't grow up with a blueprint for becoming a brand strategist or agency founder. He grew up drawing, writing, listening to music, and following whatever captured his curiosity. That path eventually took him through journalism and fine art, into the world of design and branding, and ultimately to Austin, where he founded Helms Workshop and built a career working with musicians, entrepreneurs, emerging companies, and some of the world's most recognizable brands. In this episode of The Builders Podcast, Matt Levenhagen talks with Christian about what it really takes to build a creative life. They explore the mentors and relationships that opened doors, the importance of finding your people, and why genuine curiosity and enthusiasm can sometimes take you further than a perfectly mapped-out career plan. Christian also shares his approach to building Helms Workshop, protecting its culture, and surrounding himself with talented people who genuinely enjoy working together. The conversation also turns to a much harder chapter of Christian's journey: spending roughly a year and a half searching for answers while dealing with undiagnosed Lyme disease. Trying to keep an agency moving while his health deteriorated forced him to adapt in ways he never expected. His story is ultimately about more than branding or entrepreneurship. It's about building a body of work, a business, relationships, and a life... and developing the resilience to keep rebuilding when circumstances change. Key Takeaways Follow curiosity before certainty. Christian's career emerged from exploring art, writing, music, design, and strategy rather than following a predetermined path.Relationships compound over time. Mentors, collaborators, friends, and creative communities repeatedly shaped the opportunities that moved his career forward.Enthusiasm creates opportunities. Genuine interest, thoughtful questions, and a willingness to reach out can open doors that credentials alone may not.Culture is built through people. Growing a creative business isn't simply about hiring the strongest portfolios. Character, chemistry, and shared values matter too.Adversity changes how you build. Christian's experience with Lyme disease forced him to adapt personally and professionally while continuing to lead his agency.A creative life is something you keep building. Careers, businesses, relationships, and identities evolve. The work is learning, adapting, and continuing to create through each season. Tune in for a conversation about building brands, finding your people, navigating adversity, and creating a life around curiosity, creativity, and meaningful work.

  3. Aug 3

    Tina Larsson – Building Trust, Systems, and a Business by Solving an Overlooked Problem

    In this episode of The Builders Podcast, Matt sits down with Tina Larsson, founder of The Folson Group, to explore how one frustrating experience serving on her own co-op board uncovered an overlooked problem... and ultimately became the foundation of a thriving business. From her Wall Street background to coaching volunteer boards, Tina shares how trust, thoughtful systems, and a willingness to solve problems others ignored shaped her entrepreneurial journey. Along the way, Tina shares how analytical thinking, networking, coaching, and continuous learning shaped her business. She discusses the value of building systems instead of simply providing services, why writing a book became a powerful credibility builder, and how AI and automation have dramatically changed the way her company operates. It's a conversation about finding opportunity where others see frustration and building authority through consistent action rather than shortcuts. Whether you're building a niche consulting business, leading an organization, or simply looking for ways to create more value through systems and relationships, Tina's story offers practical lessons on identifying overlooked problems and turning them into lasting opportunities. Key Takeaways Build businesses by solving expensive, overlooked problems that others accept as "just the way things are." Networking compounds over time and often becomes the foundation for sustainable business growth. Coaches can accelerate growth by helping you develop new skills and expand your visibility. Systems, benchmarks, and data help people make more confident decisions than intuition alone. A well-written book can become one of the most effective trust-building tools in your business. AI and automation create leverage by allowing builders to spend more time serving customers and less time managing repetitive work. Tune in for a story of building better systems, stronger businesses, and smarter decisions through curiosity, persistence, and continuous learning.

  4. Jul 27

    Allan Glanfield - Building a Snack Brand by Turning Travel Problems Into Kids Snacks

    In this episode of The Builders Podcast, Matt Levenhagen sits down with Allan Glanfield, founder of Chuck, a Canadian meat snack brand built from a very real family problem: finding better, travel-friendly snacks that kids would actually eat. Allan’s path to building a snack brand has been anything but linear. From screen printing and fashion design to photography, e-commerce, marketing, and product development, his story is a reminder that the messy parts of a builder’s journey often become the exact experience needed for the next thing. Chuck grew out of that layered background, combining product thinking, brand storytelling, family travel, and a practical need for better food on the go. This conversation explores what it means to build from lived experience, how founders can turn small frustrations into meaningful products, and why focus becomes essential when your mind sees problems everywhere. Key Takeaways The best product ideas often come from small, repeated problems in everyday life.Building something new does not always mean inventing from scratch. Sometimes it means improving what already exists.A winding career path can become an advantage when each chapter teaches a different part of the business.Founder-led brands work best when the story is real, not manufactured.Focus is one of the hardest parts of building, especially for people who naturally see opportunities everywhere.There is no perfect path. Builders often have to choose which kind of uncomfortable they are willing to live with. Tune in for a conversation about building products from real problems, staying adaptable, and creating a business that fits the life behind it.

  5. Jul 20

    Matt Levenhagen - Still Building Me: Business, Art, a Custom AI LifeOS, and a Better Life

    In this solo episode of The Builders Podcast, Matt Levenhagen reflects on what it means to keep building at 55. After years of building businesses, products, services, and eventually a web design and development agency, Matt explores a different kind of builder journey: continuing to build yourself after you thought you had already “arrived.” This episode moves through three connected threads: business, art, and AI. Matt shares how his agency remains the foundation, how picking up a pencil again reignited a creative part of himself that had been quiet for decades, and how he has been building a custom AI LifeOS to help manage memory, priorities, reflection, and daily action. At the center of it all is a simple but powerful idea: building is not always about chasing the next business, pivot, or product. Sometimes it is about creating a better life. One with stronger systems, more creative presence, better habits, and enough room for the parts of you that still want to grow. Key Takeaways Building does not stop when you “arrive.” Sometimes the next chapter is about building onto the life and business you already have.Past chapters are not wasted. Art, sales, contracting, internet marketing, web development, and agency work all become layers in the builder’s journey.Reigniting an old craft can reconnect you with a younger, more honest version of yourself.AI becomes more useful when it is built around your real life, your data, your priorities, and your way of thinking.A good system should not just make you more productive. It should help protect what keeps you human.At any age, builders can give themselves permission to keep learning, creating, and shaping a better life.  Tune in for a personal reflection on business, creativity, AI, and the long work of still becoming.

  6. Jul 13

    Amy Foley – When Growth Stalls or Reverses: Building Through Change Without Losing Yourself

    For years, Amy Foley built Inbound Back Office almost entirely through relationships and referrals. What began as a freelance virtual assistant business grew into a thriving agency supporting marketing agencies across the country, eventually expanding to nearly 80 team members. But when growth stalled and the market shifted, Amy found herself navigating one of the most difficult seasons every builder eventually faces.  In this conversation, Amy shares the difficult chapter that followed. As AI emerged, agencies consolidated, referrals slowed, and long-standing clients disappeared, she found herself making decisions no business owner wants to make. Together, we explore what it looks like to recognize changing market conditions, simplify a business, take back responsibilities you’d previously delegated, and rebuild with clarity instead of panic. This isn’t a conversation about scaling faster. It’s about becoming the kind of leader who can adapt when growth slows, forgive yourself for the things you didn’t see coming, and build a healthier business for the future. For anyone navigating uncertainty, changing markets, or the emotional weight of leadership, Amy’s story offers a refreshing reminder that resilience often matters more than rapid growth. Key Takeaways Growth can hide problems if you’re not paying attention to changing markets.Relationships remain one of the most valuable assets a business can build.Sometimes leadership means stepping back into the business instead of away from it.Simplifying services and operations can create a stronger, more sustainable company.Stability and contentment aren’t signs of settling. They can be intentional measures of success.Every season of business teaches lessons that become part of the builder’s story.  Every business will face unexpected change. The builders who endure aren’t the ones who avoid hard seasons… they’re the ones willing to adapt, learn, and keep building anyway.

  7. Jul 6

    Malcolm Reid Sr. – Lead with Value. Open Doors. Build Relationships. Clients Will Follow.

    In this second conversation with Malcolm Reid Sr., Matt shifts from Malcolm’s remarkable life story to the business philosophy that’s helped him build a thriving coaching and consulting practice. Rather than relying on cold pitches or high-pressure sales tactics, Malcolm shares why the strongest businesses are built by leading with value, creating trust, and opening doors through genuine relationships. Drawing on years of experience helping business owners grow, Malcolm explains how documenting proven systems, delivering measurable results, and putting people before transactions creates a business that clients stay with for years. Along the way, he and Matt explore how generosity, authority, and authentic conversations often outperform traditional selling. Whether you’re a coach, consultant, agency owner, freelancer, or any service-based entrepreneur, this episode offers practical lessons on building trust first, creating opportunities naturally, and growing a business through relationships that last. Key Takeaways Lead with value before asking for anything in return.Strong relationships create better business opportunities than cold pitches.Documented systems make your expertise repeatable and scalable.The right clients are chosen through fit, not just persuasion.Long-term success comes from consistently delivering measurable results.When trust comes first, sales become a natural outcome instead of the goal. Tune in for a conversation about why the best way to grow a business is often to stop selling and start serving.

  8. Jun 29

    Malcolm Reid Sr. – From the Streets to Prison to Purpose: Building a Life That Changes Others

    In this first part of Matt Levenhagen’s conversation with Malcolm Reid Sr., we explore an extraordinary journey from the streets of Baltimore to prison, and ultimately to a life dedicated to helping others build better businesses. It’s the story of how adversity shaped the builder behind the business. From dropping out of school and serving time in prison to discovering unexpected lessons in sales, leadership and human behavior, Malcolm shares how accountability, resilience and an unwavering desire to help others transformed the direction of his life. Every chapter, even the painful ones, became preparation for what came next. If you’ve ever wondered whether your past limits your future, this conversation offers a different perspective. Malcolm’s story is a powerful reminder that while our experiences shape us, they don’t have to define us. Some of the strongest builders are the ones who first rebuilt themselves. Key Takeaways Resilience is often forged long before success becomes visible.Your past explains you, but it doesn’t define where you can go.Every experience, even painful ones, can become part of your builder toolkit.Great businesses are built by solving one problem after another.Authentic relationships consistently outperform manipulation and sales tactics.Helping others succeed is one of the most meaningful ways to build a lasting legacy.  Tune in for a story of resilience, redemption and discovering the builder that was there all along.

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About

"The Builders" Podcast is designed for those that are 'building' stuff on the web. Whether that's building a business, an agency, building teams, building products, services.. or building websites.. if it's related to building something, it's fair game.

Information

  • Creator
    Matt Levenhagen
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2026
  • Episodes
    291
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Matt Levenhagen
  • Show Website
    The Builders