How I Built My Small Business

Anne McGinty

2025 Communicator Award of Excellence in the Educational Series category

2024 People's Choice Podcast Awards Finalist Nominee x 2

Named "One of the Best Business Podcasts" by Ramsey

Welcome to 'How I Built My Small Business,' where we explore real-life entrepreneurship and building a meaningful, balanced life.

I started this podcast to honor my dad and help others navigate the messy, meaningful path of entrepreneurship. My guests (diverse in industry, experience, and background) open up about the real stories behind building a business: the wins, the mistakes, and the values that shape their choices.

It’s turned into more than I imagined... sometimes it’s a masterclass, other times it’s an honest, heart-opening connection between two people. But it’s always about curiosity, growth, and learning through storytelling... with a sprinkle of life wisdom.

Every guest has started a business at some point in their journey, and I make a conscious effort to maintain a 50/50 split of women and men.

Whether you're a founder, dreamer, curious individual or lifelong learner, I hope each episode makes you think or leaves you with at least one spark that inspires your own path.
Thank you for listening. Let’s learn together.

My Website: https://www.annemcginty.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annemcginty/
Behind-The-Scenes: https://www.instagram.com/annemcgintyhost

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Top 10 How I Built My Small Business Episodes

Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best How I Built My Small Business episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to How I Built My Small Business for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite How I Built My Small Business episode by adding your comments to the episode page.

Jenny Sauer-Klein - ACROYOGA’s Global Success: Lessons You Can’t Miss

How I Built My Small Business

07/25/24 • 43 min

Jenny Sauer-Klein's journey as a serial entrepreneur has seen her start four influential ventures, including AcroYoga, Scaling Intimacy School of Experience Design, Play on Purpose and The Culture Conference.
Jenny co-founded AcroYoga, a global phenomenon blending acrobatics and yoga, which has captivated millions worldwide, including Hollywood celebrities, professional athletes and Silicon Valley innovators. Professional athletes and Silicon Valley innovators.
Her other ventures focus on creating transformational experiences and deep connection. Throughout her career, Jenny has been a sought-after speaker and consultant for top organizations including Google, airbnb, dropbox and UC Berkeley's Haas School of Business. Her insights and work have been featured in major media outlets such as the New York Times, Forbes, Fast Company, Inc Magazine and Tim Ferriss' book Tools of Titans.
This episode is sponsored by Pareto Labs, an online business education platform.

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Let’s connect!
Subscribe to my newsletter: Time To Live: Thriving in Business and Beyond
Website: https://www.annemcginty.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annemcginty
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/annemcgintyhost

Samantha Rose - Behind-The-Scenes with a 3x NYT Bestselling GHOSTWRITER

How I Built My Small Business

06/03/25 • 53 min

Today’s guest is Samantha Rose, an Emmy award-winning television writer and three-time New York Times Bestselling ghostwriter.

She’s the founder of Yellow Sky Media, a literary development company that collaborates with celebrities, experts, and industry leaders to bring their powerful stories to life.

Recently, Samantha stepped into the spotlight with her own memoir, Giving Up The Ghost, a poignant exploration of the grief and unanswered questions that followed her mother’s suicide.

Her work has reached readers around the world, with projects translated into more than twenty languages and featured in the Wall Street Journal, Harper’s Bazaar, Time, and selected as Reese’s Book Club and Target Bookmarked picks.

Jason Feifer - Unlocking Opportunity with ENTREPRENEUR Editor-in-Chief

How I Built My Small Business

10/22/24 • 31 min

Jason is the Editor-in-Chief of Entrepreneur Magazine and is widely recognized as an authority on business and adapting to change. He's the author of the bestselling book Build for Tomorrow, host of the Help Wanted and Problem Solvers podcast and has been named a "Top Voice in Entrepreneurship" on LinkedIn.
With decades of experience in national media, Jason has held editor roles at Men's Health, Fast Company, Maxim and Boston Magazine and has written about business and technology for the Washington Post, Slate, New York Magazine and many more.
Connect with Jason Feifer:
Twitter: @heyfeifer
Instagram: @heyfeifer
Facebook: @heyfeifer
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/jasonfeifer
Website: jasonfeifer.com
Newsletter: jasonfeifer.com/newsletter

Duncan Wardle - Set Your Creativity Free Inside the IMAGINATION EMPORIUM

How I Built My Small Business

04/01/25 • 50 min

This interview was so entertaining to host because I felt like I was back in college for an hour and had the most interesting guest teacher who made me laugh, play games, and have fun - all while learning.

Duncan Wardle, the former head of innovation and creativity at Disney, is on a mission to teach people how to access their natural creative abilities, to be innovative, explore curiosity, connect through empathy and tap into one’s intuition.

As soon as I saw Duncan in the online recording room, he just jumped straight into teaching and you’ll notice that the first few minutes of our conversation were missing because I hadn’t yet hit the record button.

After a few minutes I thought, hit the dang record button, which I did. Next time, I’ll hit it sooner.

In this episode, you may wonder - who is leading the show? LOL

At one point, my husband overheard us in the distance and said, “it sounded pretty negative when you kept on saying No... what was up with that?” I guess you’ll just have to listen in to figure out what that was about.

https://duncanwardle.com/

https://theimaginationemporium.com/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/duncanwardle

https://www.instagram.com/duncanjwardle/

https://www.facebook.com/DuncanJWardle

https://x.com/duncanjwardle

Bite-Sized Life Wisdom: 3 of 4

How I Built My Small Business

01/03/25 • 9 min

Welcome to How I Built My Small Business: Bite-Sized! I’m Anne McGinty, host of the show. While full-length guest episodes are on hold for the holidays, I’ve prepared a collection of short, impactful episodes to keep you inspired until Season 2.

Jackie Ashton - Secrets to Landing a Non-Fiction Book Deal with THE BOOKMARK AGENCY

How I Built My Small Business

03/25/25 • 42 min

Today we’re diving into the world of publishing with Jackie Ashton—literary agent, journalist, and founder of Bookmark, a boutique agency helping thought leaders bring impactful books to life.

Before launching The Bookmark Agency, Jackie was an agent at Lucinda Literary, where she landed major publishing deals for authors like Dave Pell (Please Scream Inside Your Heart) and Scott Shigeoka (Seek). With a deep understanding of the publishing industry, she specializes in helping authors craft books that don’t just share expertise but resonate with readers, disrupt industries, and fill market gaps with empathy over ego.

She also shares her knowledge in The Big Idea, her free newsletter packed with insights on writing books that matter. And as a journalist and essayist, her work has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Salon.

https://www.jackieashton.com/

Amanda Judge - How to grow a successful jewelry biz? 8-figure UNTAMED PETALS brand with 100k+ customers worldwide!

How I Built My Small Business

06/20/24 • 46 min

Amanda is the CEO, founder and lead designer of Untamed Petals, a bridal jewelry and dresses brand that started as an Etsy shop and is now tipping 8-figures a year with a direct-to-consumer e-commerce site, over 250 wholesale accounts nationwide, and an emerging presence internationally.
Her business has collaborated with Nordstroms, Anthropologie, and the costume designer for the CW drama Reign.
Her creations have been photographed being worn on the red carpet by several celebrities, including Kate Beckinsale, Jennifer Lopez, Gwen Stefani, Sofia Vergara and many more.
Amanda is a proud member of the female founder collective, the 10th House.
This episode is sponsored by Pareto Labs, an online business education platform.

Alex Salz and Buzz Bonneau - Making Waves: The Inspiring Journey of FERAL WETSUITS and Its Visionary Founders

How I Built My Small Business

06/04/24 • 38 min

Alex Salz and Buzz Bonneau talk with us about their journey starting an international wetsuit brand.
Alex and Buzz are two avid surfers who started and still run FERAL Wetsuits, a mostly direct-to-consumer brand from Ocean Beach in San Francisco. FERAL designs and produces the Vans Surf Team wetsuits, has collaborated with Volcom, and Stab's editor-in-chief, Michael Chiaramella, was quoted saying "it's my favorite of the entire wetsuit test.
Their business has been featured in Surfer, Stab, Vans, Vogue and in the short film "Once Upon a Time in New Zealand" with Raglan surfer and comic Luke Cederman @RaglanSurfReport.

Matt Scorringe - A life-changing moment? New Zealand's Olympic Surfing Coach and THE ART OF SURFING in 40+ Countries

How I Built My Small Business

05/07/24 • 40 min

Matt is the New Zealand's Olympic surf coach and founder CEO of THE ART OF SURFING, a business that provides high-performance, personalized surf coaching, academy memberships and remote coaching worldwide. He's not just a former professional surfer; Matt's an inspirational figure who's story is as compelling as it is educational.

His programs are designed to help surfers (of all abilities) fulfill their potential by fine-tuning their personal style while mastering technique.

Matt has been featured on the cover of Uno Magazine and New Zealand Surfing Magazine.
You Tube The Art of Surfing
Instagram @TheArtofSurfing

Kerri Futch - A Candid Year One at WOLF AND FOX, a Wisconsin Winery

How I Built My Small Business

04/08/25 • 34 min

Kerri Futch is a friend of mine who moved from Northern California to Wisconsin to be closer to family and to chase a dream vision for a Wolf and Fox, boutique winery and an event space.

This episode is more of a casual conversation and catch-up between friends, but there are oodles of nuggets in her story, her strategic approach, and you’ll get real-time insights and perspective into what it’s like being in the midst of a less than 1 year-old business.

Kerri and her husband, Jon, purchased forty acres of land with a barn in Calumet County, Wisconsin with motivation to cultivate a diverse, sustainable farm, vineyard, and community event space.

Let’s hear how it’s going.

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FAQ

How many episodes does How I Built My Small Business have?

How I Built My Small Business currently has 86 episodes available.

What topics does How I Built My Small Business cover?

The podcast is about Entrepreneurship, Personal Finance, How To, Startups, Podcasts, Education and Business.

What is the most popular episode on How I Built My Small Business?

The episode title 'Chad David Kraus - How a Self-taught photographer's hobby turned into a seven figure business with CHAD DAVID KRAUS PHOTOGRAPHY' is the most popular.

What is the average episode length on How I Built My Small Business?

The average episode length on How I Built My Small Business is 36 minutes.

How often are episodes of How I Built My Small Business released?

Episodes of How I Built My Small Business are typically released every 7 days.

When was the first episode of How I Built My Small Business?

The first episode of How I Built My Small Business was released on Jan 2, 2024.

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How I Built My Small Business

Anne McGinty

Top 10 How I Built My Small Business Episodes

FAQ

How many episodes does How I Built My Small Business have?

What topics does How I Built My Small Business cover?

What is the most popular episode on How I Built My Small Business?

What is the average episode length on How I Built My Small Business?

How often are episodes of How I Built My Small Business released?

When was the first episode of How I Built My Small Business?

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