All Episodes

July 1, 2025 47 mins
"I was standing there in front of this half-eaten birthday cake realizing like... what am I doing? This is not success."

No Half Cakes Founder and Podcast Host Jim Sabellico

 

How do you define success?

Most of us are or were under the impression that success means money, status, and stuff--all obtained through a brutal amount of work and time.

Jim Sabellico thought so too. At least until the night his wife had to relight the candles on his six-year-old son's half-eaten birthday cake so he could sing Happy Birthday to his boy. Jim missed the family moment because he was "busy working."

Men have generally been tasked with being "successful" to provide for their families. Unfortunately, the definition of success has too often focused on money and materialism while leaving out family, relationships, presence and purpose.

Jim's wake-up moment changed that for him. He began to reset by owning his situation clarifying his values (family, honor and integrity), and taking action to rise and rebuild his definition of success.

Jim's commitment to reshaping his life served as a model for not only himself, but his children and others, particularly men who have sacrificed their relationships and sense of self to "success." That's when the No Half Cakes podcast was born. Since then, Jim has made it his mission to share his strategies for genuine personal and professional success through the No Half Cakes podcast and his HeartCore Program.

Here at Brilliantly Resilient, we recognize the power of perspective and taking the time to know and be true to your values to live a Brilliantly Resilient life. Learn more about Jim's work here, and be sure to listen to the No Half Cakes podcast. Tune into this episode of the Brilliantly Resilient podcast to hear more of Jim's wisdom and listen for these additional bits of Brilliance:  

  • "I had no relationship with my kids, no relationship with my wife... and by every other metric, I was a total failure."
  • "After I made the promise to myself, I started the hard part—recognizing that it's not everyone else's fault. I had to stop placing blame."
  • "If you don't know where you are, no instructions will get you where you're going. You need to know your starting point."
  • "You can't be good for other people if you're not good for yourself first."
  • "Your kids need to see you struggle. They need to understand that mom and dad are not perfect—and how we handle that matters."
  • "Children cannot be what they cannot see... you have to model the life you want them to emulate."
  • "I now live like there's a documentary crew following me—I act with honor and integrity so there's nothing to hide."
  • "Start journaling, talking, or even just voicing your feelings to yourself. That's how you find the real you underneath it all."
  • "This isn't an on/off switch. It's a 0.2% shift every day. I'm a totally different person than I was five years ago—and that's the goal."

Let's be Brilliantly Resilient together!

XO,

Mary Fran

Mark as Played

Advertise With Us

Popular Podcasts

Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang

Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang

Ding dong! Join your culture consultants, Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang, on an unforgettable journey into the beating heart of CULTURE. Alongside sizzling special guests, they GET INTO the hottest pop-culture moments of the day and the formative cultural experiences that turned them into Culturistas. Produced by the Big Money Players Network and iHeartRadio.

Crime Junkie

Crime Junkie

Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.

Stuff You Should Know

Stuff You Should Know

If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.

Music, radio and podcasts, all free. Listen online or download the iHeart App.

Connect

© 2025 iHeartMedia, Inc.