Mostly Middle Tennessee Business Podcast

Lyndsey McDonald didn't grow up dreaming of owning a plumbing company. In fact, she had no professional experience in the trades.

After an unwanted divorce changed the trajectory of her life, Lyndsey rebuilt her career, moved her family from Oregon to Middle Tennessee and eventually took an even bigger leap: starting Plumbing Pro.

Lyndsey joins Jim McCarthy to talk about rebuilding from difficult circumstances, starting a company in ...

What happens when the career you've built for 15 years is suddenly no longer who you are?

Donna Leggett spent years in accounting and financial leadership — and once listed sales and retail among the careers she never wanted.
Today, she's doing both.

Donna is the owner of Pearce Bespoke Nashville, helping clients build custom wardrobes while building an entirely new career and business of her own.

In this episode of the Mostl...

After more than two decades in law enforcement, Chris Morris probably didn't expect his next career to involve coffee — especially considering he originally hated the stuff.

But years of overnight shifts, a search for lower-acidity coffee and a lot of experimentation eventually led to Peacemaker Coffee Company.

Chris joins Jim McCarthy to talk about making the leap from law enforcement into entrepreneurship, learning the coffee...

Jacob Bourque joins Jim McCarthy for a conversation that begins with logistics, cold calling and building a referral-based business — and eventually becomes something far more personal.

Jacob talks about spending years making cold calls, learning how genuine relationships create long-term customers, specialty tax strategies and why there may be no such thing as truly passive income.

Then the conversation turns to losing his fat...

For decades, skilled trades were often treated as Plan B while college was sold as the path to success. That equation may be changing fast.

Electrical-industry sales professional Esteban Legarea joins Jim for a conversation about AI and the future of blue-collar work, college debt, learning through experience, building customer relationships, the realities of sales, and accidentally discovering a career he never knew existed. Esteba...

What happens after an autistic child grows up?

Meredith Pettigrew joins Jim McCarthy for a candid, funny and deeply human conversation about supporting autistic adults—and why a meaningful life can't always be measured by a traditional job or career.

Meredith shares her journey from public-school teacher to leading Autism Career Training, an organization now expanding its mission toward Autism Community Training. The change ref...

Is the American Dream of homeownership still alive?

Mortgage professional Daniel Cruz joins Jim McCarthy for a candid conversation about today's housing market, interest rates, first-time buyers and why “it's always a good time to buy” isn't necessarily good advice.

Daniel explains why your first house probably shouldn't be your dream house, what future buyers can do now to improve their chances of qualifying, when refina...

Rebecca Jacobs of eSpaces sits down with host Jim McCarthy to break down the evolution of shared office space, from scrappy entrepreneurs fleeing coffee shops to corporate satellite teams needing turnkey suites. They talk about the “one price, one bill” model, building real community in office spaces, expanding into Atlanta, plus hard-earned leadership lessons from years in big-box retail.

You’ll hear behind-the-sc...

In this episode of the Mostly Middle Tennessee Business Podcast, Jim McCarthy sits down with Nashville-area commercial real estate pro and project manager Katelin Ford (Four Points Business, SVN Excel). Katelin unpacks her journey from MTSU sports broadcasting to CMT live shows and Discovery’s HGTV/Travel Channel universe, through layoffs, COVID, and mandates, and into a new chapter helping business owners with property, book...

Luxury spec building can make or break you. Nashville-area builder and developer Josh Hein of Hein Properties joins Jim McCarthy to unpack the real numbers, lender games, rezoning battles, and mindset it takes to survive – and win – in the high-end custom and spec home space. From Tennessee rock and septic nightmares to mid-construction refis and village-style master-planned communities, this is a masterclass for builde...

Nashville wellness entrepreneur Scott Crosbie of Next Health joins Jim to break down the booming longevity space: GLP-1s, peptides, red light, cryotherapy, hyperbaric oxygen, hormone therapy, and why “wellness” is about to go as mainstream as gyms. From franchising and staffing two high-end clinics in the Gulch and Green Hills to practical advice on labs, protein, and biohacking for real people, this episode connects cu...

Entrepreneur and pastor to founders Nick Cavuoto joins Jim to unpack grit, faith, and rebuilding after losing a million dollars in revenue, from growing a megachurch to coaching owner-led businesses through their “evolution,” not crisis.

Timestamps:
02:40 – Middle Tennessee business owners “going through the mud”
03:50 – Nick’s origin story: drug dealing, Jesus, and an entrepreneur...

Host Jim McCarthy sits down with fellow producer and host Nick Hiter (The Hit Streak, The Hit Lab) for a long‑form, no‑BS conversation on the business of podcasting, building real relationships, and leading with faith and family.

They dive into everything from pricing your show like a pro and filtering guests, to why short‑form content exploded, what’s broken in traditional media, and how podcasting became the ultimate net...

In this episode of the Mostly Middle Tennessee Business Podcast, Jim McCarthy sits down with songwriter and artist Jared Rogers, nephew of Kenny Rogers, for a fast-moving, story-packed conversation. They dive into how AI is changing songwriting, why listeners will crave “imperfect” human music, what Jared learned directly from Kenny, and how artists can still stand out in a streaming, algorithm-driven world. Along the w...

In this episode of the Mostly Middle Tennessee Business Podcast, Jim McCarthy sits down with HR and recruiting pro Ashley Pack, founder of Four Point People, to talk about how small and mid-sized businesses can finally fix their hiring, retention, and culture problems.

Ashley shares how she went from teaching to transportation to making 200 cold calls a day during the pandemic, then into payroll and now running a recruiting and frac...

Rebecca Ruiz runs Superior Washing Services, homeschools nine kids, and is still showing up to 7 AM BNI with energy. In this episode we talk about choosing trades and entrepreneurship over the traditional college path, the reality of six-figure student loan debt, raising entrepreneurial kids, and scaling a blue-collar service business in Middle Tennessee.
We also dive into work-life balance, hiring challenges, and what it really...

Publicist and entertainment manager Cathy Cardenas joins the Mostly Middle Tennessee Business Podcast to unpack how real PR works in 2024: word-of-mouth over ads, picking the right clients, protecting reputations in the internet age, and keeping faith at the center through brutal personal seasons.

Cathy and Jim swap radio war stories, talk about WWE and NFL stars, dig into hard lessons from bad clients, and break down what it actual...

John Myers of Alliance Family Services joins Jim to talk candidly about faith, church hurt, and the hard conversations around abortion and real-world ministry.

They dive into John’s journey from missionary kid to youth pastor to working with Alliance Women’s Clinic, why honesty and trust matter more than polished church branding, and how men must step up in the pro‑life conversation. Jim shares deeply personal stories ab...

Jim McCarthy sits down with Babcox Media’s Brian Ankney to talk about how a 106-year-old automotive media company keeps reinventing itself with video, AI search, and niche-focused content. They dive into the real future of car dealerships, F&I, EVs, and what “good” selling actually looks like in 2026.

If you’re in automotive, real estate, or any small business that lives on leads and relationships, th...