Working/Broken
Welcome to Working/Broken with Nick Richtsmeier and Brad Farris. Every episode, we examine a trend, bias, or hot topic affecting business leaders and ask the question: Is it working? Or is it broken? Much of what is broken in the world impacts our business and our leadership. We can’t fix all that, but we can learn to respond and lead differently. Business leaders have been hard-wired and trained to chase trends, follow conventional wisdom, and find any way possible to simplify the endless list of hard decisions they have to make. So the ecosystem of “hacks” and “best practices” fills to overflowing, leaving you at a loss for a sorting mechanism: What applies to you? Where have bias or assumptions skewed the gurus? What actually applies to you? The spectrum of what’s working and what’s broken isn’t fixed. It’s custom. To not just your situation, but you as a leader and what you’re bringing to the table. And while you try to follow the rules given to you, part of the magic of succeeding in leadership is knowing what’s for you and what isn’t. So come join us. We’re gonna laugh. We’re gonna challenge. We’re gonna wrestle. Together. ______________ Nick Richtsmeier is a catalyst for change in organizations that rely on trust to deliver their services. If your advisory, education, or professional services firm needs to accelerate growth, visit CultureCraft.com to find out how he can craft a growth strategy that’s made for you. Brad Farris coaches leaders of creative professional firms to become the people they need to be to lead the agency they aspire to grow. Find out more at AnchorAdvisors.com You can find additional resources at WorkingBroken.com. If you liked what you heard this week, you could do us a solid and (1) subscribe so we see you here next time, (2) share cause friends don't let friends work broken, and (3) give us that infamous 5 STAR review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify or wherever you are consuming us today.
Episodes
In this episode, host Nick Richtsmeier sits down with Lexi Pasi, a PhD in Communication and expert in the field of AI, to unpack what’s actually happening to our attention, language, and selves in today’s online environments. Lexi brings academic depth, cultural critique, and personal insight to the conversation—exposing how platforms not only distort what we say, but who we become in the process.
Lexi and the hosts ex...
This episode isn’t about AI. Not really. It’s about the stories we tell ourselves about technology, power, and what we’re allowed to feel.
Nick and Brad take apart the myth of inevitability around artificial intelligence—specifically large language models (LLMs)—and ask who benefits from that myth. Spoiler: it’s not you.
Nick’s viral post about saying “no” to wearable AI at the dinner table sets the stage. What followed...
On this episode, we tackle a longstanding battle that has nearly boiled over: the role of college in career-preparation. Or, more specifically, why do hiring managers still require degrees for new roles? And should they?
The old biases persist: many hiring managers still view a degree as a shorthand for maturity, responsibility, and readiness. But with roles evolving fast and the shelf life of job-specific skills shri...
In this introspective and timely episode, Brad and Nick take on a deceptively simple question: Do we really own our ideas anymore?
Prompted by Nick’s recent experience of having his writing lifted and reposted—sometimes respectfully, sometimes not—the conversation weaves through authorship, digital ethics, AI scraping, and the deeper emotional terrain of publishing on the internet. What begins as a conversation about p...
In this wide-ranging interview style episode, host Nick Richtsmeier sits down with one of the most unexpected and impactful voices on LinkedIn in 2025: Nick Power, the marketer and writer behind a wave of unfiltered, politically-aware, and often hilarious posts that challenged the business-as-usual tone of the platform.
What began as a creative shift away from conventional “thought leadership” turned into something lar...
In this timely and unfiltered episode, Brad and Nick explore the increasingly tangled relationship between politics and work culture. They ask the central question: Has politics become so pervasive that it’s breaking our ability to lead, work, and think clearly?
Key Themes:
- The Blurring Line Between Culture and Politics: Brad and Nick debate whether culture is now downstream from politics or whether it's still ...
In this thought-provoking episode, Nick and Brad unpack how fear has traditionally been used as a primary tool in marketing and communication—from political campaigns and media to brand messaging. Drawing on personal experience in marketing and spiritual development, they challenge whether fear-based messaging is still effective or ethical in a world that's rapidly waking up.
Key Takeaways:
- Fear is a primal mot...
In this powerful and timely episode, Nick Richtsmeier and Brad Farris dive into the pervasive undercurrent of fear that’s shaping both politics and the workplace. From the physiological and psychological roots of fear to its impact on leadership, decision-making, and organizational culture, the conversation explores how fear manifests in leaders and teams alike.
Nick breaks down the classic "Four F's" of...
Authenticity had a good run, or so it may seem.
In this thought-provoking episode of Working Broken, hosts Nick Richtsmeier and Brad Farris dive deep into the concept of authenticity in a world increasingly dominated by artificiality, distrust, and digital noise. As they wrestle with the idea of being true to oneself in an environment filled with deception—fake resumes, spammy AI-generated outreach, and manipulated soc...
In this episode of Working Broken, hosts Nick Richtsmeier and Brad Farris explore the complex and often misunderstood topic of mentoring. Is it truly about passing knowledge from an experienced leader to a junior employee, or is it a two-way street that transforms both mentor and mentee?
Nick and Brad examine how business leaders struggle to delegate responsibilities effectively, often clinging to the idea that “no one...
In this episode of Working Broken, Nick Richtsmeier and Brad Farris take a deep dive into the world of cold emails—why they’re everywhere, why people swear by them, and whether they actually work. Spoiler alert: they’re not fans.
The conversation kicks off with a story about a salesperson convinced that blasting out 50 cold emails a day would bring in business. Months later? One booked meeting. That sets the stage for ...
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Have a business topic you want us to decide if it's working or broken? Have a question about the episode? You can email us at podcast@culturecraft.com.
In this lively debut of Working/Broken, hosts Nick Richtsmeier and Brad Farris dive headfirst into the world of hustle culture—tracing its evolution from the early days of knowledge work to today’s digital grind. With a mix of humor and sharp insight, they debate whether the “work harder” mantra truly paves the way to success or if it simply sets us up for burnout. Along the way, the duo dissects modern hustle icons l...
In this episode of Working/Broken, Nick Richtsmeier and Brad Farris peel back the curtain on the wild world of marketing metrics. They dive into how even the biggest advertisers are left scratching their heads—overspending on TV ads that mysteriously boost sales, while 30-50% of online clicks turn out to be fraudulent. With plenty of humor and hot takes, the hosts break down insights from Lindsay Slaby—the “CMO Whispe...
In this episode of Working/Broken, hosts Nick Richtsmeier and Brad Farris dive deep into the burning debate: Is it better to grow naturally, or should you aggressively scale your business? With wit and candor, they explore how the meaning of “growth” has evolved over time—from organic, sustainable expansion to the manufactured, high-speed push for scale that risks sacrificing client experience. Drawing on industry ins...
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