I’m running on almost no sleep while we race toward the biggest opportunity Loud Proud American has ever had, and I’m not going to sugarcoat how heavy it feels. Between inventory debt, vehicle repairs, and family grief, I’m trying to find the silver lining and keep putting one foot in front of the other.
• juggling early mornings, parenting, and the reality of burnout
• preparing for a massive fair with new vendor requirements and costs
• breaking down why inventory is the hardest part of the apparel business
• explaining the vicious cycle of restocking, cash flow, and credit card pressure
• rebuilding the bus while deadlines slip and parts fail
• sharing a charity booze cruise DJ gig that turns from panic to a career highlight
• reframing discouragement by focusing on what failed at home, not on the road
• making the decision to say goodbye to our family dog
• grounding the whole grind in the life and experiences we’re building for our daughter
Find all things podcast related at www.share the shrugopodcast.com. If you're allowed Proud American and you find yourself to think more, find me on YouTube and Facebook and Loud Proud American on the Facebook. If you're a fan of the Grand Crackett, you want to find me on Instagram, Robbie Kids, a tickety talking on the TikTok, you can find me on both of those clouds underscore crowds underscore America.

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Join the 2% of Americans that Buy American and support American Together we can bring back American Manufacturing https://www.loudproudamerican.shop/
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Thank you for Supporting My American Dream!

A small business doesn’t pause just because the world gets loud. We start by pulling back the curtain on what life looks like right now for Loud Proud American: early mornings in Maine, daddy-daughter duties, piles of apparel to press, designs selling out at the worst possible time, and the stress of gambling on inventory before the biggest challenge in brand history, the Erie County Fair. On top of that, we’re rebuilding the bus again after brake and ABS problems, pouring more money into parts and repairs because the road still calls.

Then the tone shifts hard as we talk about the ICE agent involved shooting near my hometown and the protests that followed. I’m not here to pretend I have every confirmed detail, but I am here to call out what I’m watching in real time: media outlets that thrive on gasoline, local politicians chasing attention and votes, and a community getting pulled into chaos that shuts down streets and hurts nearby businesses. If you’ve been trying to understand the Maine protests, the immigration debate, and why national headlines feel engineered, you’ll hear exactly where I stand and why.

We also get into the online backlash my wife took after sharing a post asking why some deaths get riots and others get silence, including the fast jump to calling people “racist” instead of engaging the principle. From there, we talk outside agitators, performative outrage, and what “common sense” looks like when consequences are on the line. I close with the simplest standard I know: equal rights, equal opportunity, equal consequences.

If this hits home, subscribe, share the show with a friend who needs it, and leave a review so more people can find the conversation.

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Join the 2% of Americans that Buy American and support American Together we can bring back American Manufacturing https://www.loudproudamerican.shop/
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Thank you for Supporting My American Dream!

The truck says “Seek Fuel,” the schedule says “Be set up by 8,” and my body says “Go to bed.” That’s the tension running through Episode 315, where I finally answer the cliffhanger questions: did we make it to the show, how did we pull it off, and what did it cost us in sleep, stress, and pride.

We’re coming off eight straight weeks on the road as a small business owner, building Loud Proud American one event at a time while trying to keep family life steady. I break down the real logistics people never see: a borrowed trailer that breaks, a last-second axle repair, the loading shuffle, the six-hour haul with a two-year-old, and the brutal math of deadlines, traffic, construction, and fuel. Then the moment hits: the gas light, the wrong exit, and running out of fuel with a trailer in tow. Embarrassing, humbling, and weirdly eye-opening.

But the heart of the story isn’t the breakdown, it’s the people. Friends and family step in with skills, time, a place to stay, and even a gas-can rescue that gets us to the fairgrounds. We talk community, faith, gratitude, and why it takes a village not just to raise a kid, but to build a brand. You’ll also hear about Syracuse Nationals results, a private party at the “Lancifer Inn,” and a special connection with country artist Daniel Johnson.

If this hits home, subscribe, share it with a friend who’s grinding, and leave a review. What’s the moment you realized you couldn’t do it alone?

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Join the 2% of Americans that Buy American and support American Together we can bring back American Manufacturing https://www.loudproudamerican.shop/
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Thank you for Supporting My American Dream!

Everything is fine until the wheel falls off, the shipment misses the truck, and your calendar has zero open space to fix any of it. We are deep in the real-world grind of small business ownership, where event season does not care if your trailer is broken, your bus is down, or your best-selling sizes are wiped out. I walk you through what it looks like to run an apparel brand on tight timelines, why one vendor weekend can swing your whole month, and how a “make it work” decision can become the only decision.

We recap the Ospie Valley Fair from setup to teardown, including the kind of road problems nobody posts about: leaking toilets, overpriced proprietary parts, late dinners from a gas station cooler, and friends who show up at 9:30 pm with tools and solutions. Then we get into the sales reality, too: a record Thursday, slower traffic after that, and how one new race-inspired design plus loyal customers helped us finish the weekend up while most vendors reported being down big.

From there, it turns into a hard look at inventory management and shipping delays. I break down how I target new designs to specific events, what happens when I cannot finish a car show design in time for Syracuse Nationals, and how a delayed $4,000 restock order can put the next event at risk. We also touch what it feels like when national news lands in the next town over, and why the attention economy can turn local tension into a spectacle.

If you’re building a brand, running a booth, or just trying to keep your life from catching fire, this one is for you. Subscribe, share it with a fellow small business owner, and leave a review with the biggest timeline stress you are dealing with right now.

If you found value in today's show please return the favor and leave a positive review and share it with someone important to you! https://www.sharethestrugglepodcast.com/reviews/new/
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Join the 2% of Americans that Buy American and support American Together we can bring back American Manufacturing https://www.loudproudamerican.shop/
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Thank you for Supporting My American Dream!

The weekend starts with sweat, doubt, and that quiet question every small business owner knows too well: am I really building something here, or am I just burning myself out? I’m coming off America 250 and rolling into Episode 313 with a full recap of a blistering heat wave, a brand-new fair on the calendar, and a milestone I can’t believe I get to say out loud, six years of Share The Struggle and 313 consecutive weeks with you.

I walk through the real vendor life math at fairs and festivals: smart setup moves to beat the heat, the cost of fuel, the hours on your feet, and the gut punch of an eight-hour day that barely clears seventy bucks. But I also share the upside, the friendships you build on the road, the hospitality that restores you, and the moments with family that remind you why you chose the entrepreneur grind in the first place. And when Saturday turns into a surge of traffic, red-white-and-blue pride, and a sales day that crushes the goal, you feel that momentum click into place.

Then everything changes on the drive home. A borrowed utility trailer loaded with merchandise drops a wheel in my driveway because the axle snaps in half, and suddenly I’m balancing relief, gratitude, guilt, and a ticking clock with more events ahead. I break down what happens next, why this could have been so much worse on the interstate, and how I’m trying to find a replacement axle that may not even exist anymore without going fully custom.

If you like honest entrepreneurship stories, small business lessons, and the mindset it takes to keep moving when the plan blows up, hit play. Subscribe, share this with a builder in your life, and leave a review that tells me what part of the road life you want to hear more about.

If you found value in today's show please return the favor and leave a positive review and share it with someone important to you! https://www.sharethestrugglepodcast.com/reviews/new/
Find all you need to know about the show https://www.sharethestrugglepodcast.com/
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Join the 2% of Americans that Buy American and support American Together we can bring back American Manufacturing https://www.loudproudamerican.shop/
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Thank you for Supporting My American Dream!

Only 53% of voters say they’re proud of the country, and that number lands different when you’re staring down America’s 250th birthday. I open by reading the Declaration of Independence, then I get blunt about what it means to be free, to be grateful, and to choose growth when life is heavy. This is a July 4th mindset reset with teeth, not a Hallmark speech.

We talk through the pride gap and why it feels like the country is splitting into different realities. I break down capitalism vs communism in simple terms, why definitions matter, and why “opportunity” is not just a word, it’s the engine behind the American dream. I also pull in what I’m seeing around the World Cup and at the border: people from other countries recognize the value of America fast, even when we act numb to it.

Then I bring it home with real life: small-town Maine, banners honoring local military, fairgrounds lined with flags, and the kind of blue-collar patriotism you can feel in your chest. I share what it’s like building Loud Proud American from scratch, and the full-circle moment of vending at New Hampshire Motor Speedway and spotting strangers already wearing my gear. If you’ve been chasing a dream, this one is for you. Subscribe, share this with a friend, and leave a review with one thing you’re grateful for this Independence Day.

If you found value in today's show please return the favor and leave a positive review and share it with someone important to you! https://www.sharethestrugglepodcast.com/reviews/new/
Find all you need to know about the show https://www.sharethestrugglepodcast.com/
Official Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100077724159859

Join the 2% of Americans that Buy American and support American Together we can bring back American Manufacturing https://www.loudproudamerican.shop/
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Thank you for Supporting My American Dream!

Father’s Day didn’t just make us miss our dad. It exposed a fear we’d been carrying quietly for two years: what if he wouldn’t be proud of who we’ve become under pressure?

We talk honestly about the weight of trying to do it all at once running a small business and building a brand, being a husband, learning fatherhood, and taking on the responsibilities our dad used to handle without complaint. Grief doesn’t always look like tears. Sometimes it looks like doubt, anxiety, and that looping question you can’t shut off: “Is he still proud of me?” Living on family land surrounded by reminders of him made it harder to escape the noise in our head.

Then we share the moment everything shifted. We asked for help because we couldn’t keep going without answers, and a medium reading with Melissa from Roots of the Soul gave us something we didn’t expect: specific validation, real comfort, and a message that cut through the fear. We talk about faith, baptism, trusting God’s plan, and the practical guidance we took from that conversation: stop carrying everything alone, celebrate small victories, and remember what matters most.

If you’re dealing with bereavement, depression, financial stress, or the loneliness of becoming the parent you wish you still had, this one is for you. Subscribe, share it with a friend who needs hope, and leave a review with the question you’d ask someone you miss.

If you found value in today's show please return the favor and leave a positive review and share it with someone important to you! https://www.sharethestrugglepodcast.com/reviews/new/
Find all you need to know about the show https://www.sharethestrugglepodcast.com/
Official Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100077724159859

Join the 2% of Americans that Buy American and support American Together we can bring back American Manufacturing https://www.loudproudamerican.shop/
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Thank you for Supporting My American Dream!

Four hours from home, a brand-new fair, and a plan that looked simple on paper. Then reality hit: 90-degree heat, a solo tent setup, black flies so thick they sounded like rain, and four nights trying to sleep in the back of a Yukon because the camper wasn’t an option. We’re telling the whole road story from Springfield, Maine, from the small-town moments that restore your faith in people to the kind of setbacks that make you question why you even signed up.

Along the way, we break down how we choose vendor events and fairs using a “checkbox” system, and why there’s an even bigger internal checklist that matters more than sales. When you’re building a small business, chasing an American dream, and trying to provide for your family, discomfort becomes data. The sacrifice, the commitment, the decision to stay open when it’s slow, and the ability to adapt when the weather turns are what prove you’re serious. We also talk about customer service, staying grounded, and why being part of something early, whether it’s a growing fair or a growing brand, creates its own kind of pride.

The weekend starts rough, gets wetter, and nearly turns into a morale breaker. Then the comeback shows up: Saturday and Sunday flip the whole result, beating last year’s numbers, and reminding us why resilience and faith belong in the same sentence. We close with the late-night pack-up, the dangerous exhaustion on the drive home, making it back for my wife’s birthday, and a look ahead to the Maine State Moose Lottery event at the Acton Fairgrounds.

If the story hits home, subscribe, share it with a friend who’s in grind mode, and leave a review so more people find Share the Struggle Podcast.

If you found value in today's show please return the favor and leave a positive review and share it with someone important to you! https://www.sharethestrugglepodcast.com/reviews/new/
Find all you need to know about the show https://www.sharethestrugglepodcast.com/
Official Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100077724159859

Join the 2% of Americans that Buy American and support American Together we can bring back American Manufacturing https://www.loudproudamerican.shop/
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Thank you for Supporting My American Dream!