Have a question or thought for Mista Yu? Text or leave a voicemail for the show and he’ll answer it personally on the Inspiration Station or They Call Me Mista Yu. With your Permission, We'll even play your message live on the air!

If you’ve ever realized you can name every streaming service but not the people living two doors down, this conversation is for you. We’re talking about “the people in your neighborhood” and the uncomfortable truth that modern life can turn us into strangers sharing a street. I pull from my Brooklyn upbringing to challenge the mindset that says survival means staying uninvolved, then I ask a question that hits home: do you actually live in a neighborhood, or do you just live near people?

We get practical by breaking down the personality types that show up in every community and every workplace: loyalists who need predictability, explorers who chase the road less traveled, dreamers with big inner worlds, complainers who magnify offense, peacekeepers who want everything “normal” again, visionaries who see tomorrow before anyone else does, and compromisers who avoid choosing until it’s too late. Understanding these patterns can change how you lead, how you communicate, and how you protect your relationships without losing your compassion.

Then we go deeper into acceptance, judgment, and the habit of looking for outcomes in people or things that cannot provide them. If you’re trying to build a stronger community, a healthier mindset, and a life that actually grows, this one will challenge you and give you language for what you’ve been sensing. Subscribe, share this with a neighbor or a friend, and leave a review with the personality type you think you are.

Our team will choose random (but timely) episodes from our previous three seasons (which are our most popular ever!) to share with our listeners during the slower parts of a long podcast season. We think you will enjoy them! Thanks for listening!

Coffee aficionados and Health Conscious listeners, our show has some new sponsors and they’re offering you the best discounts their stores have. Links are below. Start saving now!

Quantum Squares: Support the show

Are you a guest with a message of hope and faith, overcome tragedy and addiction, creativity, invention, or you just have questions about society and culture? The “They Can Me Mista Yu” brand of podcasts is looking for guests!

Book your interview today: https://www.joinpodmatch.com/theycallmemistayu

Give the shows a listen: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/they-call-me-mista-yu/id1535535535

Faith. Society & Culture. Your Inspirational Stories. Mental Health. Entrepreneurship. We talk about what matters to you!

Join Mista Yu across our shows:

🎙 Inspiration Station

🎙 They Call Me Mista Yu

🎙 One on One With Mista Yu

🎙 The Men’s Roundtable Series / MRTS Interview Spotlight

If you would like to support the show, here’s how you can do that: https://www.patreon.com/cw/theycallmemistayu and https://buymeacoffee.com/theycallmemistayu

Have a question or thought for Mista Yu? Text or leave a voicemail for the show and he’ll answer it personally on the Inspiration Station or They Call Me Mista Yu. With your Permission, We'll even play your message live on the air!

You hear “socialism” and “fascism” thrown around like everyone agrees on the definitions, but most of us are arguing past each other. We sit down with economic policy expert and author Doug Cardell to get painfully clear on terms people use every day and rarely define. Doug explains socialism as government ownership of the means of production and property, why Nordic countries are better described as capitalist social democracies, and why communism is more myth than lived reality.

From there we dig into the real fear: drifting into a controlled economy by accident because the slogans sound compassionate while the incentives stay hidden. Doug lays out two big failure points. First, human nature: systems that assume saintly behavior break fast. Second, the economics: planning requires prediction, and prediction is weak. He shares a striking example of forecasts landing around coin-flip accuracy, then connects it to a simple truth about a global economy: nobody can reliably “read the minds” of billions of buyers.

We also talk about why definitions are getting muddier, what to do when dictionaries and the internet disagree, and how to build your own media literacy without becoming cynical. The conversation ends on a sharper, more hopeful idea of capitalism: stop obsessing over “working for a living” and start thinking about creating value for other people. Along the way we touch income inequality, per capita GDP, the decline in extreme poverty, and why innovators like Bezos, Gates, and Musk are better understood through the value they create than the wealth they hold.

Subscribe for more conversations like this, share the episode with a friend who loves policy debates, and leave a review with your biggest takeaway.

Our team will choose random (but timely) episodes from our previous three seasons (which are our most popular ever!) to share with our listeners during the slower parts of a long podcast season. We think you will enjoy them! Thanks for listening!

Coffee aficionados and Health Conscious listeners, our show has some new sponsors and they’re offering you the best discounts their stores have. Links are below. Start saving now!

Quantum Squares: Support the show

Are you a guest with a message of hope and faith, overcome tragedy and addiction, creativity, invention, or you just have questions about society and culture? The “They Can Me Mista Yu” brand of podcasts is looking for guests!

Book your interview today: https://www.joinpodmatch.com/theycallmemistayu

Give the shows a listen: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/they-call-me-mista-yu/id1535535535

Faith. Society & Culture. Your Inspirational Stories. Mental Health. Entrepreneurship. We talk about what matters to you!

Join Mista Yu across our shows:

🎙 Inspiration Station

🎙 They Call Me Mista Yu

🎙 One on One With Mista Yu

🎙 The Men’s Roundtable Series / MRTS Interview Spotlight

If you would like to support the show, here’s how you can do that: https://www.patreon.com/cw/theycallmemistayu and https://buymeacoffee.com/theycallmemistayu

Have a question or thought for Mista Yu? Text or leave a voicemail for the show and he’ll answer it personally on the Inspiration Station or They Call Me Mista Yu. With your Permission, We'll even play your message live on the air!

A single phrase can crack the silence around addiction: “There’s no shame in it.” That’s the heartbeat of our conversation with author Katie Rizzo, whose memoir The Trimesters of Grief was born from losing her 25-year-old son, Nicholas, to addiction. She explains why grief arrived in stages that felt eerily similar to pregnancy, and how writing became a way to think when her brain could not fully process what happened.

We talk plainly about the opioid epidemic and why families get trapped between panic and secrecy. Katie shares what it’s like to watch someone you love chase relief through pills, how anxiety and injury can become part of the pathway to opioid use, and why the “just try harder” narrative collapses when you look at relapse, brain chemistry, and the reality of addiction as a medical condition. We also wrestle with the hard question: how do you stay compassionate without erasing accountability, especially when the stakes are life and death?

Katie also opens a window into Love in the Trenches, a writers group for parents who have lost a child to addiction, and the stark beauty of being real with people who understand. We discuss how shame keeps deaths hidden, how men often grieve in silence, and why telling the truth publicly can be a form of prevention. If you care about mental health, grief support, addiction recovery, and ending stigma, this conversation will stay with you.

Subscribe for more stories like this, share the episode with someone who needs it, and leave a review so more listeners can find the show.

Our team will choose random (but timely) episodes from our previous three seasons (which are our most popular ever!) to share with our listeners during the slower parts of a long podcast season. We think you will enjoy them! Thanks for listening!

Coffee aficionados and Health Conscious listeners, our show has some new sponsors and they’re offering you the best discounts their stores have. Links are below. Start saving now!

Quantum Squares: Support the show

Are you a guest with a message of hope and faith, overcome tragedy and addiction, creativity, invention, or you just have questions about society and culture? The “They Can Me Mista Yu” brand of podcasts is looking for guests!

Book your interview today: https://www.joinpodmatch.com/theycallmemistayu

Give the shows a listen: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/they-call-me-mista-yu/id1535535535

Faith. Society & Culture. Your Inspirational Stories. Mental Health. Entrepreneurship. We talk about what matters to you!

Join Mista Yu across our shows:

🎙 Inspiration Station

🎙 They Call Me Mista Yu

🎙 One on One With Mista Yu

🎙 The Men’s Roundtable Series / MRTS Interview Spotlight

If you would like to support the show, here’s how you can do that: https://www.patreon.com/cw/theycallmemistayu and https://buymeacoffee.com/theycallmemistayu

Have a question or thought for Mista Yu? Text or leave a voicemail for the show and he’ll answer it personally on the Inspiration Station or They Call Me Mista Yu. With your Permission, We'll even play your message live on the air!

Is your podcast actually helping your business—or are you simply creating more content?

In this episode of They Call Me Mista Yu, I sit down with Megan Dougherty, author of Podcasting for Business: How to Create a Show that Makes a Bottom-Line Difference For Your Company and co-founder of a podcast production agency specializing in profitable podcasts for small businesses, coaches, consultants, and specialized marketing networks.

Megan brings a strategic perspective to podcasting that goes far beyond downloads and audience size.

In 2021, her company developed the Business Podcast Blueprints, a framework for creating and optimizing podcasts around measurable business value.

We talk about what happens when entrepreneurs stop treating their podcast as simply a content channel and start treating it as a business asset.

In this conversation, we explore:

• Why businesses struggle to turn podcasts into revenue
• The difference between a popular podcast and a profitable podcast
• How to choose guests strategically
• Using podcast interviews to build relationships and partnerships
• Turning one episode into multiple pieces of content
• The most important podcast metrics beyond downloads
• How entrepreneurs should think about podcast ROI
• Why audience size isn’t always the most important metric
• How to build a podcast around an actual business objective
• What every entrepreneur should determine before launching—or continuing—a podcast

Whether you’re already podcasting, considering launching a show, or trying to figure out why your existing podcast isn’t producing the results you expected, this conversation offers a practical look at the business behind the microphone.

The Big Question

Is your podcast simply producing content—or is it producing business value?

Our team will choose random (but timely) episodes from our previous three seasons (which are our most popular ever!) to share with our listeners during the slower parts of a long podcast season. We think you will enjoy them! Thanks for listening!

Coffee aficionados and Health Conscious listeners, our show has some new sponsors and they’re offering you the best discounts their stores have. Links are below. Start saving now!

Quantum Squares: Support the show

Are you a guest with a message of hope and faith, overcome tragedy and addiction, creativity, invention, or you just have questions about society and culture? The “They Can Me Mista Yu” brand of podcasts is looking for guests!

Book your interview today: https://www.joinpodmatch.com/theycallmemistayu

Give the shows a listen: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/they-call-me-mista-yu/id1535535535

Faith. Society & Culture. Your Inspirational Stories. Mental Health. Entrepreneurship. We talk about what matters to you!

Join Mista Yu across our shows:

🎙 Inspiration Station

🎙 They Call Me Mista Yu

🎙 One on One With Mista Yu

🎙 The Men’s Roundtable Series / MRTS Interview Spotlight

If you would like to support the show, here’s how you can do that: https://www.patreon.com/cw/theycallmemistayu and https://buymeacoffee.com/theycallmemistayu

Have a question or thought for Mista Yu? Text or leave a voicemail for the show and he’ll answer it personally on the Inspiration Station or They Call Me Mista Yu. With your Permission, We'll even play your message live on the air!

Most people don’t lack talent, they lack the right connections and they misunderstand what connection even means. We dig into why a “connection” is not a magic button, it’s a doorway that demands follow-through, discernment, and responsibility. If you’ve ever felt stuck despite your skills, or frustrated watching someone with less experience move faster, this conversation will help you rethink what is really driving outcomes.

We unpack the gap between modern digital connection and real human bonds. Having Wi-Fi, a feed full of updates, and constant access to information can feel like being linked in, but it can also hide the fact that your relationships are thin, transactional, or even harmful. From business networking to mentorship, we talk about why introductions alone are worthless without trust, clear expectations, and the work that builds a real professional relationship.

Then we get practical and personal: how to vet who you connect with, why understanding terms and reading what you sign matters, and how association can shape your reputation even when you claim you “don’t agree with them.” We also reflect on what the pandemic revealed about our need for connection, including what isolation can do to mental health, and why we still have to choose wisely instead of connecting out of fear or convenience. A story from my past brings it all into focus and leads to three clear takeaways on influence, growth, and getting unstuck.

If this hits home, subscribe, share the episode with someone who needs a reset, and leave a review so more people can find the show. What is one connection in your life you need to rethink today?

Our team will choose random (but timely) episodes from our previous three seasons (which are our most popular ever!) to share with our listeners during the slower parts of a long podcast season. We think you will enjoy them! Thanks for listening!

Coffee aficionados and Health Conscious listeners, our show has some new sponsors and they’re offering you the best discounts their stores have. Links are below. Start saving now!

Quantum Squares: Support the show

Are you a guest with a message of hope and faith, overcome tragedy and addiction, creativity, invention, or you just have questions about society and culture? The “They Can Me Mista Yu” brand of podcasts is looking for guests!

Book your interview today: https://www.joinpodmatch.com/theycallmemistayu

Give the shows a listen: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/they-call-me-mista-yu/id1535535535

Faith. Society & Culture. Your Inspirational Stories. Mental Health. Entrepreneurship. We talk about what matters to you!

Join Mista Yu across our shows:

🎙 Inspiration Station

🎙 They Call Me Mista Yu

🎙 One on One With Mista Yu

🎙 The Men’s Roundtable Series / MRTS Interview Spotlight

If you would like to support the show, here’s how you can do that: https://www.patreon.com/cw/theycallmemistayu and https://buymeacoffee.com/theycallmemistayu

Have a question or thought for Mista Yu? Text or leave a voicemail for the show and he’ll answer it personally on the Inspiration Station or They Call Me Mista Yu. With your Permission, We'll even play your message live on the air!

What happens when keeping the peace means losing yourself?

In this episode of They Call Me Mista Yu, I sit down with Reese Wilson, author of The Black Cup, for a deeply personal conversation about self-trust, identity, survival, resilience, and finding your way back to your own voice.

Reese spent decades in a marriage where her perspective, worth, and abilities were repeatedly questioned. Over time, she learned to distrust her own judgment and became exceptionally skilled at keeping the peace—even when doing so meant silencing herself.

Her story became the foundation for The Black Cup, a seemingly ordinary story that unfolds into something much bigger: a journey through survival, self-discovery, and triumph.

In this conversation, we explore:

• How capable people can slowly lose trust in themselves
• The hidden cost of constantly keeping the peace
• Recognizing when you've abandoned your own voice
• Why intelligent, strong women can still struggle with self-doubt
• Rebuilding confidence after prolonged emotional erosion
• The difference between peace and simply avoiding conflict
• Learning to trust your instincts again
• Finding identity after a major life transition
• Using storytelling to make sense of difficult experiences
• Rediscovering joy after loss
• Making sense of chaos without being defined by it
• Finding the courage to ask, "What's next?"

Reese brings an important perspective to a conversation that reaches far beyond one person's story.

Sometimes the hardest person to hear is yourself.

And sometimes rebuilding your life begins with something deceptively simple:

learning to trust your own voice again.

Our team will choose random (but timely) episodes from our previous three seasons (which are our most popular ever!) to share with our listeners during the slower parts of a long podcast season. We think you will enjoy them! Thanks for listening!

Coffee aficionados and Health Conscious listeners, our show has some new sponsors and they’re offering you the best discounts their stores have. Links are below. Start saving now!

Quantum Squares: Support the show

Are you a guest with a message of hope and faith, overcome tragedy and addiction, creativity, invention, or you just have questions about society and culture? The “They Can Me Mista Yu” brand of podcasts is looking for guests!

Book your interview today: https://www.joinpodmatch.com/theycallmemistayu

Give the shows a listen: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/they-call-me-mista-yu/id1535535535

Faith. Society & Culture. Your Inspirational Stories. Mental Health. Entrepreneurship. We talk about what matters to you!

Join Mista Yu across our shows:

🎙 Inspiration Station

🎙 They Call Me Mista Yu

🎙 One on One With Mista Yu

🎙 The Men’s Roundtable Series / MRTS Interview Spotlight

If you would like to support the show, here’s how you can do that: https://www.patreon.com/cw/theycallmemistayu and https://buymeacoffee.com/theycallmemistayu

Have a question or thought for Mista Yu? Text or leave a voicemail for the show and he’ll answer it personally on the Inspiration Station or They Call Me Mista Yu. With your Permission, We'll even play your message live on the air!

Success isn't always the finish line.

Sometimes it's the beginning of a much deeper question.

In this episode of They Call Me Mista Yu, I sit down with author, entrepreneur, educator, and storyteller Nataliya Falevich for a powerful conversation about identity, reinvention, creativity, and the courage to outgrow the life that once fit.

After immigrating from Russia, earning three master's degrees, building a thriving education business, and raising three children, Nataliya reached a place many aspire to—only to discover that external success doesn't always create internal peace.

Together, we discuss:

• Why success can sometimes hide misalignment
• The courage required to reinvent yourself
• Listening to the wisdom of your body
• Vulnerability as a path to freedom
• Creativity as a lifelong practice
• How to recognize when you've outgrown your current season
• Living a life that feels authentic—not just impressive

If you've ever wondered whether there's more waiting for you beyond achievement, this conversation will challenge and encourage you to take an honest look at the person you're becoming.

Our team will choose random (but timely) episodes from our previous three seasons (which are our most popular ever!) to share with our listeners during the slower parts of a long podcast season. We think you will enjoy them! Thanks for listening!

Coffee aficionados and Health Conscious listeners, our show has some new sponsors and they’re offering you the best discounts their stores have. Links are below. Start saving now!

Quantum Squares: Support the show

Are you a guest with a message of hope and faith, overcome tragedy and addiction, creativity, invention, or you just have questions about society and culture? The “They Can Me Mista Yu” brand of podcasts is looking for guests!

Book your interview today: https://www.joinpodmatch.com/theycallmemistayu

Give the shows a listen: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/they-call-me-mista-yu/id1535535535

Faith. Society & Culture. Your Inspirational Stories. Mental Health. Entrepreneurship. We talk about what matters to you!

Join Mista Yu across our shows:

🎙 Inspiration Station

🎙 They Call Me Mista Yu

🎙 One on One With Mista Yu

🎙 The Men’s Roundtable Series / MRTS Interview Spotlight

If you would like to support the show, here’s how you can do that: https://www.patreon.com/cw/theycallmemistayu and https://buymeacoffee.com/theycallmemistayu

Have a question or thought for Mista Yu? Text or leave a voicemail for the show and he’ll answer it personally on the Inspiration Station or They Call Me Mista Yu. With your Permission, We'll even play your message live on the air!

What if the things that don't seem to fit together are actually what make your life interesting?

In this episode of They Call Me Mista Yu, I'm joined by Matt Savino—physicist, software developer, photographer, writer, former professional poker player, traveler, and self-described "modern dabbler."

Matt's career and life don't follow the traditional path.

After earning a degree in physics with a minor in creative writing, he spent years moving between Kansas City and San Francisco, trying stand-up comedy while working various jobs. At 29, a $78 investment in programming classes launched a software development career that eventually helped fund his passion for travel.

Photography became another chapter, beginning with a 2005 trip to Death Valley's super bloom.

Then came the Pan-American Highway.

In 2017, Matt launched a quest to drive from the top of North America toward Ushuaia, documenting the adventure through his Ushuaia Or Bust blog.

But the journey didn't unfold according to plan.

And that interruption ultimately became the foundation for his book, Land Without a Continent.

This conversation goes beyond travel.

We explore:

• Why curiosity can be more valuable than having a five-year plan
• The value of being a "modern dabbler"
• How seemingly unrelated experiences can become powerful combinations
• Taking unconventional paths without knowing exactly where they'll lead
• What a $78 decision can teach us about changing direction
• Creativity and the connection between writing, photography, and storytelling
• Why interrupted plans can sometimes produce better stories
• The difference between pursuing a destination and embracing the journey
• How travel challenges our assumptions about ourselves
• Finding meaning in experiences that don't initially seem connected
• Why it's never too late to explore a different direction
• What happens when curiosity becomes a way of life

Matt's story raises an important question:

What if your life doesn't need to make perfect sense while you're living it?

Maybe the skills you're developing today will matter somewhere you can't see yet.

Maybe the detour will become the story.

Maybe the things you're curious about aren't distractions from your life—they're pieces of it.

Our team will choose random (but timely) episodes from our previous three seasons (which are our most popular ever!) to share with our listeners during the slower parts of a long podcast season. We think you will enjoy them! Thanks for listening!

Coffee aficionados and Health Conscious listeners, our show has some new sponsors and they’re offering you the best discounts their stores have. Links are below. Start saving now!

Quantum Squares: Support the show

Are you a guest with a message of hope and faith, overcome tragedy and addiction, creativity, invention, or you just have questions about society and culture? The “They Can Me Mista Yu” brand of podcasts is looking for guests!

Book your interview today: https://www.joinpodmatch.com/theycallmemistayu

Give the shows a listen: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/they-call-me-mista-yu/id1535535535

Faith. Society & Culture. Your Inspirational Stories. Mental Health. Entrepreneurship. We talk about what matters to you!

Join Mista Yu across our shows:

🎙 Inspiration Station

🎙 They Call Me Mista Yu

🎙 One on One With Mista Yu

🎙 The Men’s Roundtable Series / MRTS Interview Spotlight

If you would like to support the show, here’s how you can do that: https://www.patreon.com/cw/theycallmemistayu and https://buymeacoffee.com/theycallmemistayu