Is it possible to make work actually fun without losing sight of business goals? Steve Carse thinks so—and he has the story to prove it. In this energizing episode, Brandon Laws sits down with the CEO of King of Pops to talk about how one humble ice pop cart evolved into a culture-first brand and what fun truly means in the workplace. They discuss how storytelling, ownership, gamification, and pride all contribute to a work culture that people love being part of. Whether you're a leader looking to revitalize your team or an employee wondering if fun has a place at work, this episode will shift your perspective and spark ideas.

🕒 Episode Timestamps:
00:00 – Intro: The power of combining HR + payroll with Xenium HR
01:00 – Meet Steve Carse and the origin of King of Pops
03:00 – Getting laid off and finding a new career path
06:00 – Starting a business with $7,000 and a dream
08:00 – Why fun at work starts with storytelling and vision
11:00 – The value of writing a personal or business narrative
13:00 – How to find joy even in the difficult, early stages of a business
15:00 – On career FOMO and staying present in the “good old days”
17:00 – Work-life blend, parenting, and evolving productivity
20:00 – Fostering a culture of ownership and trust
23:00 – Why pride at work creates loyalty (even when it’s illogical)
25:00 – Making monotonous work fun: The Frosty Creek Olympics
28:00 – Using gamification and play to motivate teams
30:00 – Shared struggle vs. traditional team building
32:00 – Actionable tips for creating a joyful workplace culture
34:00 – Revisiting King of Pops’ 2030 Vision
36:00 – Where to find the book and connect with Steve

A QUICK GLIMPSE INTO OUR PODCAST
🎙️ Transform Your Workplace, sponsored by Xenium HR
Host: Brandon Laws

“The Transform Your Workplace podcast is your go-to source for the latest workplace trends, big ideas, and time-tested methods straight from the mouths of industry experts and respected thought-leaders.” — Brandon Laws

About Xenium HR
Xenium HR transforms workplaces by providing expert outsourced HR and payroll services for small and medium-sized businesses. With a people-first approach, Xenium empowers growth by simplifying HR and creating environments where employees thrive. Learn more →

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Dr. Angela Jackson discusses her book "The Win-Win Workplace," advocating for moving beyond traditional zero-sum work environments to create workplaces where both employees and businesses thrive. She emphasizes listening to employee feedback, embracing whole-person identities, reimagining benefits, and fostering ownership mindsets to drive productivity, retention, and bottom-line success.

TAKEAWAYS

• Listen to employees regularly and act on their feedback to build trust and engagement
• Support the whole person by acknowledging employees' full identities and life circumstances
• Create personalized benefits that address real needs rather than generic one-size-fits-all packages

A QUICK GLIMPSE INTO OUR PODCAST

🔊 Podcast: Transform Your Workplace, sponsored by Xenium HR 🎙️

Host: Brandon Laws 📋

his own words: “The Transform Your Workplace podcast is your go-to source for the latest workplace trends, big ideas, and time-tested methods straight from the mouths of industry experts and respected thought-leaders.

About Xenium HR

Xenium HR is on a mission to transform workplaces by providing expert outsourced HR and payroll services for small and medium-sized businesses. With a people-first approach, Xenium helps organizations create thriving work environments where employees feel valued and supported. From navigating compliance to enhancing workplace culture, Xenium offers tailored solutions that empower growth and simplify HR. Whether managing employee relations, payroll processing, or implementing impactful training programs, Xenium is the trusted partner businesses rely on to elevate their workplace experience. Discover how Xenium can transform your workplace: Learn more

Connect with Brandon Laws:
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About

Connect with Xenium HR:
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This podcast episode explores how "radical listening" transforms leadership by focusing on intentional connection rather than performative techniques. Dr. Christian van Nieuwerburgh and Dr. Robert Biswas-Diener explain that radical listening requires internal quieting, purposeful attention, and genuine curiosity to overcome modern workplace distractions.

TAKEAWAYS

• Radical listening is an intentional act of connection that goes beyond traditional "active listening" techniques to build trust and influence.
• The Radical Listening Framework centers on positive intention, combining internal skills (quieting, noticing) with external skills (inquiring, acknowledging).
• Creating a listening culture requires self-awareness about when you feel heard and practicing appreciation-based listening without the intent to fix or solve.

A QUICK GLIMPSE INTO OUR PODCAST

🔊 Podcast: Transform Your Workplace, sponsored by Xenium HR 🎙️

Host: Brandon Laws 📋

his own words: “The Transform Your Workplace podcast is your go-to source for the latest workplace trends, big ideas, and time-tested methods straight from the mouths of industry experts and respected thought-leaders.

About Xenium HR

Xenium HR is on a mission to transform workplaces by providing expert outsourced HR and payroll services for small and medium-sized businesses. With a people-first approach, Xenium helps organizations create thriving work environments where employees feel valued and supported. From navigating compliance to enhancing workplace culture, Xenium offers tailored solutions that empower growth and simplify HR. Whether managing employee relations, payroll processing, or implementing impactful training programs, Xenium is the trusted partner businesses rely on to elevate their workplace experience. Discover how Xenium can transform your workplace: Learn more

Connect with Brandon Laws:
LinkedIn
Instagram
About

Connect with Xenium HR:
Website
LinkedIn
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
YouTube

Rob Shallenberger discusses his book "Do What Matters Most," explaining how implementing three key habits—creating personal visions, setting specific goals, and practicing pre-week planning—can dramatically increase productivity while reducing stress. These practices help people design intentional lives rather than defaulting to reactivity and chaos.

TAKEAWAYS

• Creating written personal visions for each key life role provides direction and meaning, transforming how you approach priorities (only 2% of people do this).
• Pre-week planning (spending 20-30 minutes weekly) allows you to accomplish 800-1,000 additional priorities annually with less stress.
• The "Do What Matters Most" matrix helps identify high-value quadrant 2 activities that lead to peace and fulfillment rather than constant firefighting.

A QUICK GLIMPSE INTO OUR PODCAST

🔊 Podcast: Transform Your Workplace, sponsored by Xenium HR 🎙️

Host: Brandon Laws 📋

his own words: “The Transform Your Workplace podcast is your go-to source for the latest workplace trends, big ideas, and time-tested methods straight from the mouths of industry experts and respected thought-leaders.

About Xenium HR

Xenium HR is on a mission to transform workplaces by providing expert outsourced HR and payroll services for small and medium-sized businesses. With a people-first approach, Xenium helps organizations create thriving work environments where employees feel valued and supported. From navigating compliance to enhancing workplace culture, Xenium offers tailored solutions that empower growth and simplify HR. Whether managing employee relations, payroll processing, or implementing impactful training programs, Xenium is the trusted partner businesses rely on to elevate their workplace experience. Discover how Xenium can transform your workplace: Learn more

Connect with Brandon Laws:
LinkedIn
Instagram
About

Connect with Xenium HR:
Website
LinkedIn
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
YouTube

In this bonus podcast episode, Brandon Laws catches up with Nicole Blevins, who recently returned from maternity leave and stepped into a new role as Director of HR Services at Xenium HR. Nicole candidly shares her experience transitioning to parenthood, the challenges of balancing work and family responsibilities, and the significance of paid family leave. Despite the challenges of returning to work in a new leadership position while adjusting to parenthood, Nicole emphasizes how the flexibility of remote work, supportive leadership, and her passion for her career have helped her navigate this major life transition!

A QUICK GLIMPSE INTO OUR PODCAST

🔊 Podcast: Transform Your Workplace, sponsored by Xenium HR 🎙️

Host: Brandon Laws 📋

his own words: “The Transform Your Workplace podcast is your go-to source for the latest workplace trends, big ideas, and time-tested methods straight from the mouths of industry experts and respected thought-leaders.

About Xenium HR

Xenium HR is on a mission to transform workplaces by providing expert outsourced HR and payroll services for small and medium-sized businesses. With a people-first approach, Xenium helps organizations create thriving work environments where employees feel valued and supported. From navigating compliance to enhancing workplace culture, Xenium offers tailored solutions that empower growth and simplify HR. Whether managing employee relations, payroll processing, or implementing impactful training programs, Xenium is the trusted partner businesses rely on to elevate their workplace experience. Discover how Xenium can transform your workplace: Learn more

Connect with Brandon Laws:
LinkedIn
Instagram
About

Connect with Xenium HR:
Website
LinkedIn
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
YouTube

In this Transform Your Workplace episode, host Brandon Laws interviews Dr. Rosalind Chow about her book "The Doors You Can Open." They discuss the critical difference between mentorship and sponsorship, with Chow explaining that sponsors talk about you to others while mentors talk to you directly. Using Kim Ng's MLB breakthrough as an example, Chow emphasizes how sponsorship requires trust and can take different forms. She explores how "good gossip" celebrates others' achievements, the importance of diversifying social networks, and challenges with meritocracy. Chow concludes that everyone can be a sponsor by connecting people they admire.

TAKEAWAYS

• Sponsorship differs from mentorship in that sponsors promote others through trusted networks, while mentors focus on personal improvement
• Social capital comes in "small town" (close-knit, values-aligned) and "big city" (diverse, innovation-focused) forms, with both being valuable in different contexts
• Everyone can be a sponsor by connecting admired individuals with others in their network, regardless of status or position

A QUICK GLIMPSE INTO OUR PODCAST

🔊 Podcast: Transform Your Workplace, sponsored by Xenium HR 🎙️

Host: Brandon Laws 📋

his own words: “The Transform Your Workplace podcast is your go-to source for the latest workplace trends, big ideas, and time-tested methods straight from the mouths of industry experts and respected thought-leaders.

About Xenium HR

Xenium HR is on a mission to transform workplaces by providing expert outsourced HR and payroll services for small and medium-sized businesses. With a people-first approach, Xenium helps organizations create thriving work environments where employees feel valued and supported. From navigating compliance to enhancing workplace culture, Xenium offers tailored solutions that empower growth and simplify HR. Whether managing employee relations, payroll processing, or implementing impactful training programs, Xenium is the trusted partner businesses rely on to elevate their workplace experience. Discover how Xenium can transform your workplace: Learn more

Connect with Brandon Laws:
LinkedIn
Instagram
About

Connect with Xenium HR:
Website
LinkedIn
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
YouTube

Jennifer Moss discusses her book "Why Are We Here? Creating a Work Culture Everyone Wants," exploring how the pandemic triggered a collective existential crisis about work. She emphasizes that meaningful workplace cultures can be built through small, intentional practices rather than major overhauls, focusing on hope, purpose, and community to combat burnout and disengagement in today's rapidly changing work environment.

TAKEAWAYS

• Building hope through regular goal-setting and celebrating small wins helps combat workplace anxiety and burnout
• Flexibility should be treated as a right rather than a perk, with organizations using "pull" strategies rather than mandates
• Creating community requires authentic connection through simple practices like 20-minute check-ins and positive colleague recognition

A QUICK GLIMPSE INTO OUR PODCAST

🔊 Podcast: Transform Your Workplace, sponsored by Xenium HR 🎙️

Host: Brandon Laws 📋

his own words: “The Transform Your Workplace podcast is your go-to source for the latest workplace trends, big ideas, and time-tested methods straight from the mouths of industry experts and respected thought-leaders.

About Xenium HR

Xenium HR is on a mission to transform workplaces by providing expert outsourced HR and payroll services for small and medium-sized businesses. With a people-first approach, Xenium helps organizations create thriving work environments where employees feel valued and supported. From navigating compliance to enhancing workplace culture, Xenium offers tailored solutions that empower growth and simplify HR. Whether managing employee relations, payroll processing, or implementing impactful training programs, Xenium is the trusted partner businesses rely on to elevate their workplace experience. Discover how Xenium can transform your workplace: Learn more

Connect with Brandon Laws:
LinkedIn
Instagram
About

Connect with Xenium HR:
Website
LinkedIn
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
YouTube

In this episode of "Transform Your Workplace," host Brandon Laws interviews Loren Sanders about her book "Empathy is Not a Weakness and Other Stories from the Edge." Sanders shares her journey from being a toxic leader to understanding the power of empathy in the workplace. She discusses how empathy strengthens trust, reduces turnover, and increases engagement, while offering practical strategies for leaders to develop their empathy muscle through self-awareness and intentional practice.

TAKEAWAYS

• Empathy isn't weakness or coddling – it's about listening, understanding, and aligning actions with both people and business outcomes
• Leaders should practice self-reflection daily and create psychologically safe environments where vulnerability is normalized
• Developing empathy requires recognizing blind spots, practicing mindful presence, and taking small, consistent steps toward greater awareness

A QUICK GLIMPSE INTO OUR PODCAST

🔊 Podcast: Transform Your Workplace, sponsored by Xenium HR 🎙️

Host: Brandon Laws 📋

his own words: “The Transform Your Workplace podcast is your go-to source for the latest workplace trends, big ideas, and time-tested methods straight from the mouths of industry experts and respected thought-leaders.

About Xenium HR

Xenium HR is on a mission to transform workplaces by providing expert outsourced HR and payroll services for small and medium-sized businesses. With a people-first approach, Xenium helps organizations create thriving work environments where employees feel valued and supported. From navigating compliance to enhancing workplace culture, Xenium offers tailored solutions that empower growth and simplify HR. Whether managing employee relations, payroll processing, or implementing impactful training programs, Xenium is the trusted partner businesses rely on to elevate their workplace experience. Discover how Xenium can transform your workplace: Learn more

Connect with Brandon Laws:
LinkedIn
Instagram
About

Connect with Xenium HR:
Website
LinkedIn
Facebook
Twitter
Instagram
YouTube