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Cut The Tie Podcast with Jeff Burningham

Jeff Burningham has lived on the front edge of success. Serial entrepreneur. Venture investor. Builder of billion-dollar businesses. A candidate for governor. A life defined by scale, momentum, and achievement.

Then the stage collapsed.

In this episode of Cut The Tie, Jeff shares how stepping away from business and politics forced him inward and why the rise of artificial intelligence has clarified what truly matters next. As machines take over more of what humans used to do, Jeff argues that the real work ahead is learning how to be.

This is a conversation about wisdom, presence, identity, and why the future will not be decided by smarter technology alone but by whether humans evolve alongside it.

About Jeff Burningham

Jeff Burningham is a serial entrepreneur, investor, and former candidate for Governor of Utah. He has founded and sold multiple companies across real estate and technology and has been an early investor in several high-growth businesses.

Jeff is the author of The Last Book Written by a Human, a reflection on humanity, wisdom, and the choices we face as artificial intelligence accelerates faster than our cultural and emotional frameworks.

In this episode, Thomas and Jeff discuss:

• Why Jeff ran for governor and what the pandemic revealed
• The “stage of success” and why it eventually falls apart
• Becoming a human being instead of a human doing
• Defining success as living in non-resistance to what is
• Why attachment to outcomes quietly drains meaning
• AI as a mirror reflecting humanity back to itself
• Why wisdom, not intelligence, is the real bottleneck
• How love becomes the only fuel that doesn’t burn out

Key Takeaways

• Doing more does not create fulfillment
  Presence matters more than productivity.
• Success without wisdom feels hollow
  Achievement alone cannot carry meaning.
• AI forces a human reckoning
  As machines advance, character and awareness matter more.
• Outcomes are tools, not identities
  You can pursue results without being owned by them.
• Growth often begins with deconstruction
  Sometimes the stage must collapse to reveal what’s real.

Connect with Jeff Burningham

🌐 Website: https://jeffburningham.com
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeff-burningham-15a01a7b/

Connect with Thomas Helfrich

🌐 Website: https://www.cutthetie.com
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomashelfrich
📧 Email: t@instantlyrelevant.com
🚀 Instantly Relevant: https://www.instantlyrelevant.com

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Cut The Tie Podcast with Matthew Person

What if most performance problems aren’t people problems at all?

In this episode of Cut The Tie, Thomas Helfrich sits down with Matthew Person, founder of Town Square Advisors, to challenge one of the most common assumptions in leadership: that disengagement, underperformance, or turnover is the fault of the employee.

Drawing on experience as an entrepreneur, executive, investment banker, and acquirer of businesses, Matthew explains why misalignment, not incompetence, is usually the real issue. He introduces the thinking behind the Square Management System, a practical framework for intentionally designing organizations that balance trust, autonomy, and accountability.

This conversation is for leaders who are tired of chasing culture trends, managing by exception, or feeling trapped between innovation and control.

About Matthew Person

Matthew Person is the founder of Town Square Advisors and the creator of the Square Management System. He has worked across small businesses, large enterprises, and acquisitions, giving him deep insight into what creates sustainable value inside organizations.

Matthew is the author of the forthcoming book The Culture of Alignment, which outlines a structured, actionable approach to building high-trust, high-performing teams by aligning people, systems, and decision-making.

In this episode, Thomas and Matthew discuss:

• Why labeling people as “bad employees” misses the real issue
• How misaligned systems create disengagement over time
• The flaw in copying “best places to work” cultures
• What organizational alignment actually looks like in practice
• Balancing constraint and freedom inside teams
• Why empowered micro-decisions increase speed and trust
• Designing companies people can succeed inside

Key Takeaways

• Most performance issues are system failures
  People struggle when environments are misdesigned.
• Culture must be intentional, not copied
  What works for one company may fail in another.
• Alignment creates trust and momentum
  Clear boundaries allow teams to move faster together.
• Autonomy needs structure to work
  Freedom without direction leads to chaos.
• Right people need the right box
  Fit matters more than labels.

Connect with Matthew Person

🌐 Website: https://townsquare-advisors.com/
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewdperson/

Connect with Thomas Helfrich

🌐 Website: https://www.cutthetie.com
💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomashelfrich
📧 Email: t@instantlyrelevant.com
🚀 Instantly Relevant: https://www.instantlyrelevant.com

Support the show

Serious about LinkedIn Lead Generation? Stop Guessing what to do on LinkedIn and ignite revenue from relevance with Instantly Relevant Lead System

Send us a text

Support the show

Serious about LinkedIn Lead Generation? Stop Guessing what to do on LinkedIn and ignite revenue from relevance with Instantly Relevant Lead System