The Ty Brady Way

The Ty Brady Way Learn Ty Brady's tried and true formula for success in sales and life in this new podcast.

06/19/2026

On this episode of The Ty Brady Way, Ty sits down with Natalia Zacharin, founder of Zacharin Consulting, a multimillion dollar accounting firm she built from scratch starting at age 50 with no accounting degree, no clients, and no real plan. What she had was a need, a willingness to figure it out, and enough stubbornness to keep going when most people would have quit.
Natalia's story doesn't start with a passion or a calling. It starts with a divorce in 2012, a stretch of poverty, years of grinding through jobs that were slowly disappearing, and a conversation in a cafe in Annapolis, Maryland where someone she was dating said, almost offhandedly, why don't you just start your own business? She thought he was joking. He wasn't. She took a short course on starting a business, followed the steps, got her first client, and then went to work figuring out how to actually do bookkeeping. That's the whole origin story. No dramatic leap of faith, just a fork in the road and a decision to go left.
What followed was anything but easy. She worked full time while learning a brand new skill set from YouTube videos and books. Her first year in business she made $38,000 in gross sales. She spent the first three years fighting imposter syndrome almost weekly, asking herself why she was doing something she never wanted to do in the first place. The answer was always the same: it was working, clients were coming, and she had nothing to fall back on. So she kept going.
Ty and Natalia get into the three beliefs she had to break to get where she is today. The first was the negative self-talk that told her she was too old to start over. Every time that voice showed up, she learned to stop it in its tracks and ask whether it was actually being helpful. The second was the envy she felt scrolling through social media watching other people live the life she wanted. She flipped that story and started telling herself she already had that life, even when she didn't. Before long, she started actually having it. The third was the deepest one: growing up as a first-generation American with the belief that a woman's security came from a husband. She had no safety net, no partner to lean on, and no fallback. In hindsight, she says that was exactly what she needed, because it left her no option but to keep moving forward.
One of the most honest moments in this conversation is when Natalia talks about the 11 months she spent reaching out to people every single day and hearing no over and over again. She describes it as feeling like she was sinking further into an abyss with no sign of when things would turn around. She kept going anyway. That's the whole answer. She kept going.
They also get into how she built the business beyond bookkeeping. She did all the sales calls herself for years, and she kept hearing the same thing from business owners: I don't understand what these numbers mean. That pattern became fractional CFO services, which is now the core of what Zacharin Consulting does. She helps business owners stop looking at where they are and start seeing where they're headed, projecting six to twelve months out so they can make decisions before problems become crises. The tax and payroll services came later, both born out of frustration with industry gaps she kept watching hurt her clients.
Natalia's non-negotiables are worth noting: exercise with a personal trainer because she knows she won't show up for herself alone, sleep after years of running on fumes, hobbies and time with her kid on weekends, and getting her hair done, which is blocked on her calendar and visible to her entire team. She's not apologetic about any of it. You can't lead sixteen people if you're running on empty.
Her definition of success has shifted completely. It started as survival. Then it became about the quality of service she was delivering. Now it's about her team having real careers and real opportunities, her clients getting everything they deserve, and giving back to causes she cares about. The business is no longer just about her, and she's clear that's exactly how it should be.
Her closing message is simple: it's harder than you think it's going to be, and it's worth it. Find a room where you're the smallest business in it. And leave your ego at the door, because the goal is to keep hiring people who are better than you.

đź”— Connect with Natalia: ZacharinConsulting.com
🎙️ Follow along: with

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06/17/2026

On this episode of The Ty Brady Way, Ty sits down with Jeff Shafritz, a franchise consultant who has spent his entire career in franchising and has been helping people find the right business opportunity for over 20 years. Jeff started out selling season tickets for the Georgetown Hoyas, stumbled into franchise development at Athlete's Foot in Atlanta, worked his way up to Director of Franchise Development of the Americas, and then had the rug pulled out from under him on September 11th, 2001, thirteen days after his first son was born. He was in a new city with nothing lined up. That's when franchise consulting started, and he hasn't looked back since.
What makes Jeff different from most people in his space is that he doesn't think of himself as a salesperson. He thinks of himself as a matchmaker, closer to a buyer's real estate agent than a traditional sales rep. His job is to figure out whether franchising is even the right path for someone, and if it is, to find the specific opportunity that fits their goals, their skillset, their investment range, and the kind of life they actually want to live. He gets paid by the franchisor, not the candidate, and because franchising is regulated by the FTC, the fee is the same no matter how someone finds their franchise. Working with Jeff costs nothing extra and gets you someone in your corner who has no incentive to push you toward the wrong fit.
Ty and Jeff get into what actually separates elite performers from average ones in this business. Jeff's answer is simple: consistency and not chasing the deal. The people who burn out or wash out are the ones focused on closing something, anything, just to get paid. Jeff's whole model is built on doing right by the person in front of him, even when that means telling someone they shouldn't buy a business at all. He had that exact conversation recently with someone who had the money but not the motivation. He told them to walk away. That kind of honesty is what's built his referral base over two decades.
One of the most honest moments in this conversation is when Jeff admits that even he was terrified when he finally bought his own fitness franchise. He had spent his entire career helping other people through that anxiety, and then when it was his turn to sign, he froze. His wife had to sit him down and remind him that this was literally his area of expertise. It's a good reminder that fear doesn't care how much you know. It shows up anyway, and the goal isn't to eliminate it. It's to do the work, make the informed decision, and move forward anyway.
They also get into a conversation that a lot of parents need to hear: the real cost comparison between sending a kid to college who doesn't know what they want versus putting that same money into a low-overhead franchise. Jeff has worked with families spending $120,000 to $250,000 on a four-year degree for a kid who isn't sure what they want to study. For that same investment, someone could open a business, build real equity, and walk away four years later with something worth selling. He's not anti-college. He's pro-options, and he makes the case clearly.
The story that sticks from this conversation is a client Jeff worked with during the 2008 recession. The guy had lost a significant amount of money in real estate, had very little left, and refused to go work for someone else. Jeff helped him find an in-home senior care franchise. Within a few years, that business was generating serious cash flow and eventually sold for multiple millions of dollars. Jeff calls it a resurrection story, and it's the kind of outcome that keeps him doing what he does.
His message to anyone sitting on the fence about business ownership is straightforward: you don't have to figure this out alone, and you don't have to pay for the help. The conversation is free. The only question is whether you're ready to have it.

đź”— Connect with Jeff: FranchiseGuideGroup.com
đź”— Listener-specific page: podcast.franchiseguidance.com/ty
🎙️ Follow along: with

As always, we'd love to hear from you!
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06/12/2026

On this episode of The Ty Brady Way, Ty sits down with Scott Jones, a 30-plus year veteran of the franchise world who has sat on every side of the table. He's been a multi-unit franchisee across multiple brands, a franchisor, and a co-founder of a support services company that now serves about 80,000 franchised locations worldwide. If there's a three-sided fence in franchising, Scott's been on all three sides of it, and that perspective is exactly what makes this conversation worth your time.
Scott's entrepreneurial roots go back to his childhood dinner table. His dad was a corporate executive with an oil company who hit an inflection point when the company got acquired and relocation to Chicago was the only way to keep his job. He said no, walked away, and started building businesses. Scott watched all of it up close. He never had a job until he graduated college, was always creating something on his own, and didn't stay in the corporate world long before following the same path his dad had blazed. That early front-row seat to what entrepreneurship actually looks like, the good days and the hard ones, shaped everything that came after.
One of the most honest moments in this conversation is when Scott shares his real take on the franchise industry. Out of more than 4,000 unique franchise brands, he believes about half are absolute train wrecks based on unit economics alone. They don't have the support systems, the processes, or a game plan that gives someone a real shot at success. Another 40% are okay to good. That leaves roughly 10% that are truly exceptional. He knows that's not a popular thing to say in his industry. He says it anyway because it's the truth, and because his whole job is built on helping people find that 10%.
Ty and Scott get into the biggest mistake people make when looking at franchises: falling in love with the widget. I like this sandwich, so this must be a great business. Scott reframes the whole conversation by asking a different question: how are you going to measure any opportunity? The moment he asks that, nobody talks about sandwiches anymore. They start talking about quality of life, financial goals, what they want their life to look like in one year, three years, ten years. A business is a vehicle. The question is whether it's the right vehicle for where you're actually trying to go, and whether you're the right person to drive it.
The early mistake Scott owns is one a lot of founders share: he had to control everything and couldn't let go. It took a good mentor and some hard experience to recognize that his job wasn't to do all the tasks himself. It was to build people, develop systems, and create a culture where exceptional is expected and rewarded. He makes a point worth sitting with: average employees can hide in a large corporate environment. In a small business, they hurt you. The goal is to build a culture where people who think and work at a high level actually thrive, and where people who haven't operated that way before get the chance to discover they can.
The story that closes this episode is one Scott spoke about the day before recording. Two engineers, both in corporate jobs, came to him five years ago with a dream of eventually working their way out. The plan was to start a franchise, keep both jobs, and maybe in two years he'd be able to leave. They found a boutique fitness franchise in Alabama. He left his job in five or six months. Eight or nine months later they added a second business. A year ago they added a third. Their net worth has increased about tenfold over five years. She still works her corporate job by choice. They're now looking at buying the buildings their businesses operate in rather than leasing them. That's the outcome Scott is working toward every time he picks up the phone.
His closing message is simple and direct: don't settle. Too many people are stuck in a life they don't love because it's the thing they know. There are better ways. The only thing standing between where you are and where you want to be is the willingness to step outside what's familiar and find out what's actually possible.

đź”— Connect with Scott: FranchiseGuideGroup.com
🎙️ Follow along:

As always, we'd love to hear from you!
Email us at [email protected]
Or DM us on Instagram

06/05/2026

On this episode of The Ty Brady Way, Ty sits down with Ndzaba Mngomezulu, an art instructor and author from Eswatini (formerly Swaziland) who now lives in Brazil and is on a mission to help busy, discouraged adults fall back in love with drawing.
Ndzaba shares how growing up in an education system that pushed math and science over creativity slowly trained him away from art. The message wasn't always said out loud, but it was clear: certain subjects carried more weight, and art was treated as optional. For someone who genuinely loved creating, that kind of environment quietly chips away at what you believe is possible for yourself. So he spent years chasing music instead, buying gear, making beats, and thinking that was his path. It wasn't until a church service at the end of 2024 that he felt a clear pull back to drawing. He listened, went back to basics in January 2025, and watched his skills take off faster than he ever expected.
Ty and Ndzaba get into the real stuff: what it means to carry a gift you've been ignoring, why humility is the most underrated skill in business and in art, and how getting fired from a job he didn't even love turned into the exact push he needed to break into the gaming industry. You'll hear how seven months of uncertainty, a pregnant wife, and a Discord server led to an opportunity he never would have found if things had gone according to plan.
They also talk about the role AI plays in his business and why he sees it as a tool for filtering and efficiency rather than a replacement for real human connection. Ndzaba is clear that people are craving authenticity right now, and that the artists and creators who lean into that will have more opportunity than ever before.
Ndzaba also talks about what he's building with Art Creators Academy, a platform designed to take struggling artists from work they're ashamed to show anyone to drawing with real confidence. He's not just teaching technique. He's helping people give themselves permission to start again, and to stop waiting until they feel ready.
His message is straightforward and worth hearing: you are the most important investment you will ever make in your life. Not the investment someone told you to make. The one you already know you want to make. If you've been sitting on a creative passion and telling yourself it's too late or too impractical, this conversation is going to hit close to home.

đź”— Connect with Ndzaba: https://www.artcreatorsacademy.com
🎙️ Follow along: with Ndzaba.Mngomezulu

As always, we'd love to hear from you!
Email us at [email protected]
Or DM us on Instagram

06/03/2026

George Blackwell Smith said something every entrepreneur needs to hear.

You’re not going to have a big win every single day. That’s not how this works.

If you learned something new today and you did something with that learning, that’s a successful day. Full stop.

Progress isn’t always loud. Sometimes it’s just moving in the right direction, even a little.

The people who build something real aren’t the ones who wait for the windfall. They’re the ones who show up on the ordinary days and call growth a win.

đź”— https://theluckycajun.com/
🎙️ with

06/03/2026

On this episode of The Ty Brady Way, Ty sits down with George Blackwell Smith, the founder of Lucky Cajun Seasoning. George grew up in Chattanooga, Tennessee, moved to Baton Rouge for high school, and fell in love with the food. Not just the taste of it, but the way it made him feel. That curiosity led him to culinary school, years in restaurant kitchens, and eventually to building a seasoning brand from scratch out of his home during COVID.
George is the kind of builder who figures things out the hard way and is honest about it. He talks about the early days of navigating Tennessee cottage food laws just to get his first blend to market, spending a year trying to find a licensed kitchen he could actually afford, and learning quickly that chasing shelf space in big box stores was a lot of footwork for very little return. He made the call early to go direct to consumer and build the relationship with the customer himself. That decision has shaped everything since.
You will hear him get real about the failure that changed him most. He had to close a restaurant and file for bankruptcy. He says when it finally ended, something unexpected happened. His head got clear. All the things he should have done differently came rushing in at once, and for the first time in a long time he could actually think straight. He took that clarity with him and has been building differently ever since.
George also talks about what it means to create your own luck. He is not talking about wishful thinking. He is talking about the RAS, the part of your brain that only finds what it is already looking for. If you are not actively looking for opportunity, you will not see it even when it is right in front of you. He used that exact principle the day of this recording to find a new sales channel he had been overlooking for months.
And if you are trying to change your luck this week, he gives you three things to start with. Read self-improvement books. Build a simple morning routine. And make a short list of what actually needs to get done today, then go do it.
This one is grounded, practical, and worth your time.
🔗 https://theluckycajun.com/ 🎙️ with lucky_cajun_seasoning
As always, we would like to hear from you!
Email us at [email protected]
Or DM us on Instagram

The more you focus on what you can control, the more grounded you become. Small shifts can change the direction of every...
06/01/2026

The more you focus on what you can control, the more grounded you become.

Small shifts can change the direction of everything else. Dial those in and you stop wasting energy on things that don’t move your life forward.

That’s where real progress starts.

05/29/2026

Justin Ricklefs said if he had to start over...
no money, no network, here’s what he’d focus on first.

Get clear on who you serve.

Understand the exact pain they’re in. Know what it looks like when that pain is gone. Then connect with them on that pain and show them a clear path forward.

That’s it. No ads. No big budget. No fancy funnel.

Just clarity on who you’re for and the courage to speak directly to what they’re going through.

The first 90 days doesn’t require resources. It requires focus.

Full episode with Justin Ricklefs,
link in bio.

đź”— https://www.linkedin.com/in/justinricklefs/
🎙️

05/29/2026

On this episode of The Ty Brady Way, Ty sits down with Justin Ricklefs, founder of Guild Collective and author of Give a Damn: The Catalyst for Caring Companies. Justin spent eight years in the front office of the Kansas City Chiefs before walking away from corporate life to build something on his own terms. What followed was nine years of hard lessons, slow growth, and a lot of clarity about what actually matters in business and in life.
Justin opens up about the leader who shaped him most. A man named Clyde who ran Learfield Sports and somehow knew the name of every employee's spouse and newborn kid, even the ones making $27,000 a year. That kind of care left a mark on Justin early, and he has been building toward that standard ever since.
You will hear why Justin completely flipped on the idea of doing more. He used to chase every new service, every new opportunity, every next hill. Now he is ruthless about cutting, simplifying, and getting clear on who he actually serves. He talks about what Zig Ziglar called the "wandering generalist" versus the "meaningful specific" and why shrinking your focus is one of the hardest and most freeing things you can do in business.
Justin also gets honest about what success really looks like. His three core values, presence, peace, and purpose, are not just words on a wall. They are the filter he runs every decision through. He talks about what it means to feel wealthy without a big bank account and why the scoreboard can lie to you if you are not careful about what you are actually chasing.
And if you are building something from scratch, he gives you the first three things he would focus on. None of them are what most people reach for first. This one is worth your full attention.
đź”— https://www.linkedin.com/in/justinricklefs/
🎙️
As always, we would like to hear from you!
Email us at [email protected]
Or DM us on Instagram

The habits you repeat don’t just fill your days, they shape your future.What feels small today becomes something bigger ...
05/29/2026

The habits you repeat don’t just fill your days, they shape your future.

What feels small today becomes something bigger over time. The routines you keep are quietly building the direction your life is headed.

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