David Cowan had a skilled career in geographic information systems — linking data to maps, when he thought he’d try his hand at financial services. Instead of making more money, he made none.

Hard times quickly followed. In his early fifties, David found himself without a car, renting a single room to live in, and walking to a nearby McDonald’s where he worked the drive-thru window overnight. 

“You just can’t give up on yourself,” David tells host and award-winning journalist Dean Rotbart. This week, Dean and Monday Morning Radio debut The Comeback Project, an occasional series of profiles featuring great global comeback stories. 

Rallying from misfortune — be it financial, health, a relationship gone bad, a natural disaster, a violent crime, or any other variety of setbacks — may seem impossible in the moment. But as David’s story demonstrates, it is possible to rebound from the depths of despair and inspire others to do likewise.

Do you have your own comeback story to tell or do you know someone — a family member, friend, colleague, or neighbor — who rebounded after a major setback and can serve as an example to others?

Please send any leads for our Monday Morning Radiol Comeback Project to editor@shareyourcomeback.com.

Photo: David Cowan, The Monday Morning Radio Comeback Project
Posted: October 18, 2021
Monday Morning Run Time: 39:59

More than six million listeners worldwide tune in each week to hear Scott Jeffrey Miller’s On Leadership podcast, produced by Franklin Covey.

In his newest book, Master Mentors, Scott draws on interviews he’s conducted with his podcast guests — including Daniel Pink, Seth Godin, and Susan Cain — to offer tightly focused, transformative insights aimed at current and would-be leaders.

What overarching trait do the 30 mentors share? 

Host and award-winning journalist Dean Rotbart asked Scott the question, but Dean disagreed with Scott’s answer. Listen in, and see how you think about it.

Photo: Scott Jeffrey Miller, Master Mentors
Posted: October 11, 2021
Monday Morning Run Time: 50:26

For Your Monday Morning Radio Bookshelf:

Master Mentors: 30 Transformative Insights From Our Greatest Minds -- Scott Jeffrey Miller

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: 30th Anniversary Edition -- Steven R. Covey

Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us -- Daniel H. Pink

Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us -- Seth Godin

Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking -- Susan Cain

September Twelfth: An American Comeback Story -- Dean Rotbart

Chrysta Castañeda was a solo legal practitioner in Dallas when the legendary oil magnate T. Boone Pickens asked her to represent him in a decade-old business dispute involving investments he made in the three-billion barrel Red Bull region of West Texas.

After about three hours of deliberation, the jury awarded Pickens $146 million.

Host and award-winning journalist Dean Rotbart says he doesn’t know who is more impressive, Chrysta Castañeda for winning the case so convincingly or the late Boone Pickens, who was 88 years old when the trial began in November 2016.

This week Chrysta shares behind-the-scenes details of the lawsuit and the “real” Boone Pickens. She is joined by Loren C. Steffy who, with Chrysta, co-authored The Last Trial of T. Boone Pickens.

Photos: Chrysta Castañeda and Loren C. Steffy, The Last Trial of T. Boone Pickens
Posted: October 4, 2021
Monday Morning Run Time: 41:46

When he was starting out, Rob Cornilles founder of Game Face, Inc., had the unenviable task of selling season tickets to the Los Angeles Clippers, which at the time was the most forlorn franchise in the NBA. Who wanted to go to a Clippers game, when Los Angeles had the Lakers?

Yet, Rob soon figured out the secret to attracting sports fans and has gone on to train the sales forces of more than 300 other sports teams and a whopping total of 50,000+ sales executives and leaders.

Rob, author of “The Sales Game Changer,” shares some of his most effective techniques with host and award-winning journalist Dean Rotbart, including Rob’s SW-SW-SW-N philosophy - Dean’s favorite. 

As Rob notes, whether or not you think you’re in sales, you are.

Photo: Rob Cornilles, Game Face, Inc.
Posted: September 27, 2021
Monday Morning Run Time: 49:52

This week, our host, Dean Rotbart generated a lot of media attention over the past two weeks, including coverage in The Wall Street Journal, FORTUNE, and on NPR, among more than a dozen other news outlets.

Dean, a faculty member at Wizard Academy who coaches business owners and entrepreneurs on how to attract free publicity, took his own “Reputation Tool Chest” advice to produce an avalanche of coverage for his new book, “September Twelfth: An American Comeback Story.”

Of all his guest appearances on radio shows and podcasts, Dean favored his live Facebook and YouTube conversation with Charlotte Kosa, a West Coast journalist who has been broadcasting for more than 18 years. Listen in, as Charlotte and Dean talk about the 9/11 terrorist attacks and the resiliency of the Pulitzer Prize-winning reporters for The Wall Street Journal who covered the unfolding drama even though their own newsroom was destroyed that day and their dedication came close to costing some of the journalists their lives.

NOTE: September Twelfth: An American Comeback Story is now available as an eBook on Amazon. Download your copy today for only $29.95.

You can subscribe to Charlotte Kosa’ popular podcast, California Haunts Radio, here.

Photo: Charlotte Kosa, California Haunts Radio
Posted: September 20, 2021
Monday Morning Run Time: 1 Hour 23 Minutes

[Listeners to Monday Morning Radio can now purchase a copy of Dean Rotbart’s new book, September Twelfth: An American Comeback Story. Visit Gutenberg’s Store.]   

Joel Schwartzberg has two crucial pieces of advice for anyone tasked with making a presentation or giving a speech: 1. Have a point. 2. Get to it.

Surprisingly, many business executives, politicians, and non-profit leaders fail to heed those simple rules for effective speaking.

Joel knows what he’s talking about. A communications coach and the author of two books, his clients include American Express, Blue Cross Blue Shield, State Farm Insurance, and Comedy Central.

Using only three simple words, Joel tells host and award-winning journalist Dean Rotbart that anyone can become a more effective speaker. 

Oh yes, you won’t want to miss this: Dean reprises a portion of his Bar Mitzvah speech, just to see how Joel evaluates it.

Be sure to pick up copies of Joel’s books:

• The Language of Leadership: How to Engage and Inspire Your Team
• Get to the Point: Sharpen Your Message and Make Your Words Matter

Photo: Joel Schwartzberg, The Language of Leadership
Posted: September 13, 2021
Monday Morning Run Time: 46:16

Let’s play a game. We’ll call it Two Business Truths and a Lie. 

Which one of these three statements is false?

• Thomas Alva Edison said: “I never did a day’s work in my life. It was all fun.”
• Owners and CEOs who “let loose” in the office often lose the respect of their employees.
• One element of Google’s success as a company has been office Nerf-gun battles.

Playing games and encouraging others to have a great time at work is a passion for Dr. Bob Nelson, co-author of the new book, “Work Made Fun Gets Done: Easy Ways to Boost Energy, Morale, and Results.”

Dr. Bob, who has worked with 80% of the Fortune 500 companies, knows that office play is a serious business. This week, he and host Dean Rotbart go mano a mano to see which one of them has the finer-tuned lie detector. But don’t worry, it’s all in good fun.

[Listeners to Monday Morning Radio can now purchase a copy of Dean Rotbart’s new book, September Twelfth: An American Comeback Story. Visit Gutenberg’s Store.]   

Photo: Dr. Bob Nelson, Work Made Fun Gets Done!
Posted: September 6, 2021
Monday Morning Run Time: 54:38

[Listeners to Monday Morning Radio can now purchase a copy of Dean Rotbart’s new book, September Twelfth: An American Comeback Story. Visit Gutenberg’s Store.]   

Many companies don’t realize they are sitting on a mother lode of extremely valuable assets that they underutilize or don’t use at all.

The assets are customer purchase data and preferences, and unless companies use artificial intelligence — AI —  to effectively mine that data, they are missing out on an undeveloped vein of marketing gold. 

Raj Venkatesan is a professor of business administration at the University of Virginia and one of the nation’s most respected experts on using AI in marketing. Co-author of “The AI Marketing Canvas,” this week Raj shares with host and award-winning journalist Dean Rotbart his five-stage road map that any company can follow to reap AI riches.

Photo: Raj Venkatesan, The AI Marketing Canvas
Posted: August 30, 2021
Monday Morning Run Time: 38:12

With all due respect to Facebook and other so-called business change agents, the methods they use to innovate are really outmoded.

That’s the premise of Radhika Dutt, a teacher of entrepreneurship and innovation at Northeastern University. Dutt is a critic of the prevalent method used by most companies of rapidly launching a new product into the marketplace and then tweaking it time and again until they get it right.

In her forthcoming book, Radical Product Thinking: The New Mindset for Innovating Smarter, she maintains that shotgunning products out of R&D and then repeatedly tweaking them is akin to driving a fast car without having a roadmap or a destination.

As Radhika tells host and award-winning journalist Dean Rotbart, it’s the destination — i.e., which customers the product serves and why it will radically change their world — that needs to precede the development of innovative products.    

[Listeners to Monday Morning Radio can now purchase a copy of Dean Rotbart’s new book, September Twelfth: An American Comeback Story. Visit Gutenberg’s Store.]   

Photo: Radhika Dutt, Radical Product Thinking
Posted: August 23, 2021
Monday Morning Run Time: 39:42

Host Dean Rotbart recently conducted an informal poll of business owners and his social network friends.

What, he asked, is the one thing they would most desire more of? About 40% of those who responded answered “money.” Another 40%, however, replied that they wish they had more energy.

Dr. Amy Novotny, founder of the PABR Institute, which stands for Pain Awareness Breathing and Relief, says that over the past dozen years she’s helped countless clients — without caffeine, medication or surgery — address a wide variety of restrictive conditions, including a lack of energy.

More money, Dr. Novotny points out, may or may not buy you more energy. But more energy is very likely to help owners and professionals earn lots more money and check off other high-priority items on their wish lists.

[Listeners to Monday Morning Radio can now pre-order a copy of Dean Rotbart’s new book, “September Twelfth: An American Comeback Story.” Visit Gutenberg’s Store.]

Photo: Dr. Amy Novotny, PABR Institute
Posted: August 16, 2021
Monday Morning Run Time: 35:14