DARE TO BE DIFFERENT
A new school of thought.
Moving your business from where it is now to where you want it to be is one of the greatest quests of being a leader.
Most leaders don’t really give this the time and focus needed to make their businesses great.
They follow the old outdated way of leading and growing their businesses because it feels easier.
But you and your business can be so much more.
We imagine a world where leaders KNOW how to build businesses that DO more than make a profit.
They make a positive impact on people, communities and the planet.
They dare to be different.
Meet the Mavericks ✊
Recent Episodes
334
Sept. 3, 2026
#331 Dr Michael Filosi Post-Exit Founder and Dentist - From Dentist to Hospitality-Driven Business Owner
Michael interviews Australian dentist Michael Filosi about applying counterintuitive, hospitality-centered ideas to dentistry to break industry norms. Filosi bought a rundown dental practice and, after realizing he couldn’t be the best clinician, pivoted—drawing on Good to Great’s hedgehog concept—toward building the best dental practice by focusing on business ownership, high standards, and patient experience. He gradually stepped off clinical work over 2–3 years (from four days a week to zero
333
Aug. 20, 2026
#330 Brandon Hussey VP Hospitality Management at Fathom Companies - How AI Can Strengthen Hospitality Culture
Michael and Brandon discuss the intersection of AI and culture in hospitality, arguing AI can strengthen culture by removing routine work so teams can focus on human guest experiences. Brandon shares his career path from line-level resort roles to leading Fathom’s hotel management arm within a Maine-based real estate development firm focused on adaptive reuse and “sense of place” upscale soft-brand projects across Marriott, Hilton, and independents. Fathom operates or develops seven hotels, ty
332
Aug. 6, 2026
#329 Pete Hurley Founder at Well Seasoned - Fractional Leadership in Hospitality
Michael and Pete Hurley discuss how hospitality organizations may shift away from large full-time head offices toward fractional and project-based senior talent to improve flexibility, innovation, and profitability amid tight margins and job insecurity. Hurley shares his career from launching a hospitality tech startup in 2004 that evolved into a cultural-venue operator business he ran for nearly 20 years and sold three years ago, before moving into consultancy and noticing the growing “fractio
331
July 23, 2026
#328 Ruth Jacobs CEO & Founder of Certified Minds - Mental Health, Burnout, and Resilience in Hospitality and Beyond
In this episode, Michael introduces Ruth Jacobs, a registered mental health nurse and founder of Certified Minds, to discuss where mental health efforts in industry have landed and how to create behavioral, cultural, and systems change that builds resilience. Ruth shares her background in CAMHS and eating disorder inpatient care, her experience managing during COVID lockdowns, and how gaps in pediatric mental health training led her to train UK medical teams, schools, and workplaces using sim
330
July 9, 2026
#327 Yazz Abdulla CEO at Urban Hospitality - Discipline Over Emotion
In this episdode, Michael welcomes his longtime friend Yazz Abdulla, previously a guest during the pandemic to discuss food delivery and dark kitchens. They reflect on Copenhagen Street Food’s grassroots style, then focus on founder-led hospitality businesses: founders often stay emotionally attached, operate like self-employed workers, lack systems (ops, HR, marketing, supply chain), misunderstand cashflow, and fail to plan an exit; Yazz advises emotional detachment, self-leadership, disciplin
329
June 25, 2026
#326 Tom James Managing Director at Bill's - Putting Guest Happiness at the Center
Michael welcomes Tom James, to discuss winning in a hyper-competitive hospitality market through counterintuitive strategy and team buy-in. Tom shares his 30-year hospitality journey, joining Bill’s five years ago as operations director before becoming managing director, and describes the shift from an ops-only lens to leading cross-functionally with a two-year plan. Bill’s distilled 257 actions into one message—“everyone leaves happy”—and made guest satisfaction the core KPI, built from r
328
June 11, 2026
#325 Stephen Logue Consultant at Hospitality Blueprints - Why Cleanliness and Service Can Beat Food
Michael interviews Stephen Logue, an economist and former FMCG marketer who became marketing director at Berni Inns, founded a research-led consultancy, and later owned restaurants. Logue explains how market research identified five consistent drivers of restaurant success—cleanliness, service, atmosphere, food quality, and value for money—and how redesigning and standardizing Berni Inns (including work with Conran) lifted sales and won a Catey. He argues hospitality underinvests in service, e
327
May 28, 2026
#324 Sam Jett Executive Chef at Audrey - Appalachian Cuisine, Local Sourcing, and Circular Restaurant Systems
In this episode, Michael speaks with chef Sam Jett about building restaurants that serve communities, people, and the planet. Sam shares how he shifted from a planned healthcare path into cooking, credits McDonald’s for teaching standards and systems, and recounts formative time in Copenhagen kitchens including Relæ and Noma. After years as Sean Brock’s right-hand leader across multiple brands, Sam took over Audrey and refocused it on Appalachian heritage: removing luxury imported ingredients,
326
May 14, 2026
#323 Alexander Kjerulf Chief Happiness Officer at Woohoo Inc. - Stop Putting the Customer First
In this episode, Michael interviews Alexander Kjerulf, a former tech entrepreneur who founded a company in 2003 focused on happiness at work and has delivered talks and workshops in over 50 countries for clients including Microsoft, IKEA, IBM, Hilton, and Shell. They discuss research linking workplace happiness to higher productivity, creativity, retention, lower absenteeism, and stronger company results including profitability, growth, employer brand, and stock performance, alongside an ethica
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Recent Blog Posts
Nov. 30, 2023
Want to Go From Struggle to Success?📈: Harness the Power of Potent Questions.🔥
Dear Maverick, You love the hospitality industry, even on the days when it feels that it doesn’t love you back. Every day, you focus on doing right by your employees, guests, suppliers and the community in which you operate. Leading and operating…
June 1, 2023
What is success?
What is success? This question has been in my mind for some time. The late John Wooden has my favourite definition of what success is: "Success is peace of mind which is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you did your best to become …
Feb. 1, 2021
What type of hospitality industry do we actually want to create?
Hospitality and The Infinite Game is a podcast series focused on answering this seemingly simple question. Over the course of 6 episodes, Michael collaborated with David Chenery of Object Space Place to discuss the big ideas that might just set t…
About the Host
Michael Tingsager
CEO (Chief Energy Officer) and Founder
Michael is the host and creator of the podcast show.
He is a heart-centred and purpose-driven leader, who believes and lives by building businesses from the inside out. Businesses that create strong employee and customer experience and strong results. Over time this makes the business a force for good which can then positively impact all stakeholders.
He has been involved in food from the day he was born working in his mum and dad’s small restaurant group in rural Denmark.
He has 25+ years in food including 11 years at McDonald’s with roles at the head office in Denmark and UK.
Michael is deeply passionate about building strong cultures and relentless when it comes to finding the right people.
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