“For me, every time I fasted, the goal was to gain clarity on a specific aspect of the entrepreneurial journey—like the calling, who I understood God needed me to be,” says Samella Watson, tech entrepreneur and founder of BLCK. She joins Alex Raymond in this episode to share how faith and spirituality have been key to her growth, both personally and in business. Fasting, in particular, has been her way of quieting the external noise to gain focus and reaffirm her purpose as an entrepreneur.

Samella opens up about how this practice helped guide her during pivotal moments, such as the decision to shift BLCK from a short-term rental model to a membership-based home exchange platform—an approach that reflects her belief in making travel more accessible. How can aligning a business with deeper values, grounded in faith, create lasting impact? Samella believes it’s essential and shares how building a community of like-minded entrepreneurs has been a core part of that journey. Her story encourages us to think about how our own spiritual practices can shape both personal and professional growth, connecting our work to a larger sense of purpose.

Quotes

• “The reason I fast is to turn off the outside noise of the world because it’s loud—very loud. When you’re trying to do something that’s not physically in your face and you don’t know how to do it, it can be intimidating. For me, every time I fasted, the goal was to gain clarity on a specific aspect of the entrepreneurial journey—like the calling, who I understood God needed me to be. I needed clarity on that, and the best way to gain that clarity was to shut the world off as much as possible and be fully present, ready to receive insights.” (16:29 | Samella Watson)
• “I believe that because we’re in a climate where people are becoming more aware of the ‘bleasure’ lifestyle, it’s something that BLCK really wants to focus on. We don’t have to work our fingers to the bone or stay on this hamster wheel to be great, add value, and do awesome things.” (29:17 | Samella Watson)
• “Another area that I have focused on is mindset shifting. I had to dig through that with the spiritual part of it, but a lot of times, we don’t challenge our choices. We just assume we think a certain way for some reason. But once you start asking, ‘Why do I think that way? Where is this coming from?’ you can clarify things and become more authentically yourself. So, mindset shifting is huge.” (31:11 | Samella Watson)

Links

Connect with Samella Watson:

Website: https://samellawatson.com/

Website: https://theblck.io/

Connect with Alex Raymond:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/afraymond/

Website: https://amplifyam.com/

HiveCast.fm is a proud sponsor of The Conscious Entrepreneur Podcast.

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“Mattering is our inherent need to feel significant and to feel significant to the people around us,” explains Zach Mercurio, an expert on mattering and its crucial role in creating meaningful and engaging workplaces. In his conversation with Alex Raymond, Zach stresses that mattering is more than just a feel-good concept—it’s a fundamental human need that can transform motivation, productivity, and overall well-being. When people feel like they don’t matter, it often leads to disengagement or even quiet quitting.

Zach explains how crucial it is for leaders to make their teams feel noticed, affirmed, and needed. Why? Because when employees believe their work contributes to a larger purpose, they find deeper meaning in their roles. By fostering an environment where individuals feel valued and connected to the organization’s mission, leaders can inspire greater engagement and long-term success.

Quotes

• “Mattering is our inherent need to feel significant and to feel significant to the people around us. And it’s three primary things. It’s a fundamental human instinct. So, for everyone listening, the first thing you did when you opened your eyes was tilt your head upward. You looked for a caretaker, then reached out your hands and grasped for significance. And so, your very survival as a human, depended on you procuring mattering to someone else, enough to keep you alive. It’s a basic survival instinct. It’s a fundamental need for motivation. When we look at motivation in life and work, it is almost impossible for anything to matter to a human being who doesn’t believe that they matter.” (02:47 | Zach Mercurio)
• “It’s hard for anything to matter to someone who doesn’t believe that they and what they’re doing matters.” (03:47 | Zach Mercurio)
• “Meaningful work is doing what matters to us and what matters to the world. It’s mattering by default.” (05:47 | Zach Mercurio)
• “Mattering is really at the core of these concepts: it’s I feel valued and I know how I add value.” (06:07 | Zach Mercurio)
• “Feelings of not mattering either result in acts of withdrawal or acts of desperation. What’s an act of desperation? I matter more than you think. Complaining, blaming, protesting. A lot of difficult employees are, in my practice, the most difficult employees are employees who feel the most unseen, unheard, unacknowledged, and misunderstood.” (08:16 | Zach Mercurio)

Links

Connect with Zach Mercurio:

Website: https://www.zachmercurio.com/

Connect with Alex Raymond:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/afraymond/

Website: https://amplifyam.com/

HiveCast.fm is a proud sponsor of The Conscious Entrepreneur Podcast.

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm

“The main lesson I’ve learned is to distinguish what’s like the E=mc² of culture—simplifying something extremely complex. And what I see is that the simplification of culture rides on trust, but the currency of trust is really in agreements,” Robert Richman shares as he reflects on his research while writing his book The Culture Blueprint: A Guide to Building the High-Performance Workplace.

As a former employee of Zappos, Robert shares insights into the company’s renowned culture under Tony Hsieh, where trust was built through clear agreements and a commitment to values. He introduces the concept of “culture hacking,” which refers to small but powerful changes that can significantly transform a workplace. How can businesses adopt this mindset to make meaningful improvements? Drawing from Zappos’ success, Robert points out the importance of hiring for values rather than just skills, and how a thoughtful onboarding process creates accountability and commitment. Is culture really just a luxury in challenging times, or is it essential to long-term success? Robert argues that by building explicit agreements and continuously gathering employee feedback, companies can create cultures that stand the test of time.

Quotes

• “The main lesson I’ve learned is to distinguish what’s like the E=mc² of culture—simplifying something extremely complex. And what I see is that the simplification of culture rides on trust, but the currency of trust is really in agreements.” (07:02 | Robert Richman)
• “So how clear are our agreements and are agreements upheld? You don’t just say, ‘Yeah, I agree to uphold the values.’ You literally sign a contract and you swear an oath to uphold them. So that's a very, very clear agreement. Most companies' cultures suffer because they don’t articulate the agreements well, and don't get an opt in for those agreements, and then hold people accountable to those agreements. I think that, especially with corporate culture, that’s really the currency of a great culture.” (07:24 | Robert Richman)
• “I think what most companies need, and are missing, is some sort of Director of Communication, because that’s where culture lies. It’s all in the communication—how you’re relating these things, how you’re sharing them, and how you’re getting the message out. So I’m less about having a Head of Culture, because I believe the CEO really needs to own that role as the head of culture.” (21:28 | Robert Richman)
• “Engagement is how connected to the task somebody is, how much passion they have for it, how much energy they’re putting toward it, right? Whereas empowerment has to do with authority. What level of authority do I really have? That’s what people are actually talking about when they mean empower.” (25:03 | Robert Richman)

Links

Connect with Robert Richman:

Website: https://robertrichman.com/

Connect with Alex Raymond:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/afraymond/

Website: https://amplifyam.com/

HiveCast.fm is a proud sponsor of The Conscious Entrepreneur Podcast.

Podcast production and show notes provided by HiveCast.fm