The Real Business Podcast

Do You Own An Asset or The World's Most Stressful Job?

In this episode, Brian Trzcinski welcomes Jason Early, Founder and CEO of RISR, to open our 2026 series with an important question for business owners: Do You Own An Asset or The World's Most Stressful Job? Too often, owners don't align their business goals with their financial objectives. They haven't spent time thinking about what's important to them post-exit and don't know how to best drive value to the business. Brian and Jason will discuss why its important to treat the business like an asset, and how that approach can help an owner gain clarity in what the business is worth, the role the business can play in current and future income needs, and the risks that can threaten it all. 

Growth with Purpose: Creating Measurable Business Value

In this episode, MassMutual's Brian Trzcinski welcomes Jeff Armstrong, Director of Strategic Partnerships at Cultivate Advisors, to discuss ways business owners can begin building an effective value growth strategy. Research says value growth is the top success metric that owners track, and Jeff will share how to set realistic expectation about their growth potential with guidance on how to get there. 

Key Findings from MassMutual's Latest Research Study

In this episode, MassMutual's Brian Trzcinski welcomes Micah Brandenburg, President, Legendary Exits to discuss key findings from MassMutual's latest Business Owner Perspectives Study. Brian and Micah discuss topics ranging from value growth to transition planning to coordinating business and personal planning. The results from the survey indicate there are lots of opportunities for owners to plan, grow and protect their most valuable asset.Guest: Micah Brandenburg of Legendary Exitshttps://legendaryexits.com/

For A Successful Sale, Owners Need To Put in the Work

John Bartlett, Founder of Brentwood Growth, joins MassMutual's Brian Trzcinski to discuss what every business owner should know about the process of selling a business. In this episode, John and Brian discuss not just best practices for the sale itself, but also the steps owners should take before and after the sale to ensure the business and the owner have an experience worthy of the sweat equity they've put in building a successful business. 

What Every Business Owner Needs to Know About Buy-Sell Agreements

A buy-sell agreement is one of the most common business planning strategies. It's vital to business continuity in the event of an unforeseen circumstance. And yet, it's one strategy that's often not implemented properly. In this episode, MassMutual's Brian Trzcinkski, a Certified Exit Planning Advisor and Director of Business Owner Markets at MassMutual welcomes Michele Collins, an Estate and Business planning attorney with MassMutual, to discuss the ins, outs and pitfalls of buy-sell agreements.