Margin Theory

Nathan Bryan on Why 84% Search His Name

Tue, 09 Jun 2026 18:26:57 +0000

Dr. Nathan Bryan is the founder and CEO of Bryan Therapeutics, a biotech building drugs that restore nitric oxide to treat heart disease, Alzheimer's, and wounds that won't heal, after a 25-year career as a professor of molecular medicine. Steven Bartlett put him on The Diary of a CEO last year and it pulled millions of views in the first week, and he's built his company while turning down hundreds of millions from private equity so he'd never lose control of the mission. You'll hear why he refuses outside money, how 84% of his web traffic comes from people searching his own name, and his case for why American healthcare is built to keep you on medication for life.

Mason Boswell on 40 Screens in His First Year

Tue, 09 Jun 2026 18:14:18 +0000

Mason Boswell is the 23-year-old founder of Maverick Digital, a hyper-local marketing company in Dallas running indoor digital billboards and lead gen. He launched last November and grew the billboard network to 40 screens and 40 partners in his first year, all while running a faith-first approach to sales where he'll tell a prospect not to hire him if it's the wrong fit. You'll hear how he keeps his priorities straight, why he thinks balance is the wrong goal, and what it's like to build something while everyone assumes you're too young to know what you're doing.

Max Kunik on the LLC Mistake That Killed a Loan

Tue, 09 Jun 2026 18:10:43 +0000

Max Kunik is the co-founder of Wingman Kitchens, a shared commercial kitchen company that lets food entrepreneurs grow without buying all the equipment up front. He started with a strong core of tenants on day one, grew from one Austin flagship to four more locations across Houston and San Antonio, and survived a six-month landlord fight that left a kitchen sitting at 108 degrees. You'll hear how he booked two months' rent the day before opening, why a holding-company restructure nearly blocked his SBA loan, and how he runs hard conversations about money with the food dreamers he wants to see win.

Alexandra McMyler on $200K of Material on the Floor

Tue, 09 Jun 2026 17:41:26 +0000

Alexandra McMyler is the CEO of Archer Specialties, a Division 10 commercial subcontractor in Addison, Texas that she started from her kitchen after years as a stay-at-home mom. She spotted a gap nobody wanted, the small Division 10 jobs other subs turned down, and built it into a 6-person shop chasing $3M while floating $200K of material on her own books. In this one she gets honest about hiring ahead of the work, living on ramen to pay better people than herself, and starting the whole thing in the middle of a divorce.

Kris Klein on Consulting to CEO in Three Years

Sat, 02 May 2026 22:58:22 +0000

Kris Klein is CEO and co-founder of PollenSense, a deep tech life sciences company whose optical sensors use AI to identify pollen, mold, and dust in real time across 25-plus countries. He came in three years ago as a consultant, told the founder "just let me, I'll work for free," paid his own way, and was named CEO and co-founder. We talk about running too many pilots and burning out his team, the inverted org chart he leads with, and the Turks and Caicos trip that reminded him why he's in it.

Scott Newman on Selling Bulletproof Whiteboards to Every School in America

Sat, 02 May 2026 22:57:24 +0000

Scott Newman runs Titan Armored, a Dallas manufacturer of bulletproof whiteboards and ballistic glass trusted by schools, government facilities, and corporate offices. He came up with the idea on a bar napkin after the Robb Elementary shooting in Uvalde. He quit drinking three years ago to make sure he could execute on it. We talk about Border Patrol shooting his product with a .338 Lapua round, building distribution to every school in America, and what it cost him to get there.

Daniel McCaulley on Turning Down Work to Protect His Culture

Sat, 02 May 2026 22:54:23 +0000

Daniel McCaulley, P.E., is the founder of Ultimus Engineering, a faith-based Texas firm that does MEP, aquatics, and structural engineering work across 22 states. He retired his wife from her job and set a hard 5pm cutoff for his team. Two accidental $300 brokered jobs showed him where the demand was, and he pivoted the whole business around it. We talk about pricing on cash basis instead of accrual, turning down work to protect culture, and why a bad cultural hire will cost you more than the job you turned down.

Gabe Draper on Selling the House to Keep Food on the Table

Sat, 02 May 2026 22:53:28 +0000

Gabe Draper is a fourth-generation manufacturer who founded Factur, a company that prospects new customers for industrial manufacturers. Before Factur, Gabe ran his family's machine shop, lost 72% of revenue in a single month, went bankrupt, and sold his house to keep food on the table. We talk about rebuilding from bankruptcy, what Gabe learned losing 72% of revenue in a month that he never could have learned growing, and how he got back to nearly 100 people.

Micki Gram on Accidentally Building an Agency After a Failed CBD Farm

Mon, 13 Apr 2026 15:05:41 +0000

Micki Gram built a social media and experiential marketing agency that grew out of filming brand events for fun. We talk about watching her dad lose a fortune and never consider a backup plan, the moment she told her mom she hated her and how that became the closest relationship in her life, and why she refuses to take a single client call before 10am.

Robby Pederson on Bidding $6 Billion in Work Last Year

Mon, 13 Apr 2026 14:54:16 +0000

Robby Pederson is the VP of Dirt Rocks, a construction logistics company he started from a spare bedroom after a hurricane in 2017. We talk about scaling to $100 million, raising a family where every kid runs a business, and the moment his daughter told him he'd probably take a phone call walking her down the aisle.

Nick Riseman on Taking Over a 25 Year Family Business

Mon, 13 Apr 2026 14:54:08 +0000

Nick Riseman is a partner at DDM Marketing and Consulting, a full-service marketing and advertising firm now in its 25th year. We talk about taking over a family business, the leadership conference moment that changed how he shows up as a dad, and why his agency refuses to take a commission on paid media.

Federico Trejo on Betting His Emergency Fund to Start a Business

Mon, 13 Apr 2026 14:53:44 +0000

Federico Trejo owns Tierra Viva Landscapes in Dallas. When the PE-backed company he was running went Chapter 7, he launched his own business in 72 hours. We talk about those early days, using AI to compete with billion-dollar companies, and betting his emergency fund on himself.