Relationships Archives - Ben McDougal

You Don't Need This Podcast

Intentional Connections

How do you get comfortable with being uncomfortable? Having lived on two different islands in Japan, Italy, and the Philippines, Lisa Behrends is a seasoned business strategist and executive with an explorer’s perspective.

Follow your instincts and surround yourself with EP61, as Lisa and Ben are in-studio talking about all the things! This episode’s title pays homage to a quest you’ll hear more about here, called Intentional Connections. Within these community-driven environments, we talk about how to show up, stand out, and following up to thicken an engaged network. This will help you find a healthy slowness to help those you meet, be seen, heard, and valued.

After a special break with another writing from the Roasted Reflections library. In this episode, Ben narrates “Anxiety”. After this mindful moment, Lisa talks about ways to live intentionally. Being aware of how you brew life’s resources, time, and relationships. A powerful closing shines as we close. Enjoy, share with one friend, and thank you for strolling on a thought-filled walk with us.

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BONUS MATERIALS

https://LisaBehrends.com

https://IntentionalConnectionsEvents.com

http://Intentional-Connections.YouDontNeedThisPodcast.com

Reading Break from Roasted Reflections: Anxiety

http://CollectorHardbackEdition.com

http://RoastedReflections.com

http://BENBOT.ai

By Ben McDougal, 2 years ago October 23, 2024

Brewed From Within

Slow & Fast

Slow is smooth, and smooth is fast. This sounds like a contranym, but when we slow down, it’s easier to find a rhythm that activates kinematics to add elegant speed.

Extra Shot

Accuracy sparkles within rhythm.

This concept serves founders who are building with a turbulent sense of urgency. For example, startup life in an accelerator is a compressed environment for ideas to flourish. When mentors and investors are dedicated to helping founders succeed, milestones will be achieved, but growing too fast can leave the team feeling hollow.

With decisions at every turn, relationships still take time. Early hires are delicate. Financial modeling is complicated. Sometimes the product isn’t even fully baked. This is when slowness adds a healthy thickness. Patience leads to deeper understanding, which bonds to the urgency. Momentum is not only then accelerated; it’s also geared to scale.

By Ben McDougal, 5 years ago April 26, 2026

Ben McDougal is a 2x author, 5x founder, podcaster, technologist, and teacher.

He evolves ideas into reality and accelerates others through the art of connection. Check out the innovations this leader has activated over time!

2004 | Iowa 3v3 Soccer Challenge <SOLD>
2006 | Jet Set Studio
2007 | The Hunt Zone <SOLD>
2012 | FliteBrite
2017 | 1MC Regional Rep
2020 | OpenOpen
2020 | Pour Over Publishing
2021 | You Don’t Need This Book
2022 | NFT Collection
2022 | web3dsm
2023 | BEN BOT
2023 | You Don’t Need This Podcast
2024 | Collector Hardback Edition
2025 | You Don’t Need This Keynote
2026 | Brewed From Within

You’ve likely met Ben over a brew, read his writings, listened to his podcast, watched his films, or heard him speak. Along with being an intrapreneur, founder, and community leader, You Don’t Need This Book was published in 2021. The literary journey continued as 3 years of weekly writings evolved into the Roasted Reflections library, which paved a path for Brewed From Within, which hit bookshelves in 2026. If reading is not your thing, You Don’t Need This Podcast is more entertaining energy for the entrepreneurial lifestyle, featuring 100+ timeless episodes, all recorded in-studio with remarkable featured guests!

The quest that is FliteBrite also remains a compelling part of Ben’s work as a founder. Since 2012, their electronic serving system and beer festival app have ignited new opportunities for craft breweries and event organizers. This tasty story continues with fun, friendships, successes, learnings, and more fun, every step of the build.

Alongside his ventures, Ben caffeinated a nationwide movement called 1 Million Cups for 13+ years, before retiring in 2026. After leading 1MC Des Moines for 5 years, Ben collaborated inside the Kauffman Foundation as the @1MCMidwest Regional Rep for 8 years. What glorious collisions with generous leaders in countless communities. Ben learned a lot in that leadership role, as he supported volunteer organizers from 100+ communities throughout the United States!

When it comes to nationwide efforts, Ben also had the privilege of teaming up with Techstars as an Entrepreneur in Residence and Ecosystem Builder. Investing 2021-2023 to build through the Iowa Techstars Accelerator was fantastic. That marketing-flavored, community building, culture, and founder-support role allowed Ben to continue accelerating inspired entrepreneurs… while connecting mentors and investors worldwide.

Such experiential wisdom is translated into BENergy to energize different audiences. For example, You Don’t Need This Keynote activates students, while other workshops and keynotes accelerate fellow founders, side hustlers, and intrapreneurs.

While this is a delightful amuse-bouche, the full story is linked below and his creative museum visualizes work that feels like play. As you’ll see, Ben also enjoys travel, golf, EDM expeditions, reading, Seth Godin, philosophy, wine, craft beer, pinball, and spending treasured time with his wife and daughter. May the best of your todays, be the worst of your tomorrows. Cheers!

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