The weekend starts with sweat, doubt, and that quiet question every small business owner knows too well: am I really building something here, or am I just burning myself out? I’m coming off America 250 and rolling into Episode 313 with a full recap of a blistering heat wave, a brand-new fair on the calendar, and a milestone I can’t believe I get to say out loud, six years of Share The Struggle and 313 consecutive weeks with you.

I walk through the real vendor life math at fairs and festivals: smart setup moves to beat the heat, the cost of fuel, the hours on your feet, and the gut punch of an eight-hour day that barely clears seventy bucks. But I also share the upside, the friendships you build on the road, the hospitality that restores you, and the moments with family that remind you why you chose the entrepreneur grind in the first place. And when Saturday turns into a surge of traffic, red-white-and-blue pride, and a sales day that crushes the goal, you feel that momentum click into place.

Then everything changes on the drive home. A borrowed utility trailer loaded with merchandise drops a wheel in my driveway because the axle snaps in half, and suddenly I’m balancing relief, gratitude, guilt, and a ticking clock with more events ahead. I break down what happens next, why this could have been so much worse on the interstate, and how I’m trying to find a replacement axle that may not even exist anymore without going fully custom.

If you like honest entrepreneurship stories, small business lessons, and the mindset it takes to keep moving when the plan blows up, hit play. Subscribe, share this with a builder in your life, and leave a review that tells me what part of the road life you want to hear more about.

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Join the 2% of Americans that Buy American and support American Together we can bring back American Manufacturing https://www.loudproudamerican.shop/
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Thank you for Supporting My American Dream!

Only 53% of voters say they’re proud of the country, and that number lands different when you’re staring down America’s 250th birthday. I open by reading the Declaration of Independence, then I get blunt about what it means to be free, to be grateful, and to choose growth when life is heavy. This is a July 4th mindset reset with teeth, not a Hallmark speech.

We talk through the pride gap and why it feels like the country is splitting into different realities. I break down capitalism vs communism in simple terms, why definitions matter, and why “opportunity” is not just a word, it’s the engine behind the American dream. I also pull in what I’m seeing around the World Cup and at the border: people from other countries recognize the value of America fast, even when we act numb to it.

Then I bring it home with real life: small-town Maine, banners honoring local military, fairgrounds lined with flags, and the kind of blue-collar patriotism you can feel in your chest. I share what it’s like building Loud Proud American from scratch, and the full-circle moment of vending at New Hampshire Motor Speedway and spotting strangers already wearing my gear. If you’ve been chasing a dream, this one is for you. Subscribe, share this with a friend, and leave a review with one thing you’re grateful for this Independence Day.

If you found value in today's show please return the favor and leave a positive review and share it with someone important to you! https://www.sharethestrugglepodcast.com/reviews/new/
Find all you need to know about the show https://www.sharethestrugglepodcast.com/
Official Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100077724159859

Join the 2% of Americans that Buy American and support American Together we can bring back American Manufacturing https://www.loudproudamerican.shop/
Loud Proud American Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Loudproudamerican
Loud Proud American Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/loud_proud_american/
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Loud Proud American YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmYQtOt6KVURuySWYQ2GWtw

Thank you for Supporting My American Dream!

Father’s Day didn’t just make us miss our dad. It exposed a fear we’d been carrying quietly for two years: what if he wouldn’t be proud of who we’ve become under pressure?

We talk honestly about the weight of trying to do it all at once running a small business and building a brand, being a husband, learning fatherhood, and taking on the responsibilities our dad used to handle without complaint. Grief doesn’t always look like tears. Sometimes it looks like doubt, anxiety, and that looping question you can’t shut off: “Is he still proud of me?” Living on family land surrounded by reminders of him made it harder to escape the noise in our head.

Then we share the moment everything shifted. We asked for help because we couldn’t keep going without answers, and a medium reading with Melissa from Roots of the Soul gave us something we didn’t expect: specific validation, real comfort, and a message that cut through the fear. We talk about faith, baptism, trusting God’s plan, and the practical guidance we took from that conversation: stop carrying everything alone, celebrate small victories, and remember what matters most.

If you’re dealing with bereavement, depression, financial stress, or the loneliness of becoming the parent you wish you still had, this one is for you. Subscribe, share it with a friend who needs hope, and leave a review with the question you’d ask someone you miss.

If you found value in today's show please return the favor and leave a positive review and share it with someone important to you! https://www.sharethestrugglepodcast.com/reviews/new/
Find all you need to know about the show https://www.sharethestrugglepodcast.com/
Official Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100077724159859

Join the 2% of Americans that Buy American and support American Together we can bring back American Manufacturing https://www.loudproudamerican.shop/
Loud Proud American Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Loudproudamerican
Loud Proud American Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/loud_proud_american/
Loud Proud American TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@loud_proud_american
Loud Proud American YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmYQtOt6KVURuySWYQ2GWtw

Thank you for Supporting My American Dream!