In this episode of The Sidekick Life, Ryan Zink talks with Erin King, energy researcher, author, keynote speaker, and serial entrepreneur, about why your energy may be your greatest advantage in business and leadership.

Erin shares how burnout led her to study human energy management with 10,000 people around the world, revealing that high performers are not just working harder—they are operating with more clarity. Together, Ryan and Erin discuss entrepreneurship, burnout, AI, leadership, personal energy types, and why the energy you bring into a room can shape your business, your team, and your life.

You’ll hear Erin’s perspective on why knowledge is becoming standard in the age of AI, while human energy, empathy, intuition, creativity, and connection remain impossible to copy.

Take Erin’s free assessment:
https://theenergyexam.com

Free Training for Future Owners
Watch our 20-minute webinar: “10,000 Locations and Counting: The Franchise Buyer’s Blueprint.”
Learn how we help you de-risk buying a business and find the right fit.

https://webinars.franchisesidekick.com/ref/LDRCtfTNBbAhWhR

Josh Herscheid walked away from Microsoft chasing something more than just a paycheck—but nearly went down the wrong path in the process.In this episode of The Sidekick Life, Ryan and Tyler sit down with Josh to unpack his journey from corporate comfort to business ownership—and how what looked like a dream opportunity almost pulled him further away from the life he actually wanted.After falling in love with a fast-growing coffee franchise, Josh committed before fully understanding the realities of the business. What followed was a year of frustration, tough lessons, and the realization that the opportunity didn’t align with the lifestyle and freedom he was actually after.That’s when everything changed.With guidance from a Franchise Sidekick advisor, Josh pivoted to a completely different business—one that gave him something he couldn’t find at Microsoft: flexibility, alignment, and real meaning in his work.In this episode, you’ll learn:- Why chasing the “exciting” brand can lead you in the wrong direction- How to avoid costly mistakes when leaving corporate America- Why the right business fit matters more than the biggest opportunity- The emotional and financial reality of making the leap- What it actually takes to find a business that fits your lifeJosh’s story is a reminder: success isn’t about going bigger—it’s about getting aligned.If you’re thinking about leaving your 9–5, don’t make the wrong move before watching this.Free Training for Future OwnersWatch our 20-minute webinar: “10,000 Locations and Counting: The Franchise Buyer’s Blueprint.”Learn how we help you de-risk buying a business and find the right fit.https://webinars.franchisesidekick.com/ref/LDRCtfTNBbAhWhR

Is franchise ownership right for you? https://hubs.ly/Q03-pnR00

Ryan and Tyler sit down with Dr. Jason Wersland, founder of Therabody, to share the real story behind the Theragun — an 8.5-year journey of persistence, setbacks, and belief.

What started as a personal mission to solve chronic pain after a motorcycle accident turned into one of the most recognizable brands in wellness. But it didn’t start as a business idea — it started as a problem that couldn’t be ignored.

This episode is a deep dive into entrepreneurship, resilience, and the realities of building something meaningful.

Key takeaways:

• Solve real problems, don’t chase ideas

• Success takes longer than you expect

• Early adopters are everything

• Trust and education beat hype

• Mindset determines everything

• Every win comes with trade-offs

A powerful conversation for anyone building, scaling, or searching for purpose in business.

Free Training for Future Owners

Watch our quick 20-minute webinar: “10,000 Locations and Counting: The Franchise Buyer’s Blueprint.” Learn how we de-risk buying a business and help you find a brand you’ll love. (It’s 100% free.)

https://webinars.franchisesidekick.com/ref/LDRCtfTNBbAhWhR

Is franchise ownership right for you? https://hubs.ly/Q03-pnR00What does it really look like to leave a stable corporate job, take on the risk of business ownership and build something bigger than yourself?In this episode of “The Sidekick Life,” Ryan Hahn shares exactly that journey. What started as a desire for more control and more purpose turned into an eight-location business with The Exercise Coach franchise across multiple markets.His story is one a lot of aspiring entrepreneurs are working toward.Ryan and his wife were doing what many ambitious professionals do: earning degrees, building strong careers and climbing the ladder at major companies in Omaha.But over time, Ryan realized the ladder still left too much out of his control. Promotions, leadership changes and company decisions could reshape everything overnight.“I wanted to be part of creating things, starting things and be on my own terms,” Ryan said.That desire became even more real when ConAgra moved its headquarters to Chicago. What looked stable on the surface no longer felt secure.Before buying a business, Ryan and his wife helped start their church, Grace Hill. That experience gave them clarity. They realized they loved building something together and wanted to create a life around that.But they also knew they did not want to start completely from scratch.“We’ve done enough reading and research to say franchising is a less risky way to become an entrepreneur,” Ryan said.That is what made franchising so attractive. It offered a path into business ownership with a proven system, established support and less trial-and-error than building an independent business alone.Free Training for Future OwnersWatch our quick 20-minute webinar: “10,000 Locations and Counting: The Franchise Buyer’s Blueprint.” Learn how we de-risk buying a business and help you find a brand you’ll love. (It’s 100% free.)https://webinars.franchisesidekick.com/ref/LDRCtfTNBbAhWhRw

Is franchise ownership right for you? https://hubs.ly/Q03-pnR00

What if tax season didn’t feel like a surprise bill you just accept … but a strategy you run on purpose?

On this episode of “The Sidekick Life,” Ryan and Tyler sit down with Matt Bontrager, founder and CEO of TrueBooks, to talk about what most high earners get wrong about taxes – and how to legally keep more of what you make.

This isn’t about gimmicks, loopholes or shady write-offs. It’s about understanding the rules, using them intentionally and building a plan that matches your goals.

“TrueBooks is my baby … we focus on tax and accounting for specifically real estate investors and business owners,” Matt said.

We sat down with Matt Haller, president and CEO of the ⁠International Franchise Association⁠, to unpack a powerful new report on the value of franchising and why the future of this business model depends on smart advocacy, real data and bold storytelling.

And yes … we also talk about the biggest event in franchising happening next week in Vegas. 👀

The IFA partnered with ⁠Oxford Economics⁠ to create a comprehensive, ⁠data-backed report⁠ on the impact of franchising across the U.S. economy.

But why now?

“We’re always trying to create conversation about franchising … Data is really important for us to tell the story,” Matt said.

In a world where opinions travel faster than facts, the IFA wanted something irrefutable. This wasn’t anecdotal. It includes:

• 3,000 franchisees surveyed

• Representation across 300+ industries

• Payroll data comparing franchise vs. non-franchise businesses

The goal? Ground the conversation in real numbers and protect a business model that creates wealth, jobs and opportunity.

What if franchising wasn’t driven by hype, opinions and paid rankings … but by real buyer behavior?In this episode of “The Sidekick Life,” Ryan sits down with Sidekick COO Michael Judkins to unpack something the franchise industry hasn’t seen before: The Best Damn Franchise Report. It’s a first-of-its-kind look at franchising built on real buyer data.Instead of “top franchise lists” that often feel like marketing, this report pulls insights from 73,000+ prospective franchisees and 3,500 in-depth Franchise Fit Surveys to answer the questions that actually matter:- What do today’s franchise buyers really want?- What are they avoiding?- And where are the smartest opportunities hiding in plain sight?As Michael puts it, this wasn’t just a cool internal project—it became something bigger.“We had hundreds of thousands of data points … and we’d never macro-analyzed it. Once we got into it, there was some pretty compelling information.”

The first episode of “The Sidekick Life” in 2026 kicks off with a look back and a look ahead. Ryan is joined by executive franchise advisor Anthony Hudson to break down the Top 10 franchise brands of 2025, based not on hype, but on real client demand.

“These aren’t our favorites,” Ryan explains. “These are the brands clients actually chose after going through our process.”

With over 300 vetted franchise concepts and thousands of buyers served, this annual list offers a rare, data-backed snapshot of where franchise ownership is really heading – and what opportunities still have serious momentum going into 2026.