Bust Your “Yeah, Buts” on Failure: A 3-Question Test from Futurist and AI Expert Tom Koulopoulos

What does one of the world’s leading AI futurists fear? In this candid conversation, Thomas Koulopoulos gets vulnerable about his journey battling failure and the need to please. He shares the powerful tool to stay on course: a simple 3-question ‘But Buster’ designed to silence the strongest ‘yeah, but’ and turn ambition into action.

About Thomas Koulopoulos 

Tom Koulopoulos is Chairman and founder of Delphi Group, a 30-year-old Boston-based think tank named one of the fastest-growing private companies by Inc. Magazine, and the founding partner of Acrovantage Ventures, which invests in early-stage technology startups. He is also the author of 14 books, an inventor with several patents, an Inc.com columnist, the past Executive Director of the Babson College Center for Business Innovation, the past director of the Dell Innovation Lab, and a professor at Boston University.

His insights have received wide praise from luminaries such as the late Peter Drucker, the father of modern management; Dee Hock, founder of Visa International; and Tom Peters, who called his writing, “a brilliant vision of where we must take our enterprises to survive and thrive.” His Inc. column is read by over one million people yearly.

Mr. Koulopoulos’ fourteen books include Reimagining Healthcare, Revealing the Invisible, The Gen Z Effect, The Innovation Zone, and Cloud Surfing. His latest book, Gigatrends, looks at the six tech trends that are shaping the future of how we live, work, and play.

About Marc Wolfe

Marc A. Wolfe, at 9 years old, was removed from public school for being “too smart and disruptive” a moment that shaped his mission to empower others. Marc is professionally curious; he asks questions, sees potential that others overlook, and loves to help people find a way to get unstuck.At 16, he launched a photography business, capturing US Presidents, prominent leaders, and NFL teams. He ran two businesses while earning his marketing degree, including one supporting early Apple products at Fortune 500 companies. With decades as an innovation and strategy consultant, Marc is also an ICF-certified executive coach who’s written for Forbes and mentored Inc. 5000 companies.

Timestamps:

• 00:04:22 – Prioritization and the ‘I Don’t Have Time’ Mindset

• 00:06:42 – The “Top 3 Regrets” Mind Game for Entrepreneurs

• 00:09:13 – Learning to Say No & Setting Boundaries

• 00:14:22 – Embracing Growth: Starting Before You’re Ready

• 00:19:10 – Reframing Fear as a Tool for Success

• 00:21:09 – Failure’s Value and the ‘Not Qualified’ Myth

• 00:26:41 – How AI is Changing the Landscape for Entrepreneurs

• 00:31:36 – The Importance of Coaching in Entrepreneurship

• 00:34:13 – Authenticity and Self-Awareness in Leadership

 Tom’s contact info:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tkspeaks/ 

• Website: https://tkspeaks.com/ 

Marc’s links

• Website: https://bit.ly/marcawolfe 

• Buy Yeah, But: https://bit.ly/buyyeahbut 

• Get a free chapter of ‘Yeah, But’: https://bit.ly/theyeahbutbook 

• Interested in being on The Yeah, But Podcast?: https://bit.ly/yeahbutpodcast 

Follow Marc A. Wolfe on social media for more resources:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcwolfe/ 

• X: https://x.com/marcawolfe 

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/marcAwolfe 

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Marc’s contact details

2000 Mallory Ln, Suite 130.257 Franklin, TN 37067 USA

201 257 3545

[email protected]