Starting and running a business requires far more than a good idea. It demands strong communication, effective leadership, and the ability to stay productive without burning out—skills that are rarely taught, but absolutely essential.
My guest today, Kim Miller-Hershon, has built her career helping leaders and organizations strengthen exactly those skills.
Kim is an executive coach, leadership and productivity expert, and the founder of Kim Miller-Hershon Coaching & Consulting, where she works with executives and teams to improve communication, performance, and workplace culture.
She also hosts her own podcast, Unconventional Wisdom About Conventional Wisdom, where she challenges standard leadership advice and explores what actually works in the real world—not just in theory.
In this episode, we’ll talk about Kim’s professional journey, how she built her coaching practice, and the lessons she’s learned working with leaders who are navigating Growth, pressure, and constant change.
In the second half of the conversation, we’ll dig into practical insights around communication, productivity, and leadership—what entrepreneurs often get wrong, and what they can do differently to lead more effectively.
If you’re building a business, leading a team, or trying to balance performance with sustainability, this conversation is for you.
https://kimmillerhershon.com
Mike Konrad entered the electronics manufacturing industry in 1985. Four decades later, he continues to dedicate his career to advancing reliability within the industry. In 1992, he founded Aqueous Technologies, an equipment manufacturer serving the electronics sector. Becoming an entrepreneur was never part of his plan, he simply had a passion for a product he designed. When his employer declined to build it, he realized the only way forward was to create it himself.
Mike entered business with strong technical skills but no business acumen. His early assets were ego, passion, arrogance, ignorance, and above all, a poor assessment of risk. Ironically, those traits proved useful in the beginning, ignorance really was bliss. But as his company grew, Mike recognized that those same traits could lead to its downfall. To survive, he had to transform himself, developing business acumen, adopting sustainable strategies, and evolving from reckless enthusiasm into purposeful leadership.
Today, with 40 years of industry experience, Mike shares both his technical expertise and his entrepreneurial journey, offering lessons from personal and professional growth, the near-misses that almost derailed him, and the strategies that carried him forward. He is also a strong advocate of “conscious marketing”, moving beyond traditional chest-thumping advertising toward education-driven authority building. By offering value through knowledge rather than hype, Mike helps organizations connect with a new generation of decision-makers who prefer independent research over bold claims.
