Skate Your Lane: Beer League Strategies for Boardroom Survival
In this episode, we lace up the skates, tape our sticks (badly), and take a hard-checking look at how beer league hockey can teach business professionals more than a dozen leadership seminars and a thousand "synergy" emails ever could. What starts as a midlife crisis on ice turns into a full-on MBA in grit, leverage, and learning not to chase the puck—or the next shiny business trend.
Between getting yelled at by semi-retired goalies and misplaying every position imaginable, the lessons come fast, slippery, and slightly bruised. Spoiler: brute force rarely wins—unless your KPI is “most time spent in the penalty box.” From boardrooms to breakaways, we explore how playing your position, using the right tools, and not mistaking motion for progress are key to scoring real wins. Whether you're a sales rookie, a startup founder, or just trying to survive the inbox power play, this one’s for you. Work smarter. Skate harder. And for the love of all things strategic—stay out of the crease.
For more information, please contact us at EliteBenefits.net 708-535-3006
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21:22
When Your Moral Compass Has Better GPS Than Your Insurance Network
This episode takes a bold stand for a concept often left behind after the annual ethics training: integrity. From a 19th-century shipwreck survivor refusing to sell out his story to Rosa Parks refusing to give up her seat, we explore how standing up for what’s right has always been uncomfortable, unpopular—and often unprofitable. Naturally, that brings us to today’s healthcare industry, where "ethical pricing" is apparently a mythical creature and major players keep pharmaceutical rebates as secret as Area 51.
Listeners will enjoy a tour through the tangled world of rebate hoarding, price inflation, and "transparency" that only a legal team could love. It's a reminder that moral courage isn’t just for history books—it’s also for employers who are tired of footing the bill for an industry that can’t spell “value-based care” without an asterisk. Whether you're a broker, a benefits manager, or someone who’s ever stared at a $300 Band-Aid on an EOB, this episode offers real talk, corporate clap back, and a gentle push to start demanding better—preferably before 2028.
For more information, please contact us at EliteBenefits.net 708-535-3006
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13:55
Breaking Up with the Status Quo - It’s Not You, It’s Your 14% Premium Hike
In this episode, we tackle everyone’s favorite workplace fantasy: achieving long-term goals without sacrificing lunch breaks, sanity, or the sacred Slack meme thread. From health insurance horror stories to motivational gym metaphors, it’s a brutally honest look at why your benefits plan (and your personal growth strategy) tend to fall apart around Q2. The solution? Stop treating progress like a New Year’s resolution and start building actual systems—because spoiler: “We’ll circle back on that” is not a strategy.
Also up for discussion are the fine art of pretending double-digit premium increases are just “part of the process” and how Purdue University managed to keep its healthcare costs flatter than your company’s last birthday cake. We dive into why consistent action beats quarterly panic, why brokers need to stop playing it safe, and why your Fitbit steps don't count unless you're also stepping up your benefits strategy. If you’ve ever wanted to fire your comfort zone and promote strategic discipline, this episode is your performance review wake-up call.
For more information, please contact us at EliteBenefits.net 708-535-3006
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23:06
The Premium Is Too Damn High: A Strategic Deep Dive into Annual Sadness
Ah, health insurance: the annual corporate Hunger Games where employers try to look generous, employees pretend to understand their benefits, and everyone ends up Googling “What is coinsurance?” at 2 a.m. This episode dives into the heart of every HR manager's favorite nightmare—managing costs while offering benefits that don’t cause immediate mutiny in the break room. From the post-WWII days of “Hey, free coverage!” to today’s 14% premium hikes and $7,000 deductibles, we've strayed just slightly from the original vision.
But don't worry, there is hope. We cover real-world strategies that don’t involve printing out motivational posters about “wellness.” Think: telemedicine programs that keep people out of the ER (and away from WebMD doom spirals), claims advocacy that actually advocates, and convincing employees that generic meds aren't part of a government conspiracy. Whether you’re running a 500-person company or managing a team of three and a Keurig, this episode will leave you with ideas, and maybe a renewed desire to finally explain urgent care vs. emergency care without using interpretive dance.
For more information, please contact us at EliteBenefits.net 708-535-3006
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24:00
Staying in Your Lane! Unless You’re in a Penalty Kill Situation
This episode hits the sweet spot between locker room grit and boardroom buzzwords. From high school guard rotations to youth hockey chaos, it’s a deep dive into how sports build skills that every executive LinkedIn post pretends they were born with: mindset, grit, team synergy, and an unshakable ability to take a hit and spin it into a Q3 growth opportunity. The lesson? Whether you're breaking into the zone or the market, you’d better keep your feet moving—and your metaphors mixed.
You’ll also get a crash course in the real-world application of “back checking” as both a defensive hockey strategy and a highly scalable business mindset for post-failure regrouping. There’s discussion of Mo (momentum, not middle management), an impromptu TED Talk on the ROI of doing your actual job, and strong opinions on staying in your lane—unless you're a startup founder, in which case, you’re playing every position including mascot. If you’ve ever wondered how a 50-mile run, a guitar mistake, and a missed power play can all turn into leadership advice, this one’s for you.
For more information, please contact us at EliteBenefits.net 708-535-3006
Talking to small to mid-sized businesses and discussing insurance and business related topics. For more information about Butch Zemar and Elite Benefits of America, please visit EliteBenefits.net
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