"I'm Shawn, and this is Persistence Pays from J.L. Shaw Consulting Group. Each week, I talk with entrepreneurs about the grind, the growth, and the lessons that shaped their journey — because behind every success is a story of persistence."
Most owners think they have a people problem or a sales problem. More often it's a systems problem — the team is working hard, just working around broken processes and disconnected software. In Episode 8, Joe Shaw sits down with technology consultant Corey Stone to take apart the biggest myth in business technology: software isn't the solution, it's a tool. Without good processes underneath it, technology just lets people make mistakes faster — which is exactly why the Navy swapped a $30,000 periscope control for a $30 Xbox controller its crews already knew how to use.
Busy and profitable are not the same thing — and plenty of owners find that out the hard way. In Episode 7, host Shawn Taylor and co-host Joe Shaw break down why all jobs are not profitable jobs, how to make the go/no-go call before you sink weeks into a bid, and what it actually costs when you have to go buy money from a factoring company or an investor. Chase the work that pays, not the work that keeps you busy.
Here's a truth most business owners don't want to say out loud: people don't live life to go to work. They work so they can live life. In Episode 6, Shawn Taylor and Joe Shaw get into what people-first leadership actually looks like day to day — not as a slogan, but as a way of running a team that produces results. A productive day starts with taking care of your people: knowing them beyond the job, noticing when someone's off, and making the things that matter to them matter to you.
While everyone is busy deciding whose fault it is, the solution is sitting right in front of them. In Episode 5, host Shawn Taylor and co-host Joe Shaw unpack the leadership move that kills blame on the spot — “blame me, now how do we fix it?” — why hustle without discipline is just noise, and why the humility to own a failure is what makes a team solution-driven. Find the fix first; the post-mortem can wait.
The first four hours of your day set the ceiling for everything that follows. In Episode 4, host Shawn Taylor and co-host Joe Shaw break down why your morning routine, your focus, and your first decisions quietly decide your output, your team's momentum, and your results. Win the first four hours, and the rest of the day follows.
Responsible means knowing the job; responsive means doing it at the right time — and most teams confuse the two. In Episode 3, Shawn Taylor and Joe Shaw dig into coaching people who won't do the work, why the manager is usually the real root cause, and how a daily job-safety analysis is really a lesson in standards. Get the right people in the right seats — or set yourself up for failure.
Cost reducers, revenue generators, dead weight — your financial statements already name them. In Episode 2, host Shawn Taylor and co-host Joe Shaw break down how to actually read a P&L, balance sheet, and cash-flow statement, why time-and-motion studies still set the right KPIs, and how to align realistic data with the goals you're chasing. The numbers aren't hiding anything — most owners just aren't looking.
Plenty of owners make millions and still couldn't tell you if a single job was profitable. In Episode 1, we break down why “throw enough money at it and hope” isn't a strategy, how KPIs and BI data expose the bottlenecks killing your profit, and what separates owners who guess from owners who actually know. Persistence Pays starts here.
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Notify MeEvery entrepreneur has a story. A moment when they chose to persist despite the odds. This is where those stories come alive.
We dive deep into the early days — the sleepless nights, the uncertainty, the moments when quitting seemed easier than continuing. Because that's where character is forged.
Success isn't linear. We explore the pivots, the lessons, the failures that became stepping stones. Growth happens in the struggle.
What would they do differently? What wisdom would they share with their younger selves? Every conversation ends with actionable insights you can apply today.
Blending memoir, business, and faith, Joseph L. Shaw shares hard-earned lessons from government service, construction, disaster recovery, and entrepreneurship.
"This book shows how persistence is built, tested, and passed on — a real-world leadership story about discipline, integrity, and finishing well when pressure is high and systems aren't fair."
Building the foundation
Stepping into influence
Navigating change
Creating lasting legacy
Real conversations with real entrepreneurs about the journey from idea to impact.
Operations Management & Construction Finance Specialist
A results-driven leader with deep expertise in site operations, revenue growth, and team performance. Shawn brings authentic conversations and hard-earned insights to every episode.
No scripted answers. Just honest conversations about what really happens behind the scenes.
Every episode ends with lessons you can apply to your own journey immediately.
From tech founders to construction entrepreneurs, we celebrate all paths to success.
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Joseph L. Shaw is a seasoned industry expert with over 22 years of experience at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, specializing in federal procurement, construction management, facilities operations, and environmental health and safety.
With 18 years of hands-on experience in the construction industry, he co-founded and led SRS, Inc., a multi-million-dollar African American-owned firm recognized for delivering high-quality construction and management services to federal and commercial clients.
Through his work, Joe has developed a unique perspective on leadership, persistence, and building legacy — insights he shares in both the book and podcast.
Watch the podcast. Get the book. Join a community of entrepreneurs who understand that the journey is just as important as the destination.