Success doesn’t happen in a straight line. It’s built in the trenches, through hardship, betrayal, health scares, and moments when giving up feels like the only option.

In this powerful episode of the Success or Excuses podcast, James Fleming sits down with Michael Savage, CEO of Channel Group, for a raw, unfiltered conversation about what it really takes to keep rebuilding, again and again.

Michael isn’t here to share a polished comeback story. He’s still in the thick of it. But what makes his journey so compelling is the relentless mindset that keeps him moving forward, even when the odds are stacked against him.

From building a multi-seven-figure finance brokerage from the ground up, to facing a life-threatening brain tumour and dealing with betrayal during recovery, Michael lays it all bare. He opens up about the mental toll of being a leader under pressure, the moments he felt like walking away, and how the right people (and the wrong ones) shaped everything.

This episode is for the ones still in it. The ones navigating doubt, starting over, or rebuilding when everything feels uncertain.

It’s not about polished success, it’s about the grit that makes it possible.

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Key Moments:

✔️Building a finance business without funding and why banks said noBeing diagnosed with a brain tumour in the middle of running a company

✔️Losing trust in key people and the emotional toll of betrayal

✔️Why resilience is non-negotiable if you want to lead

✔️What it really means to start from zero, twice

✔️Loyalty, mindset, and creating a culture where your name means something

✔️The truth about growing a business in Scotland and redefining the game

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Follow James Fleming:

LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesflemingtpwtd/

Success or Excuses Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/success.or.excuses?igsh=dXdvcHVjNDloM2Zj

YouTube → https://www.youtube.com/@SuccessorExcusesPodcast

Website → https://thepowerwithintraining.com/

Follow Michael Savage:

LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/company/channel-finance-group-uk/

Website → https://www.channelfinance.co.uk

Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/channelfinancegroup/

Facebook → https://www.facebook.com/channelfinance

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Success is earned in the arena, through grit, failure, and choosing to show up when everything’s on the line. This episode is proof of that.

Success rarely looks like you imagined. It’s messy, painful, and sometimes born from the darkest chapters of your life.

In this raw and moving episode of the Success or Excuses podcast, James Fleming sits down with entrepreneur Stuart Geddes to talk about business highs, personal heartbreak, and the moments that force you to rebuild everything from scratch.

Stuart isn’t your typical founder story. He started out shifting second-hand photocopiers out of a shoebox office with nothing but a laptop, a notepad, and a pack of business cards. He grew that into a successful operation before selling it all while navigating the premature birth of his son and the unimaginable loss of another.

Now he runs Advizion, a thriving digital signage business, and leads a powerful campaign in memory of his son Clark which has gone on to change healthcare policy across Scotland.

This is a conversation about survival. About backing yourself when the odds are stacked against you. And about choosing to make something meaningful, even in the aftermath of pain.

It’s not about glossy wins. It’s about real life. Real loss. And real leadership.

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Key Moments:

✔️The hard truths about building a business from nothing

✔️Selling his company while his son fought for his lifeStarting again in a completely new industry with zero experience

✔️Why the copier industry left him disillusioned and what he did next

✔️How Clark’s Campaign is saving lives across the UK

✔️The reality of grief, fatherhood, and building through it

✔️What it really means to succeed on your own terms

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Follow James Fleming:

LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesflemingtpwtd/

Success or Excuses Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/success.or.excuses?igsh=dXdvcHVjNDloM2Zj

YouTube → https://www.youtube.com/@SuccessorExcusesPodcast

Website → https://thepowerwithintraining.com/

Follow Stuart Geddes:

LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/stuart-geddes-0a80a922/

Support Clark’s Campaign → https://action-on-pre-eclampsia.org.uk/clarks-campaign/

Resilience doesn’t always come from big wins. Sometimes it’s forged in the moments where everything feels like it’s falling apart, and you show up anyway.

Natalie Jade Pinnell knows what it’s like to be at full capacity. Running a business, raising a family, and fighting a broken system that’s failing her daughter. Most people would crumble. Natalie chose a different path.

In this unfiltered conversation, James Fleming digs deep with Natalie on what it takes to show up in life and business when every part of you wants to quit. They talk about resilience, mission, the myth of the silver bullet and what happens when success starts to feel like a prison.

Natalie doesn’t just work with entrepreneurs, she helps them cut through the noise, break the rules, and build businesses that actually align with the lives they want to live. She’s done it herself, more than once. And now she’s showing others how to stop playing by someone else’s formula.

This episode will hit home for the founders burning out while chasing other people’s version of success. It’s also a must-listen for anyone feeling stuck, stretched, or silenced.

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Key Moments:

✔️The “f**k the formula” philosophy and why it’s helped so many founders break free

✔️Why Natalie’s highest revenue months were also her most miserable

✔️ What really happens behind the scenes of those ‘successful’ online businesses

✔️How she helps business owners cut through the chaos and actually find clarity

✔️ The personal mission that forced her to burn down what she spent years building

✔️ The broken mental health system that left her daughter suffering and unheard

✔️What it looks like to rebuild your life, your business, and your purpose on your terms

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Follow James Fleming:

LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesflemingtpwtd/

Success or Excuses Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/success.or.excuses?igsh=dXdvcHVjNDloM2Zj

YouTube → https://www.youtube.com/@SuccessorExcusesPodcast

Website → https://thepowerwithintraining.com/

Follow Natalie Pinnell:

LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/natalie-jade/

Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/nataliejadepinnell?igsh=MW15dGFic2p4ODJrMw==

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Subscribe to Success or Excuses for more real, no-bullsh*t conversations with people who’ve been through the fire and kept going.