Building Unbreakable Brands

Building Unbreakable Brands — Myke & Mykey Connolly
Guest: Myke Connolly, CEO of Standout Truck; Mykey Connolly, Realistic CEO
Host: Meghan Lynch, CEO of Six-Point Strategy

[00:00] Meghan Lynch:
Welcome to Building Unbreakable Brands, the podcast where we talk to business leaders with a generational mindset. I'm Meghan Lynch, advisor to family businesses and CEO of Six-Point Strategy, which helps generational brands honor their past while evolving for the future.

My guests today are Myke Connolly, CEO of Launch and Standout, and Mykey Connolly Jr., CEO of Realistic CEO. They’re also the co-authors of two books: Realistic CEO and Unrealistic. Welcome, Myke and Mykey — I'm so excited to have you on the show.

[00:40] Mykey Connolly:
Thank you for having us. Yeah, I'm super excited for this.

[00:44] Meghan Lynch:
I'd love to start at the beginning. Why did you two decide to write Realistic CEO together? And what surprised you most about collaborating as father and son?

[01:05] Mykey Connolly:
We co-authored Realistic CEO after my high school business teacher told me it was unrealistic for me to become a CEO — even though that had been my dream since I was 10 years old. We wanted to turn that negative experience into a positive. That’s how we came up with writing the children’s book together.

[01:33] Myke Connolly:
Quick backstory: Michael had wanted to be a CEO since he was 10. So when the teacher told him it was unrealistic for a class project, he didn’t think much of it at first. I had already written a children's book called The Lemonade Book and was working on a new one. I said, “What if we write a book about your story?”
And instead of brushing it off, he said, “Yeah, let’s do it.” I wasn’t expecting that — he was 17 at the time. But when I asked why, he said, “I think my story could help a lot of people.” Not that it would make him famous or rich — he believed it could help people. That’s when I went all in.

[02:22] Myke Connolly:
When we started brainstorming, Mykey said he wanted four things in the book. First, the main character’s name would be Tony — our middle name is Anthony. Second, the story would take place in Dreamville. It’s now Dream Field, with some extensions. Third, he wanted it to be 17 pages — because he was 17. And fourth, he said it needed to happen in the multiverse.

That’s when I was like, “Wait — what is a multiverse?” He explained that everything I was doing with Standout Trucking, what he was doing, and what we’d do together all had to work together. That was the challenge, but it also made it fun.

In the book, Tony is learning from the kids in The Lemonade Book. Then he’s podcasting — just like Mykey does in real life. Everything ties together in this multiverse.

[03:55] Meghan Lynch:
That’s awesome. Coming from a brand strategy perspective, when you say “multiverse,” I hear brand architecture. And Mykey, to have that perspective at 17 — realizing you need a cohesive plan so all these things work together — that’s huge. Most people would hear “brand architecture” and be confused, but multiverse? They get it. Why was that concept important to you?

[04:50] Mykey Connolly:
I play video games — Fortnite and one called Multiverse — and those inspired me. I saw how a whole bunch of different worlds and characters could collide and collaborate. I thought it would be cool to bring that idea to what we were doing. I wanted to create my own multiverse.

[05:34] Meghan Lynch:
What have been the most fun crossover or multiverse moments?

[05:45] Mykey Connolly:
Probably when Tony in Realistic CEO is reading The Lemonade Book, which my dad wrote. That’s the biggest one so far. There are also some little multiverse hints in the book.

[06:05] Meghan Lynch:
It’s fun — like Easter eggs for your audience. And it encourages people to explore more of your work.

[06:42] Meghan Lynch:
Myke, when Mykey told you what the teacher said, was your first response to take action?

Myke Connolly:
At first, I was just proud of him for standing up for himself. But then I thought about how many other kids don’t have a “dream environment” — a home that supports them like that.

I posted about it on Facebook and got tons of comments. People said, “You’ve got to talk to the school.” So I did. Not to confront the teacher, but to make a point — teachers are dream holders. Even if they don’t believe in the dream, I wish they’d say, “That’s great. I don’t know much about that, but let’s figure it out.”

[09:31] Meghan Lynch:
Mykey, in that moment, it can be easy to back away. What helped you stand up for yourself?

[10:04] Mykey Connolly:
For me, it was remembering the 10-year-old me who had that dream. And I’ve played sports, so I’m used to trash talk. That’s how I saw it — just trash talk, not authority.

[11:07] Meghan Lynch:
Across your businesses and books, there’s a strong theme of service. Where does that come from?

[11:20] Myke Connolly:
I grew up across the street from an orphanage. The only difference between those kids and me was circumstance. I've also been a foster parent since I was 23. I love helping young people believe in themselves.

[13:07] Mykey Connolly:
Growing up, we shared our home. When foster kids came in, I treated them like siblings. That taught me that helping people isn’t hard — it’s just treating them like humans.

[15:01] Meghan Lynch:
Mykey, you’re podcasting, running a business, speaking, going to school. What’s the hardest part?

[15:35] Mykey Connolly:
It’s separating myself from the brand. I’m always “Realistic CEO.” Figuring out how to just be Mykey — that’s hard.

[16:33] Meghan Lynch:
How are you managing that?

[16:40] Mykey Connolly:
I’m not, honestly. It’s still always on my mind. I’m still learning how.

[17:25] Myke Connolly:
Same here. It’s hard to “turn off” Standout Trucking. But if you're your authentic self, there’s no switch. Just know when to give people what they need and go back to being you afterward.

[20:55] Meghan Lynch:
How would you describe the differences in your leadership styles?

[21:43] Mykey Connolly:
I’m more of a “let people figure it out” leader. My dad lays out the whole system first, then lets you go.

[22:07] Myke Connolly:
He leads a team of five for Realistic CEO, and I’ve watched him grow into that. I step in mostly when numbers or strategy are needed. But he’s doing the real work. It’s not just a show — he’s learning sales, cold calling, and all the hard stuff.

[27:21] Meghan Lynch:
Now my son Henry is here to be the voice of the next generation with some questions.

[27:53] Henry Lynch:
Hi Myke! Great to meet you.

Myke Connolly:
Great to meet you too, brother.

[28:00] Henry Lynch:
Myke, you started your first business at nine. What did you sell?

Myke Connolly:
Candy. My grandmother brought candy from Florida that we didn’t have in The Bahamas. I gave it to friends, and it created a frenzy. Eventually I started selling it. That was my first business.

[30:03] Henry Lynch:
Mikey, why was Realistic CEO important to you? What advice would you give a kid who doesn’t think they can be a CEO?

Mykey Connolly:
I wanted to inspire kids like me. If you have belief, a plan, and take action, it’s realistic.

[30:33] Henry Lynch:
What’s the most exciting part of your podcast — and what’s been the hardest?

Mykey Connolly:
Talking to successful people has been amazing. The hardest part is production — keeping up with getting the episodes out.

[30:59] Henry Lynch:
What do you do when you’re having a tough day?

Myke Connolly:
I go talk to young people. Their energy reminds me of why I do what I do.

Mikey Connolly:
Hearing from kids who’ve read the book or seen me speak helps me keep going.

[32:05] Henry Lynch:
I have a joke. What do dump trucks eat for dinner?

Myke Connolly:
What?

Henry Lynch:
Junk food!

[32:31] Henry Lynch:
Thanks for being on the show! If people want to learn more about you, where should they go?

Myke Connolly:
standouttruck.com

Mikey Connolly:
realisticceo.com

[33:01] Myke Connolly:
Keep going, Henry. Don’t ever let someone tell you your dream is unrealistic. And don’t tell yourself that either.

[33:30] Meghan Lynch:
That conversation left me feeling inspired. The Connollys' idea of a dream environment — and Mikey turning criticism into fuel — are lessons I’ll carry forward. If this episode encouraged you, share it or leave us a review. Thanks for listening to Building Unbreakable Brands.