Strictly From Nowhere: A Podcast Experiment by Cause of a Kind

Raul Proenza is an 18 year software engineering veteran who has seen every wave of tooling come and go. Now he is deep in the AI agent coding revolution and his perspective is one every engineer needs to hear. The fundamentals have never mattered more.Mike Rispoli sits down with his longtime friend and colleague to unpack what agentic coding actually looks like in practice. Not the hype. Not the demos. The real day to day of using Claude Code, multi agent planning workflows, adversarial review processes, and CI/CD pipelines that actually protect your code before it ships.They get into why engineers who skipped the basics are now paying for it, how Raul built a multi agent planning system where three independent agents create competing plans that get synthesized into one bulletproof solution, and why the bar for great software just went up for everybody.This is a masterclass in how senior engineers are actually using AI to multiply their output without sacrificing quality.Key TakeawaysAI does not replace your engineering fundamentals. It amplifies them. Great engineers get great output. Average engineers get average output.If you do not have CI/CD and automated testing, AI is going to create more problems than it solves.Raul's multi agent planning workflow uses three independent agents with different techniques, a devil's advocate agent, and a synthesis layer to produce battle tested plans.The bar for software quality is going up. If you can ship an MVP in a day, spend three more days making it exceptional.Classic software engineering books like Refactoring are more important now than ever. Architecture beats language knowledge.AI democratized building. But selling to real people is still the hard part.https://www.linkedin.com/in/raulproenza/https://www.atomiccoders.com/────────────────────────────────LISTEN ON ALL PLATFORMSSpotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1V4SjmlnG2sntDnck8UrGWApple Podcastshttps://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/strictly-from-nowhere-a-podcast-experiment-by-cause/id1804380172iHeart Radiohttps://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-strictly-from-nowhere-a-po-315649122/YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWAstEyCK6YsKVTTRsQr37wSUPPORT THE SHOWPatreonhttp://patreon.com/StrictlyFromNowhereCONNECT WITH USLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/strictly-from-nowhereWebsitehttps://strictlyfromnowhere.com────────────────────────────────FOLLOW JUSTIN ABRAMS | @cuzzinjustinLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/cuzzinjustin/Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/cuzzinjustin/Xhttps://x.com/cuzzinjustinTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@cuzzinjustinFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/cuzzinjustin24Websitehttps://www.cuzzinjustin.com────────────────────────────────FOLLOW MIKE RISPOLI | @mike_rispoli_ctoLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-rispoli-cto/Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/mike_rispoli_cto/Xhttps://x.com/michael_rispoliTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@mike_rispoliWebsitehttps://michaelrispoli.com/────────────────────────────────CAUSE OF A KIND | @causeofakindWebsitehttps://www.causeofakind.comLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/cause-of-a-kindInstagramhttps://www.instagram.com/causeofakind/Xhttps://x.com/causeofakindTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@causeofakindNewsletter Signuphttp://eepurl.com/gcc-yjNewsletter Archivehttps://us16.campaign-archive.com/home/?u=847ea1526d6523a41ef1eb5a5&id=48d53e9627OPEN SOURCE PROJECTSCodeDojohttps://github.com/Cause-of-a-Kind/code-dojo-coreOCR Ruby GEMhttps://activestorage-ocr-demo.fly.dev/COMMUNITY INITIATIVESLong Island Technologistshttps://www.longislandtechnologists.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/long-island-technologists-networkinghttps://www.instagram.com/longislandtechnologists/───────────────────────────https://coakstudio.comBrought to you by Cause of a KindA boutique software development and startup studio from Long Island, New YorkStand up. Show up. Build.

Michael Bromley started Vendure as a solo open source project in 2017 because he looked around the e-commerce space and could not believe what he saw. The tools were outdated. The stacks were legacy. And nobody was building what developers actually needed. So he built it himself.David Höck found Vendure while running his agency and saw a raw diamond. The code was beautiful. The website was terrible. He reached out to Michael on LinkedIn in German not knowing the guy was British. And the rest is history.Together they built Vendure into the enterprise e-commerce platform without the trade-offs. Open source at the core. Fully customizable. And intentionally boring. No hype cycles. No reinventing the wheel every release. Just software that works and keeps working.In this episode we go deep on the zero to market journey, the decision to turn down VC money, the pivot from agency to product company, and why boring technology wins every single time.Key TakeawaysDo not innovate on stuff that does not matter. Save your innovation for the 20% that sets you apart.Boring technology is a competitive advantage. Stability beats hype at enterprise scale.They turned down VC funding because it would have bent their vision to fit someone else's narrative.Bootstrap means you answer to yourself. That clarity is worth more than any check.The agency years were not wasted. Every hard project built the muscle that now powers the product.AI is a multiplier for product companies. They built three months of features that would have taken years before.────────────────────────────────LISTEN ON ALL PLATFORMSSpotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1V4SjmlnG2sntDnck8UrGWApple Podcastshttps://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/strictly-from-nowhere-a-podcast-experiment-by-cause/id1804380172iHeart Radiohttps://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-strictly-from-nowhere-a-po-315649122/YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWAstEyCK6YsKVTTRsQr37wSUPPORT THE SHOWPatreonhttp://patreon.com/StrictlyFromNowhereCONNECT WITH USLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/strictly-from-nowhereWebsitehttps://strictlyfromnowhere.com────────────────────────────────FOLLOW JUSTIN ABRAMS | @cuzzinjustinLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/cuzzinjustin/Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/cuzzinjustin/Xhttps://x.com/cuzzinjustinTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@cuzzinjustinFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/cuzzinjustin24Websitehttps://www.cuzzinjustin.com────────────────────────────────FOLLOW MIKE RISPOLI | @mike_rispoli_ctoLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-rispoli-cto/Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/mike_rispoli_cto/Xhttps://x.com/michael_rispoliTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@mike_rispoliWebsitehttps://michaelrispoli.com/────────────────────────────────CAUSE OF A KIND | @causeofakindWebsitehttps://www.causeofakind.comLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/cause-of-a-kindInstagramhttps://www.instagram.com/causeofakind/Xhttps://x.com/causeofakindTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@causeofakindNewsletter Signuphttp://eepurl.com/gcc-yjNewsletter Archivehttps://us16.campaign-archive.com/home/?u=847ea1526d6523a41ef1eb5a5&id=48d53e9627────────────────────────────────OPEN SOURCE PROJECTSCodeDojohttps://github.com/Cause-of-a-Kind/code-dojo-coreOCR Ruby GEMhttps://activestorage-ocr-demo.fly.dev/────────────────────────────────COMMUNITY INITIATIVESLong Island Technologistshttps://www.longislandtechnologists.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/long-island-technologists-networkinghttps://www.instagram.com/longislandtechnologists/────────────────────────────────Fin Forecasting - Never Lose Money On A Project Againhttps://www.finforecasting.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/fin-forecasting────────────────────────────────Brought to you by Cause of a KindA boutique software development and startup studio from Long Island, New YorkStand up. Show up. Build.

James Colistra spent a decade at Forbes giving founders and CEOs a stage to tell their stories. Then one day an HR invite hit his calendar and it was all over. No warning. No explanation.His eight year old daughter looked him in the eyes and asked, "Daddy, why did they get rid of you? You're the best." That moment broke him and rebuilt him at the same time.James decided he did not need a big brand to do what he loved. So he built Wonderfish from nothing. What started as a marketing agency evolved into a podcast guesting and visibility platform helping founders get their stories heard across the media landscape.In this episode we unpack the full zero to market journey. From building forts out of wheat fields in upstate New York to launching a ketchup company on Kickstarter to eventually finding his lane in what he calls visibility engineering.Key TakeawaysYour story is your competitive advantage in the age of AI. No algorithm can replicate your lived experience.Vulnerability is not weakness. The moment James started sharing his layoff story publicly, everything changed.Volume and consistency beat perfection. You do not need the perfect show or the perfect post. You need repetitions.Perception is reality. If you are not visible, you do not exist. Media shapes perception and AI is now the intermediary between media and humans.Start before you are ready. James launched a tumbler brand, a ketchup company, and a marketing agency before finding the thing that stuck. You do not need permission to own your narrative. https://wonderfish.xyz/https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamescolistra/────────────────────────────────LISTEN ON ALL PLATFORMSSpotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1V4SjmlnG2sntDnck8UrGWApple Podcastshttps://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/strictly-from-nowhere-a-podcast-experiment-by-cause/id1804380172iHeart Radiohttps://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-strictly-from-nowhere-a-po-315649122/YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWAstEyCK6YsKVTTRsQr37wSUPPORT THE SHOWPatreonhttp://patreon.com/StrictlyFromNowhereCONNECT WITH USLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/strictly-from-nowhereWebsitehttps://strictlyfromnowhere.com────────────────────────────────FOLLOW JUSTIN ABRAMS | @cuzzinjustinLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/cuzzinjustin/Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/cuzzinjustin/Xhttps://x.com/cuzzinjustinTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@cuzzinjustinFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/cuzzinjustin24Websitehttps://www.cuzzinjustin.com────────────────────────────────FOLLOW MIKE RISPOLI | @mike_rispoli_ctoLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-rispoli-cto/Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/mike_rispoli_cto/Xhttps://x.com/michael_rispoliTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@mike_rispoliWebsitehttps://michaelrispoli.com/────────────────────────────────CAUSE OF A KIND | @causeofakindWebsitehttps://www.causeofakind.comLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/cause-of-a-kindInstagramhttps://www.instagram.com/causeofakind/Xhttps://x.com/causeofakindTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@causeofakindNewsletter Signuphttp://eepurl.com/gcc-yjNewsletter Archivehttps://us16.campaign-archive.com/home/?u=847ea1526d6523a41ef1eb5a5&id=48d53e9627───────────────────────────OPEN SOURCE PROJECTSCodeDojohttps://github.com/Cause-of-a-Kind/code-dojo-coreOCR Ruby GEMhttps://activestorage-ocr-demo.fly.dev/───────────────────────────COMMUNITY INITIATIVESLong Island Technologistshttps://www.longislandtechnologists.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/long-island-technologists-networkinghttps://www.instagram.com/longislandtechnologists/───────────────────────────Fin Forecasting - Never Lose Money On A Project Againhttps://www.finforecasting.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/fin-forecastingBrought to you by Cause of a KindA boutique software development and startup studio from Long Island, New YorkStand up. Show up. Build.

Separate income from career path.Epic Games just cut over a thousand employees. For once, a company told the truth: it's not AI, it's not efficiency. Fortnite isn't as popular. Revenue is flat. In business, staying flat is dying.Justin and Mike tackle the hardest conversation in tech right now. You have to separate the need for income from pursuit of your career. Sometimes income looks like retail. Driving Uber. Picking up a shovel.Mike would bartend tomorrow. Justin would work at Macy's. Nothing is beneath them. Because financial stress destroys every decision. Every bad decision Mike's made was because cash flow was tight.The hard truth: that retail job at Macy's? That's a new network. New coworkers. Managers looking for exceptional people. Justin started his career in retail. He can connect dots back to those jobs today.Increase your surface area for luck. Every person you meet could change everything.Topics covered:Epic Games layoffs and revenue truthSeparating income from careerWhy financial stress destroys decisionsAlways Be Interviewing from any positionSurface area for luck through any jobLifestyle creep and scaling backIdeas deficit in techIf you're dealing with layoffs or struggling to find work, this is for you.────────────────────────────────LISTEN ON ALL PLATFORMSSpotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1V4SjmlnG2sntDnck8UrGWApple Podcastshttps://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/strictly-from-nowhere-a-podcast-experiment-by-cause/id1804380172iHeart Radiohttps://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-strictly-from-nowhere-a-po-315649122/YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWAstEyCK6YsKVTTRsQr37wSUPPORT THE SHOWPatreonhttp://patreon.com/StrictlyFromNowhereCONNECT WITH USLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/strictly-from-nowhereWebsitehttps://strictlyfromnowhere.com────────────────────────────────FOLLOW JUSTIN ABRAMS | @cuzzinjustinLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/cuzzinjustin/Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/cuzzinjustin/Xhttps://x.com/cuzzinjustinTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@cuzzinjustinFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/cuzzinjustin24Websitehttps://www.cuzzinjustin.com────────────────────────────────FOLLOW MIKE RISPOLI | @mike_rispoli_ctoLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-rispoli-cto/Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/mike_rispoli_cto/Xhttps://x.com/michael_rispoliTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@mike_rispoliWebsitehttps://michaelrispoli.com/────────────────────────────────CAUSE OF A KIND | @causeofakindWebsitehttps://www.causeofakind.comLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/cause-of-a-kindInstagramhttps://www.instagram.com/causeofakind/Xhttps://x.com/causeofakindTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@causeofakindNewsletter Signuphttp://eepurl.com/gcc-yjNewsletter Archivehttps://us16.campaign-archive.com/home/?u=847ea1526d6523a41ef1eb5a5&id=48d53e9627────────────────────────────────OPEN SOURCE PROJECTSCodeDojohttps://github.com/Cause-of-a-Kind/code-dojo-coreOCR Ruby GEMhttps://activestorage-ocr-demo.fly.dev/────────────────────────────────COMMUNITY INITIATIVESLong Island Technologistshttps://www.longislandtechnologists.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/long-island-technologists-networkinghttps://www.instagram.com/longislandtechnologists/────────────────────────────────Fin Forecasting - Never Lose Money On A Project Againhttps://www.finforecasting.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/fin-forecasting────────────────────────────────Brought to you by Cause of a KindA boutique software development and startup studio from Long Island, New YorkStand up. Show up. Build.

The hardest days are the most valuable.Justin and Mike open up about faith, loss, and why they built a Bible study app out of nowhere. This episode is raw. Personal. Different.Mike's daughter won her first dance competition. Trophy twice her height. His son had first Holy Communion. Same weekend. Justin's grandmother is passing from Alzheimer's. And it's the five-year anniversary of his best friend's fentanyl overdose death.The entrepreneur's journey is the ultimate test of faith. You have to be optimistic when there are no signs you should be.Mike and Justin both had the same idea the same day: build something to help reconcile with faith. Not for money. For impact.Mike built it for his kids. They're dealing with loss younger than he ever did. They ask questions he doesn't know how to answer. So he journals. Claude recommends passages. He reads. He asks more questions.Justin watched a man die on Elbrus 30 minutes before standing on top of the world. Why wasn't it him?Topics covered:Why the hardest days are the most valuableTrading time for money you can't get backEntrepreneur's journey as ultimate test of faithBuilding a Bible study app the same dayTeaching kids about faith and lossLLMs making scripture accessibleWhy bad things happen to good peopleThis one's tough. But maybe you need to hear it.────────────────────────────────LISTEN ON ALL PLATFORMSSpotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1V4SjmlnG2sntDnck8UrGWApple Podcastshttps://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/strictly-from-nowhere-a-podcast-experiment-by-cause/id1804380172iHeart Radiohttps://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-strictly-from-nowhere-a-po-315649122/YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWAstEyCK6YsKVTTRsQr37wSUPPORT THE SHOWPatreonhttp://patreon.com/StrictlyFromNowhereCONNECT WITH USLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/strictly-from-nowhereWebsitehttps://strictlyfromnowhere.com────────────────────────────────FOLLOW JUSTIN ABRAMS | @cuzzinjustinLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/cuzzinjustin/Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/cuzzinjustin/Xhttps://x.com/cuzzinjustinTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@cuzzinjustinFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/cuzzinjustin24Websitehttps://www.cuzzinjustin.com────────────────────────────────FOLLOW MIKE RISPOLI | @mike_rispoli_ctoLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-rispoli-cto/Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/mike_rispoli_cto/Xhttps://x.com/michael_rispoliTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@mike_rispoliWebsitehttps://michaelrispoli.com/────────────────────────────────CAUSE OF A KIND | @causeofakindWebsitehttps://www.causeofakind.comLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/cause-of-a-kindInstagramhttps://www.instagram.com/causeofakind/Xhttps://x.com/causeofakindTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@causeofakindNewsletter Signuphttp://eepurl.com/gcc-yjNewsletter Archivehttps://us16.campaign-archive.com/home/?u=847ea1526d6523a41ef1eb5a5&id=48d53e9627────────────────────────────────OPEN SOURCE PROJECTSCodeDojohttps://github.com/Cause-of-a-Kind/code-dojo-coreOCR Ruby GEMhttps://activestorage-ocr-demo.fly.dev/────────────────────────────────COMMUNITY INITIATIVESLong Island Technologistshttps://www.longislandtechnologists.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/long-island-technologists-networkinghttps://www.instagram.com/longislandtechnologists/────────────────────────────────Fin Forecasting - Never Lose Money On A Project Againhttps://www.finforecasting.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/fin-forecasting────────────────────────────────Brought to you by Cause of a KindA boutique software development and startup studio from Long Island, New YorkStand up. Show up. Build.

YouTube Description - CTO Confidential: From Recession to Reinvention with Scott WernerTypeScript ate my context. So I went back to Ruby.Mike sits down with Scott Werner, CEO of Sublayer and creator of the Works on My Machine newsletter. Scott runs Artificial Ruby, a meetup in NYC for engineers building with Ruby and AI.Scott graduated in 2008 into the financial crisis. Graded standardized tests. Bartended. Did ATM call center support. Found Ruby and never looked back.His philosophy: flexibility matters. If an idea takes two weeks to try, you won't try as many bad ideas as if it takes 20 minutes. Good ideas start looking like bad ideas. Ruby lets you experiment fast.Mike switched back to Ruby because TypeScript was chewing up context with type errors. The language is concise. Readable. Perfect for AI.Scott's latest project: a sci-fi newsletter about future jobs. "Warranty Void if Regenerated" explores software mechanics. The premise: 10 years from now, people vibe code their software. Things break. You need someone who thinks in systems to fix it.Topics covered:TypeScript vs Ruby for AI developmentSuburbanization of code and cottage industry softwareRails as the framework of IPOsSoftware mechanics as future jobVolume advantage in agentic codingReading classics with LLMsGatekeepers are gone37signals Once philosophyIf you're building with Ruby, training teams on AI, or thinking about the future of software, this is for you.────────────────────────────────LISTEN ON ALL PLATFORMSSpotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1V4SjmlnG2sntDnck8UrGWApple Podcastshttps://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/strictly-from-nowhere-a-podcast-experiment-by-cause/id1804380172iHeart Radiohttps://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-strictly-from-nowhere-a-po-315649122/YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWAstEyCK6YsKVTTRsQr37wSUPPORT THE SHOWPatreonhttp://patreon.com/StrictlyFromNowhereCONNECT WITH USLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/strictly-from-nowhereWebsitehttps://strictlyfromnowhere.com────────────────────────────────FOLLOW JUSTIN ABRAMS | @cuzzinjustinLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/cuzzinjustin/Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/cuzzinjustin/Xhttps://x.com/cuzzinjustinTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@cuzzinjustinFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/cuzzinjustin24Websitehttps://www.cuzzinjustin.com────────────────────────────────FOLLOW MIKE RISPOLI | @mike_rispoli_ctoLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-rispoli-cto/Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/mike_rispoli_cto/Xhttps://x.com/michael_rispoliTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@mike_rispoliWebsitehttps://michaelrispoli.com/────────────────────────────────CAUSE OF A KIND | @causeofakindWebsitehttps://www.causeofakind.comLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/cause-of-a-kindInstagramhttps://www.instagram.com/causeofakind/Xhttps://x.com/causeofakindTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@causeofakindNewsletter Signuphttp://eepurl.com/gcc-yjNewsletter Archivehttps://us16.campaign-archive.com/home/?u=847ea1526d6523a41ef1eb5a5&id=48d53e9627────────────────────────────────OPEN SOURCE PROJECTSCodeDojohttps://github.com/Cause-of-a-Kind/code-dojo-coreOCR Ruby GEMhttps://activestorage-ocr-demo.fly.dev/────────────────────────────────COMMUNITY INITIATIVESLong Island Technologistshttps://www.longislandtechnologists.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/long-island-technologists-networkinghttps://www.instagram.com/longislandtechnologists/────────────────────────────────Fin Forecasting - Never Lose Money On A Project Againhttps://www.finforecasting.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/fin-forecasting────────────────────────────────Brought to you by Cause of a KindA boutique software development and startup studio from Long Island, New YorkStand up. Show up. Build.

We need creativity so bad right now.Justin and Mike break down the dark side of shipping products fast. Uncal has been live for two weeks. Zero paying customers. Even the waitlist hasn't converted.This is the reality nobody talks about. Everyone on X is posting about overnight success. Built an app, made $100K. But Mike's built dozens of apps over 10 years. None of them did that.The problem? Everyone's building the same thing with the same tools. Tailwind. Next.js. Shadcn. The same UI. The same landing pages. The same aesthetic.AI is creating sameness. And sameness doesn't stand out.Mike's frustrated. He's tired of the logo on the left, the burger menu, the line spacing, the fonts. It's all identical. And distribution is harder than building now.Topics covered:Zero conversions on Uncal after two weeks liveWhy building fast doesn't equal successDistribution is harder than buildingThe sameness problem with AI-generated designTailwind fatigue and aesthetic exhaustionWhy 60% of budget should be marketingBasecamp's AI chat vs what Finn already builtThe death of learning new UIsWhy aesthetics matter more than everGoing cyberpunk with Finn's redesignIf you're shipping products, struggling with distribution, or tired of building the same thing as everyone else, this is for you.We need creativity. Badly.────────────────────────────────LISTEN ON ALL PLATFORMSSpotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1V4SjmlnG2sntDnck8UrGWApple Podcastshttps://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/strictly-from-nowhere-a-podcast-experiment-by-cause/id1804380172iHeart Radiohttps://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-strictly-from-nowhere-a-po-315649122/YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWAstEyCK6YsKVTTRsQr37wSUPPORT THE SHOWPatreonhttp://patreon.com/StrictlyFromNowhereCONNECT WITH USLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/strictly-from-nowhereWebsitehttps://strictlyfromnowhere.com────────────────────────────────FOLLOW JUSTIN ABRAMS | @cuzzinjustinLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/cuzzinjustin/Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/cuzzinjustin/Xhttps://x.com/cuzzinjustinTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@cuzzinjustinFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/cuzzinjustin24Websitehttps://www.cuzzinjustin.com────────────────────────────────FOLLOW MIKE RISPOLI | @mike_rispoli_ctoLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-rispoli-cto/Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/mike_rispoli_cto/Xhttps://x.com/michael_rispoliTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@mike_rispoliWebsitehttps://michaelrispoli.com/────────────────────────────────CAUSE OF A KIND | @causeofakindWebsitehttps://www.causeofakind.comLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/cause-of-a-kindInstagramhttps://www.instagram.com/causeofakind/Xhttps://x.com/causeofakindTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@causeofakindNewsletter Signuphttp://eepurl.com/gcc-yjNewsletter Archivehttps://us16.campaign-archive.com/home/?u=847ea1526d6523a41ef1eb5a5&id=48d53e9627────────────────────────────────OPEN SOURCE PROJECTSCodeDojohttps://github.com/Cause-of-a-Kind/code-dojo-coreOCR Ruby GEMhttps://activestorage-ocr-demo.fly.dev/────────────────────────────────COMMUNITY INITIATIVESLong Island Technologistshttps://www.longislandtechnologists.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/long-island-technologists-networkinghttps://www.instagram.com/longislandtechnologists/────────────────────────────────Fin Forecasting - Never Lose Money On A Project Againhttps://www.finforecasting.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/fin-forecasting────────────────────────────────Brought to you by Cause of a KindA boutique software development and startup studio from Long Island, New YorkStand up. Show up. Build.

Your ability to write code won't be the thing that earns you money anymore.Mike sits down with Adam Krieger, CTO of Slate and creator of Illume, an orchestration tool for AI agents working with JIRA and Linear.Adam's philosophy: sub-agents aren't about playing house. They're about context isolation. Not creating perfect front-end and backend developer personas. But using workflows to avoid context rot and get predictable results.His approach with swarms? Every agent follows the same workflow: analysis, planning, implementation, code review, verification. Rigorous. Not crazy fast. Not token efficient. But it gives better end results and insulates you from model variance.The tradeoff? You spend more tokens upfront. But you don't repeat work. And you get an audit trail showing exactly what the agent was thinking and why.Adam also calls out the industry's broken relationship with issue trackers. Engineers used them for years. Then agentic coding arrived and everyone started littering repos with markdown files. The obvious place for context? The issue tracker.Topics covered:Why Slate is positioned for AI content creation shiftSub-agents as context isolation, not role-playingBuilding agent swarms with strict workflowsRigorous processes insulate from model varianceIssue trackers vs markdown files for agent contextTDD with Claude and better unit testsRails conventions preventing agent chaosQuality vs speed tradeoff disappearing with AINiche technical areas vs product engineeringDesigning interviews with AI in mindIf you're building with agentic coding or managing teams, this is required listening.───────────────────────────LISTEN ON ALL PLATFORMSSpotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1V4SjmlnG2sntDnck8UrGWApple Podcastshttps://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/strictly-from-nowhere-a-podcast-experiment-by-cause/id1804380172iHeart Radiohttps://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-strictly-from-nowhere-a-po-315649122/YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWAstEyCK6YsKVTTRsQr37wSUPPORT THE SHOWPatreonhttp://patreon.com/StrictlyFromNowhereCONNECT WITH USLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/strictly-from-nowhereWebsitehttps://strictlyfromnowhere.com───────────────────────────FOLLOW JUSTIN ABRAMS | @cuzzinjustinLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/cuzzinjustin/Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/cuzzinjustin/Xhttps://x.com/cuzzinjustinTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@cuzzinjustinFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/cuzzinjustin24Websitehttps://www.cuzzinjustin.com────────────────────────────────FOLLOW MIKE RISPOLI | @mike_rispoli_ctoLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-rispoli-cto/Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/mike_rispoli_cto/Xhttps://x.com/michael_rispoliTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@mike_rispoliWebsitehttps://michaelrispoli.com/───────────────────────────CAUSE OF A KIND | @causeofakindWebsitehttps://www.causeofakind.comLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/cause-of-a-kindInstagramhttps://www.instagram.com/causeofakind/Xhttps://x.com/causeofakindTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@causeofakindNewsletter Signuphttp://eepurl.com/gcc-yjNewsletter Archivehttps://us16.campaign-archive.com/home/?u=847ea1526d6523a41ef1eb5a5&id=48d53e9627───────────────────────────OPEN SOURCE PROJECTSCodeDojohttps://github.com/Cause-of-a-Kind/code-dojo-coreOCR Ruby GEMhttps://activestorage-ocr-demo.fly.dev/───────────────────────────COMMUNITY INITIATIVESLong Island Technologistshttps://www.longislandtechnologists.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/long-island-technologists-networkinghttps://www.instagram.com/longislandtechnologists/───────────────────────────Fin Forecasting - Never Lose Money On A Project Againhttps://www.finforecasting.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/fin-forecasting───────────────────────────Brought to you by Cause of a KindA boutique software development and startup studio from Long Island, New YorkStand up. Show up. Build.

Nobody should have crummy pickles in their fridge.CuzzinJustin sits down with Chris Hobson, founder of Hobbs Pickles, to discuss building a cult brand in one of the most competitive CPG categories. From art director at top agencies to selling out inventory in two days at Granville Island Market.Chris started with a problem: he couldn't find a good refrigerated pickle in Vancouver. No deli vibe. No Lower East Side half-sour experience. Just shelf-stable mediocrity.So he drew a pickle tasting bar on a napkin. Built a brand. Opened on Granville Island. Sold out in two days.The market thought he was crazy. Just selling cucumbers? Wearing black ties and white shirts like Reservoir Dogs? But customers drove from Portland. Called from London. Flew in from Bangkok.Chris breaks down the Swiss Army knife mentality of entrepreneurship, navigating ego in creative industries, why autonomy as a kid built confidence, and staying connected to customers as you scale.Topics covered:Building CPG in a saturated categoryThe pickle tasting bar and Lower East Side inspirationSelling out in two days and realizing it's viableCustomers calling from around the worldSwiss Army knife mentality: honing skills to perfectionArt direction and presenting to boardroomsNavigating ego in creative industriesAutonomy as foundation for entrepreneurial confidenceAnswering the phone as founderNever compromising on qualityIf you're building a brand, launching CPG, or standing out in a competitive category, this episode is the playbook.Nobody should have crummy pickles in their fridge.────────────────────────────────LISTEN ON ALL PLATFORMSSpotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1V4SjmlnG2sntDnck8UrGWApple Podcastshttps://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/strictly-from-nowhere-a-podcast-experiment-by-cause/id1804380172iHeart Radiohttps://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-strictly-from-nowhere-a-po-315649122/YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWAstEyCK6YsKVTTRsQr37wSUPPORT THE SHOWPatreonhttp://patreon.com/StrictlyFromNowhereCONNECT WITH USLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/strictly-from-nowhereWebsitehttps://strictlyfromnowhere.com────────────────────────────────FOLLOW JUSTIN ABRAMS | @cuzzinjustinLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/cuzzinjustin/Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/cuzzinjustin/Xhttps://x.com/cuzzinjustinTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@cuzzinjustinFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/cuzzinjustin24Websitehttps://www.cuzzinjustin.com────────────────────────────────FOLLOW MIKE RISPOLI | @mike_rispoli_ctoLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-rispoli-cto/Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/mike_rispoli_cto/Xhttps://x.com/michael_rispoliTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@mike_rispoliWebsitehttps://michaelrispoli.com/────────────────────────────────CAUSE OF A KIND | @causeofakindWebsitehttps://www.causeofakind.comLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/cause-of-a-kindInstagramhttps://www.instagram.com/causeofakind/Xhttps://x.com/causeofakindTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@causeofakindNewsletter Signuphttp://eepurl.com/gcc-yjNewsletter Archivehttps://us16.campaign-archive.com/home/?u=847ea1526d6523a41ef1eb5a5&id=48d53e9627────────────────────────────────OPEN SOURCE PROJECTSCodeDojohttps://github.com/Cause-of-a-Kind/code-dojo-coreOCR Ruby GEMhttps://activestorage-ocr-demo.fly.dev/────────────────────────────────COMMUNITY INITIATIVESLong Island Technologistshttps://www.longislandtechnologists.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/long-island-technologists-networkinghttps://www.instagram.com/longislandtechnologists/────────────────────────────────Fin Forecasting - Never Lose Money On A Project Againhttps://www.finforecasting.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/fin-forecasting────────────────────────────────Brought to you by Cause of a KindA boutique software development and startup studio from Long Island, New YorkStand up. Show up. Build.

Software engineers aren't going extinct. But the way we work is changing.Mike sits down with Mooly Beeri, founder of bettersoftware.dev and 40+ year software veteran, to discuss software excellence frameworks, why Agile stopped working, and how AI accelerates technical debt at the same pace it accelerates code generation.Mooly built the first Software Center of Excellence at Philips and now works with Mercedes, ZF, and Roche. His framework: every iteration must include conscious improvement of a single process step.The problem with modern Agile? Teams skip improvement. Four weeks coding, two days testing, five minutes retrospective. Repeat. Results never improve.AI makes this worse. Code generation is faster, but debugging takes 80% longer. Without guardrails, you're spiraling into chaos.Mooly breaks down where AI actually works: debugging assistance, pattern detection, code review support, finding similar requirements. But humans must own the fix, the refactoring, the decisions.Topics covered:Why Agile implementations miss improvementHow AI accelerates technical debt without controlsThe red traffic light problem: broken CI/CD everyone ignoresWhy tests need definition of done and phasing policy60% regression probability from one-line changesBuilding a consultancy through network, not mass outreachThe two-year trust-building timeline for consultingIf you're building software with AI, running teams, or starting a consultancy, this episode is essential.https://www.linkedin.com/in/mooly-beeri/https://www.bettersoftware.dev/────────────────────────────────LISTEN ON ALL PLATFORMSSpotifyhttps://open.spotify.com/show/1V4SjmlnG2sntDnck8UrGWApple Podcastshttps://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/strictly-from-nowhere-a-podcast-experiment-by-cause/id1804380172iHeart Radiohttps://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-strictly-from-nowhere-a-po-315649122/YouTubehttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWAstEyCK6YsKVTTRsQr37wSUPPORT THE SHOWPatreonhttp://patreon.com/StrictlyFromNowhereCONNECT WITH USLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/strictly-from-nowhereWebsitehttps://strictlyfromnowhere.com────────────────────────────────FOLLOW JUSTIN ABRAMS | @cuzzinjustinLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/cuzzinjustin/Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/cuzzinjustin/Xhttps://x.com/cuzzinjustinTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@cuzzinjustinFacebookhttps://www.facebook.com/cuzzinjustin24Websitehttps://www.cuzzinjustin.com────────────────────────────────FOLLOW MIKE RISPOLI | @mike_rispoli_ctoLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-rispoli-cto/Instagramhttps://www.instagram.com/mike_rispoli_cto/Xhttps://x.com/michael_rispoliTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@mike_rispoliWebsitehttps://michaelrispoli.com/────────────────────────────────CAUSE OF A KIND | @causeofakindWebsitehttps://www.causeofakind.comLinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/cause-of-a-kindInstagramhttps://www.instagram.com/causeofakind/Xhttps://x.com/causeofakindTikTokhttps://www.tiktok.com/@causeofakindNewsletter Signuphttp://eepurl.com/gcc-yjNewsletter Archivehttps://us16.campaign-archive.com/home/?u=847ea1526d6523a41ef1eb5a5&id=48d53e9627────────────────────────────────OPEN SOURCE PROJECTSCodeDojohttps://github.com/Cause-of-a-Kind/code-dojo-coreOCR Ruby GEMhttps://activestorage-ocr-demo.fly.dev/────────────────────────────────COMMUNITY INITIATIVESLong Island Technologistshttps://www.longislandtechnologists.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/long-island-technologists-networkinghttps://www.instagram.com/longislandtechnologists/────────────────────────────────Fin Forecasting - Never Lose Money On A Project Againhttps://www.finforecasting.comhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/fin-forecasting────────────────────────────────Brought to you by Cause of a KindA boutique software development and startup studio from Long Island, New YorkStand up. Show up. Build.