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Ever been asked “So, what do you do?” and felt your answer wobble? We sit down with strategist, mentor, and playwright-composer Thomas Heath to map a cleaner, kinder path to growth: start with foundational messaging, show up in real community, and set boundaries that protect your energy.

Thomas breaks down why most founders can’t deliver a five-second answer and how a tight messaging playbook unlocks everything—LinkedIn visibility, investor confidence, and sales velocity. We get specific on the five LinkedIn fields that matter, why your banner is prime real estate, and how a 220-character headline becomes your everyday elevator speech. Thomas also pulls back the curtain on working with VC, PE, and family offices to align cofounders, sharpen mission language, and ship pitch decks that actually raise money.

We tour Charleston’s startup scene through One Million Cups and the Harbor Entrepreneur Center, where “collision” moments create outsized opportunity. Alongside the tactics, we go deep on burnout: health scares, over-volunteering, and the hard reset toward time blocking, client boundaries, and a gratitude-first mindset. The through-line is sustainable growth—profit with impact, not grind for grind’s sake.

Then the story pivots to Luke and Lucy, a rock musical inspired by ’70s and ’80s legends, now evolving into a docuseries that empowers teens. It tackles toxic

King & Columbus is a full-service marketing and advertising agency based in South Carolina that helps brands grow through a mix of creative storytelling and data-driven strategy. They offer everything from branding and content creation to media planning, digital advertising, and PR—focused on delivering measurable results across digital, social, and traditional channels. https://kingandcolumbus.com

South Carolina Research Authority (SCRA) is a public, nonprofit organization that fuels South Carolina’s innovation economy by supporting technology-based startups, academic research, and industry partnerships. Through funding, coaching, and its investment arm SC Launch, SCRA helps early-stage companies grow, commercialize ideas, and scale within the state’s key innovation sectors.

Support the show

Title Sponsor: Charleston American Marketing Association

Presenting Sponsor: Charleston Media Solutions

Annual Sponsor: ‪SCRA; South Carolina Research Authority

Quarterly Sponsor: King and Columbus

Cohosts: Stephanie Barrow, Mike Compton, Rachel Backal, Tom Keppeler, Amanda Bunting Comen

Produced and edited: RMBO Advertising

Photographer | Co-host: Kelli Morse

Score by:  The Strawberry Entrée; Jerry Feels Good, CURRYSAUCE, DBLCRWN, DJ DollaMenu
Studio Engineer: Brian Cleary and Mathew Chase

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