Podcast Episodes

#62 Cracker Barrel • Minimal Isn’t the Problem. Meaningless Is.

Episode 62

Cracker Barrel spent $700 million on a makeover. New interiors. A new menu. A new logo.

The company says the heart of the brand hasn’t changed. But when a logo stops telling the truth — when it could …

Published on 1 month, 1 week ago

#61 NIL Unmasked · How College Sports Went Pro Without Saying It Out Loud

Episode 61

The rules of college sports just changed forever — and not everyone’s playing fair. In this episode of Think First, Jim Detjen pulls back the curtain on NIL — Name, Image, and Likeness — to show how …

Published on 1 month, 1 week ago

Be Someone's Reason to Think First

No flaming cars. No gaslighting breakdowns. Just a quick bonus drop to say… we’re at 200 downloads per episode — and it’s time to grow. This one’s for the OGs, the founding listeners, the people who …

Published on 1 month, 1 week ago

#60 When Empathy Becomes a Sin

Episode 60

Empathy is supposed to be untouchable—a universal virtue. But what happens when empathy gets rebranded as weakness… or even sin? In this episode, we dig into how empathy is praised, twisted, and weap…

Published on 1 month, 2 weeks ago

#59 What Happened to Customer Service After COVID?

Episode 59

Remember when stores were open 24/7, hotel rooms came with daily housekeeping, and tipping was a thank-you — not a ransom note?

Since COVID, businesses keep promising that “normal” will return… but th…

Published on 1 month, 2 weeks ago

🕵️‍♂️ Trailer: The Cindy James Tapes

She said she was being watched.

For seven years, no one believed her.

And then… she was dead.

In this five-part investigative series, Think First opens the files on Cindy James — a woman found hog-tied,…

Published on 1 month, 2 weeks ago

#58 Giants, Gaslighting, and the Smithsonian

Episode 58

Over 100 newspaper reports from the 1800s claimed giant human skeletons were discovered across the U.S.—many reportedly sent to the Smithsonian. But today, there’s no trace. No bones. No files. Just …

Published on 1 month, 2 weeks ago

#57 How the Dinosaurs Disappeared — and Why We Love the Story

Episode 57

What really killed the dinosaurs?

We’ve all heard the asteroid story: a rock from space slams into Earth, fire rains down, and the mighty dinosaurs vanish overnight. It’s clean. It’s dramatic. It’s th…

Published on 1 month, 2 weeks ago

#56 The FBI Doesn’t Hit Record — And That’s the Point

Episode 56

For decades, the FBI refused to record interviews — relying instead on handwritten notes and “302” summaries. Even after a 2014 policy change, the loopholes remain. In this episode, Jim Detjen unpack…

Published on 1 month, 3 weeks ago

#55 The Casual Sex Myth · Gaslit by the Culture

Episode 55

Modern culture tells us sex is just fun, casual, and consequence-free. But what if that’s the biggest gaslight of all? From hookup culture and porn to OnlyFans and Bonnie Blue, Jim Detjen unpacks the…

Published on 1 month, 3 weeks ago