Gary McAlister is the definition of starting from scratch. No head start. No silver spoon. Just grit, graft, and a relentless drive to build something better.

From his early days as a joiner in Glasgow to running multiple businesses in construction and property, Gary has learned every lesson the hard way, on-site, in debt, and under pressure. But that’s what makes this conversation so powerful. He’s not talking theory. He’s lived it.

In this episode, Gary opens up about the reality behind the scenes, the missed paydays, the marketing nightmares, the big wins, and the bigger wake-up calls. He’s building businesses while trying to fix a broken industry, mentoring the next generation of tradespeople through The Refurb Academy, and learning what it means to truly lead.

This one’s for the grafters, the risk-takers, the ones trying to turn their skills into something scalable and finding out it’s not as simple as just being good at the job.

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Key moments:

✔️ From failing in school to finding purpose through joinery

✔️ Why the UK has a massive skills crisis and how Gary’s trying to change it

✔️ What most tradespeople get wrong when they go self-employed

✔️ The mindset shift from tradesman to business owner

✔️ Why subcontracting can make or break your reputation

✔️ How payment terms are killing small construction companies

✔️ The painful truth about joint ventures and why contracts matter

✔️ Building The Refurb Academy to create real opportunities for others

✔️ Managing pressure, self-doubt, and the weight of responsibility

✔️ The difference between running a business and owning one

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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 Gary McAlister:

LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/gary-mcallister/

Instagram→ https://www.instagram.com/mcallisterproperty?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw==

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

Property Refurb Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/propertyrefurbacademy?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet&igsh=ZDNlZDc0MzIxNw==

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Subscribe to Success or Excuses for more real conversations with people who’ve built their success from the ground up. No fluff. No filters. Just the truth.

Barry Jolly didn’t grow up dreaming of building a media agency. In fact, by his own admission, he drifted for years, working hard, doing what he was told, and playing it safe in a corporate career. Until one unexpected trip to London lit a fire he couldn’t put out.

What followed was far from smooth. His first venture crumbled overnight when the affiliate marketing company he partnered with was exposed as a fraud, wiping out his income and credibility in one swoop. But instead of walking away, Barry doubled down.

He started again. This time for real.

In this episode, James Fleming sits down with Barry for a real, unfiltered conversation about what it takes to get back up after a hit, the truth about agency life, and how he’s grown Jolly Media into a results-driven, values-led company in one of the most challenging industries out there.

Barry opens up about the imposter syndrome, the unpaid invoices, the client mistakes, and the lonely moments most founders keep quiet. But through it all, one thing’s clear, he’s not here to fake it. He’s here to build something that lasts.

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Key moments:

✔️ The failed affiliate venture that wiped out six figures overnight

✔️ How his uncle’s belief planted the first seed of entrepreneurship

✔️ From hotel rooms to hustle: juggling a startup with a full-time job

✔️ The personal lessons that shaped Jolly Media’s values and approach

✔️ Building trust in a broken marketing industry

✔️ Why most agencies overpromise and how Barry’s team does things differently

✔️ Becoming the go-to in renewables through speed, transparency, and strategy

✔️ The moment it all clicked, rethinking marketing around audience awareness

✔️ Why he’s now building a media group and acquiring agencies

✔️ Letting go of control and learning how to lead

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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 Barry Jolly:

LinkedIn → https://www.linkedin.com/in/barry-jolly-30a114220/

Website → https://jollymediamarketing.com/

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Subscribe to Success or Excuses for more honest, unfiltered conversations with people who’ve taken the punches, stayed in the ring, and kept swinging.

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.