I just rebranded my podcast!

Here's how I landed on the new name and branding - and what the new version of the show is all about

I’m excited to share a big change today.

My podcast, formerly known as Delivering Value with Andrew Capland, is now called Growing Forward!

It’s a small difference in words, but a huge difference in meaning.

I figured I’d share how I got here, because the process mirrors the exact kind of career moments this show now exists to explore.

(And if you haven’t already, I hope you’ll subscribe: YouTube, Spotify, Apple)

The Name I Chose Before I Knew What I Was Building

When I first launched the show, I had no idea what to call it.

I knew that I didn’t want to name it The Andrew Capland show, or something along those lines.

As flattering as that would be, I didn’t want the show to feel like it revolved around me. And honestly, I wasn’t sure my ego could handle it if The Andrew Capland Show didn’t take off.

I also didn’t want the word “growth” in the title.

Coming from the growth world, that word is everywhere - companies, newsletters, podcasts, frameworks, etc. This show was (and is) a creative outlet for me. And “growth” felt a little too on the nose.

So instead of overthinking it, I defaulted to action. I named the show after my coaching business: Delivering Value.

Those words have always been a mantra for my career.

Because I’ve always felt that if I focused on delivering value to users - everything else (the KPIs I was accountable for and my career progression) would take care of itself. And that has mostly been true.

At the time, calling it the Delivering Value Podcast was the right call.

It got me moving. It gave me room to experiment. And it didn’t box me into a specific premise before I understood what the show could become.

By most external measures, the podcast was doing well.

Since launching - we have slowly attracted over 1200 subs.

Downloads have been solid. The guests are sharing meaningful stories. And feedback from listeners was encouraging. Everything has been going okay.

But I felt like I was working way too hard - for the show growth I was seeing.

My gut told me that something was off. When I asked listeners what the show was about, I got a wide range of answers.

Some people said it was about growth. Others said leadership. Some said career advice, mindset, executive communication, or tactics.

None of those answers were wrong. But taken together, they pointed to a deeper issue: the show didn’t have a clear position in the listener’s mind.

That realization is what pushed me to get some help.

The Question That Changed Everything

A few months ago, I started working with a podcast coach.

Someone who’s solved these problems before and could help me shortcut this process.

My instinct was to focus on execution - asking better questions, writing sharper hooks, crafting stronger titles, designing more compelling thumbnails.

(if you’ve been following along, you’ve probably seen me experiment with all of that)

But my coach kept pulling me back to a more fundamental question:

“Why does someone choose to press play on your show instead of doing literally anything else with their time?”

At first, I resisted that question. It felt abstract. I wanted to solve concrete problems.

But once I sat with it, the answer became clearer than I expected.

People listen for two reasons.

The First Reason: They’re Trying to Move Their Careers Forward

Most people who listen to this show already know how to do growth work.

They’re competent. Experienced. Often top performers. In many cases, they’ve already mastered the growth playbooks that helped them get promoted in the first place.

But somewhere along the way, their job changed.

They started to realize there’s a difference between being an expert - and being effective.

Effectiveness requires a different skillset.

One that has less to do with execution and more to do with influence, judgment, communication, and trust. These are the skills that get you invited “into the room” where decisions are made. And more importantly, they’re the skills that help you keep your seat once you’re there.

What surprised me, both as a coach and in my own career, is how few people are explicitly taught this transition. We assume it happens naturally. Often, it doesn’t.

The Second Reason: They’re Trying to Make Sense of Hard Moments

The other reason people listen has less to do with ambition and more to do with reassurance.

Most of the career content online celebrates wins.

My friend (and co-founder of Camp Solo) John Bonini calls this, “winning in public.”

It looks like sharing your promotions, playbooks, and breakthroughs. On social media, we’re constantly surrounded by examples of people who seem to be doing everything right.

We don’t usually get to see the mistakes.

The missteps, the feedback that stings, the goals that get missed, the moments where burnout or imposter syndrome creep in.

When those things happen to us, we tend to internalize them. We assume they’re a signal that we’re not cut out for this, or that we’re in the wrong role, or that we somehow messed up beyond repair.

The truth is simpler and harder at the same time: these moments are normal. But they often don’t come with a clean playbook.

You can’t fix them by working longer hours or trying harder in the same ways that used to work earlier in your career.

From Top Performer to Top-Tier Leader

Once those two insights clicked, the rest of the show came into focus.

Growing Forward is for people making the transition from being a top performer to becoming a top-tier leader.

That transition is more jarring than most people expect. Getting the title doesn’t automatically give you influence. Being great at doing the work doesn’t always translate into being great at leading others who do the work.

Without developing a new set of skills, careers tend to stall in predictable ways.

Some people plateau as high-performing ICs. Others become burned-out player-coaches who never quite break through to the next level.

There’s nothing wrong with any of those outcomes. The problem is when they happen unintentionally.

Why These Skills Are Learned the Hard Way

Even when we know we need to work on our leadership, communication, or judgment skills - they’re hard to learn.

You don’t really learn them from a book. And you almost never learn them when things are going smoothly.

You learn them when something goes wrong.

When feedback lands harder than expected. When you miss a goal. When the old version of you (the one that got you here) starts holding you back.

Those moments force change. They reshape how you see yourself and how you show up.

That’s what this show is about.

Every episode slows those moments down. We don’t just talk about what happened or how it felt. We dig into how people changed because of those experiences, or in spite of them, so that when you face similar moments in your own career, you’re not walking in blind.

Why the Name Growing Forward Finally Fit

I debated a lot of names. Dozens of them.

For a long time, I thought the show might be called Failing Forward. But the more I sat with that idea, the more it felt off.

Because this isn’t a show about failure.

It’s about growth - but not SaaS growth.

At least not directly. Instead, it’s about personal and professional growth - from people who are leading growth teams.

(heady I know)

About what people become because of hard moments. About growing through discomfort, growing because of adversity, and sometimes growing in spite of it.

You’re not just failing forward. You’re growing forward.

Once that clicked, everything else followed.

A Final Thought - and an Invitation

You might have noticed the new artwork too. It’s a little raw. A little gritty. Intentionally unpolished.

The cassette tape on the cover isn’t random.

Many of us grew up replaying old tapes - listening again, noticing something new each time. As a skateboarder in my teens, I did this a ton.

And that’s exactly what we’re doing with this show.

We’re replaying tough moments from real careers, slowing them down, and pulling out what actually matters.

As the show continues to evolve, I want it to evolve with you.

I’d love to hear from you. What moments are you navigating right now? What topics resonate most? What kinds of stories would be most helpful at this stage of your career?

I read and respond to every message, and I’m actively shaping future episodes based on what you share.

Thanks for being here. And welcome to the next chapter of Growing Forward.