Brandon McConnell on A People First Mentality in Hospitality + His Book on AI & Human Psychology

Brandon McConnell, corporate executive at Delavan Lake Lawn Management, learned hospitality before he learned long division — garnishing plates at his mother’s diner at age six, stripping hotel beds in middle school, and eventually turning a TQM class on a Tuesday night into a professional philosophy that followed him through Disney, Grand Geneva, and now Lake Lawn Resort. He’s also finishing a 330-page book on AI psychosis through a Johns Hopkins research cohort.✨ Key Insights You’ll Learn:Diner childhood: learning hospitality through food, family, and 4:45 AM wake-upsSkipping class to vocational school: how TQM lit up Brandon’s mind and redirected his careerDisney at scale: timing housekeepers with a stopwatch to save $40K per property annuallyGrand Geneva turnaround: diagnosing a four-diamond property in 30 days and moving the needle in 90Hire for aptitude first, attitude second, availability thirdLake Lawn Resort: Wisconsin’s oldest resort spanning golf, spa, marina, and residential real estateNight golf and short courses: where the sport is headed and what Lake Lawn is buildingImposter syndrome as a reminder of the journey rather than a reason for fearAI psychosis research: what LLMs are doing in suicide prevention that surprised even BrandonWhy the AI moment mirrors where social media was a decade ago🌟 Brandon’s Key Mentors:His Mother: Introduced him to hospitality through her diner and modeled hard work and human connectionTQM Instructor (Vocational School): Gave Brandon the process framework that redirected his entire professional lifeDisney Leadership Teams: Taught alignment, scale, and people-centric operations at an institutional levelCOO of Development (Former GM, Delavan): Hired Brandon twice and shaped his long-term trajectoryJohns Hopkins Research Cohort: Challenged Brandon to think rigorously about AI from a non-clinical standpoint👉 Don’t miss this conversation about what hospitality actually teaches you about people, why imposter syndrome belongs on the table not buried underneath it, and how a resort executive ended up writing one of the more unusual books on AI and human psychology.🔗 Connect with Brandon McConnell:Website: https://www.lakelawnresort.com/Social Media: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandon-m-mcconnell-1aba4240/ 📤 Transcript Available: Brandon McConnell on A People First Mentality in Hospitality + His Book on AI & Human Psychology📺 Watch on YouTube: Inspired Stories Podcast🌐 Our Website: The Inspired Stories Podcast📤 Special Thanks to Anthony Codispoti & AddBack Benefits Agency — Providing innovative employee benefits solutions that improve employee well-being while optimizing your bottom line. Website: addbackbenefits.com