Jay Acunzo
Jay Acunzo is an author, podcaster, and speaking and storytelling advisor who helps people turn their expertise into ideas and stories that matter.
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Jay’s happenings, collected from public sources, plus their backstory and Starbook, where fans write.
Known for
Help Scout
Overview
- Work
- Author, podcast host, speaker, and storytelling advisor
- Early path
- Sportswriting ambitions, followed by marketing roles at Google, HubSpot, and NextView
- Independent chapter
- Launched Unthinkable in 2016
- First book
- Break the Wheel (2018)
- A podcast milestone
- Sold 3 Clips to Castos in 2021
Mini bio
How it started.
Before the microphones and conference stages, Jay wanted to write about sports. As a student, Jay wrote columns and a sports blog, drawn to the personal voice of writers like Bill Simmons. In a Creator Science interview, Jay recalled how a hoped-for full-time role after an ESPN internship fell through during the 2008 downturn, leading instead to a job at Google.
Finding a voice.
Marketing became a route back to making things people actually wanted to spend time with. Jay worked at Google and HubSpot, then spent three years leading content and community at NextView. Unthinkable, launched in 2016, gave those interests a home through stories about creators making unconventional choices. Break the Wheel followed in 2018, exploring how to question best practices and trust your own judgment.
Stories in different forms.
Jay launched 3 Clips in November 2019 to unpack the craft behind podcasts, then sold it to Castos in 2021. With Help Scout, Jay also wrote, hosted, and co-directed Against the Grain, a three-part documentary series about businesses putting people, craft, and community at the center of their work.
The chapter now.
After the pandemic disrupted the speaking business, Jay rebuilt around advisory work and programs that allowed more time at home with family. The current podcast, Why They Resonate, lets listeners hear speakers and authors develop their ideas. In July 2026, Jay announced Bag Full of Dongles, a book in progress about the strange, funny, and demanding life of professional speakers.
Creditschronological, newest first
Podcasts
- 2024–presentWhy They Resonate / How Stories HappenCreator, host, writer, and producer
- 20193 ClipsCreator and host; sold to Castos in 2021
- 2016–2024UnthinkableCreator and host
Film and video
- 2020Against the GrainWriter, host, and co-director
Books
- 2018Break the Wheel: Question Best Practices, Hone Your Intuition, and Do Your Best WorkAuthor and audiobook narrator
Awards
Quotes
Don’t be the best. Be their favorite.Jay Acunzo, “What’s My Resonance Tendency?”
Trivia
- Anthony Bourdain is a storytelling hero. Jay describes the planned Bag Full of Dongles as a Kitchen Confidential for professional speakers.
- While writing Break the Wheel, Jay would arrive at a favorite coffee shop in Queens as it opened and write to Spotify playlists shared on the book’s page.
- Jay’s dog was named for a favorite gelato flavor.
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Follow Jay’s stories, conversations, and works in progress.
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