Founders Future

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Milan Kohut, we are joined by Dr. Monique Thompson, a licensed professional counselor and trauma specialist with over 24 years of experience. Dr. Thompson shares her powerful founder's journey, beginning with her initial resistance to further education and the spiritual revelation that set her on the path to becoming a therapist. She details her intensive, deliberate training across diverse populations—from community mental health to working with adult male sex offenders—with the unwavering goal of becoming an exceptionally competent clinician who could handle any case that came her way.

The conversation shifts to the evolution of her business, which has been intentionally shaped around her life as a wife and mother. Dr. Thompson explains how her ideal client is now someone who allows her to live authentically, leading her to focus on virtual therapy and, more importantly, creating scalable products. She discusses the massive success of her best-selling book, Infidelity Recovery for Couples, and her exciting future plans to develop companion apps and digital resources. This strategic pivot aims to make her therapeutic guidance accessible to more people while allowing her knowledge to live on independently of her direct involvement.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Milan Kohut, we sit down with Mary Gardner, an executive communication coach and legacy brand builder. Mary takes us on her journey from working on Capitol Hill and as a top celebrity lecture agent to founding her own "white-glove" organization dedicated to helping high-level individuals—from White House alumni and champion athletes to corporate executives—amplify their voices and build lasting legacies. She shares her unique process for uncovering the compelling stories that set her clients apart and the importance of authenticity, community, and healing in the world of high-stakes communication.

Mary delves into the current state of her business, explaining her hands-on approach with strategy sessions and her successful use of organic methods like LinkedIn and word-of-mouth to attract an elite international clientele. The conversation also explores her future goals, including hitting a significant revenue milestone and expanding her work with financial firms and inspiring speakers. Mary leaves listeners with powerful advice: to start sharing their knowledge through courses and speaking before they feel ready, emphasizing that true success comes from combining ambition with a strong spiritual foundation and a commitment to helping others.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Milan Kohut, we are joined by Marianne Boone, MBA, founder and principal consultant of Front Range Leadership Development. Marianne shares her journey from a 30-year career in legal tech operations, where she guided teams from legacy systems through AI implementation, to launching her own consultancy. She reveals the critical insight that sparked her entrepreneurial leap: organizations often have a great plan and decent processes but consistently neglect the "people" element, which is essential for true success. Marianne's mission is to empower businesses by diagnosing their unique constraints and fostering psychological safety, creating environments where leaders and teams can truly thrive.

Marianne delves into the core of her work, explaining how she helps small and medium-sized businesses unlock their potential. She details her approach, which begins with a diagnostic cultural survey based on Dr. Amy Edmondson's psychological safety research, to quickly identify the root causes holding a company back. From there, she creates customized, journey-based engagements focused on integrating strategy, process, and people—especially crucial when navigating complex changes like adopting artificial intelligence. Marianne also offers invaluable advice for aspiring entrepreneurs, emphasizing the importance of betting on yourself and not hesitating to use your gifts to build your own legacy.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Milan Kohut, we sit down with Diana Marks, the founder of Lux Digital Media LLC. Diana shares her incredible journey from being a Belarusian student securing a sponsored internship in Hollywood to becoming a luxury lifestyle influencer with over a decade of experience and 2 million followers. She reveals the pivotal moment she realized a massive gap in the creator economy: while influencers are experts at creating content, they often lack the business acumen to monetize it effectively. This insight led her to pivot from being a successful creator to founding an agency dedicated to empowering others.

Diana delves into the innovative workings of her company, which has evolved from coaching into a data and AI-driven service. She explains how her agency uses a personalized AI agent to pitch influencers to brands that are actively hiring, effectively handing them qualified leads on a silver platter. The discussion covers her unique, community-focused business model, her goals to "rewrite the creator economy" by focusing on ethical, sustainable careers for creators, and her exciting plans to launch real-world events to strengthen human connections within her digital community.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Olivia Sammons, we sit down with Spencer Conn, the passionate founder behind spencerconnfit. Spencer shares his inspiring journey from feeling lost and unfulfilled in university to discovering his purpose in health and fitness. He explains how a personal passion for the gym and the joy of helping friends and family achieve their results evolved into a mission to empower busy professionals. Spencer delves into the challenges of transitioning from a free service to a sustainable business and the importance of consistency and discipline, both in fitness and entrepreneurship.

Spencer details his current business model, which focuses on helping busy men aged 25-40 balance their demanding schedules with their fitness goals through customized workout and nutrition plans, weekly check-ins, and a strong emphasis on community. He reveals his effective content marketing strategy built on connection, awareness, and value, and outlines his vision for the future: scaling to 100 clients by building a team that allows him to focus on being the brand's face and content creator, while ensuring his current clients receive exceptional, results-driven service.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Ammar Elm, we are joined by Dylan Hendrickson, founder and CEO of STAXX. Dylan shares his journey from playing college football and pursuing a master's degree in accounting to launching his own firm. He discusses the pivotal decision to merge his solo venture with his now-business partner, Alex, and how this partnership accelerated their growth. Dylan explains the core mission of STAXX: to provide a full-service fractional accounting and finance team that helps online businesses, home service contractors, and healthcare companies scale confidently by handling their bookkeeping, CFO services, and tax planning with an unwavering commitment to responsiveness and client care.

Dylan delves into the details of Stax Pro's service offerings, which include dedicated US-based CPAs and CFOs, a 24-hour response guarantee via Slack, and comprehensive financial oversight for businesses generating over $1 million in annual revenue. He also outlines the company's customer acquisition strategy, which relies heavily on Meta ads and a two-call sales process designed to build trust and demonstrate value. Looking ahead, Dylan shares his vision for scaling STAXX into an eight-figure company, exploring potential exit strategies, and the importance of continuous skill acquisition for entrepreneurial success.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Zach Young, we meet Alyson Richelle, the founder of What They Don’t Tell You™. Alyson shares her powerful journey from being a 15-year veteran senior sergeant of police to a survivor rebuilding her life after domestic violence. This unique dual perspective—understanding the system from the inside while experiencing its failures as a victim—fueled her mission to create What They Don’t Tell You™. She explains how she now provides crucial one-on-one support, acting as a guide and advocate to help others navigate the complex and often traumatic legal processes of obtaining protection orders and finding safety.

Alyson delves into the core challenges of her venture, highlighting that financial barriers often prevent survivors from accessing the help they need. Her vision extends far beyond individual coaching; she aims to build sponsored programs and ultimately create safe, self-contained housing communities for survivors and their families. The conversation explores the delicate balance of building a business that serves a vulnerable population, the importance of education in breaking generational cycles of abuse, and her ambitious goals to increase awareness and create systemic change on a global scale.

n this episode of Founders Future, with host Zach Young, we are joined by the multifaceted Elizabeth Blake-Thomas, an award-winning film director, author, and creativity coach. Elizabeth shares her remarkable journey, revealing how her early passions for theater and coaching in her teens and twenties naturally evolved into her current ventures, including Mother Daughter Entertainment and her mental health practice, Medicine with Words. She explains how all her work—from directing films like Hunt Club and Caroleique to delivering TED Talks and writing books—is unified under an umbrella of empowering others through mindful storytelling and creative expression.

Elizabeth delves into her unique one-on-one coaching methodology, which begins by understanding a client's foundational mindset before charting a path to their goals. The conversation takes a thoughtful turn as she challenges conventional notions of success and scaling a business. Using the poignant "Fisherman Story," Elizabeth advocates for a purpose-driven approach to work and life, emphasizing the importance of defining what fulfillment truly means on an individual level rather than relentlessly pursuing expansion. This episode is a powerful reminder to align your professional ambitions with your personal vision for a meaningful life.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Ammar Elm, we dive into the journey of Yomi Dubin, the founder of day1. Yomi shares how his path began organically during college, creating comedy videos with friends on the then-emerging TikTok platform. This initial foray into content creation led to brand collaborations, which eventually evolved into a funded creator house in LA. It was there that Yomi honed his skills and discovered his passion for developing elaborate, high-end social media strategies, leading him to establish his own social-first digital marketing agency.

Yomi details the vision for day1, which focuses on being a boutique creative partner for disruptive and innovative brands, particularly startups and apps looking for explosive growth. He explains their unique model that combines a small retainer with performance-based incentives, aligning the agency's success directly with the client's viral growth. Yomi also offers valuable advice for aspiring entrepreneurs, emphasizing the importance of focusing on core strengths, leveraging contractors to scale, and the power of perseverance through the inevitable challenges of building a business.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Zach Young, we meet Flora, a UGC content creator and coach pioneering the space in France. Flora shares her organic journey into the world of User-Generated Content, which began when brands discovered her naturally engaging social media presence on the streets of London. She explains how her background in sales and modeling, combined with a innate understanding of content creation, allowed her to build a successful career helping brands connect with audiences through authentic content.

Flora delves into the unique opportunity she identified in the French market, where UGC is still an emerging concept. She discusses how she has expanded from creating content for brands to coaching aspiring creators, building a community, and developing strategies to bridge the knowledge gap. Looking ahead, Flora outlines her plans to launch a specialized course for travel UGC and eventually expand internationally, aiming to empower a new generation of creators in a largely untapped market.