Founders Future

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Olivia Sammons, we meet Meryl Bengtsson, the insightful founder of ADHD Life. Meryl shares her powerful personal journey of receiving an ADHD diagnosis later in life, which was a validating and transformative experience that answered long-held questions about her thought processes and behaviors. This discovery ignited her mission to leverage her corporate experience and deep dive into neuroscience to support fellow neurodiverse entrepreneurs. She founded ADHD Life to help them harness their innate creativity and high risk tolerance while designing strategies to overcome challenges like overwhelm, inconsistent execution, and emotional regulation.

Meryl delves into the core of her business model, the ADHD Entrepreneur Edge, a structured 12-week program that combines education on executive functions, self-awareness tools like character strength assessments, and a unique goal-setting framework called "MOTIVATE" designed for the ADHD brain. She explains how she acquires clients primarily through Meta advertising and her vision for the future, which includes authoring a book for ADHD entrepreneurs and expanding her "Frustration Flip" toolkit to improve collaboration between neurodiverse founders and their teams. This conversation is a profound look at turning perceived weaknesses into formidable entrepreneurial strengths.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Ammar Elm, we sit down with Joseph Federico, CEO of JFederico Marketing. Joseph shares his journey from the traditional publishing world in Manhattan to becoming a marketing strategist and dedicated coach for LGBTQ+ authors and bold brands. He discusses the pivotal moment the universe pushed him to sink or swim, leading him to launch his full-time venture officially over a year ago. Joseph opens up about the importance of niching down, the irreplaceable value of the human element in an AI-driven world, and his unique, trust-based sales process that leads with value.

Joseph delves into the specifics of his core 6-month coaching investment, designed to help clients conquer their fears and master platforms like LinkedIn and Instagram. He reveals his powerful, organic lead generation strategy that leverages Instagram's often-overlooked "human touch" features, explaining why he prefers this method over paid advertising. Finally, Joseph offers invaluable advice for new coaches and consultants, emphasizing the non-negotiable need for a focused social media presence and the power of serving a specific community with excellence.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Olivia Sammons, we sit down with Viveka Von Rosen, the visionary founder behind Beyond the Dream Board. Viveka shares her incredible journey from being a renowned LinkedIn expert and co-founder of a multi-million dollar digital transformation company to her current mission. She reveals the pivotal moment she realized her drive had shifted from profit to purpose, leading her to create a coaching practice dedicated to helping high-achieving women over 50 pivot from their corporate careers into meaningful, legacy-building businesses.

Viveka delves into the core of Beyond the Dream Board, explaining how she helps her clients amplify their voices to change the world. She discusses her effective, relationship-based strategies for client acquisition through LinkedIn and her vision for scaling her impact through new collaborative masterminds and live events. The conversation also covers the challenges and advantages of being a solo founder, the critical importance of leveraging a team (and AI), and her powerful advice for overcoming imposter syndrome to share your unique genius with the world.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Olivia Sammons, we sit down with Hiram Baker, the visionary founder and CEO of Baker Industries L.L.C.. Hiram takes us back to the childhood dream that sparked his entrepreneurial journey—the ambitious goal of owning a major car company, not just a dealership. He explains how decades of experience in corporate America equipped him with a "secret notebook" of philosophies and systems, which he later synthesized to create Baker Industries. His company operates as a revolutionary, formless "one-stop shop" designed to solve any business problem, from securing billion-dollar investments to facilitating mega-yacht purchases, all through a vast global network of strategic partnerships and a foundational belief in building genuine, personal relationships over transactional scripts.

Hiram outlines his ambitious goals for the next 12 months, which include expanding his unique partnership model, selling a half-billion dollar island, and building an "elite organization" of 1,000 high-functioning professionals and founders. He candidly discusses the external challenges of pursuing a grand vision, drawing parallels to Noah building the ark amidst skepticism. For aspiring entrepreneurs, Hiram leaves a powerful piece of advice: stop hesitating and just start. He emphasizes unwavering faith and action, urging listeners to transform their ideas into reality, trusting that the necessary resources and opportunities will follow.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Olivia Sammons, we sit down with Raz Malas, the founder and CEO of Talent Hackers. Raz shares his journey from building a successful e-commerce business that leveraged a massive remote team to identifying a massive gap in the market. He discusses the pivotal moment during COVID when the world shifted to remote work, inspiring him to launch Talent Hackers. His mission is clear: to help other businesses access the top 1% of global talent, significantly reducing hiring costs while maintaining exceptional quality, a model he had already proven by hiring over 150 offshore professionals for his own company.

Raz dives into the core of Talent Hackers' business model, explaining their unique, risk-free approach for clients: they launch searches and only get paid upon successfully placing a candidate. He outlines their subscription-based pricing, the vast range of roles they fill, and their incredible 100% employee retention rate. Looking ahead, Raz is focused on controlled, systematic growth with the goal of tripling the business in the next 12 months without compromising their high-quality service. He leaves listeners with invaluable advice for new founders: share your ideas openly, trust your gut, and remember that "comparison is the thief of joy."

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Olivia Sammons, we sit down with Mike Ames, a seasoned entrepreneur who built and sold two multi-million pound recruitment businesses. Mike takes us back to the tragic beginning of his journey, where the sudden death of his business partner forced him to take the helm with no experience, driving home in tears from the overwhelming pressure. He shares the pivotal moment a consultant taught him how to transition from building a business around himself to creating a scalable enterprise without him, which catapulted his first company from £5M to £40M in turnover.

Mike delves into the core of his current venture, Flair Business Growth Consultancy, which empowers SME leaders to scale sustainably. He explains the critical "transition points" where businesses must change their structure to avoid collapse and reveals his unique model of using an extensive online portal of resources to coach clients efficiently. The conversation also explores the future of sales and marketing, with Mike advocating for a return to high-quality, personalized relationship building over transactional volume and leveraging AI not for spam, but to create deeply resonant, personalized content and proposals that win high-value clients.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Olivia Sammons, we sit down with Janet M. Neal, a pioneer in the work-life balance space. Janet shares her incredible journey from a 20-year career at IBM, where she launched their first work-life balance initiative, to founding her coaching practice, The Superbwoman. She discusses the pivotal moment she realized the traditional "superwoman" ideal was unsustainable and how she redefined it to help professionals, especially women, connect with their authentic selves to build productive, joyful, and guilt-free lives.

Janet delves into the core of her mission: empowering individuals to align their work with their life and purpose. She explains the various arms of her work, from one-on-one coaching and leadership training to her newest venture, the Dine Tribe—a women's dining club focused on genuine connection. Janet emphasizes the power of trusting oneself, the importance of relationships over traditional sales funnels, and her philosophy that every experience is a stepping stone to your true calling. 

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Olivia Sammons, we sit down with Sahana Turner, the dynamic digital entrepreneur behind The Real Sahana LLC. Sahana recounts her incredible journey from braiding hair and selling video tutorials on Craigslist at 17 to becoming a leading educator in the digital product space. She delves into the core of her business: her signature "7-Step Digital Product System" and her thriving community, "Entrepreneurs Go Digital," where she helps aspiring creators turn their skills into scalable online businesses through templates, mentorship, and a supportive network.

Sahana opens up about her organic, content-first approach to marketing, her use of tools like GoHighLevel and Metricool, and her plans for the future, which include scaling her community and venturing into paid advertising. She leaves listeners with invaluable advice on the power of consistency, overcoming the fear of launching "messy," and the importance of taking action to build a sustainable entrepreneurial career.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Ammar Elm, we sit down with Guin White, a transformative sales and leadership coach. Guin shares her powerful journey from achieving $40 million in corporate sales to experiencing a profound sense of burnout and self-betrayal within the traditional sales environment. This pivotal moment led her to rebuild her approach from the ground up, specifically for introverted, neurodivergent, and spiritually-attuned individuals who felt lost in a high-pressure sales world.

Guin discusses the creation of her signature framework, Sacred Sales Mastery, a nervous-system-safe approach that combines human design and AI enhancement. She explains how this system helps entrepreneurs and professionals, especially those who freeze when talking about their own brilliance, to sell authentically without self-abandonment. Guin also reveals her effective, low-pressure marketing strategies that leverage her Substack, "The Quiet Reset," and her LinkedIn newsletter to connect deeply with her ideal audience.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Ammar Elm, we sit down with serial entrepreneur and best-selling author Ral West. Ral shares the incredible journey that led her from running a family tourism business to building and selling a company to Alaska Airlines, all while crafting a life of freedom with homes in Alaska and Maui. She delves into the six core principles—Systems, Data, Leverage, Culture, Team, and Customer Delight—that became the foundation of her success and the framework for her online coaching platform, Livin' the Dream, which helps entrepreneurs build scalable, manageable businesses.

Ral provides a masterclass on moving from being an overwhelmed operator to a strategic owner. She discusses the practical applications of her principles, the structure of her course and mastermind groups, and the importance of intentionality in creating a business that supports your ideal lifestyle. The conversation also explores effective marketing strategies for coaches, the pitfalls of paid advertising, and her best advice for new entrepreneurs: to avoid analysis paralysis, embrace course corrections, and never stop learning from mistakes.