Founders Future

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Olivia Sammons, we are joined by Nadine Keller, the founder of Precision Sales Accelerator. Nadine takes us on her journey from a high-powered director of marketing at a global bank to becoming an independent consultant, and finally to her pivotal decision during the pandemic to pivot her expertise towards a mission-driven venture. She shares the powerful insight that led her to shift from helping wealthy institutions become wealthier to dedicating herself to empowering women entrepreneurs.

Nadine delves into the unique challenges women face when scaling their businesses, from overcoming mindset blocks and the disdain for "salesy" behavior to navigating risk-aversion. She introduces her concept of the "softer side of sales," which leverages collaboration and empathy, and explains the "paint-by-numbers" method her program uses to provide clients with clarity, confidence, and a sustainable path to breaking revenue plateaus and achieving financial freedom.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Ammar Elm, we sit down with Angie J, the founder and CEO of Proambitious. Angie shares her journey from a decade-long career in human resources and learning & development, where she trained over 25,000 managers, to launching her own coaching company. She discusses the universal patterns of miscommunication and leadership challenges she observed across industries, which motivated her to create a platform dedicated to helping new and ambitious managers develop the crucial people skills often missed in traditional career paths.

Angie delves into the core of Pro Ambitious, detailing her one-on-one coaching methodology that blends consulting with practical, role-play-based exercises to ensure her clients can confidently apply their learnings in real-world scenarios. She also outlines her vision for the future: expanding her impact beyond high-ticket coaching by creating accessible digital products and building Proambitious into the go-to platform for essential leadership and communication skills.

n this episode of Founders Future, with host Ammar Elm, we meet Krystal Kohlberg, the founder of Monro Musings. Krystal shares her journey from a youth athlete who noticed a critical gap in mental skills training to a performance psychology expert with a doctorate. She discusses how she combines her scientific background with the unique, personalized framework of Human Design—a system based on one's birth time, date, and place—to help high-achievers and entrepreneurs overcome burnout, make clearer decisions, and realign their careers and lives with their innate wiring.

Krystal delves into her core offering, the "Find Your Flow" session, which blends Human Design readings with mental performance coaching. She outlines her vision for the future of Monro Musings, which includes working more with corporate teams and leaders, and opens up about the challenges of explaining her unique methodology. The conversation also explores a powerful piece of advice for her younger self: that your vision is worth fighting for, and the importance of finding stillness to disconnect from external noise and connect with your authentic desires.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Olivia Sammons, we meet Laura Schneider, the resilient founder behind BodyHormonie and the Better Work Institute. Laura shares her powerful personal journey of overcoming anorexia nervosa and depression, which became the catalyst for her mission to revolutionize holistic health. She discusses the critical gap in preventative healthcare, especially within Germany's system, and how her experiences led her to focus on helping high-performers and companies combat chronic fatigue and build resilience through nutrition, movement, and stress management.

Laura delves into her current business model, which includes one-on-one coaching, workshops, and input sessions for corporate teams. She explains the dynamic partnership with her mother at the Better Work Institute and their strategy for growth, which is currently centered on LinkedIn networking and high-profile in-person events. Laura’s vision is to make preventative health "sexy" and accessible, empowering individuals to invest in their well-being as the essential foundation for a fulfilling life and successful career.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Olivia Sammons, we dive into the unexpected entrepreneurial journey of Michelle Griffin, Ph.D., the founder and CEO of Griffin Resources. What began as a side venture to support her doctoral studies quickly exploded into a multi-seven-figure business. Michelle shares her candid story of accidental entrepreneurship, from being an independent HR consultant to building a full-scale fractional back-office support system offering HR, payroll, recruiting, and more. She discusses the critical need for flexible, affordable operational support for small to mid-sized businesses and the pivotal lessons learned from navigating rapid growth, high turnover, and economic shifts.

Michelle provides a transparent look at the realities of scaling a service-based business without external funding. She details the company's evolution, the strategic pivot to focus on specific service lines like payroll for targeted marketing, and the challenges of maintaining company culture with a fully remote team. Offering invaluable advice for new founders, Michelle emphasizes resilience, the importance of understanding your financials, and the necessity of continuous adaptation, reminding listeners that the path to success is never passive and often requires persevering through the toughest moments.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Olivia Sammons, we meet Fern Boughton-Smith, the resilient founder behind Ferns Fitness. Fern opens up with incredible vulnerability about the personal struggles that became the catalyst for her business. She shares her difficult journey with body image and a dangerous encounter with a fad weight-loss product as a teenager, which ultimately led her to discover a profound passion for health and proper fitness. This passion was solidified during the lockdown when, after losing her gym job, she launched an online challenge that exploded with over 400 participants, proving to her that she could build a community and make a real impact.

Fern details the current multi-faceted structure of Ferns Fitness, which includes intensive one-to-one personal training, group classes (including a dedicated 5 AM group), one-on-one online coaching, and her newly launched app. She discusses the challenges of being a "one-woman show," handling all sales and marketing herself, and the internal battle with confidence that often holds entrepreneurs back. Fern's vision for the future is to scale her online presence and app, build a trusted team, and create a sustainable business that provides stability and freedom, all while maintaining the personal touch that makes her client relationships so special.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Ammar Elm, we sit down with Rivaaj Ramjan, the founder of The Online Content Creator. Rivaaj shares his incredible journey from a 25-year career in hospitality to becoming an award-winning agency owner. The pivotal moment came when he struggled for two years to build an online program for students, uncovering a massive gap in the market. Coaches everywhere had transformative knowledge but lacked the technical and structural expertise to package it into a scalable, automated business. This frustration became his mission: to provide a done-for-you service that builds coaches their entire online business—from signature programs and websites to sales funnels—all validated and ready to launch.

Rivaaj delves into his authentic lead generation strategies, highlighting how consistent, value-driven organic outreach on LinkedIn built his foundation, now complemented by new funnel systems on Instagram. He discusses the industry's evolution towards "micro-coaching" and leveraging AI, emphasizing that the future is about delivering immense value in formats that match how people consume information today. Looking forward, Rivaaj is focused on integrating more advanced tech to help coaches scale faster and is even developing his own platform to make this process seamless, all while maintaining the core belief that abundant success comes from providing exceptional, client-centric service.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Ammar Elm, we sit down with Craig Shoemaker, a seasoned online course business coach. Craig shares his fascinating journey from software developer and published course creator to coaching established experts on how to build profitable, brand-aligned online course companies. He delves into the pivotal moment that led him to transition from creating his own content to empowering others, highlighting his core mission as a teacher at heart.

Craig provides a masterclass in customer-centric business development, explaining his unique framework that begins with in-depth customer conversations to uncover buying triggers and fuel everything from marketing copy to product development. He discusses his powerful referral-based client acquisition strategy, his intentional approach to slow, high-quality growth, and his vision for building a lucrative part-time business that affords him time for family and community.

In this episode of Founders Future, host Ammar Elm sits down with Karmin Habibi, a sales expert with over 14 years of experience and the founder of Savvy Closer. Karmin shares her incredible journey from accidentally falling into a sales role and initially perceiving it as manipulative to having a paradigm shift that redefined selling as an act of service. She delves into the core lesson that separates top performers from the rest: the ability to deliver a script with the same energy and passion as if it were the first time, always focusing on the experience of the prospect rather than the repetition for the salesperson.

Karmin discusses the evolution of her business, Savvy Closer, which now focuses on training entire organizations—not just sales teams—on the principle that everyone who communicates with a prospect is part of the sales process. She outlines her tailored, three-step approach for SMEs: conducting a sales audit, creating a custom strategy, and overseeing implementation. Looking ahead, Karmin shares her vision for building a selective, high-value community and hosting regular workshops in hubs like Dubai and the UK to foster real human connection and collective growth.

In this episode of Founders Future, with host Ammar Elm, we sit down with Galen Bingham, The Leadership Strategist® and founder of Kiln Global Coaching and Consulting. Galen shares his incredible journey from a 22-year corporate career at Coca-Cola, where he was on the path to becoming a Senior VP of Sales, to an unexpected restructuring that led him to discover his true passion for developing leaders. He opens up about the identity shift required to move from pursuing the corner office to becoming a globally renowned executive coach who helps senior executives transform their leadership through science-based emotional intelligence and sustainable excellence.

Galen delves into the core of his business model, explaining why his "sweet spot" is a 6-month coaching engagement designed to create independence, not dependency. He reveals his unique approach to customer acquisition, which is predominantly referral-based and amplified by his award-winning podcast, "Whiskey, Jazz, and Leadership." The conversation also covers his powerful vision for the future: his Vanta Elite program, a by-invitation-only initiative dedicated to equipping senior Black executives with the tools and cultural dexterity needed to excel at the highest levels of corporate America.