Penny Mendelsohn

Penny Mendelsohn is a 4th-generation commercial roofer at Roof Whisperer, took over the family business during the COVID-19 pandemic by buying out her father, who continues to work alongside her until today. Now, she’s training her nephew to become the 5th-generation owner, ensuring the legacy lives on.

Benjamin Verrall

Director and co-writer Benjamin Verrall has long been captivated by the power and mystery of the sea—a theme that deeply resonates in his film, SHOUTING AT THE SEA. Since graduating from film school, Benjamin has built a distinguished career in the media industry, where his passion for storytelling has flourished. He founded Toffee Hammer, a creative agency and production company renowned for its innovative approach to storytelling and its commitment to a collaborative creative process. Under his leadership, Toffee Hammer has earned acclaim for pushing the boundaries of traditional media, crafting compelling narratives that engage and inspire.

Nelson Paredez-Parks

Nelson Paredez-Parks, a dynamo renowned for his eclectic skill set and embodying multiple roles. As an acknowledged expert in the entertainment industry, Nelson is known for his leadership of The ESI Network, a premier talent management company with over 30+ years in the entertainment world. He’s an expert in getting your kids into show business as well as navigating the entertainment business with healthy boundaries. Two other initiatives including the latest two he is most excited with are Helpandanswers.com which helps business owners and entrepreneurs scale up and grow their businesses and TheAIxperts.com, which is an informational site educating entertainment professionals about how to integrate A.I. into their current business models.

Dimitri Moraitis

Dimitri Moraitis has been helping souls grow at Spiritual Arts Institute, the school he co-founded with the “Mozart of Metaphysics,” Barbara Martin. This nonprofit is known by thousands of students around the world as the premier metaphysical school. Learn more about retreats and online courses to develop your spiritual path at SpiritualArts.org. Dimitri was pursuing a promising career in directing and producing, having received an Academy Award nomination for his film short Don’t Let It Bother You.

Todd Schwartz

Todd Schwartz is the Chief Executive Officer, Executive Chairman, and Founder of OppFi. He is also a Partner at Schwartz Capital Group, an entrepreneurial and dynamic family investment business based in Chicago, IL, and a Partner at Strand Equity Partners, a Los Angeles-based growth equity firm investing in the next generation of iconic consumer brands. Previously, Todd founded the multi-family real estate company Beach Coast Properties in California. The company successfully purchased, renovated, stabilized and sold $40 million of multi-family real estate between 2007 to 2014. Todd earned his Bachelor of Science in finance from Tulane University.

Greg Kerr

Greg Kerr is the Owner of Alchemy Merch, which creates custom merchandise for creatives and companies. Alchemy has made over 4 million custom products for artists, brands, and creatives in all fields. Greg guides artists and corporate clients through the process of creating quality custom merchandise that helps them achieve their goals of increased brand awareness, customer loyalty, and more. Alchemy eliminates the pain points of sourcing materials, production, quality control and design that most people encounter when making promotional products versus investing in custom merchandise. Prior to expanding his business and evolving it into Alchemy, Greg founded Pin Game Strong, making custom enamel pins for artists and corporate clients.

Kevin Henderson

Kevin is a seasoned corporate lawyer with over a decade of experience in M&A, venture capital, and capital markets, having worked at prestigious law firms like Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP, and Cooley LLP. He has handled high-stakes transactions for major clients such as AT&T, Halliburton, JPMorgan, and Toyota Racing. In 2023, Kevin was recognized as the #1 lawyer in Texas for principal-led M&A transactions, outperforming elite international firms like Kirkland & Ellis and Gibson Dunn. He is also a "Rising Star" in M&A and Securities, as recognized by Texas Super Lawyers. A 2010 graduate of the University of Michigan Law School, Kevin's success came at a cost—working long hours and missing important family moments.

Yousef Benhamida

Yousef Benhamida is the successful founder and CEO of Humboldts Secret Supplies, a major company for manufacturing and supplying plant nutrients to agricultural distributors across the United States. He has a lot to share with the world about starting up a business, discipline, and becoming wealthy, no matter where that individual is in life. He built his business without many resources and wishes to spread his message about how others can do the same. He's been featured on various platforms, such as Forbes and Influencive, for his hard work and dedication to his company, plants, and those who look up to him.

Dr. Andi Simon

Dr. Andi Simon is a pioneering corporate anthropologist known for her expertise in guiding companies through transformative change by integrating anthropological methodologies into business strategies. As the Founder and CEO of Simon Associates Management Consultants, an award-winning agency, she has played a pivotal role in nurturing cultural development and instigating leadership transformations within organizations. Her influence extends beyond consulting, with a notable presence in the literary world, having authored two acclaimed books and recently unveiling her third masterpiece, co-authored with Edie Fraser and Robyn Freedman Spizman.

Jill Schultz

As a young child, Jill innocently and curiously acted out with other children due to the aftermath of someone who hurt her when she was 3 years old. Jill lived with debilitating shame for 41 years which held her back in business and love relationships. This experience has inspired her to speak out on this tender, taboo topic, hoping that her vulnerability will empower anyone who has a secret of any kind or felt shame, to release it and create a life of love, success, and abundance.

Alexia McKay

Ms. Alexia McKay is a working journalist, publicist, publisher, speaker, and entrepreneur. She is a founder and publisher, RoyalTee Magazine; a quarterly publication that highlights young people of color in the business, community, and entrepreneurial fields, and RoyalTee Gen, a lifestyle outlet that speaks to the Gen Z population. She is also the creator of Rattler Girls Rock, a platform that highlights women of Florida A&M, and promotes sisterhood and HBCU unity. She is also a publicist at Otter Public Relations, where she manages media outreach for a diverse array of clients in the areas of politics, lifestyle, entertainment, and business.

Alessandro Chesser

Alessandro Chesser is the co-founder and CEO of GetDynasty.com, a free and easy living trust creator for homeowners. Prior to Dynasty, Alessandro was VP of Sales at Carta where he took the company from 0 to over 400m in ARR. Prior to Carta, Alessandro spent 9 years in financial services working with high net worth individuals. He started working in sales at 16 years old for Bank of America. Alessandro sold loans in the mortgage boom of the early 2000s and worked for Washington Mutual when they went out of business due to a "bank run".

Matt Kaulig

Matt Kaulig is the Executive Chairman of Kaulig Companies Limited, a single member family office. He is an award-winning entrepreneur, business owner, and philanthropist, most notably founding Leaf Home, formally known as LeafFilter, as a contractor business out of his house in 2005. Kaulig Companies offers a diverse spectrum of businesses, including sports & entertainment.

Jacia Kornwise

Jacia Kornwise, a master in "Moving Your Mojo," has spent over 30 years helping people overcome trauma and self-sabotage, guiding them toward joy and authenticity. With master’s degrees in counseling psychology and coaching, and certifications in 5 Rhythms dance, breathwork, and somatic techniques, she deeply understands the mind-body connection. A survivor of multiple traumas herself, Jacia leads with heart, using dance as a powerful healing tool. As a TEDx and keynote speaker, she inspires audiences worldwide to embrace their true selves. Her best-selling, award-winning book, "The Love Ball Game," showcases her commitment to personal growth and healing.

Alex Persky-Stern

Alex Persky-Stern has been the CEO of Waymark since June 2022. He leads the company’s efforts to leverage generative AI to make video creative available to everyone. He initially served as Waymark’s Chief Operating Officer in 2017, and then moved to a role as Chief Product Officer. Prior to Waymark, Alex was the Director of Operations at SocialProof Marketing, an end-to-end, word-of-mouth marketing platform that drives sales and builds engagement.

Varsha Rao

Varsha Rao is the founder of Zeal : a new social app focused on helping you manage your social activities with friends. Whether you want to hike or bike, talk books or tech, play pickleball, go to restaurants or museums or just hangout in your city. Leverage calendars, chatbot scheduling, and integrated polls to quickly find days and times that work for your group and schedule events. Take advantage of RSVP reminders and tallies to keep everybody informed of event updates and details, to collect RSVPs and more. Zeal also sends out details via SMS, push notification and automated emails to sync with everyone's calendars.

Shaahin Cheyene

Shaahin is considered one of the leading global minds on what’s next in e-commerce, Amazon and the internet. He is described as the “Willy Wonka Of Generation X” by the London Observer and Newsweek and is one of the most forward thinkers in business – with his Amazon Mastery Course he acutely recognizes trends and patterns early on the Amazon platform to help others understand how these shifts impact markets and consumer behavior.

Allison Shaper

Alli Shaper is the CEO and co-founder of SuperMush, an LA-based mental wellness lifestyle brand inspired by the 60s and 70s. As a dynamic speaker, entrepreneur, podcast host, educator, and community builder, Alli has been featured in Forbes 30 Under 30, National Geographic, Summit Series, Well+Good, Rolling Stone, Goop, Bloomberg, and more. Under her leadership, SuperMush has grown into a multi-million dollar empire, celebrated as "The Red Bull of Mushrooms," with a 400k social media following and over 75 live events across the U.S.

Marie Diamond

Dame Marie Diamond is a globally recognized transformational leader, Feng Shui expert, and best-selling author known for her teachings on the Law of Attraction. She gained international fame through her appearances on the major network TV show "Feng Shui Your Life" and the influential film "The Secret." After a near-death experience in her youth, Marie dedicated herself to enlightening 500 million people through her wisdom, blending her deep intuitive abilities with her studies in quantum physics, Feng Shui, and meditation. Her teachings have helped countless individuals achieve financial success, improved health, stronger relationships, and spiritual growth.

Ray Hespen

Ray Hespen is the CEO and co-founder of Property Meld, a maintenance automation software company. Ray and his co-founder, David Kingman, started Property Meld in 2014 to bring intelligent maintenance to the property management world. His background is rooted in the manufacturing business. As a degreed engineer, his previous roles have involved reducing operating expenses while improving quality and consistency. He has taken this operational knowledge and combined it with technology to start one of the fastest-growing real estate technology companies in the United States.

Steve Stumbris

Steve Stumbris is a visionary in entrepreneurship and innovation, celebrated for his expertise in small businesses and startups. In 2016, he played a key role in earning national recognition for Bucknell University’s Center for Small Business, receiving the Small Business Development Center Excellence and Innovation Award. Steve leads the groundbreaking Startup Lewisburg program, nurturing emerging startups in Central PA’s competitive business landscape.

Dustin Dunbar

Dustin Dunbar grew up poor in Midwest America with an abusive, alcohol-addicted father and grandfather, and vowed to never be like them. Devouring psychology books and researching addiction in his twenties, Dunbar earned a doctorate in psychology and believed at that time that he had broken his family’s chains. In 2009, Dunbar was handpicked by Ryan Seacrest for LA Shrink and Endemol Productions' Dallas Life Coach, where Dunbar was the “Shrink” and “Life Coach” on those pilots. Dunbar is a coach at WeAretheAFR.org, a non-profit online community helping others with alcohol addiction and raising consciousness.

Phillip Swan

Phillip Swan is a dynamic business leader serving as the Managing Partner at Pi Partners and the Chief Revenue Officer (CRO) at LingoAid, a family-owned business. His career is characterized by a deep commitment to developing customer-centric go-to-market strategies, with a focus on enhancing synergy across marketing, sales, operations, product development, leadership, and partnerships. Phillip's expertise lies in creating seamless customer experiences that span from pre-awareness through purchase to advocacy, ensuring a comprehensive and holistic approach to the customer journey. Under his guidance, Pi Partners has become a leading GTM Advisory firm, known for its innovative solutions and strategic focus on driving business growth through strategic customer engagement.

Natalie is the visionary Founder and CEO of Your Teacher Tutors, previously known as Maryland Teacher Tutors, a leading tutoring company serving families, corporations, and educational institutions across the U.S. Within just five years, she expanded her one-person venture into a thriving community of 250 staff members. A former public school teacher with 11 years of experience, Natalie transitioned from the classroom to make a broader impact by founding her tutoring company in 2015. Now with over 500 staff members, her teaching background allows her to coach and consult with clarity and intuition.

Rebecca Contreras

Rebecca Contreras' journey from poverty to business success is marked by her grit, determination, and unwavering commitment. As a high school dropout and welfare-dependent teenage mother, Rebecca defied the odds and transformed her life, eventually becoming a successful business leader. She is the founder and CEO of AvantGarde, a consulting firm based in Austin, Texas, that has earned numerous local and national awards. Rebecca's exceptional leadership has also been recognized with personal accolades, including being named the 2023 Austin Business Woman of the Year and receiving a golden Stevie award for Best Female Entrepreneur in 2022.

Brandy Gillmore

Brandy Gillmore is a world-renowned mind/body healing expert and the host of the award-winning podcast “Heal Yourself. Change Your Life,” where she helps live callers achieve radical healing results in just minutes using the power of their minds. Her groundbreaking work, which has been validated by thermal medical equipment and published in the medical journal Health, challenges conventional beliefs about physical healing. Brandy recently released her first book, Master Your Mind and Energy to Heal Your Body: You Can Be Your Own Cure, which became an international bestseller in seven countries. She has been featured on global stages, delivered a mind-expanding TEDx talk about her miraculous self-healing journey, and appeared in several documentaries, including Cancer Secrets and On A Scale from 1-10: Chronic Pain.

Rachel Scheer

Rachel Scheer is a Functional Medicine Nutritionist who received her degree from Baylor University in Nutrition Science and Dietetics and became certified in functional medicine through the Kalish Institute. Rachel’s journey as a nutritionist began in bodybuilding and athletic performance, however, a couple years into her practice she began to suffer from severe gastrointestinal dysfunction (IBS.)

Jose Berlanga

Jose Miguel Berlanga is the co-founder and CEO of Tricon Homes, a company with annual revenues of $100 million. As CEO, he has been instrumental in structuring deals, investing, and negotiating land acquisitions and sales transactions totaling over a billion dollars. Under his leadership, Tricon Homes has successfully built close to 2,000 homes. Jose's academic background includes degrees in Business Administration, Economics, and Philosophy from the University of St. Thomas. His methodical approach and discipline have enabled him to develop customized strategies that maximize the potential of each project. He is also the author of The Business of Home Building.