Jose Pereira was serving as CEO of CITGO (energy company) in 2017 when he was on his way to complete one last business trip before retiring after a 35 year career. 
During his trip to Venezuela, local officials captured and arrested Jose and his 5 colleagues falsely accusing them of being American spies. Jose was held hostage in brutal conditions for 5 years as a political pawn, while Venezuela angled to get America to remove sanctions. 
During his 5 year captivity, Jose snuck out 1,000 letters to his beloved wife. He turned those letters into a book titled "From Hero To Villain: My True Story of the Citgo 6." 
This is a story of perseverance, optimism, faith, and strategy. It wasn't by chance Jose and his fellow hostages made it out alive. 
Jose is a remarkable individual and I'm so excited you are going to hear his story and lessons today. 
Jose has been interviewed by Anderson Cooper, and featured by multiple major news outlets. 
Please enjoy and let me know what you think. 
Never forget... we are all the CEO of our own lives. 
Feedback & Sponsorship: [email protected] 

Victor Boutros is Founding Director & CEO of the Human Trafficking Institute, where they are strategically decimating human trafficking around the globe.
Victor previously served as a federal prosecutor on human trafficking cases of national significance on behalf of the United States Department of Justice’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit.
He is co-author of The Locust Effect: Why the End of Poverty Requires the End of Violence, a book published by Oxford University Press in 2014.
He has taught human trafficking at the FBI Academy in Quantico, trained law enforcement professionals in the United States and other countries on how to investigate and prosecute human trafficking, and taught trial advocacy to lawyers from Latin America, South and Southeast Asia, and Africa.
His work has been recognized by The New York Times, Forbes, Ted, The Today Show, BBC, The Economist, and more. 
Please enjoy this impactful conversation! 
Feedback & Sponsorship: [email protected] 

Episode 32 is live with retail and fashion executive, Paul Price! 

Paul is Chief Merchandising Officer at Burberry and former CEO of TopShop and James Perse.

He’s worked with the biggest retail legends — Chairman of Bloomingdales, Mastermind behind Gap, Head of Retail at Apple. 
He was kind to share the lessons he’s learned. 

We discuss: 
-His light bulb moment on the most effective way to deliver feedback 
-The question he asks everyone — especially on a first date 
-How he caused the largest search and rescue mission west of the Mississippi 

If you enjoy this conversation, please share with a friend and hit "FOLLOW."
Feedback & Sponsorship Opportunities: [email protected]

Robin Thurston has done it all. 
When he was 12 years old, he was training in Colorado to become a professional cyclist. 
He made that dream come true. 
Robin went on to Co-Found MapMyFitness which was sold to Under Armour, where he became Chief Digital Officer for 3 years. 
He served as CEO at Helix, a genomics company. 
Robin is Founder and CEO of Outside Interactive Inc. - the 38 brand conglomerate designed to inspire and activate us into the outdoors. You've likely seen their magazine which has a mega following. 
Robin discusses the importance of suffering in life, his proudest accomplishments, how to build the right team, what selling a company does to your personal life, and what he's most excited about in the future. 
Please enjoy and let me know what you think! 
Feedback & Sponsorship Opportunities: [email protected]
**This episode is brought to you by REViVE Marketing Partners. If you are an entrepreneur looking to scale your business on Amazon, REViVE is the partner for you. After their Founder started, scaled and sold his own business after growing 4.5x on Amazon in 3 months he realized he had a formula. Their agency is partnering with brands to bring them growth they've dreamt of. REViVE took a company from $400 revenue/month to $90,000/month within 30 days. To see if you're a fit for their partnerships, view more case studies, and understand their deeply rooted values go to: revivemarketingpartners.com **

Episode 30 takes us to Sao Paulo, Brazil for a deep dive into the mind of yoga master, Francisco Kaiut. 
After being shot at a young age, Francisco went around the globe looking for remedies to cure his pain. 
He couldn't find 1 specific practice that helped, so he decided to branch out and start his own series of poses that helped his body get back to normal. 
Fast forward 30 years, The Kaiut Method (yoga) is treating bodies and minds across the world in a big way. 50,000 students deep and incredible transformation stories that we dive into. 
Francisco is an incredible leader, and people travel in swarms across the world to practice his teachings. 
Kaiut has a mission of: Yoga Pra Todo Mundo; a Portuguese phrase translated as Yoga For Everyone. They believe that yoga is a tool that can be used by anyone, regardless of your circumstances, to increase mobility and freedom (mentally, physically, and emotionally).
BTW - Francisco is an absolute champion for doing this podcast in his second language! 
Please enjoy and let me know what you think! 
Sponsorship & Feedback Opportunities: [email protected]

Wally Green is Co-Founder @ SPiN New York and a professional ping pong player. 
Wally's professional athlete journey took him as far as North Korea, where 5,000 North Koreans cheered strongly against him at the arena -- a moment we dive deep into. 
We discuss overcoming adversity, the power of being yourself, how the concept for SPiN started as house parties with ping pong, having Susan Sarandon as a business partner, traveling to North Korea, tips for getting better at ping pong, and much more. 
Please enjoy this conversation and send us your feedback! 
Sponsorship Opportunities: [email protected]

Episode 28 brings us Tahmid Khan who was held hostage after 5 guys stormed a cafe armed with AK-47’s and changed his life instantly. 

Tahmid is an intellectual, he attended Columbia and the University of Toronto. He’s had a career in public health, founded a non-profit, and produces music on the side.

To say the least, he’s extremely thoughtful and his breakdown of what happened is heartbreaking and inspiring in the same breath. 

His story has been covered by The New York Times, Vice, TED, and he opens up more than ever on Permission to Shine. 

He discusses how communication with the hostages saved his life, and shares how we can all learn to communicate more effectively (with empathy) - from business, relationships, to life or death situations. 

This is a conversation you do not want to miss. So please do me a birthday favor, and yourself one, by listening to episode 28 today! 

P.S. if you never want to miss an episode, hit FOLLOW wherever you listen to your podcasts under Permission To Shine. 

Wende Valentine serves as Executive Director of the dZi Foundation, an NGO dedicated to ensuring basic needs, catalyzing inclusive economic growth, and creating an environment for lasting impact in the most rural parts of Nepal. Think schools, farms, and new businesses created by locals, as a result of training and resources provided by dZi. 
Wende has an incredible history of non profit leadership formerly at Water For People (sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, and South America) and MAIA, a Guatemala based organization focused on gender equality. 
Wende, myself, and fellow dZi board member Emily Martin spent a week visiting the working areas of dZi in Nepal. 
After the visit, Wende and I sat down to discuss her enriched life living around the world, her incredible leadership styles, recent completion of the Harvard Authentic Leadership Development Program, finding your dream life partner, and more. 
Please enjoy and thank you for listening! 
Sponsorship Opportunities: [email protected]

NJ Falk is Managing Partner at Athletic Propulsion Labs (APL). 
NJ Co-Founded and serves as Chief Mentorpreneur™ ( a term she trademarked) of The Forward Female. 
She's founder of the Webby Award winning blog, The Blonde and The Brunette. 
She previously help leadership roles at American Express, Universal Studios and MGM. 
She holds a BFA in Film/Television/Journalism and an MBA from NYU. 
We discuss: 
-Why APL become the #1 story in the world when they got banned from the NBA. 
-Productivity tips and how she manages 1,000 emails a day. 
-Losing family members and how it creates a sense of engagement.
-The power of a 15 minute meeting. 
And more!  
Feedback and Sponsorship Opportunities: [email protected] 
Podcast starts at 5:13. 
Thanks for listening!

Mandy Ginsberg is a force. She served as CEO of Match Group (owner of 45 brands including Match.com, Tinder, Hinge) when it was a $25B company, currently serves on the board of directors at Uber, former board member at JC Penney's, and current director at thredUP. 
Mandy famously served as the first female CEO to conduct a pay audit amongst her entire organization, exposing the pay gap between genders. 
She discusses the right balance of sharing your personal life, and gives specific examples of how she handled her cancer diagnosis while being CEO. 
Mandy provides tips for hiring and firing the right people, how to keep teams aligned to a strategy, and what to do when things get tough. 
She holds a BA in English and Spanish literature from University of California, Berkley and an MBA from Wharton. 
It was an honor to have Mandy on the show! Please send your thoughts to the email below. 
Feedback & Sponsorship Opportunities: [email protected] 
Thanks for listening!