The Code To Winning

INTENNSE Tennis: Inside the League with Marcelo Ferreira and Oliver BellIn this interview, I sit down with two leaders behind INTENNSE, the fast-growing professional tennis league redefining how the sport is played and watched.Marcelo Ferreira is the Head Coach of Team Atlanta and the Director of the High-Performance Tennis Academy at Windy Hill Athletic Club.Oliver Bell is the Chief Financial Officer of INTENNSE, overseeing the league's finance, legal, HR and operations.What is INTENNSE?INTENNSE is a co-ed, team-based pro tennis league built for speed. Matches are played in 10-minute "BOLTs" with a running clock, simple point-based scoring, and live substitutions. A full team matchup (an "ARC") combines men's, women's and mixed singles and doubles.In this interview, we cover:• How INTENNSE started and the vision behind it• Where the league stands today• The direction it's heading and what's next• Why Atlanta's tennis community made it the ideal home for the league• How the player draft works• How the game is played, including the format and rulesChapters00:00 The Problem with Professional Tennis02:19 How Intense Tennis Started08:36 The Fast-Paced Match Format10:53 Expanding Beyond Atlanta13:26 The Business of a 90-Minute Match16:11 Vetting Players for Personality19:07 Player Salaries and Contracts26:13 Building a Grassroots Movement29:57 The Revenue Model and Sponsors33:40 Equal Pay Across Genders39:19 Choosing New Cities for Expansion44:40 Recruiting and NCAA Rules48:54 The Role of Pulse Partners51:25 What Could Kill the League?57:17 What Winning Means to Us

In this episode, we sit down with Donald Luxama, one of the biggest names in the vending machine industry, with over 700,000 followers and more than 1 billion views across social media teaching people how to start and scale a real vending business. What began as a simple side hustle, buying used vending machines for around $500 that generate over $1,000 in profit a month, has grown into a full-fledged movement inspiring thousands of aspiring entrepreneurs to take control of their financial future.Donald breaks down the exact blueprint he used to get started, from finding locations to sourcing machines. He explains that the first step is going around your local town and asking family, friends, and local businesses if you can place a vending machine in their establishment, often pitching it as a free vending machine for their location. From there, he shows how to search Facebook Marketplace, OfferUp, and Craigslist to find machines typically ranging from $300 to $700, and the importance of testing every machine before buying it to make sure it is fully functional.We also dig into the numbers behind the business, because vending is as much about margins as it is about hustle. Donald shares real examples of how he prices his products for maximum profit, revealing gains that range from over 100 percent to as high as 700 percent on certain snacks. Beyond the numbers, Donald opens up about his world tour, where he traveled to meet some of the top vending machine operators across the globe, learning firsthand how different markets, cultures, and business models are pushing the industry forward in ways most people never see.The conversation also dives into where vending is headed next, including Donald's move into Pokemon and trading card vending machines, a fast growing niche built for collectors that operates on cashless, remotely managed technology, as well as the rise of AI powered vending machines that are changing how operators track inventory, manage restocks, and maximize profit with far less manual work. Whether you are just getting started with your first machine or looking to scale into new verticals, this episode is packed with real, actionable insight into building and future proofing a vending machine empireChapters00:00 Vending Machine Idea03:09 First Vending Machine09:48 Pitching to Owners16:11 Bad Location Strategy23:06 Pokemon Machine30:15 AI in Vending33:31 Permits & Licenses40:48 Lowest Performer47:24 School for Vending Pros53:31 Product Sourcing

Simi Arora is a personal brand strategist, mindset and growth mentor, and the host of True Power with Simi. As the founder of Brand Scale, she has helped thousands of entrepreneurs and professionals build premium personal brands that command attention, trust, and revenue.An immigrant who built her platform from the ground up in New York City, Simi has grown a LinkedIn following of over 115,000 people and become a go to voice for those looking to turn their expertise into influence and income. Her work sits at the intersection of branding, mindset, and business strategy, teaching people not just how to grow an audience, but how to build something that lasts.In this episode, Simi breaks down exactly how to make $10,000 a month using LinkedIn, sharing the strategies, mindset shifts, and content systems that took her from just starting out to building a thriving personal brand and business.Chapters00:00 LinkedIn Importance03:07 Immigrant Story Begin06:41 Corporate Ladder Climb09:47 Immigrant Experience12:39 Cultural Nuances ️15:46 LinkedIn Authenticity18:52 LinkedIn Game Changer22:56 LinkedIn Algorithm26:21 Identity Activation29:21 Identity Activation 5-Step32:46 Destroying Trust35:42 Authenticity Trends38:51 Client Success Story42:51 Consistency Challenge45:56 Podcast Intention49:37 Podcast Agency52:54 Connect with Simi 

Sitting down with us today is Michael J. MacDonald, visionary entrepreneur, architect of impact, and co founder of Earn Your Leisure (EYL), the movement redefining financial education and culture for an entire generation.Michael doesn't just talk about branding. He builds legacies. As a coach, strategist, and entrepreneur, he has spent his career pushing people to think bigger, act bolder, and build brands that command attention and stand the test of time.In this episode, we go deep into Michael's journey as co founder of both Earn Your Leisure and Invest Fest, the powerhouse financial literacy conference that has become a movement in its own right. We uncover the untold story behind their very first conference, where they took a bold $1.3 million investment with absolutely no sponsors locked in, a high stakes gamble that could have gone either way. We break down exactly how that risk paid off and set the foundation for everything that followed.We also explore the game changing partnership with Steve Harvey, a strategic move that opened doors, elevated credibility, and helped propel Invest Fest into the global phenomenon it is today. From humble beginnings to tens of thousands of attendees, this is the real story of how vision, risk, and relentless execution built one of the most influential platforms in financial education.Chapters00:00 EYL Origin Story03:45 Entrepreneur Journey ️07:17 Freedom Mindset10:21 Community Info Gap14:10 Real Estate Boom17:16 Investfest Profitability20:23 Diddy's Impact24:20 AI Investing Ease27:27 Generational Wealth Gap31:28 Podcast Impact Goal ️34:45 System for Fulfillment ️38:59 Business Relationships41:58 Time is Now ⏰45:49 Dream Big49:56 Community Building ️53:06 Obsession Drives Success56:06 Winning Definition

Ryan Gardner founded Bucked Up in 2016 and has been the managing partner and CEO ever since. Under his supervision, Bucked Up has gone from a local supplement brand to the #1 best-selling pre-workout, available in over 100,000 stores worldwide.   Back in 2001, Ryan and his twin brother Jeff built a successful internet marketing company, promoting everything from supplements to biz opp to lead generation. By 2010, their affiliate network (with only 3 other employees) was earning over $25M+ annually in revenue. In 2015, they saw that social media was the future and decided to start their own social media agency. After over a decade of promoting other people's products, Ryan and Jeff realized it was finally time to put their talents to work promoting their own.   Ryan purchased the domain name DeerAntlerSpray.com in 2013. Not long after, Ray Lewis made headline news when he was accused of taking the spray before the Super Bowl. Sales exploded overnight. Sure, he was in the "Right Time...Right Place," but without Ryan's smart, hard work, he would've missed out on all that success. Shortly after the Super Bowl, he managed to get Deer Antler Spray into GNC and sold thousands of bottles a week for the next two years. Ryan, with the help of a GNC franchise owner, came up with the idea to launch a pre-workout. Despite some skepticism from family, he purchased BUCKEDUP.com for $1500 and named the first pre-workout "Bucked Up." With a great logo, flavor profile, the right ingredients, and a non-proprietary blend, the company started making waves in the supplement industry and never looked back.   This episode Ryan talks about his journey and the start of Bucked Up how the business structure works, affiliates and partners and the vision for the next 10 years. Timestamps 00:00 Introduction  03:37 How The Journey Begun 08:06 Brand Name Challenges ️ 10:48 Athlete Selection 13:20 Ambassador Payments 17:14 Company Growth 21:17 Networking Importance 24:13 CEO Involvement ‍ 27:32 Learning From Failure 30:03 Intuition in Business 32:50 Bucked Up Future 38:43 Next Athlete Partner? 42:06 Soccer/NFL/ NBA 45:35 Brand Equity Focus 48:47 Affiliate Program