Momentum Matters

In this episode we interview Sharon Melnick, PhD, on the topic of power. Dr. Melnick is a global authority on leadership, confidence, resilience, and power. Dr. Melnick is the premier expert at creating fast and lasting behavioral change in accomplished but overwhelmed professionals, enabling them to expand their leadership impact and become change agents across the enterprise. With her psychological tools, clients harness their emotional makeup to create an inspiring culture under stressful conditions, and use their influencing capacities to achieve outsized results.Dr. Melnick is the best-selling author of In Your Power, as well as two earlier books, Confidence when it Counts and Success Under Stress. Dr. Melnick's work is inspired by 10 years of research at Harvard Medical School. She offers coaching, training, and consulting to more than 50 Fortune 500 companies. She is a frequent speaker and facilitator at Momentum, for which we are so grateful! You can find more resources from Dr. Melnick on her website at sharonmelnick.com.Visit our website: www.MomentumLeaders.org Follow us on Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MomentumLeaders Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/momentumleaders LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/momentumleadersYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@momentumleaders

In this podcast, Executive Career Coach and Leadership Development Speaker Lenetra King, FACHE, shares her background and current mission with Momentum CEO April Benetollo. Lenetra is the founder and CEO of her company, Watch Me Excel, whose mission is to help organizations to engage, promote, and retain exceptional talent. Her mission's primary focus is to serve leaders in underrepresented communities. Lenetra's book, Unwritten Insights: A Career Playbook for Leaders of Color, is an excellent resource for leadership growth in the workplace, and can be purchased on her website. Helpful Links:Website: www.watchmeexcel.comConnect with Lenetra on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/lenetra-king/Follow Watch Me Excel on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/watchmeexcel/about/Visit our website: www.MomentumLeaders.org Follow us on Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MomentumLeaders Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/momentumleaders LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/momentumleadersYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@momentumleaders

In this podcast, Momentum CEO April Benetollo interviews CBS42 Chief Meteorologist Ashley Gann in Birmingham. Ashley shares about being a woman in a dominantly male career field, her influences along the way, and what her plans for the future are.Ashley's career has spanned 3 states and 3 major cities. From Montgomery, to Atlanta, to Birmingham. Ashley has covered some of the most historic weather events of our life time, including the April 27, 2011 tornado outbreak. After receiving her Aerospace Engineering degree from Auburn University, Ashley went on to Mississippi State where she earned her Masters in Meteorology. During her career she became the 795th Certified Broadcast Meteorologist in the nation. As the first female chief meteorologist not only in Birmingham, but in the state of Alabama, Ashley has used that accomplishment to highlight the importance of equity, not just equality, in the work place.To learn more about Ashley, visit https://www.cbs42.com/author/ashley-gannVisit our website: www.MomentumLeaders.org Follow us on Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MomentumLeaders Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/momentumleaders LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/momentumleadersYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@momentumleaders

PeggyLee Wright is a former US Army UH-60 Blackhawk pilot, having served at the 82d Airborne Division, Honduras Central America, and Fort Lee, Virginia. Following her military career, PeggyLee used her experience in DoD, logistics, leadership management, behavior analysis, and education to create a new approach to business development, ultimately establishing her own business development consulting firm, THE COMPANY YOU KEEP, in 2019. In this episode, PeggyLee shares what led her to join the military, what she learned about service to others from her father, instructors, and mentors, and how she manages a successful career, community service, and four children. Visit our website: www.MomentumLeaders.org Follow us on Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MomentumLeaders Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/momentumleaders LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/momentumleadersYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@momentumleaders

Leslie Claybrook currently is the General Manager for the Birmingham Squadron, the G League affiliate to the NBA New Orleans Pelicans. She is one of only a small handful of women to hold that title in men’s professional sports. In her current role, she manages all aspects of business operations including corporate partnerships, ticket sales, marketing and public relations. The Birmingham Squadron also has a heart for the community and will be featuring special game nights including a Women's Empowerment Night on March 9, 2023. Scheduling information and tickets are available at BirminghamSquadron.com. Prior to The Birmingham Squadron, Claybrook served as the President of CrossRoads331, a consulting business for the athletics industry. From 2011-2020, Claybrook served  as an Assistant Commissioner at the Southeastern Conference. At the SEC, she was responsible for the oversight of women’s basketball, soccer and softball, including ticket sales and corporate sponsor engagement. Claybrook also collaborated strategically with athletic administrators, coaches, SEC staff and outside constituents in developing a COVID-19 Return to Competition Plan and teamed with the SEC Council on Racial Equity and Social Justice to develop the “TOGETHER. It Just Means More” campaign on racial equity and social justice, developing resources and strategies for campuses, national engagement, and change.In her spare time, Claybrook has been actively involved in refereeing basketball at the collegiate, WNBA and international levels. Her expertise allowed her to represent USA Basketball as a referee at the 2007 Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro.A native of Luverne, Alabama, Claybrook is a graduate of the University of Alabama where she was a four-year letter winner for the women’s basketball team and a three-time selection to the SEC Academic Honor Roll. She received a master’s degree from Mercer University while an assistant women’s basketball coach. She is married to Perry Robinson who is the varsity volleyball coach at Pelham High School. They have one daughter, Lillian.Visit our website: www.MomentumLeaders.org Follow us on Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MomentumLeaders Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/momentumleaders LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/momentumleadersYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@momentumleaders

Ulrike Seminati is a leadership and communication coach with over twenty years of experience shaping award-winning communications and leadership programs around the world. Building on her experience as C-level executive, Ulrike combines her knowledge of how to succeed in the corporate world with powerful self-development techniques to help women lead with charisma and authenticity. Visit our website: www.MomentumLeaders.org Follow us on Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MomentumLeaders Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/momentumleaders LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/momentumleadersYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@momentumleaders

Steph Tuss is the CEO of multimillion-dollar global consulting company, Life Is Now, Inc., and frequent stand-in cohost of Business Daily News’ top-ranked podcast – The Successful Mind. In her six years at the helm of Life is Now, Steph has become the primary driver behind all of its marketing, business development and brilliant team culture. In this episode, Steph shares her journey from teacher in California to entrepreneur in Wisconsin, and now CEO of Life is Now in North Carolina.Visit our website: www.MomentumLeaders.org Follow us on Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MomentumLeaders Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/momentumleaders LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/momentumleadersYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@momentumleaders

Amanda is the Founding Director of the Magic City Acceptance Center (MCAC) and manages Family Matters: LGBTQ Youth Perspectives, a photography exhibition by Carolyn Sherer.A native of Cleveland, Ohio, Amanda moved to Alabama in 2006 and received her BA in Philosophy from UAB. Her advocacy work began in Columbus, Ohio volunteering with a local AIDS service organization. That work continued at Birmingham AIDS Outreach (BAO) in 2009. Amanda is in her 11th year of working with BAO and affiliated programs.In the podcast, Amanda shares her leadership path and explores what leaders can do to support their LGBTQ+ employees, friends and family.Amanda is a graduate of the 2019 American Express Leadership Academy, serves on the Board of the Children’s Policy Council, and Mayor Woodfin’s LGBTQ Advisory Board. Additional awards include: 2015 Simpkins/Talley Spirit of Pride Award, 2015 B-Metro Fusion Award, 2017 Ben Rowell Community Service Award, AL.com’s 2017 “Women Who Shape the State” honoree, 2018 Sylvia Rivera Game Changer Award, one of 2018 Birmingham Business Journal’s “Women to Watch,” a member of the Leadership Birmingham Class of 2020, and the UAB College of Arts and Sciences 2020 Distinguished Young Alumni.Visit our website: www.MomentumLeaders.org Follow us on Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MomentumLeaders Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/momentumleaders LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/momentumleadersYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@momentumleaders

Join April this week as she interviews Patricia Arboleda, the CEO, and Founder of Arboleda coaching. The two women discuss honoring your values, the importance of family, and how your differences can truly be your superpower. To learn more about Patricia Arboleda and her business, visit her website today: https://arboledacoaching.com/welcome/.Visit our website: www.MomentumLeaders.org Follow us on Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MomentumLeaders Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/momentumleaders LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/momentumleadersYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@momentumleaders

In today's episode, April Benetollo interviews Patti black, CFP, where the two discuss the power of understanding your financial voice,  caring for your aging parents, and the ability to take the first steps towards your goals.   About Patti Black:Bridgeworth Partner Patti Black, CFP® has been providing financial planning and investment advice for over two decades. She focuses on helping affluent individuals create a plan to be financially secure and live a purposeful life during retirement. Her planning also helps clients reduce the likelihood of becoming a financial or caregiving burden as they age. Because Patti has been a member of the “sandwich generation,” individuals who are caring for their aging parents and children simultaneously, she understands the financial and emotional challenges that her clients may be facing.Visit our website: www.MomentumLeaders.org Follow us on Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MomentumLeaders Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/momentumleaders LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/momentumleadersYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@momentumleaders

Stegemann became known to millions of Canadians when she became the first woman from Atlantic Canada to land a venture-capital deal on the CBC TV show Dragons’ Den (think Canadian equivalent of Shark Tank) for her sustainable perfume company, The 7 Virtues Beauty. She went on to become the “Top Game Changer” in the history of the show for creating her social enterprise.Since then, Stegemann has been named one of Canada’s Top 100 Most Powerful Women in Canada; won the Ernst & Young “Entrepreneur of the Year Award in the emerging Entrepreneur category for Atlantic Canada”; was ranked as one of Profit Guide magazine’s “Top 30 Cool and Fabulous Canadian Entrepreneurs”; and was also made the first female Honorary Colonel in the history of 14 Wing Greenwood base, Royal Canadian Air Force. (Her four year term was completed in 2015, but Barb remains an Honorary Colonel in the RCAF for life.)She is the author of the bestselling book, The 7 Virtues of a Philosopher Queen, and the subject of the feature-length documentary Perfume War, directed by Michael Melski. The film tells Barb’s entrepreneurial story, and has garnered many awards to date, including being named Best Feature Documentary, Atlantic Film Festival; Cineplex Audience Choice, Victoria Film Festival; and Best Humanitarian Film, Sedona Film Festival, Arizona.Visit our website: www.MomentumLeaders.org Follow us on Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MomentumLeaders Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/momentumleaders LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/momentumleadersYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@momentumleaders

In this episode, Ellen Holladay shares her  journey from lessons learned as a child at the family drugstore in Jasper, Alabama, to a seasoned C-Suite leader and Chief Information Officer. Ellen has more than 35 years of experience helping companies achieve operational and digital excellence. She began her career with Ernst &Young where she led technology initiatives in the manufacturing, distribution, engineering, and healthcare sectors. Having recently retired after 24 years as Senior Vice President, Chief Information Officer and Operational Excellence Officer of Motion, a premier North American industrial solutions company, Ellen currently serves as an independent board director for Crescent Electric, a leading electrical distributor and B&D Industrial, a regional industrial solutions provider. She also volunteers as a C-Suite Advisor to Bronze Valley, an early-stage venture investment platform that supports underrepresented technology innovation founders, and as a mentor for Momentum Leaders.Visit our website: www.MomentumLeaders.org Follow us on Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MomentumLeaders Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/momentumleaders LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/momentumleadersYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@momentumleaders

In this episode, Momentum CEO interviews Salaam Green. Salaam Green is proudly born and bred in the Black Belt of Alabama. She is a 2018 New Economy’s Fellow, Freelancer Writer, Deep South Storyteller, Poet, and Master Healer. She is the founder of Literary Healing Arts & Red Couch Writers, Rural Organizer, Artist in Resident for Arts in Medicine, 2016 Poet Laureate for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, and 2018 Tedx Speaker with an M.S. in Early Childhood Education.Salaam will present a breakout session at the upcoming Momentum leadership conference. Her session is called Rewrite Your Leadership Success Story. Join Salaam Green in this brave space where professionals in diverse stages of leadership share and set intentions to rewrite their success stories. As a result participants will gain a better understanding of how to shift success blocks, learn ways to remove self-limiting definitions of success, and leave with resources to write a success plan for life.Visit our website: www.MomentumLeaders.org Follow us on Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MomentumLeaders Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/momentumleaders LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/momentumleadersYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@momentumleaders

In this episode, Momentum CEO April Benetollo interviews Claire Hubbs Gray, Manager of Community Outreach at the Forge Breast Cancer Survivor Center. Claire is the first graduate of Momentum's Upward early-career program to be featured on the podcast. In this interview, Claire shares how she decided to apply for Upward, her advice for early-career women, and the great work happening at Forge for breast cancer survivors. Visit our website: www.MomentumLeaders.org Follow us on Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MomentumLeaders Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/momentumleaders LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/momentumleadersYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@momentumleaders

Dr. LaRhonda Magras, CEO of the YWCA of Central Alabama, joined us on Momentum Matters to share her personal path to leadership, as well as the impact of the pandemic on the women they serve at the YWCA and how Momentum Matters listeners can step in to help.Visit our website: www.MomentumLeaders.org Follow us on Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MomentumLeaders Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/momentumleaders LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/momentumleadersYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@momentumleaders

We spoke to Delphine Carter, founder and CEO of Boulo Solutions, about the underlying conditions that make managing career and family particularly difficult for women, as well as some ways women can find alternative arrangements so they can maintain a career and manage family demands during stressful times. Visit our website: www.MomentumLeaders.org Follow us on Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MomentumLeaders Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/momentumleaders LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/momentumleadersYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@momentumleaders

Momentum Matters is putting the spotlight on female founders during Black Business Owners month. This episode, Momentum CEO April Benetollo talks with Cecilia "Ceci" Pearson about her business, Babypalooza. What began as publication for expecting mothers evolved into a series of highly successful expos, until COVID. Ceci make a quick pivot to develop a robust online portal connecting parents-to-be with valuable products, resources and community. Ceci's entrepreneurial spirit, tenacity, and creativity all shine through in this episode. Visit our website: www.MomentumLeaders.org Follow us on Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MomentumLeaders Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/momentumleaders LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/momentumleadersYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@momentumleaders

Momentum CEO April Benetollo and Bobbie Knight, president of Miles College, discuss how higher education relates to race and equity. Visit our website: www.MomentumLeaders.org Follow us on Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MomentumLeaders Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/momentumleaders LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/momentumleadersYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@momentumleaders

Momentum CEO April Benetollo and Liz Huntley, civil litigator at Lightfoot, Franklin, & White and CEO of the Hope Institute, discuss how early childhood relates to race and equity. Visit our website: www.MomentumLeaders.org Follow us on Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MomentumLeaders Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/momentumleaders LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/momentumleadersYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@momentumleaders

Welcome to the Momentum Matters podcast, where we have courageous conversations with women leaders. We’ll hear about their accomplishments, their experiences, their challenges and best advice. If you are inspired by women who have overcome the barriers and gone on to do extraordinary things, you are in the right place. In this episode we will be talking to Momentum's very own Mindy Santo about the importance of mentoring in leadership development.Visit our website: www.MomentumLeaders.org Follow us on Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MomentumLeaders Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/momentumleaders LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/momentumleadersYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@momentumleaders