Welcome to Part 1 of a four-part series to tackle the ghosts of your numbers past, present, and future. 

We take a look at:

• Some of the biggest reasons entrepreneurs are afraid of their numbers, and how to get past those roadblocks
• Set the stage for how past, present, and future work together to build your confidence in your own decisions AND accelerate your business growth
• Give you two frameworks for thinking about your numbers that don't require a CPA or extensive Excel knowledge.

Walk away knowing which numbers matter, what it takes to build a quality financial projection, and...

Jackie Roberts is the Executive Director for SparkLabs Frontier-ASU. For over ten years, Jackie has helped organizations expand in the valley during hyper-growth times and in various leadership roles. She joined SparkLabs Group in 2019 to lead the SparkLabs Frontier-ASU accelerator program in partnership with ASU entrepreneurship and innovation. 

Jackie has been responsible for several brand market and office launches within the startup space, with the most notable being Booker Software and DoubleDutch. 

With a passion for supporting local entrepreneurship, Jackie is committed to...

Today, I’m excited to talk to Ryan Tansom, entrepreneur, speaker, podcast host, author and the co-founder of Arkona.

In 2014, Ryan helped turn around his family business and then sell it for 8 figures to a local competitor. The growth and exit process was an unexpectedly difficult undertaking, but the lessons that were learned have proven to be invaluable.

He took his experience and co-founded Arkona where he created the Intentional Growth 5 Principles and Framework and hosts the popular Life After Business podcast (190+ episodes and 265k+ downloads).

Ryan’s mission is to help...

Sonny Patel is the Founder and CEO of Insurmi, an AI-based engagement platform for insurance carriers. He started the company just three years ago at the age of 21 while working as a Sales Director and Financial Advisor for a top life insurance company. During that time, he realized the process of buying and selling insurance was unnecessarily cumbersome and outdated. 

 Determined to change the process, Sonny worked to develop a solution that would simplify the task and take the guesswork out of insurance buying. That solution would eventually become Insurmi. Now, Insurmi is being...

Melissa Lamson is an executive coach, author of six books, and speaker who has worked on projects in over 40 countries. She has built and run companies both in Europe and the US. For over 20 years she has developed leadership strategy, designed and taught leadership programs for companies like 3M, IKEA, Linkedin, MTV and Space X. Melissa's signature program for women leaders was the most highly attended program at SAP for 10 years. Melissa has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, Chicago Tribune and Forbes. She is a former columnist for Inc. Magazine. She...

Keith Ippel is an ecosystem builder, keynote speaker, and advisor to incubators, accelerators, donors, and governments. With over 20 years of experience as a leader in technology and impact businesses, Keith has helped accelerate the growth of small and large companies alike and has raised over 30 million in angel investment and venture capital. Moreover, his background has given him an unparalleled ability to collaborate with entrepreneurs, employees, and investors to grow businesses and change the world. 

Keith now leads Spring, a global incubator and accelerator that empowers...

Andrea Heuston is the founder and CEO of Artitudes Design who has been in the tech industry for 30 years.

Her company, Artitudes Design, is a full-service creative services and experiential design firm that specializes in providing high level speaking and design support to top executives.

Andrea is a respected business leader and entrepreneur who is sought after as a board member, a keynote speaker, a prolific voice on women’s and leadership topics in the workforce as well as a LinkedIn Social network influencer.

In 2018, her article, “Lead Like a Woman” became the 3rd...

Eric Smith has over ten years of experience in Technology Commercialization and a passion for entrepreneurship. Eric came to the University of Arizona Center for Innovation after serving as the Commercialization Network Manager for Tech Launch Arizona (TLA), the University of Arizona's office responsible for moving UA research and technological innovation into the marketplace. 

While Eric was at TLA, he focused on building and leveraging a network of domain experts and business leaders who consult on university technologies to help reveal their commercial relevance. He also managed the...

This week, I’m excited to share my conversation with the fantastic co-founders of Élastique Athletics, Emeline Kuhner-Stout and Caitlyn Wooldridge, who bring with them an interesting mix of start-up experience and corporate brand storytelling.

Emeline grew up in the French Alps near the Swiss border. She spent her youth watching her grandmere fit people for compression garments in the local pharmacy. It wasn't until later in her adulthood that she would foray into the same space of compression garments. After law school, stints with the UN and OECD, a couple of...

Leslie Goldman is the Co-Founder & Principal, The Artemis Fund, a female-founded, female-focused venture capital fund that invests in tech-enabled seed and series A companies.

Leslie is also an active Angel Investor, Board Member of The Houston Angel Network, Investment Committee Member of Blue Ivy Ventures, and Strategic Advisor for Rebel Fund among other advisory and board positions.

Leslie is also a frequent speaker on venture capital, diversity in startups, unconscious bias, and angel investing. Before founding Artemis, Leslie practiced law and worked to recruit legal and...