Janet Krebs' BIO:

Janet Krebs is a speaker, strategist, and 4X best-selling author who empowers families and influencers to lead with confidence, self-reliance, and heart. Drawing from her background in consulting, HR, and education—as well as 14 years as "Commander Krebs" in a space flight simulator guiding over 65,000 students—she blends practical leadership tools with real-world parenting strategies. Her greatest accomplishment? Her two adult children, Benjamin and Elisa.

In this episode, Virginia and Janet talked about:

• Why Janet jumped into entrepreneurship
• The importance of leadership in parenting
• How Janet is building her business
• The importance of messaging to your ideal, right fit client

Takeaways:

1. You are your own biggest challenge
2. Do your business in a way that makes you joyful
3. Integrity matters more than scale in your business
4. Parenting is personal development in disguise
5. Influence begins at home, not in the boardroom

Connect with Janet on her social media accounts to learn more about her work and insights into networking effectively:

LinkedIn URL - https://www.linkedin.com/in/janetkrebsri/

Facebook URL - https://www.facebook.com/jkrebs3/

Connect with Virginia:

https://www.bbrpodcast.com/

Candy Barone's BIO:

Candy Barone is a Leadership Alchemist and Human Design Guide, empowering visionary leaders and changemakers to unlock their true leadership potential and lead with clarity, purpose, and alignment. With over 30 years of experience in leadership and business strategy, Candy specializes in helping leaders break free from outdated paradigms, reconnect with their soul’s blueprint, and create transformative impact that lasts. Through her work, Candy blends the power of Human Design and Gene Keys with relational intelligence to guide clients in activating their unique leadership voice. She believes leadership isn’t just about strategy; it’s about cultivating heart-centered connections, fostering deep relationships, and leading with authenticity.

Candy’s approach goes beyond conventional leadership. She helps clients shed limiting beliefs and step into bold, unapologetic leadership that aligns with their core essence, allowing them to make lasting, aligned impact in their businesses and beyond. Candy has helped countless leaders tap into their full potential and create a Living Legacy that reflects their deepest values and vision. Whether through 1:1 mentoring, Human Design readings, Gene Keys insights, or strategic frameworks, Candy offers a unique, soul-led approach to leadership that’s both transformational and sustainable. When she’s not guiding visionary leaders, Candy is dedicated to igniting a leadership revolution that’s deeply connected, empowering, and purpose-driven.

In this episode, Virginia and Candy talked about:

• How Candy blended her engineering background with Quantum energetics

• Why human design helps us understand how we operate in the world

• Candy’s non-traditional way of building business and transforming her clients

• Divine feminine and Divine masculine

• How to create more functional partnerships in business

Takeaways:

1. Let your clients learn from your experiences
2. What is your living legacy?
3. Leadership is a team sport
4. Focus on Return on Impact
5. The best relationship helps you grow.

Connect with Candy on her social media accounts to learn more about her work and insights into networking effectively:

LinkedIn URL - https://www.linkedin.com/in/candybarone/

Facebook URL - https://www.facebook.com/CoachCandySpeaks

Instagram URL - https://www.instagram.com/candy_barone/

Connect with Virginia:

https://www.bbrpodcast.com/

Mason Brunsmann's BIO:

Mason Brunsmann is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® with Sirius Wealth Management, known for delivering comprehensive financial planning and investment management strategies tailored to the unique needs of business owners and families. His specialties include comprehensive financial planning, investment management, risk management, and income & tax planning. Mason is dedicated to helping clients work toward their financial goals through personalized, strategic guidance.

Mason holds both a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Business Administration with a finance emphasis from the University of Missouri–St. Louis. He also earned a graduate certificate in Financial Technology from the same institution, as well as a graduate certificate in Financial Planning through Kaplan College of Financial Education. Mason maintains FINRA Series 7, 9, 10, 63, and 66 licenses, equipping him with a deep understanding of the financial services landscape.

With over a decade of experience, Mason is committed to helping clients navigate the complexities of building and protecting wealth across every stage of life.

In this episode, Virginia and Mason talked about:

• How Mason uses social media to create visibility

• Mason’s journey to financial planning

• Mason’s unique take on building wealth

• Mason’s financial planning pet peeves

• The value of networking for improving client retention

Takeaways:

1. You need to always “Know a guy who”

2. It’s better to create a network that is an inch wide and a mile deep, than a mile wide and an inch deep

3. Focus on building trust and the money will follow

4. Don’t chase 1,000 connections—nurture the right 10.

5. Reciprocity isn’t always instant, but it’s always real.

Connect with Mason on his LinkedIn account to learn more about his work and insights into networking effectively:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mason-brunsmann-cfp-financialadvisor/

Connect with Virginia:

https://www.bbrpodcast.com/

Laura Ballerini's BIO:

Perspective shifter, Laura Ballerini is an accomplished designer who has been running a thriving communications firm for over 25 years. She started her creative journey in the Advertising Department of The Calgary Herald—during the heyday of newspapers. Ballerini has a degree in Visual Communications from The Alberta University of the Arts and is a recipient of numerous awards. While she’s a quiet and introverted creative, Laura has recently found her inner badass and radiates her “quietly fierce” disposition in her work and in her personal life.

As author of The Green Velvet Chair, Laura gathered a collection of heartfelt stories depicting how art and design influence us and spur creativity in our everyday lives. The essays are viewed through her unique creative lens.

Running her own design boutique over many decades has enabled Laura to work with a variety of clients from many industries. She deliberately chose to ensure her client base was diverse and sees this as her strength. Laura comes to the table with fresh eyes and approaches every project with unique interest and expertise.

Ballerini lives in Calgary, Alberta, with her husband, children, and a pretentious cat named Gooey.

In this episode, Virginia and Laura talked about:

• Laura’s background as a designer

• The transition from print to digital media

• Networking as an introvert

• Laura’s new book The Green Velvet Chair

• The Power of Thought leadership

Takeaways:

1. Know Your Audience

2. Learn to tell your story

3. Flip the networking narrative

4. Ask great questions and listen intensely for networking success.

5. Commit to your vision even when no one else see it

Connect with Laura on her LinkedIn account to learn more about her work and insights into networking effectively:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lauraballerini/

Connect with Virginia:

https://www.bbrpodcast.com/

Alison's Bio:

Alison C. Jones is a leadership transformation speaker and coach, and the founder of Wellness Society LLC. She’s the best-selling author of Character Leadership, a book focused on building healthy leadership from the inside out. With a master’s in industrial/organizational psychology, multiple certifications in wellness, change management, and leadership, and decades of hands-on experience, Alison is on a mission to blend leadership and wellness into one powerful, purpose-driven path. She helps leaders and organizations reduce burnout, elevate culture, and lead with greater clarity and care. Known for her grounded presence and thoughtful insight, Alison brings heart and strategy to her work—helping leaders find clarity, connection, and renewed purpose. Outside of work, she’s an avid reader, sports enthusiast, music lover, and a passionate advocate for elephant and rhino conservation.

In this episode, Virginia and Alison talked about:

• Alison’s origin story

• How to lead from your centered self

• Alison’s GLOW program

• How to lead with light

• 5 steps of authentic leadership

Takeaways:

1. Nothing sustainable starts outside—it begins within

2. We lead by who we become

3. Don’t confuse humility with invisibility

4. Resilience isn’t found—it’s cultivated

5. Purpose isn’t a someday thing—it’s a today thing

Connect with Alison on her LinkedIn account to learn more about her work and insights into networking effectively:

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/alison-c-jones

Connect with Virginia:

https://www.bbrpodcast.com/

Lila Veronica's Bio:

As a Speaker, Coach and CEO of The Riverstone Movement School, Lila Veronica helps high-performers, business owners & organizational leaders own their worth & shift the physical component of their lives. She integrates mindfulness & movement into their mental-mastery journey, so her clients reach a greater potential faster without burning out. Lila has personally mentored leaders on all 7 continents.

In this episode, Virginia and Lila talked about:

• Lila’s journey to entrepreneurship

• Mistakes we make trying to sell

• The biggest challenges in the relationship business

• Practical pointers for communicating with your body

Takeaways:

1. Harness the power of PRESENCE

2. The person with the most power moves the slowest

3. Leaders don’t have boundary issues

4. The slower you go, the more trusted you are.

Connect with Lila on her social media to learn more about her work and insights into networking effectively:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thelilaveronica

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thelilaveronica/

LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/lilagonzalez

Connect with Virginia:

https://www.bbrpodcast.com/

Sophie Anderson's Bio:

Sophie Anderson is a certified life coach who specialises in mindset and lifestyle. She is the founder of Cairns Coaching, where she partners with organisations to create health and wellbeing programs that actually work — the kind that go beyond traditional Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs). Her main focus is to help people become healthier, more productive, and more engaged, so they become better contributors in their life, their workplace, and in their community.

Sophie’s services are practical, evidence-based, and focused on education, self-awareness and self-leadership skills.

Originally from Canada, now based in beautiful Cairns, Australia, she is passionate about boosting health and happiness — in the workplace, at home, and everywhere in between.

In this episode, Virginia and Sophie talked about:

• How Sophie got into entrepreneurship

• Individual vs Organizational Coaching

• The Psychology of getting stuff done

• How to generate reciprocity

Takeaways:

1. Stick to the plan not to the mood

2. Does your calendar reflect your priorities?

3. Your greatest power is the discipline to choose your thoughts

4. True change starts in your personal life, not just the workplace

5. Knowing what you want is the first step toward meaningful reciprocity

Connect with Sophie on LinkedIn to learn more about her work and insights into networking effectively:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/sophanderson/

Connect with Virginia:

https://www.bbrpodcast.com/

Alex Aanderud's Bio:

Alex Aanderud, world renowned leadership, communication and human behavior expert, has been brought in by some of the top coaching companies, organizations and teams around the world to train their people on new and innovative perspectives of human performance, leadership and communication.

Alex combines his background as an engineer supporting experimental flight test for Boeing and the US Military with his advanced certifications in integrative psychology and behavioral analysis to apply systems thinking and analytics to the human capital of organizations.

Utilizing various psychometric assessments to improve team dynamics, retention, integrative leadership and profitability, Alex has helped teams and organizations create massive growth, increased retention, productivity and engagement

Alex's mission is to create a world where leaders promote authenticity by adapting their communication and leadership to the needs of their people, creating and cultivating the highest potential for success.

In this episode, Virginia and Alex talked about:

• How Alex’s resilience made him a perfect candidate for entrepreneurship

• The power of forgiveness for success

• The psychology of networking

• Setting networking boundaries and finding Golden Geese

Takeaways:

1. You aren’t broken, you are just unique in your own way

2. Their business card is a bid for connection

3. Become a hunter for someone’s Golden Goose

4. Make sure your networking expectations are clear

5. Be clear about who you want in your world

Connect with Alex on these platforms to learn more about his work and insights into networking effectively:

• LinkedIn.com/in/Alexaanderud
• Instagram.com/AlexAanderud
• Facebook.com/Alexaanderud
• YouTube.com/@AlexAanderud

Vitalspark.ai:

• LinkedIn.com/company/vitalsparkllc
• Instagram.com/vitalspark.ai
• Facebook.com/AILifeCoach

Connect with Virginia:

https://www.bbrpodcast.com/