The Local Success Podcast

In today’s episode, I am joined by a man who is driven by a passion, and his mission is to share his message with the world. It is a pleasure to have on today, Dr. Luis Luacra. He has a PhD in leadership and organizational change. With two books out and as a keynote speaker, Dr. Luacra has spent the last 20 years consulting for some of the nation's leading CEOs on how to be effective leaders and c...

Terry Pillow is a true pioneer of the fashion industry, and in this conversation, he takes us on a wonderful journey through his life. He starts with stories from his childhood in Arkansas, his first encounters with fashion, and how he ended up working for and leading fashion giants such as Ralph Lauren, Giorgio Armani, Adidas, and eventually becoming the CEO of the globally known brand, Tommy Bah...

In today's episode, I have the honor of speaking with screenwriter and author Cristofa Kay, who is here to talk about his brand new book, "Flash Point: Nowhere to Run". Chris is a truly admirable person, having been born in Harlem, New York and spending the last 20 years in Santa Barbara, CA working in higher education. He is currently one of the deans at the prestigious Santa Barbara City College...

I am fascinated by success stories, but of course, success means something different to everyone. Today, I have the pleasure of speaking with Rosario Zapata, owner of Queen of Clean Service, about her views on success and life in general. Rosario grew up on a beautiful ranch in Mexico, surrounded by family, animals, and nature. She considers those years some of the best of her life, but decided to...

I love laughing. If I could laugh all day, I would. This is one of the many reasons why this conversation with stand-up comedian Chris Williams is already one of my favorite ones so far.  Chris and I connected over social media and I was deeply inspired by his pursue of his dream and vision; to be a stand-up comedian who brings value to the world. Chris shares his first experiences with comed...

What a pleasure to be joined by Sunstone Winery‘s President, Director and Co-Owner, Teddy Cabugos in today’s episode. I have been visiting Sunstone Winery for over 2 years and have loved every single time I go up there and was able to have an amazing conversation with Teddy regarding his life journey, his acquisition of Sunstone Winery and the vision he has for this incredible winery.   ...

In today’s episode I’m joined by a man I truly admire and I hope will inspire you all.  Chris Gocong is a 7 year NFL veteran who played most of his career with the Philadelphia Eagles and the Cleveland Browns. Chris had a successful career and he shares some incredible stories about his time in Philly, what it meant to go to the NFL for him, the importance of goal-setting and, so many other t...

WINE! I love wine. I love smelling it, I love drinking it and, I love talking about it. There is something so refreshing about talking about something you love with a real expert on the subject. In today’s episode I have the pleasure to have a conversation about wine with a true expert on this field, Daniel Berman. Daniel has been around wine since a very young age and has turned his passion into...

Entrepreneurship isn’t easy. It is something many want but, not at all are willing to put in the work to make things happen. And some people just have ”IT”, Angie Esparza is one of those people. The owner of Highly Favored Beauty Studio in beautiful downtown Santa Barbara has found her calling in the beauty industry and she is just getting started. Angie shares what her vision for this studio is,...

We are starting 2023 with a heavy hitter. I am so excited to be joined today by Sheralyn Baltes, she is the Senior VP of Digital Media & Business Operations for the upcoming professional soccer team, the Santa Barbara Sky Football Club. As a futbol fanatic myself, I’m delighted to have this conversation with Sheralyn. We will talk about her role in this upcoming team, what it means to the city...

Owning and running a restaurant is no easy feature. It takes time, effort, knowledge and, most importantly an amazing team. Nadia Ajlouni, owner of the very famous restaurant The Blue Owl joins me today to talk about achieving her goal of owning a restaurant and living her dream at the same time. Nadie shares what techniques in life she has found helpful to help her accomplish anything she wants....

Today I am joined by Dr. Chris Funk. Dr. Funk the Director of the Climate Hazards Center (CHC) at UC Santa Barbara. He works with an international team of Earth scientists to inform weather and famine-related disaster responses. And, he is the co-author of the book Drought, Flood, Fire; How Climate Change Contributes to Catastrophes.  Dr. Funk shares his passion of helping others by trying to...

Today I am joined by Amanda Cuevas, co-owner and former dancer of the legendary Maria Bermudez Flamenco Performing Arts Studio. Amanda grew up dancing there as a young child and now as an adult, is running the studio sharing ownership of it and wished to fulfill the vision she has for it. We talked about when her passion for dancing developed and she shares some incredible stories about her dancin...

In today’s episode I am joined by gym owner and personal trainer Jordan Kuykendall. Jordan is the owner of the incredible gym Superior Fitness In Santa Barbara, California.  Jordan shares his journey of getting into fitness at a very young age and what helped him stayed discipline in order to follow his dreams. He shares his view on discipline and explains just how important it is to have it...

Today I am joined by Director Craig Borders. Craig is one of the pioneers of the reality TV industry, producing and having major roles in some of the most iconic reality TV shows of all time such as The Real World, Laguna Beach, and many others. In this conversation Craig opens up about the TV and film industry, his dreams of becoming a film maker which started at a really young age, and he shares...

And we are live!  In this inaugural episode of the podcast, I am joined by Dr. Margaret Briggs. She is a speech pathologist who specializes in working with kids with autism and has been doing so for 50 years.  We talk about her journey in her career, obstacles she had to overcome and an overall view on success. Dr. Margaret explains the power of having positive habits in one’s life. She...

Welcome to my podcast! I have been so lucky to have met some incredibly inspiring people in my life and I want to share their stories. Thank you for listening and get ready to Admire, Get Inspired and Take Action.

This podcast is greatly inspired by this beautiful quote. The people I will be interviewing lead by example and have achieved success in a much deeper meaning.