Travis Makes Money

Bob Chapman is the CEO of Barry-Wehmiller, a $4 billion global capital equipment company and author of Everybody Matters: The Extraordinary Power of Caring for Your People Like Family. Over his 50-year leadership journey, Bob transformed a struggling $20 million family business into a multibillion-dollar enterprise using a blend of sound business design, creative acquisitions, and a culture o...

Travis and producer Eric break down a powerful message from filmmaker Ava DuVernay about desperation, mentorship, networking, and the importance of focusing on your own work. They discuss why constantly asking people for coffee, mentorship, introductions, or favors can become a distraction from actually building something—and how consistent action and progress can naturally attract the right peopl...

Mark Matson is the bestselling author of Experiencing the American Dream: How to Invest Your Time, Energy, and Money to Create an Extraordinary Life, and founder of Matson Money, a firm managing over $12 billion in assets. Known for making Nobel Prize–winning investment science accessible to everyday families, Mark has spent decades teaching people how to invest prudently, avoid speculation,...

In this episode of the Travis Makes Money Podcast, Travis and producer Eric jump from true crime and bizarre prison stories to the increasingly popular world of “looksmaxxing.” They break down a $5,000, seven-day “Camp LooksMax” program offering mentorship, grooming advice, social and dating coaching, and confidence-building exercises. Along the way, they debate whether appearance can really trans...

Amanda Goetz is a two-time founder, four-time CMO, and single mom of three who’s helping ambitious people redefine what “having it all” actually looks like. She inspires over 150,000 readers each week through her Life’s a Game newsletter and her new book, Toxic Grit: How to Have It All and Actually Love What You Have. In this conversation, Amanda shares a grounded, intentional approach to amb...

In this episode, Travis and producer Eric take a deep dive into the growing world of online gambling and the controversy surrounding how gambling platforms use customer data. They discuss reporting on DraftKings' promotional practices, the use of machine learning to identify customers likely to spend more, the challenges of regulating addictive products, and where personal responsibility and corpo...

In this episode of the Travis Makes Money podcast, Travis Chappell sits down with Elina Panteleyeva, the founder of Dood Woof, a thriving seven-figure brand for doodle dog breeds. Elina shares her inspiring journey from being laid off to building a successful business in just 15 months, all without a team or prior e-commerce experience. Tune in to discover how Elina's entrepreneurial spirit and in...

In the second part of this discussion, Travis and Eric unpack the strange intersection of celebrity brands, influencer marketing, social-media outrage, and sports betting. They discuss why some celebrity campaigns succeed while others create backlash, how outrage has become a business model for creators, and why consumers have more power than they realize simply by choosing what they engage with....

Dave Munson is the founder of Saddleback Leather Company, a brand known for building rugged, overbuilt leather bags designed to last 100 years. What started in a small Mexican leather shop grew into a globally recognized business with collaborations alongside Toyota and Martin Guitar. Beyond business, Dave and his wife Suzette also lead Love 41, a nonprofit supporting communities in Rwanda, M...

Travis and producer Eric are back in the studio for a conversation about celebrity brands, marketing strategy, and what happens when a product’s positioning doesn’t match the audience it’s trying to reach. Using Sydney Sweeney’s lingerie brand, Siren, as a case study, they discuss the importance of understanding your customer, creating marketing that speaks directly to the people who will actually...

Dr. Ricardo Valerdi is an engineer, social entrepreneur, sports scientist, and engineering professor at the University of Arizona who specializes in helping teams think clearly and make confident decisions. His work has helped organizations including SpaceX, the U.S. Army, Major League Baseball, and the NCAA, while his nonprofit Science of Sport has used sports to make STEM education more engaging...

In part two of this conversation, Travis Chappell and producer Eric Skwarczynski unpack the tension between ambition and skepticism. They explore how to pursue meaningful work, build a comfortable business, and learn from successful people without blindly buying into anyone’s “secret formula.” The conversation moves from creative comparison and coaching to the value of timeless principles, healthy...

Sally Gimon is a tax-saving expert who discovered the power of beneficial spendthrift trusts after facing a hefty tax bill on her real estate investments. She now helps business owners and investors understand how they can legally minimize their taxes and build generational wealth using strategies often employed by the ultra-rich. On this episode we talk about: - How Sally Gimon transitioned from...

Travis and producer Eric break down one of Jim Rohn’s classic lessons: the importance of asking. After joking about Rohn’s dramatic delivery, they explore why asking is such a powerful skill, from being clear about what you want to approaching goals with both intelligence and faith. The conversation also dives into the tension between adult skepticism and childlike optimism, and why some of the mo...

Trevor Cowley is a 38-year-old serial entrepreneur, investor, writer, and podcaster. He’s a co-owner in 5 businesses that collectively produce over eight figures. He co-hosts a top 100 business podcast on iTunes called Real Business Owners. Trevor is committed to helping entrepreneurs succeed. A Word From Our Sponsors: - The most successful business owners don't do it all themselves — they de...

Travis and producer Eric dive into the controversy surrounding Robert Kiyosaki’s reported $1.2 billion in debt and why a single headline rarely tells the full story. They break down leverage, real estate debt, cash flow, asset values, and the difference between personal debt and debt tied to businesses or investment entities. The conversation also explores the psychology of carrying massive amount...

Angelo Poli is the founder of MetPro, a concierge nutrition and fitness coaching company that uses metabolic science and personalized coaching to help clients transform their health and bodies. With more than 20 years of experience, Angelo has coached Olympic athletes, NFL MVPs, business leaders, and thousands of other clients. A TEDx speaker featured in major media outlets, Angelo built MetPro ar...

Travis and producer Eric explore why leaving your hometown and familiar environment can be such a powerful catalyst for growth. Using a discussion about Logan Paul’s experience leaving Ohio as a jumping-off point, they unpack the difference between being genuinely content with where you are and staying somewhere simply because change feels uncomfortable. They also share stories from their own trav...

Evan Schlossman is a principal at Neostellar, where he focuses on artificial intelligence and emerging technologies, particularly the infrastructure powering AI systems, including compute platforms, data infrastructure, and enabling technologies. Before joining Neostellar, Evan worked in business intelligence at the Lifetime Value Company and as a consultant at Deloitte. With an MBA from Northwest...

Travis and producer Eric take a humorous look at the growing culture of optimization and the pressure to turn every part of life into a carefully engineered routine. They discuss the difference between habits that genuinely improve your life and routines that become so complicated they get in the way of actually living it. From morning routines and journaling to fitness, sleep, family, and the occ...

Zvi Band is a founder, software developer, author, and longtime advocate for the power of relationships. He founded Contactually, a personal CRM that he sold in 2019, and is now working on Relatable, an AI-powered relationship management tool designed to help people build and maintain meaningful connections. Zvi and Travis have been connected since the early days of Travis’s podcast, making this c...

In this episode, Travis Chappell explores the power of long-term thinking, meaningful relationships, and consistency in business. In this snippet from his appearance on the Profit Podcast, Travis explains why fear of regret can be a stronger motivator than fear of failure, how his podcast became a powerful networking tool, and why nurturing relationships over time can create opportunities that are...

Jeffrey Cole is one of the world’s leading voices on media, technology, and the digital future. He founded the World Internet Project, the longest-running global study of online behavior, and has spent more than three decades studying how major technological shifts reshape society and business. He also directs the Center for the Digital Future at the USC Annenberg School and has taught more than 3...

In this episode, Travis Chappell shares a powerful reminder for aspiring entrepreneurs and anyone stuck overthinking their next move: take action. In this snippet from his appearance on the Successful Spiritual Entrepreneur podcast, Travis explains why clarity rarely comes from endless planning and reflection—it comes from getting started, learning from the results, and adjusting along the way. He...

Jessica Ann Pressler is a Columbia University-trained psychotherapist, hospice grief counselor, author, and mental health advocate with more than four decades of experience helping people navigate trauma, grief, narcissistic abuse, and destructive relationship patterns. She created the Traitor Within framework, host of the Your Traitor Within podcast, and author of The Traitor Within, a fiction no...