Becoming You (after Winning Wednesday)

What does it look like to be an introvert in a leadership development program where 80% of your cohort are extreme extroverts — and choose to lean in anyway? Rashmi Ketha, Verizon data scientist, WAVE leader, Toastmasters member, and self-described introvert on a mission, brings one of the most quietly powerful perspectives in the Winning Wednesday catalog. From bridging the gap between data scien...

What does it take to go from the hard streets of northeast Portland to nine years in the NFL — and then choose to adopt five nieces and nephews on the spot? JJ Birden is living proof that the toughest decisions often lead to the most rewarding outcomes. Now a motivational speaker and author, JJ brings the same mental toughness he developed on the field directly into boardrooms, stages, and living...

What if everything your sales and marketing team is doing is actually working against you? Chris Walker, demand generation expert and founder of Refine Labs, makes a compelling case for why most B2B companies are seller-centric by default — and how removing sales intent from your content strategy paradoxically leads to more sales. From podcast-as-prospecting-tool to empowering your team to build t...

What happens when the rules of the game were written by and for someone who doesn’t look like you? Eileen Scully spent years researching exactly that question — and turned her findings into a groundbreaking book featuring women who are boldly re-architecting the most male-dominated spaces on the planet: the NFL, the Catholic Church, venture capital, and beyond. A consultant, author, and fier...

What does it look like when two major corporations stop competing and start collaborating — not just for business, but for kids battling cancer? Renee Lem, a leader at Equinix, joins Katrina to share how Verizon and Equinix came together behind NEGU (Never Ever Give Up), the Jessie Reese Foundation, and a mission to send thousands of cards to children in hospitals who — thanks to COVID — were sudd...

What if the secret to growing on LinkedIn had nothing to do with posting more — and everything to do with giving more? Alex B. Sheridan left a decade in B2B sales to build Impaxs, a content and LinkedIn strategy company, on one simple principle: give, give, give, and watch it compound. From video DMs to community building, Alex breaks down exactly how he turned zero views into real relationships a...

What does it take to go from the hard streets of northeast Portland to nine years in the NFL — and then choose to adopt five nieces and nephews on the spot? JJ Birden is living proof that the toughest decisions often lead to the most rewarding outcomes. Now a motivational speaker and author, JJ brings the same mental toughness he developed on the field directly into boardrooms, stages, and living...

What if your phone isn’t just a distraction — it’s actually replacing the very experiences that make you feel most alive? dr. doreen dodgen-magee, psy.d. has spent 15+ years researching exactly that question, and her findings are both unsettling and liberating. A psychologist, author, and self-described cartwheel enthusiast, Doreen brings a deeply human perspective on technology overus...

What do scuba diving, imposter syndrome, and AI-powered office space have in common? Philippe Bouffaut — French-born tech entrepreneur, long-term thinker, and self-described reluctant networker — connects them all in this wide-ranging conversation about soft skills, crisis as creativity, and what happens when you stop apologizing for the way your mind works. As co-founder of Breeder, a Montreal-ba...

What happens when a virus shuts down everything you’ve spent 20 years building — and you can’t even call it essential? Mark O’Donnell knows that feeling intimately. A small business veteran, former restaurant and club owner, and passionate advocate for local community commerce, Mark brings a grounded, heartfelt perspective on what COVID is doing to the small businesses we love —...

What if the way you’re showing up during a crisis is exactly how you show up every day — and you just haven’t noticed yet? Dr. Ginny A. Baro, PhD, MBA, MS, CPC, executive coach and leadership expert, uses this exact reframe to help her clients discover their patterns, own their emotional intelligence, and build a life anchored in purpose rather than productivity. From a small village i...

Every movement starts somewhere. In April 2020, in the middle of a global pandemic, Katrina Fuhrman — The ConnectorQueen — launched Winning Wednesday with a simple but powerful belief: no matter what’s happening in the world, we are winning. This is the trailer that started it all. A weekly check-in born out of isolation, resourcefulness, and a desire to bring real human networking to the di...

What does a boutique owner do when the world shuts down and her entire business depends on the in-store experience? Alexandra Daras of The Pretty Pink Rooster didn’t wait to find out. She leaned into live video, showed up for her customers through a screen, and chose — deliberately and daily — to find the silver lining. In one of the earliest episodes of Winning Wednesday, Alexandra brings r...

The very first episode of Winning Wednesday features someone who embodies everything the show would go on to stand for — a connector, a leader, and a man who turned a pandemic into a launching pad. Jay Levine, real estate entrepreneur and former Verizon veteran, brings raw vulnerability and contagious energy to this inaugural conversation about rapport, resilience, and the most powerful reframe av...