Behind The Success

When life doesn’t go to plan, will you choose comfort or callings? In this raw, energizing conversation on Behind The Success, Heather Godby traces her path from an unconventional start and a 28+ year marketing career to launching a podcast designed to speak the hard truths about depression, anxiety, grief, and healing. She shares the moment corporate security collided with purpose—a move-or-sever...

Filmmaker Steven Esparza joins Leila Adnani and Kendal Macumber on Behind The Success to reveal how he left a 15-year radio sales career and built Echohouse Films into a sustainable indie operation. He breaks down the true mechanics of film distribution, from landing international deals to why a 4K export led to a $50,000 Direct TV license and steady “mailbox money.” Steven contrasts those wins wi...

Step inside the studio with the Arizona production team at PS Studios for a rare look at the people who build authority-building content for top entrepreneurs. In this episode, hosts Leila Adnani and Kendal Macumber sit down with their producers and editors to discuss the realities of life in a high-stakes creative environment. From managing million-dollar client expectations to navigating the tec...

How does a late-night idea become a must-play charity golf tradition? Behind The Success hosts Leila Adnani and Kendal Macumber sit down with Chris Hyslop to share the fifth year of the Drive Fore a Cure tournament in Phoenix—born from honoring his father, championing Movember, and building a year-round grassroots engine. Discover the unique on-course activations, the new venue at the Biltmore Gol...

Dive deep into the shocking, hilarious, and often unbelievable world of business ownership with Leila and Kendal in this Behind The Success: Business Horror Stories. This episode pulls back the curtain on the behind-the-scenes chaos, from hiring nightmares and costly mistakes to outlandish client encounters and full-blown PR crises. Discover the raw truths of entrepreneurship, learning from real-w...

Join us for an inspiring conversation with entrepreneur and longevity advocate David Guttman. In this episode, David shares his incredible journey, starting with a life-altering misdiagnosis at age 24 that profoundly shaped his perspective on life, leadership, and success. He dives into his unique business philosophy, emphasizing servant leadership, the importance of humility and curiosity, and ho...

Join us for an enlightening conversation with Kevin Lee, CEO of Astria Studios, as he pulls back the curtain on the dynamic world of film and commercial production. From his extensive experience in Hollywood to his commitment to fostering a vibrant production scene in Arizona, Kevin shares invaluable insights into what it takes to create impactful visual content. We discuss the evolving role of au...

Join us on Behind The Success as we sit down with Perryn Holtrop, CEO of Pay Nation, to uncover his incredible journey from a childhood of entrepreneurial hustle to leading a thriving payments company. Perryn shares profound insights on transforming frustration into innovation, the critical difference between innate talent and honed skill, and why specializing in a niche can be the ultimate key to...

In this compelling episode of 'Behind the Success,' we sit down with Dr. Urban A. Kiernan, a leading biopharma researcher and the host of the Decoding Health podcast. 🧪 Dr. Kiernan pulls back the curtain on the pharmaceutical industry, the current metabolic health crisis in America, and the disturbing trends he’s seeing on social media. From the staggering billion-dollar cost of drug de...

In this deeply moving episode of Behind The Success, we are joined by Dr. Roxana Imanian—dentist, entrepreneur, and founder of Smile Edit.  Roxana shares her incredible story of leaving Iran at the age of 14 as a refugee, overcoming the limitations placed on her as a woman, and moving to the US to build a life from scratch. From her first job at Target at 16 to opening her own dental practice in A...

In this episode of Behind the Success , host sits down with Todd Linden , CEO of Woodforest Acceptance Solutions , to unpack the real story behind a career built at the intersection of payments infrastructure, data, leadership, and modern commerce . Todd traces his path from early exposure to the origins of card issuing and voice authorization at Bank of America to launching and scaling technology...

In this episode of Behind the Success, we are joined by Marsha Petrie Sue—the guru of gurus! Marsha is an author of five books, a public speaking coach, and the current Chair of the Arizona Game and Fish Commission.  She shares her incredible story of transitioning from a Southern California beach girl and EVP at Westinghouse to a world-traveling hunter and angler. Marsha provides the tactical adv...

Jami and Greg DeBernard—founders of FitBody Fusion and hosts of the FitBody Lifestyle podcast—join Behind the Success to unpack the real story behind building one of the most recognizable coaching brands in bodybuilding and lifestyle transformation. From Jami’s corporate rise in banking, merchant services, M&A, and IPO preparation (including a sale to a Fortune 50 company) to Greg’s decades of...

Sage Aubrey’s story is what happens when “success” looks perfect on the outside—but the inside is running on fumes. Sage unpacks her rise through fashion—from selling handbags as a teenager in Arizona to building brick-and-mortar stores in her early 20s, surviving the 2008–2009 crash, and eventually launching a luxury handbag brand that demanded years of product development, identity work, and rel...

Russell Gray didn’t “work his way up.” He worked his way out . In this wide-ranging conversation, Russell shares the unfiltered origin story behind his entrepreneurial worldview—starting as a young man with no degree, no formal skills, and warehouse temp jobs that made one thing painfully clear: the traditional corporate ladder could take a lifetime. Then one mentorship moment flipped the script....

Frank Lopinski breaks down the non-traditional path that shaped his mindset early: skipping college, self-educating through YouTube, and treating high school like a low-risk lab to try—and fail—fast. He walks through his first attempts (sneaker reselling, dropshipping), the lessons that carried forward, and how he started stacking real business skills while simultaneously learning crypto markets a...

In this episode of Behind The Success , Brandon Seigel shares the real, unglamorous lessons that shaped his entrepreneurial mindset—from selling picnic backpacks early on to learning leadership and execution through directing theatre . He breaks down the “ 70/30 ” principle for learning how to run a business, the hard decisions required when you uncover hidden operational issues (including unspent...

This episode of Behind the Success features a raw, unfiltered conversation with author, creator, and Let's Get Naked podcast host Anne Karber , who opens up about identity, trauma, addiction, ambition, and the decade-long healing journey that reshaped her life. Anne retraces her path from a childhood marked by poverty and emotional disconnection, to early motherhood, to building and selling a...

In this powerful episode of Behind the Success, Josh Koepp delivers one of the most unapologetically honest conversations about masculinity, trauma, faith, and identity in modern America. From generational wounds passed down through fathers to the cultural rise of the beta-male, Josh digs into the patterns shaping today’s men and why so many struggle with boundaries, confidence, and purpose. He re...

Welcome to Behind the Success , a podcast that uncovers the true stories of grit, perseverance, and relentless drive that lead to extraordinary achievements. Hosted by industry veterans, this show dives deep into the journeys of successful entrepreneurs, thought leaders, and game-changers across a wide range of fields. In this episode, we introduce a brand new format and content, following the leg...