Coffeez with Joe Shalaby

Most people think AI is about speed. Nimrod Vroman thinks it’s about structure, access, and truth. In this episode of Coffeez for Closers, Joe sits down with Nimrod Vroman, founder of Ark Empowerment and For Posterity, two platforms rethinking how humans interact with professional services and legacy in the age of AI. Nimrod spent nearly two decades as a corporate lawyer before walking away to bui...

Most conversations about education focus on systems. This one focuses on people. In this episode of Coffeez for Closers, Joe sits down with Gary Surdam, an international educator, entrepreneur, and founder of Bright Start Ed-Tech and the Illoominate platform. Gary has spent decades inside classrooms, universities, and education systems around the world. But what shaped his mission most wasn’t poli...

In this powerful episode of Coffeez for Closers, Joe sits down with Carlos Orellana — immigrant entrepreneur, fintech founder, and CEO building one of the most impactful financial platforms for the Latino community. Carlos didn’t grow up with privilege. He grew up with grit. From arriving in the U.S. as a child from El Salvador… to serving in the Air Force… to working through the early days of mor...

This episode isn’t about politics. It’s about calling, conviction, and staying in the fight when nobody believes in you. Senator Steven Choi came to America with $50, an accent, and zero guarantees. Years later, he became the first Republican in 44 years to defeat a sitting Democratic Senator in California — with almost no party support and a fraction of the money. In this deeply personal episode...

In this episode of Coffeez for Closers, Joe sits down with Andy Oliva, Founder & CEO of Lucky Day Labs — a creative AI agency helping companies navigate one of the biggest shifts of our lifetime. This isn’t an AI hype conversation. It’s a grounded, honest discussion about where technology is actually headed — and how humans fit into the future. Andy breaks down: - Why AI isn’t here to replace...

One of the most important conversations we’ve ever had on Coffeez. Bill Inman isn’t just a data guy — he’s the man who’s been shaping how the industry thinks for more than three decades. Real estate cycles, valuation models, risk, trends, the real drivers behind the market… Bill has seen it all before everyone else. He built companies before the space had a name. He predicted shifts most people on...

What happens when a Wharton MBA tears up his diploma on camera… and hands the keys to a new company to an 18-year-old with zero business experience? You get the Anti-MBA movement — and the birth of One on One Media. In today’s episode, Joe sits down with David R. Guttman, serial founder, investor, and servant-leadership advocate… and Anna Prudchenko, the 18-year-old who went from summer intern to...

In this episode, Joe sits down with Kurt Avery , founder of Sawyer Products — the company saving millions of lives through clean water and humanitarian innovation. What started with a simple first aid product has grown into a global mission: providing life-changing water filtration to over 80 countries and partnering with 140 nonprofits around the world. From military-grade repellents to filters t...

In this episode, Joe sits down with Chené Micah Williams — known online as Pacemaker Chené — a 26-year-old trainer whose story is a literal heartbeat of faith and resilience. Born with a rare congenital heart condition, Chené received a pacemaker at just 16. What most would see as a setback became his greatest source of strength. Through his brand Pace Fitness , he’s built a movement that blends p...

In this episode, Joe sits down with Setema Gali — former Super Bowl champion turned leadership coach and founder of Game Changer. Setema went from winning an NFL championship to losing it all — his cars, his home, even his Super Bowl ring — before rebuilding his life from the ground up. What started as door-to-door sales became a journey of faith, discipline, and redemption that now fuels his miss...

Joe sits down with Anton Krecic, founder and CEO of Seven Weeks Coffee — the faith-based brand turning your morning ritual into a mission. After learning that pregnancy centers receive little support despite being the front line for life, Anton started Seven Weeks Coffee with a radical model: donate 10% of every sale to pro-life clinics nationwide. In just two years, his startup has given over $60...

Stephen Scoggins went from sleeping in a borrowed car to building multiple 8-figure companies. But here's what most people don't tell you: he almost lost everything after the exit. In this episode, Stephen reveals the framework that took him from broke to 8-figures—and then taught him how to actually KEEP the money, the health, and the sanity. You'll discover: ✅ The exact mindset shif...

In Ep 39, Joe sits down with Sugar Shane Mosley , one of the most electrifying fighters in boxing history— three-division world champion, Hall of Famer, and legend who’s faced everyone from De La Hoya and Mayweather to Pacquiao and Canelo. From picking up gloves at 9 years old to becoming one of the greatest pound-for-pound fighters in the world, Shane opens up about what it really takes to win— m...

In Ep 38, Joe sits down with Eddie Garcia (Founder & CEO) and Mark Dimas (President & Co-Founder) of Realty of America (ROA)—the fastest-growing brokerage in the nation, closing $2.5B and 7,000 homes in just 10 months. From humble beginnings to national domination, Eddie and Mark break down how they built a real estate company that’s scaling 8x faster than eXp did in its early years—all wi...

Joe sits down with Brendan Boyd, founder/CEO of Imperfect Action, to break down how entrepreneurs can turn a podcast into a profit center—without a giant audience. Brendan unpacks his Foundational Four (digital products, paid community, affiliate partners, VIP package), the Live Podcast model that converts on the spot, and how to build a podcast acquisition system (pod-closing) that brings in clie...

In this episode of Coffeez for Closers , Joe sits down with entrepreneur and philanthropist Doran Andry —a man who went from six kids in a one-bedroom apartment… to making $1M in passive income by age 30. Doran shares how mentors like Jim Rohn and Tony Robbins shaped his mindset, why success is more about who you become than what you achieve, and the power of designing your life with intention. He...

Rafa J. Conde walked away from a near–seven-figure Wall Street career to earn $38K as a rookie cop—and spend the next 18.5 years running narcotics, SWAT, and federal task-force ops. Why? A calling to serve, lead, and become the kind of man pressure can’t break. In this episode, Rafa unpacks the identity shift from money/status to mission/service, the moments that harden—or humble—a man, and how th...

Schea Cotton was a legend before social media—so dominant writers called him a “man-child.” By 15, he was the most feared high-school hooper in America… then he vanished from the headlines. In this raw conversation, Schea opens up about the real story: the pressure on prodigies, NCAA turmoil, undrafted heartbreak, a decade overseas, and the mental health battle that followed. We get into faith, re...

In this powerful episode of Coffeez for Closers, we sit down with Frank López and Edder Barcenas—the visionary founders behind Negozi, the fastest-growing business platform for Hispanic entrepreneurs in the U.S. What started as a passion project is now a thriving ecosystem of over 40,000 members—with in-person events, job boards, and a mission to educate and empower the undocumented community thro...

In this episode of Coffeez for Closers , Joe sits down with husband-and-wife duo Ryron and Victoria Gracie—leaders in the legendary Gracie Jiu-Jitsu family. We talk about what it’s really like to grow up Gracie, how jiu-jitsu goes beyond fighting into lessons about emotional control, patience, and resilience—and why those lessons carry into marriage, parenting, and everyday life. Ryron opens up ab...

This week on Coffeez for Closers , we’re joined by Alexis Sikorsky—UK-based entrepreneur, investor, and the brains behind a $100M+ exit in enterprise tech. Alexis built his company from a basement in Switzerland… scaled to $12M in revenue… then nearly lost everything in the 2008 crash. But instead of folding, he mortgaged his home, fired half his team, and fought his way back—eventually selling to...

In this episode of Coffeez for Closers , we sit down with Alex Machuca—founder of LeadHackers, branding advisor, and proof that true builders never stop building. From scaling a startup to $500K/month… to bankruptcy… to calling every single customer and rebuilding trust from scratch—Alex’s story is a masterclass in grit, integrity, and relentlessness. We talk about: • Losing it all—and why he owne...

In this wild episode of Coffeez for Closers , we sit down with Eric Michael—the founder of Major League Profits, and the face of a booming collectibles empire built off flipping sports cards and Pokémon. Eric shares how he went from a $30K high school side hustle to a full-blown business teaching thousands how to make consistent income flipping cards. We talk shop on AI-powered grading, turning eB...

Before TikTok, before Instagram—there was Myspace. And Ted Dhanik was behind the rocket fuel that made it go viral. In this episode of Coffeez for Closers, Joseph Shalaby sits down with Ted to unpack his journey from launching Myspace to building Engage:BDR, a publicly traded adtech company that helps brands dominate digital distribution. They dive into: • The real growth tactics behind Myspace •...

What if the bottled water industry had a soul? In this episode of Coffeez for Closers , we sit down with the founders of Rorra —the rising water brand that’s rethinking everything from source to shelf. No plastic. No shortcuts. Just pure purpose and discipline. These guys didn’t just chase a product—they chased a mission. We talk about building a premium CPG brand from scratch, why simplicity beat...