When Dr Ishnella Azad enters a room something shifts. Conversation sharpens, posture straightens, and you sense that every obstacle just shrank a size. She talks fast because her story is sprinting. She has been a scientist, a neuro‑psychiatrist, a commercial real‑estate mogul, a data‑center pioneer, and a walking billboard for resilience. Plenty of high achievers look impressive on paper. Ish’s power lives in the space between bullet points, where setbacks meet stubborn determination.

This long‑form piece unpacks the full arc behind our recent episode of Badass Women in Business. It is the behind‑the‑mic look at how a woman with three science degrees, an amputated leg, and an unyielding belief in everyday investors is racing toward a ten‑billion‑dollar empire while lifting others along the way.

In this episode of the Badass Women in Business Podcast, Gunjan takes us deep into her story, sharing how she pivoted from a celebrated media career in India to co-founding a growing tech company, Codebase, alongside her husband John Bradshaw. It is a story of love, grit, sacrifice, and soaring ambition. It is a story about what it really means to lead with intuition, courage, and perseverance when the stakes are personal and the learning curve is vertical.

Jayla Siciliano knows what it feels like to chase the dream, hit burnout, and completely rebuild. After raising half a million dollars without connections, surviving a product launch disaster, and landing a Shark Tank deal with Mark Cuban, she walked away from it all to create something that actually supports her life. Today, she runs a bi-coastal luxury short term rental company and hosts the Seed Money Podcast to help early stage founders get funded and stay sane.

In this episode, Jayla gets real about the pressure of raising capital, the reality of burning out on your own dream, and how she rebuilt her business and lifestyle from the ground up. If you're questioning what success really means or wondering how to fund your big idea, this one is a must-listen.

In this deeply moving and inspiring episode, Aggie and Cristy sit down with Blair Pietrini, co-founder of Pietrini Pizza Napoletana and longtime community advocate, for a conversation that goes far beyond business. Blair shares her powerful story of launching a dream with her husband, losing him just ten months after opening their restaurant, and continuing to honor his legacy through family, faith, and fire-forged perseverance.

From founding a nonprofit that served tens of thousands annually to building a thriving restaurant with no prior industry experience, Blair’s journey is one of unwavering values, radical authenticity, and a refusal to let tragedy define her future. You’ll walk away with lessons on leadership, grief, guts, and how to build a business that’s truly an extension of who you are.

“Your fear of speaking is not a flaw. It’s a message. And when you finally listen to what it’s trying to tell you, you stop white-knuckling your way through visibility—and start showing up with real joy.”

In this episode of Badass Women in Business, Linda Ugelow reminds us that confidence isn’t something you fake. It’s something you build from the inside out by untangling the beliefs that told you it wasn’t safe to be seen. If you’ve ever cringed watching yourself on video, avoided the mic, or held back your voice in a room—you’re not alone. And you don’t have to stay stuck.

Lakeisha is the founder of Chief of Minds, an organizational development and HR consulting firm now in its 11th year. But her story started much earlier. She has been building businesses since childhood, when she was handing out leaf-raking contracts to neighbors using carbon paper and grit.

Her path hasn’t been linear, but it has been deeply intentional. Here are a few of the takeaways that stood out from her episode.

In our latest Badass Women in Business episode, we had the absolute joy of sitting down with Alejandra Rojas, founder of Brown Way to Money, financial coach, writer, and host of The Brown Way to Money podcast. Her story? Equal parts hustle, healing, and high-impact transformation.

Alexandria Hammond, founder of BrandNEWS PR Consulting Firm, knows this better than anyone. With 20 years of experience in PR, media relations, and branding, she has worked behind the scenes to craft compelling stories for brands of all sizes. From playing a key role in the PR campaign that turned The Elf on the Shelf into a household name to leading external communications for one of the largest orthopedic practices in the U.S., Alexandria has mastered the art of staying ahead of the media curve.

Melissa Armstrong is on a mission to help business owners take control of their finances and create systems that support, rather than drain, their growth. Whether it’s cash flow management, internal controls, or financial strategy, her expertise helps businesses operate with more clarity, confidence, and efficiency.