Birthday Episode!! In this three parter, you will hear from my nephew and what he loves (and we share a birthday, so obviously he loves me enough to join me), my business teach from senior year of high school, and then the tables turn and she asks me advice I would give for students in high school.

Brenda Saunders has been teaching business and law at Greenwich High School in upstate New York for 24 years. She's also run the school's internship program, taught family consumer sciences, and somehow managed to be the safe space for countless students who needed a mentor.

This is Kayleigh's birthday episode - a conversation with the teacher who changed her mind about business when she was absolutely convinced she'd never go into it. Learn how Brenda went from being a college dropout working in insurance to becoming one of the most influential teachers in a small upstate New York town. Plus: why saying no is harder than it looks, how one name in a hat led to a 24-year career, and what it really takes to build a safe space for teenagers.

Resources:

• Greenwich High School, upstate New York
• Business, Law, Family Consumer Sciences (FACS), Internship Program
• Retiring in one year

Support the show

🔗 My Links:

• Email story ideas to AllUpInYourBusinessPod@gmail.com
• Follow / DM on Instagram: www.instagram.com/allupinyourbusinesspod
• Youtube: www.youtube.com/@AllUpInYourBusinessPod

Become a Supporter of the show for as little as $3 and get exclusive access to shows early, special interviews, and updates from guests! Support the show here

Scott is the co-founder of Sodabox, a dirty soda shop with six locations across the Triangle. He started the business in a shipping container in Apex with his brother Brent after moving to Raleigh from Utah in 2017.

Learn how Scott went from mixing sugar-free Red Bulls at a call center job to building a dirty soda empire across Raleigh. In this episode, Scott talks about why entrepreneurs are born (not made), the importance of speed over size, and why you should share your business idea with everyone instead of keeping it secret.

Plus: getting fired twice from the same pizza job, convincing a stranger to take a helicopter ride in Myrtle Beach, and why the "Sea Town Pops" drink honors his dad.

Resources:

• Sodabox: sodabox.love | @sodabox.love
• Scott's handle: @sodaboxscott
• Locations: Apex, Rolesville, Garner, North Hills Raleigh, Raleigh Boulevard, Cary/Morrisville

Support the show

🔗 My Links:

• Email story ideas to AllUpInYourBusinessPod@gmail.com
• Follow / DM on Instagram: www.instagram.com/allupinyourbusinesspod
• Youtube: www.youtube.com/@AllUpInYourBusinessPod

Become a Supporter of the show for as little as $3 and get exclusive access to shows early, special interviews, and updates from guests! Support the show here

Jess Ekstrom is the founder of Mic Drop Workshop, where she helps women land paid keynote spots and become thought leaders. She's also a keynote speaker, author, and mom of two.

Learn how Jess went from being the only woman in a speaking lineup (with an event planner who admitted "we just needed a woman") to training thousands of women worldwide to get paid to speak. In this episode, Jess talks about why in-person events are no longer optional, the power of asking "why not?" instead of "what if," and how she doesn't do it all despite what it looks like on social media.

Plus: throwing away yearbooks, the "tomorrow Jess" productivity hack, and why the question shouldn't be "what would you do if you knew you couldn't fail?"

Resources:

• Mic Drop Workshop: jessekstrom.com
• Podcast: Making It with Jess Ekstrom
• Book: Making It Without Losing It (out now)
• Text line: Send "HYPE" to 704-228-4973

Support the show

🔗 My Links:

• Email story ideas to AllUpInYourBusinessPod@gmail.com
• Follow / DM on Instagram: www.instagram.com/allupinyourbusinesspod
• Youtube: www.youtube.com/@AllUpInYourBusinessPod

Become a Supporter of the show for as little as $3 and get exclusive access to shows early, special interviews, and updates from guests! Support the show here

Amanda Cheney is the founder of aMANda's Best Friend, a pet care service that's been around for 15 years. She started with a one-page business plan and six months from her dad to prove it could work.

Learn how Amanda went from wanting to be a vet to working in telecom, banking, and politics before finally saying "I wanna work with the real dogs." In this episode, Amanda talks about rebuilding after COVID, scaling to a team of 20, expanding to Greensboro, and why she's launching a coaching and consulting arm this spring for pet care providers looking to grow.

Plus: the Maya Angelou quote that changed how she hires, why getting involved in nonprofits is essential for small business owners, and why adopt don't shop is critical.

Resources:

• aMANda's Best Friend: amandasbestfriend.com | @amandas_best_friend

Support the show

🔗 My Links:

• Email story ideas to AllUpInYourBusinessPod@gmail.com
• Follow / DM on Instagram: www.instagram.com/allupinyourbusinesspod
• Youtube: www.youtube.com/@AllUpInYourBusinessPod

Become a Supporter of the show for as little as $3 and get exclusive access to shows early, special interviews, and updates from guests! Support the show here

Danny Rosin co-owns Brand Fuel, a B Corp doing brand merchandising globally, and founded Band Together, a nonprofit that's raised over a million dollars a year for 25 years through live concerts.

Learn how his Band Together story raised $60,000 in only 3 weeks. In this episode, Danny talks about strategic abandonment, why nonprofits should invest in overhead, living life through rose-colored glasses, and how Raleigh's caring community banded together to create something that's lasted 25 years.

Resources:

• Band Together: bandtogether.org | October 10th concert
• Brand Fuel: brandfuel.com
• Danny Rosin: LinkedIn

Support the show

🔗 My Links:

• Email story ideas to AllUpInYourBusinessPod@gmail.com
• Follow / DM on Instagram: www.instagram.com/allupinyourbusinesspod
• Youtube: www.youtube.com/@AllUpInYourBusinessPod

Become a Supporter of the show for as little as $3 and get exclusive access to shows early, special interviews, and updates from guests! Support the show here

Tara McCoy didn't wake up one day deciding to start a travel agency. It started with a college internship at AAA, turned into a side hustle to pay off debt, and 12 years later she's running Two Sisters Travel - a boutique travel agency that's sent clients to six continents.

The name? Her and her sister Elizabeth. Elizabeth wanted to work from home after having a baby. Tara said let's do our own thing. Elizabeth said "I just wanna sell travel, I don't wanna run a business." Tara said fine, I'll handle it. Turns out Tara was running a business for six years before she even realized it.

In this episode, Tara breaks down what actually happened during COVID (spoiler: she had clients reschedule for FOUR YEARS), why working with a travel advisor protects your time and investment, and the 13th birthday trip tradition she does with each of her five kids - solo trips anywhere in the world. We talk Japan cherry blossoms, Iceland Northern Lights, World War II history tours, and why she's headed to six continents in 2026.

Plus: the Morocco spiritual awakening, watching a lion pride take down a water buffalo, and why backup plans matter when life snowballs. Want to hear how her full pride experience went?? Subscribe to Patreon to get the deets!

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• Two Sisters Travel: twosisterstravelco.com
• LinkedIn: Tara McCoy / Two Sisters Travel Company
• Location: Columbia, South Carolina (serves clients across the US)

Support the show

🔗 My Links:

• Email story ideas to AllUpInYourBusinessPod@gmail.com
• Follow / DM on Instagram: www.instagram.com/allupinyourbusinesspod
• Youtube: www.youtube.com/@AllUpInYourBusinessPod

Become a Supporter of the show for as little as $3 and get exclusive access to shows early, special interviews, and updates from guests! Support the show here

Jamie Davis has been practicing family law exclusively for 25 years - same law firm since graduating law school. She went in thinking she'd do criminal law, took one family law class at UNC, and never looked back.

Now she's a board certified family law specialist, certified parenting coordinator, family financial mediator, and host of "A Year and a Day: Divorce Without Destruction" podcast (which started in her son's bedroom with a handheld recorder in 2017).

In this episode, Jamie breaks down the myths we all believe about divorce. No, you don't get everything if your spouse cheats. Yes, you should absolutely have a therapist during divorce (it's cheaper than therapy-ing your lawyer). And staying together for the kids? Not always the best move.

We talk prenups vs postnups, why business owners need protection before marriage, the questions you should ask before saying "I do," and why North Carolina's year-and-a-day separation law actually makes sense. Plus: why the divorce itself is the most anticlimactic part of the whole process.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• Jamie Davis: divorceistough.com | jdavis@divorceistough.com
• Instagram/Facebook/LinkedIn: @jaimehdavisattorney
• Podcast: A Year and a Day: Divorce Without Destruction
• Book: Divorce Without Destruction
• Law Firm: Gailor Hunt Davis Taylor and Gibbs
• Location: Raleigh, North Carolina

Support the show

🔗 My Links:

• Email story ideas to AllUpInYourBusinessPod@gmail.com
• Follow / DM on Instagram: www.instagram.com/allupinyourbusinesspod
• Youtube: www.youtube.com/@AllUpInYourBusinessPod

Become a Supporter of the show for as little as $3 and get exclusive access to shows early, special interviews, and updates from guests! Support the show here

Cody started Unhinged Coffee in April 2025 - and it wasn't planned. After 18 years in corporate America (Wells Fargo, all the way up to VP), they were over it. Missed the human connection. Felt like they were watching communities from the outside.

Around the same time, Cody was processing the loss of his dad. The way they connected? Over coffee. Morning, afternoon, and evening coffee. All day, every day.

The mission? Rooted in mental health. Breaking stigma, creating community, making resources accessible.

In this episode, Cody talks about leaving corporate, why he is doing Find Your Therapist speed dating events, and the lesson about who actually shows up to support you (spoiler: it's not who you think). We get into hot yoga disasters, collaboration bike rides with ice casualties, and why their mugs say things like "I love hot dads" and "rise and fucking shine."

Plus: miso caramel hojicha lattes, why planning beats rushing, and the 16-foot coffee trailer coming soon.

Soft opening this Friday April 3rd. Grand opening in May. Knightdale needs this.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• Unhinged Coffee: Located at the old Rewind Retro Bar, Knightdale NC
• Instagram/TikTok: @unhingedcoffee.co
• Soft opening: Friday, April 3rd
• Grand opening: May 2026
• Wake Forest Farmer's Market (Saturdays)
• Knightdale Farmer's Market (monthly)
• Run club launching February
• Collaboration bike rides with Bike Library Raleigh
• KJ / Social to Social (Pilates event host - previous episode guest)
• Raleigh Founded (coworking space)
• Blu Co (e-commerce focused coworking)

Support the show

🔗 My Links:

• Email story ideas to AllUpInYourBusinessPod@gmail.com
• Follow / DM on Instagram: www.instagram.com/allupinyourbusinesspod
• Youtube: www.youtube.com/@AllUpInYourBusinessPod

Become a Supporter of the show for as little as $3 and get exclusive access to shows early, special interviews, and updates from guests! Support the show here