Tenacity with Sonia C.

What does it really take to grow from solopreneur to CEO of a franchise? In this episode of Tenacity with Sonia C, fitness entrepreneur Devan Gonzalez breaks down the gritty, behind-the-scenes reality of scaling a business, without losing your sanity or your standards.

Devan went from personal trainer to 6-figure business owner by 20, and now leads Strive 11 Fitness, a disruptive no-class-time fitness franchise. Sonia and Devan dive...

How do you go from being a successful real estate entrepreneur to the founder of a movement? In today’s episode, I sit down with Ceiwen Garcia, a leader, community builder, and visionary behind The Boss Network. With nearly two decades in the real estate world, Ceinwen has pivoted into creating extraordinary spaces for connection, growth, and empowerment, especially for women, but everyone is welcome in her ecosystem.

In this heartf...

What happens when your childhood dream is ripped away, and you’re forced to start over at 17?

In this episode of Tenacity with Sonia C, we dive into the extraordinary reinvention story of Jacopo Iasiello, CEO of Luxury and Wealth Group. Jacopo shares the raw, behind-the-scenes journey of building wealth from scratch, from a career-ending soccer injury to launching a jewelry business at 18 and eventually closing over 350+ real estate...

In this soulful and thought-provoking episode of Tenacity with Sonia C, Sonia sits down with Mona Bavar, founder of BlueApples.ai and DLISH to explore how the future of creativity is being shaped at the intersection of AI, intuition, and innovation.

Mona shares her journey from finance to founding a luxury gifting company and an AI consultancy, revealing how tech tools helped her rediscover her creativity and reframe storytelling as...

In this unfiltered episode, Sonia sits down with Anthony Franco, a serial founder with six successful exits, to dismantle the myths around startup success. From the dreamer trap to overbuilding features no one asked for, Anthony shares hard-won lessons that every founder needs to hear.

They unpack:

-Why execution beats ideas (even in the age of AI)

-What founders get wrong about funding and MVPs

-The myth of “just hire a salesperson” f...

When I sat down to interview Boardy, a voice-powered AI designed to connect founders, I expected a tech conversation. What I didn’t expect was a heart-to-heart about loneliness, leadership, and what it means to feel heard.

Boardy isn’t a therapist, but founders are calling to talk. Why? Because he listens without judgment, ego, or distractions.

In this one-of-a-kind episode, you’ll hear:

• The surprisingly emotional side of AI
• Why vo...

In this episode of Tenacity with Sonia C, Sonia sits down with Jim Fielding, former President of Disney Stores, The Gap, and 20th Century Fox consumer products, author of the best-selling book All Pride, No Ego, and now a full-time coach, speaker, and angel investor.

Jim shares his journey from the heights of Hollywood and corporate leadership to redefining success through purpose, authenticity, and service. He opens up about the bu...

Are you ready to break free from self-doubt and unlock true self-mastery?

In this inspiring episode of Tenacity with Sonia C, discover how to cultivate lasting self-confidence and a powerful mindset with the help of Madelaine Weiss, a Harvard-trained psychotherapist, mindset expert, and author of 'Getting to G.R.E.A.T.'

Together, we reveal the real work behind self-mastery and why self-confidence is not an innate trait, but a...

In this episode of Tenacity with Sonia C, we discuss the future of ethical content creation with Jon Gillham, the visionary founder of Originality.AI.

As a pioneer in AI content and plagiarism detection, Jon reveals the pivotal moment that inspired him to launch a leading detection tool, just days before ChatGPT changed the landscape, and how he’s navigating the rapid rise of generative AI.

We explore the real-world ethics of using A...

Podcasting isn’t just a trend; it’s a strategic tool for building absolute authority and influence. In this episode of Tenacity with Sonia C., I sit down with Dennis Meador, founder of the Legal Podcast Network, to unpack how service-based professionals can leverage podcasting to boost credibility and grow their personal brand.

From launching side hustles as a teenager to leading a podcast production company that supports over 100 l...

What if retaining your best people wasn’t about perks or pay, but about purpose and leadership?

In this episode of Tenacity with Sonia C., I’m joined by Francie Jain, Founder and CEO of Terawatt Group Coaching, to explore how leaders can build cultures where people don’t just stay, they grow. With over a decade of leadership strategy and coaching, Francie breaks down the root causes of employee turnover and how expert-led group coac...

What happens when a creative mind meets cutting-edge tech? In this episode of Tenacity with Sonia C., I sit down with Emmy-winning TV producer turned founder, Erich Archer, to unpack how he transitioned from storytelling on screen to solving real business problems with AI.

Erich shares the behind-the-scenes journey of launching Smarty Pants, an ecosystem of over 100 custom GPT tools powering automation and innovation for startups, n...

What if the key to startup success wasn’t scaling fast, but starting smaller and smarter?

In this episode of Tenacity with Sonia C., I sit down with Peter Bonney, founder of Vendorful, a SaaS platform revolutionizing B2B procurement and enterprise sales. Peter shares his unfiltered founder story, from building too broadly and burning out to rebooting with clarity, focus, and AI.

We explore how Vendorful now helps teams eliminate thou...

What happens when ancient plant medicine meets modern wellness entrepreneurship?

In this episode of Tenacity with Sonia C., I sit down with Trish Mock, founder of GOOD PSYCHE, a wellness company that blends the wisdom of medicinal mushrooms and herbs with contemporary healing practices. Trish shares her powerful journey from growing up on her family’s medicinal herb farm to launching a mission-driven brand grounded in holistic healt...

What does it mean to lead with authenticity? In this episode of Tenacity with Sonia C, host Sonia Couto sits down with Justin Wenzel, founder of JWX, to explore how redefining leadership transformed his life and the lives of those he leads.

Justin opens up about growing up in the automotive industry, where his career path was laid out before he even had a say. From excelling in car sales to silently battling addiction and burnout, J...

In this episode of Tenacity with Sonia C, we dive into the world of dating apps with Anthony Tulai, the Founder and CEO of Hopp Dating—an app that's shaking up the industry by eliminating endless swiping and meaningless chats in favor of real-life connections.

Anthony shares his unique journey from studying Nanotechnology Engineering at the University of Waterloo to launching a dating app that prioritizes authenticity and in-per...

In this episode of Tenacity with Sonia C, I sit down with Jared Jennings, founder of Phantom Brands, to talk about what it takes to build a sustainable and successful business.

Jared’s journey from a corporate 9-to-5 job to running a thriving brand agency wasn’t a straight path—it was filled with challenges, pivots, and invaluable lessons.

Episode Sponsored by Konverge – A 31+ year leader in custom software development based in Cana...

What happens when success comes at the cost of your well-being? In this inspiring episode of Tenacity with Sonia C, we sit down with Miguel Ribeiro, a passionate entrepreneur who found himself on the brink of burnout after years of relentless hustle. Miguel opens up about the pivotal moment that forced him to re-evaluate everything—his business, health, and definition of success.

Together, we explore how he rebuilt a thriving busine...

In this episode of Tenacity with Sonia C, we sit down with Jason Sherman, a seasoned entrepreneur, author of Strap on Your Boots, and the founder of Spinnr and Vengo AI. Jason shares his journey of resilience and innovation, from overcoming the growing pains of entrepreneurship to pivoting when the stakes were high.

We explore how his app, Spinnr, leverages AI to combat the loneliness epidemic and how Vengo AI transforms consumer in...