Heroes of Reality

Introduction to Kevin Donnelly (0:00-5:00)Kevin's background as a serial entrepreneur and business coach.Scaling his company from 40 to 600 employees.The superpower of ninja recruiting top talent.The Journey of Scaling a Business (5:01-15:00)How Kevin landed a big contract with AT&T that propelled his growth.The importance of implementing a business operating system.Systems like EOS (Entrepreneurial Operating System) and Rockefeller Habits.Shifting from Technician to Conductor (15:01-25:00)The mindset shift from technician to business leader.Kevin's concept of “E-Wakening” inspired by Michael Gerber's The E-Myth.The importance of peer accountability and building a high-performance team.Lessons in Leadership: Letting Go and Firing the Empty Suits (25:01-35:00)The process of letting go of underperforming team members.Common pitfalls entrepreneurs face when scaling their business.Creating a culture of accountability and execution.Ninja Recruiting: Hiring and Onboarding A-Players (35:01-45:00)Kevin's proven strategies for recruiting top talent.The importance of structured hiring processes and assessments.Setting new hires up for success with onboarding and 30-60-90 day plans.Exit Planning and Increasing Business Valuation (45:01-55:00)John Warrillow's eight drivers of value from Built to Sell.How to increase your business's multiple for a successful exit.Strategies for creating a business that thrives without the owner.Kevin's Personal Journey: Facing Dark Times and Emerging Stronger (55:01-1:05:00)Kevin's story of losing a million dollars in 2006 and letting go of half his workforce.How he turned that crisis into his greatest opportunity.The power of persistence and continuous learning.The Four Freedom Factors (1:05:01-1:15:00)Kevin's keys to achieving freedom as a business owner: talent, systems, strategy, and numbers.Moving from being owned by the business to owning it.Closing Thoughts & Call to Action (1:15:01-End)Kevin's “Holy Grail” of coaching others to reach their full potential.How to connect with Kevin Donnelly: Kevin Donnelly's Website, Freedom Point Advisors, and Hiring Labs.

In this episode of Heroes of Reality, Dylan Watkins sits down with KC Campbell, a retired Air Force colonel, fighter pilot, and leadership expert. KC shares her remarkable journey, including her experience flying the A-10 Warthog in over 100 combat missions and the lessons learned along the way. She opens up about how these high-stakes situations shaped her approach to leadership, decision-making, and facing fear head-on.KC discusses:Combat Lessons in Leadership: How flying combat missions provided the framework for making difficult decisions in both life and business.The Power of Visualization: How "chair flying" and mental preparation can reduce fear and lead to success, whether in combat or in the boardroom.Facing Fear with Action: The importance of acting in the face of fear and why giving yourself grace for feeling fear is crucial—but not an excuse to avoid taking action.Building a Strong Team Culture: The role of trust, humility, and feedback in fostering a culture of accountability, growth, and excellence.Handling Tough Decisions: KC reflects on making difficult calls, whether it's firing a team member or flying a damaged aircraft home.With a career spanning over 24 years in the Air Force, KC brings a wealth of leadership experience, offering valuable advice for entrepreneurs, executives, and anyone striving to be a better leader.Key Takeaways:Preparation and visualization are essential to overcoming fear and improving performance.High standards and compassionate leadership can coexist in a thriving team culture.

Introduction: Dylan introduces Jarrett Ransom, "The Nonprofit Nerd," known for empowering nonprofit organizations to thrive financially.The Profit Mindset in Nonprofits: Dispelling the myth that nonprofits can't be profitable while staying mission-focused.Organizing Chaos & Success Stories: How Jarrett helps organizations stabilize financially by implementing systems and processes.Example: Turning a 3-month financial runway into 11 months with a 267% revenue increase.Overcoming Limiting Beliefs: The importance of advocating for your value and dispelling the scarcity mindset prevalent in nonprofit spaces.Coaching clients to prove their ROI and ask for raises.Shifting Narratives with Donors: Teaching nonprofits how to quantify and communicate their impact to donors and stakeholders.Balancing Self-care and Leadership: Jarrett shares the warning signs of burnout and compassion fatigue in nonprofit leadership and offers strategies for wellness and balance.Fundraising Strategies: Building consistent revenue models through automation and systematic approaches to stewardship and donor cultivation.Techniques for capturing event "magic" and using it year-round to engage donors.The Ask-Thank-Report-Repeat Model: A simple yet effective framework for ongoing donor engagement.Technology and Automations: Leveraging automation tools and donor databases to enhance fundraising, communication, and stewardship.Leaving a Legacy: Jarrett's vision of creating lasting change through nonprofit work, focusing on legacy and the power of community impact.Call to Action: Jarrett encourages nonprofits to embrace their power, aim higher, and change the narrative around profitability.How to Connect with Jarrett:Website: therayvangroup.comLinkedIn: Jarrett RansomKey Takeaways:Nonprofits don't have to settle for less; they can be profitable and mission-driven.Systems, consistency, and automation are critical to nonprofit sustainability.Donor relationships should be nurtured year-round, not just when asking for money.The importance of shifting to a mindset of abundance and prosperity in the nonprofit sector.

Key Topics:Transitioning from coaching college football to business strategy.The importance of mindset and resilience in both sports and business.How football prepares individuals for challenges in life and business.Strategies for getting the most out of your team and clients.Visualization techniques to overcome setbacks.Building systems that lead to sustainable business growth.Scaling businesses through effective strategy and mentorship.Leveraging AI and automation in business processes.Personal reflections on the role of a coach in business and life.

Key Topics:Transitioning from coaching college football to business strategy.The importance of mindset and resilience in both sports and business.How football prepares individuals for challenges in life and business.Strategies for getting the most out of your team and clients.Visualization techniques to overcome setbacks.Building systems that lead to sustainable business growth.Scaling businesses through effective strategy and mentorship.Leveraging AI and automation in business processes.Personal reflections on the role of a coach in business and life.

Raeanne Lacatena helps experienced entrepreneurs and small business owners reach their greatest expectations while living their happiest, healthiest, and wealthiest lives. Among the business owners she serves are restaurateurs, brick-and-mortar offices like those of physicians and therapists, and online businesses for authors, artists, speakers, and coaches.

Robert Christiansen is a pioneer in self-worth coaching, an author, and the founder of Motive For Life, a platform dedicated to elevating people's self-worth and helping them achieve unprecedented success. With a career spanning several decades, Christiansen has dedicated his life to understanding the intricacies of human self-worth and its impact on personal and professional growth. His work focuses on identifying and overcoming the "gaps" in self-worth, which he believes are critical barriers to achieving one's full potential. Christiansen's books, including "The Bug In Our Brain," offer a comprehensive guide to mastering self-worth. Through his writings, he introduces readers to the fundamental principles of self-worth, emphasizing the importance of language, affirmations, routine, handling the "Red Zone" of success, and making empowered choices. At Motive For Life, Christiansen leads a team dedicated to providing coaching, workshops, and resources that address various aspects of life impacted by self-worth, including health, relationships, career, and financial prosperity. Through his work, Robert Christiansen has established himself as a leading voice in the field of self-worth. His dedication to helping others discover and harness the power of their self-worth has made a significant impact, enabling individuals to achieve their dreams and lead fulfilling lives. robert@motiveforlife.com motiveforlife.com (949) 233-4028

Ray Lozano is a dynamic and influential figure in the field of drug prevention, renowned for his ability to engage and connect with youth across the nation. With a unique blend of humor, scientific expertise, and genuine compassion, Ray delivers compelling presentations that resonate with audiences of all ages. As a former stand-up comedian, Ray infuses his talks with humor, ensuring that crucial messages about drug awareness and prevention are not only heard but remembered. His approach is refreshingly nonjudgmental, creating a safe space for open dialogue and learning. With a foundation in scientifically backed information, Ray empowers both youth and parents with the knowledge they need to make informed decisions about substance use. Through his website, www.raylozano.com, Ray offers a wealth of resources, including blog posts that address the dangers of various drugs while maintaining an engaging and relatable tone. Beyond his work with youth, Ray is also dedicated to supporting nonprofit organizations in securing government grants aimed at youth development and well-being. His expertise in grant writing ensures that vital resources are directed where they are needed most, making a tangible difference in communities nationwide. Ray Lozano is not just a speaker; he is a catalyst for positive change. Through his infectious energy, humor, and commitment to evidence-based practices, Ray is making strides in drug prevention and youth empowerment, one presentation at a time. Ray Lozano Drug Prevention Specialist | Youth Speaker

Cristian Lio Former hardcore gamer. On a mission to Cristian helps men conquer video game addiction and become the Main Characters of their own Epic Real Life Stories.

Jeff is Chairman of New Profit, a social change venture fund and is founding partner of the Community Health Acceleration Partnership, focused on front line health in Africa and the U.S. He also currently serves on the boards of the African Philanthropy Forum, Just Capital, UVA Center for Contemplative Sciences (where he is chair), Giving Tuesday, the Aspen Management Partnership for Health, Leadership Now Project on democratic reform and the University of Virginia's Undergraduate Business School, where he was President for ten years. He is also a partner in Bridge Builders investment fund for Mindful Wellness. Jeff was on the board of the University of Virginia, Chairman of The Council of Foundations at University of Virginia (UVA), served on the Berklee College of Music Board, the Harvard Business School Dean's Board of Advisors and the HBS Visiting Committee and is on the Advisory Boards of MIT Media Lab and the Harvard School of Public Health. He has been on numerous other for-profit and non-profit boards.

Steve McCloskey is a graduate from the first class of Nanoengineering at UC San Diego, with a focus on emerging technologies applied to STEM. He worked with the founding Chair of the Nanoengineering Department, Ken Vecchio, and helped establish the Nanoengineering Materials Research Center, while also developing thermodynamic processing methods for Iron-based Super-elastic alloys. Steve later founded Nanome Inc, a company that builds virtual reality solutions for scientists and engineers working at the nanoscale, with a focus on protein engineering and small molecule drug development.

Alon Braun is a modern-day renaissance man. Early in life, he was an elite member of Israel's cyber special forces unit while simultaneously the founder of a startup funded by Apple Israel. He then went on to become a marine biologist with a Master's in Oceanography and published research on the cell biology of coral, with his research appearing in Al Gore's documentary An Inconvenient Truth. Alon then took a 3-year certification as a Feldenkreis body movement teacher, while working as an online marketing guru and business accelerator strategist, helping identify growth strategies using technology and data. As an entrepreneur, Alon is the founder of Neurotech Analytics and Riverbank Consulting. He has a passion for scaling enterprises and scientific innovations, especially in the deep tech industry. Articles by or about Alon have been featured in Inc Magazine, Forbes, Entrepreneur Magazine, and Thrive Global. His new book, The Entrepreneur Journey: 8 Steps from Inspiration to Global Impact, was released in April 2021. Besides Alon's work in science and technology, his areas of expertise include business growth strategies, agile methodologies development, and decision-making consultation.

Sara is a psychedelic therapist and educator. She began her MAPS journey in 2012 with the Zendo Project. Sara served as MAPS Director of Harm Reduction (2016-2020) and Harm Reduction Training and Education Coordinator (2014-2016). She contributed to the development of the Zendo Project training curriculum and has facilitated psychedelic peer support workshops worldwide. Sara was a sub-investigator for MAPS Phase 2 and Phase 3 clinical trials researching the safety and efficacy of MDMA-Assisted Therapy for the treatment of PTSD. She teaches MDMA and psychedelic-assisted therapy through MAPS and is the Lead Instructor at the Integrative Psychiatry Institute's Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy Training.  Sara is passionate about helping to educate the next generation of psychedelic therapists. Sara presents at conferences and events on the topics of psychedelic-assisted therapy, harm reduction, peer support, and the potential of psychedelics as catalysts for individual, community, and collective healing. She lives in Boulder, Colorado.

Brian Ford is the founder of the podcast Self Improvement Daily which has earned over 16 million downloads to date. He is also the co-founder of For Purpose, a social impact agency building movements that help people plug into making a difference. --------- Take the Next Reality Hero Quiz at http://www.heroesofreality.com

Charles Hudson is the Managing Partner and Founder of Precursor Ventures, an early­ stage venture capital firm focused on investing in the first institutional round of investment for the most promising software and hardware companies. Under his leadership, Precursor Ventures has raised four funds and has over $175 million under management. He has invested in 250 companies and supported more than 400 founders, including the teams behind Clearco, Juniper Square, The Athletic, Incredible Health, Carrot, and Pair Eyewear.  Prior to founding Precursor Ventures, Charles was a Partner at Uncork Capital and Co­Founder and CEO of Bionic Panda Games. He holds an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and a B.A. in Economics and Spanish from Stanford University. Charles maintains close connections with his alma mater through volunteer service and teaching at GSB. He is an active member of the VC community, serving on several advisory boards and as a mentor to a number of emerging managers. Charles also serves on the Advisory Board for the San Francisco Opera Association. --------- Take the Next Reality Hero Quiz at http://www.heroesofreality.com

From international gaming phenomenon to game-changing initiatives, Dutch-born entrepreneur and innovator, Henk Rogers continues to pave the way in regenerating our home planet and working toward establishing permanent human settlements on the Moon and Mars. Starting his career in computer gaming more than three decades ago, Rogers revolutionized the industry by creating Japan's first Computer Role-Playing Game (RPG) and later bringing the legendary game Tetris, to the world. Since then, Rogers has dedicated his career to research, development, advocacy and implementation of renewable energy sources in his adopted home of Hawaii. His Blue Planet Foundation (BPF) based out of Honolulu, has led efforts to pass the nation's first 100% renewable energy mandate, requiring the State of Hawaii to commit to switching to 100% renewable sources of electricity by 2045. His newest initiative, Blue Planet Alliance (BPA) based out of New York City, is expanding BPF's “mandate first, business model second” approach to international regions and countries. BPA is driving global systemic change by developing projects that change behaviors of people, companies, towns and countries, toward sustainability. In an effort to expand life beyond Earth, to the Moon and Mars, Rogers has also established the International MoonBase Alliance (IMA) with leaders in space exploration across private-public and academic sectors. IMA manages HI-SEAS, a Moon-Mars habitat on Mauna Loa used by NASA for five years of simulated Mars missions, creating business opportunities in Hawaii, while advancing space settlement efforts. Rogers continues to explore renewable energy and space settlement opportunities through his Blue Planet Research, which conducts R&D at his off-grid ranch on Hawaii Island. Rogers has become part of the Renewable Energy Solutions industry with Blue Planet Energy, a Blue Planet Research spin-off, which designs and manufactures the safest, longest lasting and most environmentally friendly energy storage systems in the world.

Kodah is a founding partner with Urth Capital Advisors, an entrepreneur, a rational futurist, and a dancer. Kodah is also experienced in government technologies, wearable health tech, and investment opportunities. Kodah believes that ancient wisdom informs frontier technology.

Kyle Carnohan is the founder of Super Human Fathers, a community and program for men who desire to transform their bodies and their lives in all areas of fatherhood. As a father of 5 and a husband of 20 years, Kyle has been through the waves of stress, struggle, and disappointment in his relationships with his kids and family. However, after making several key decisions in his life to be honest with himself about his actions, he started to see incredible change. Now, his passion in life is helping other men do the same. 

David Clutterbuck is one of the early pioneers of developmental coaching and mentoring and co-founder of the European Mentoring & Coaching Council. Author of more than 70 books, including the first evidence-based titles on coaching culture and team coaching, he is visiting professor at four business schools. He leads a global network of specialist mentoring and coaching training consultants, Coaching and Mentoring International. And his 75th book comes out on December 29th.

Donald Hoffman received a PhD in Computational Psychology from MIT, and is a Professor Emeritus of Cognitive Sciences at the University of California, Irvine. He is an author of over 100 scientific papers and three books, including The Case Against Reality: Why Evolution Hid the Truth from Our Eyes (2019), and Visual intelligence: How we create what we see (1998). He received a Distinguished Scientific Award of the American Psychological Association for early career research, the Rustum Roy Award of the Chopra Foundation, and the Troland Research Award of the US National Academy of Sciences. His writing has appeared in Scientific American, New Scientist, LA Review of Books, and Edge, and his work has been featured in Wired, Quanta, The Atlantic, Ars Technica, National Public Radio, Discover Magazine, and Through the Wormhole with Morgan Freeman. He has published a mathematical theory of consciousness. He has a TED Talk titled Do we see reality as it is? and a podcast titled Reality is an illusion with Lex Fridman. He has dozens of podcasts available online.

James Schmachtenberger is a successful serial entrepreneur, with a lifelong focus on using business and innovation to effect large-scale change for the benefit of humanity. James is the co-founder and the CEO of Neurohacker Collective, a company focused on making groundbreaking products for health and well-being through complex systems science. His areas of expertise include nootropics, anti-aging and regenerative medicine, sleep and fast-paced entrepreneurialism.

Daniel Dyboski-Bryant specializes in making XR positive and meaningful to communities, educators, learners and families around the globe. He's a passionate advocate for diversity and inclusion and his mission lies in harnessing people, communities, technologies and resources to inspire collaboration, common purpose and creative solutions to global and local challenges. As Executive Director at Virtual World Society he leads the mission for a global XR for Good community and ecosystem. He's working hard to democratize the next paradigm of impact, community development, learning and education. As Founder Director of Educators in VR he empowers a global community of educators, trainers and learners who meet, share and collaborate in and with VR to integrate XR immersive technology into education, training, business, and beyond.

Ryan is recognized globally as a pioneer and leader in the XR, gaming and crypto industries. In 2020, Ryan co-founded Zebra Labs, a web3 company dedicated to bringing celebrities to the metaverse by creating virtual celebrities and digital collectibles.

When it comes to accomplishing unreasonable results, Mike is like a dog on a pant leg. Since realizing his childhood dream of graduating from the University of Notre Dame, the relentless pursuit of achievement was instilled, ensuring success in anything he take on. Whether dominating sales quotas, starting and selling businesses, getting an MBA over 40, or completing marathons, Mike applies this tenacity to all facets of life. Masterful at heading into fear, he lives by a run-to-the-roar tenet. When faced with the challenges of the pandemic, Mike uniquely pivoted and took his family on an epic nine-month, 48-state RV trip. Shortly thereafter, they moved to a canal house in the heart of Amsterdam to begin another adventure. Currently, the entrepreneur, podcast host, and keynote speaker helps others push past their comfort zones to take the next big step toward their ambitions. His vulnerability and willingness to share his mistakes allow others to see themselves in their journey. Mike's no-­nonsense style is equally energetic and fun-loving, leaving an imprint on how one views life. Audiences are captivated by his candid storytelling and inspired to pursue their wildest dreams revealing the obstacles before them.

Aaron You Mastny is the Founder of New Earth YOUniversity and has been in the personal development and transformational training space for over a decade. With over 18 years of real estate development and broker experience, Aaron is passionate about collaborating with mission-driven entrepreneurs to create a new reality based on who we truly are. Aaron's deep commitment to supporting people by overcoming their subconscious beliefs with the 4 step "Inner Alchemy" process allows people to cut through the layers of societal conditioning and reveal their authentic selves. 

Darryl is one of the world's leading experts on trust with over twenty years experience. His Ph.D. ¨Building Trust in Hostile Environments¨ from Duke University established him as a global leader for governments, businesses and NGOs on practical approaches to building trust. Darryl has worked for Mckinsey & Company in their Toronto office, as well as advised the Canadian Military on trust building in Afghanistan. He has served as faculty for the Luxembourg School of Business and the Center for Effective Organizations at the University of Southern California and recently completed his book Building Trust: Exceptional Leadership in an Uncertain World.

Alexander Brazie is a global design director and gamification consultant. For over sixteen years, Alex has been working within the game industry as a designer, project leader, and head of learning & development for game designers who want to master their craft. His game combat and game systems design experience includes work on World of Warcraft, League of Legends, Ori & the Will of the Wisps and two unannounced AAA Projects for major studios. Traveling the globe, Alex visits start-ups and established game teams to provide the valuable consultancy needed to design and apply gamification architecture that will deliver optimal results and creative solutions for business challenges. As a dedicated industry expert, Alex has consistently identified the true source of many development problems and disagreements for a number of companies, and assisted them through to resolution. Through his work helping game design and development teams, Alex is able to fix organizational and morale problems, while providing precise and accurate problem solving for complex or unique design problems. Over the years, Alex has been a speaker at Game Development conferences on teaching and mentoring in game design, as well as how to develop game design teams.

Matthew Lee has always had an entrepreneurial spirit since he could remember. He is currently a business coach and advisor to small and medium-sized founder-led companies. He leverages 20 plus years of in-the-trenches experience in B2B Sales, Real Estate Investing, and Mortgages to help his clients achieve success inside and outside their businesses.

Dr. Jacquelyn Ford Morie is an early Virtual Reality creator, developing techniques in this medium to deliver meaningful and emotional experiences. She has advanced degrees in both Fine Art and Computer Science, and serves on the boards of several future-oriented immersive media companies. She is a senior technical advisor to the recently awarded ANA Avatar XPRIZE, which challenged teams to build a physical robot avatar people could inhabit from a distance. Her company, All These Worlds, consults and builds immersive environments for a wide variety of clients. She enjoys sharing her expertise in the classes she teaches at the Otis College of Art and Design and at UCLA.

Nathan Sudds is a consultant, coach. entrepreneur. husband. food lover. writer. traveler + life long learner. He is a digital nomad living and working around the world and in the Metaverse. Nathan is the Founder of the Horizon Workrooms Community Facebook Group helping people connect inside VR. He is also a top coach on Coach.me, helping busy entrepreneurs & professionals with ADHD or focus challenges.

Joe De Pinto was born and raised in Los Angeles, CA. After spending 4 years playing professional baseball in the Chicago White Sox farm system, he co-founded his first venture, Barpay, in 2015 with Daniel Wagner. In January 2021, along with Wagner, he co-founded Haste, the world's first Instant Leaderboard Payout arcade. De Pinto's vision for Haste is to have the platform serve as a fun and entertaining visual representation of micro transactions, and how they can empower new business models.

Eileen Greene is a 93 year old empowered and fearless woman who strongly believes that there's no age-limit to achieving your goals and dreams. After raising her three sons, Eileen went on an unrelenting campaign to educate herself and experience life to the fullest; earning her bachelor's degree from California State University, Northridge at 50 years young. For Eileen, it's never too late, even today, she is an active Life Coach using Hypnotherapy and Psychotherapeutic methods to help her clients. Her Ted Talk (at the age of 87) focused on how it's never too late to do anything your heart wants you to do in this lifetime. Her biggest message is that we are all going to go, some of us sooner rather than later, but while you are still here, you have an opportunity to contribute. What are your “coulda, shoulda, wouldas”? No matter your age, make your list, pick one and do it now.

Ryan Holmes is the Founder and CEO of SpaceVR. Experienced in design and software engineering, he founded several companies including Sphr, a software and design agency; and Tampa Hackerspace, a means for people to self-learn without college. He has built multiple apps featured on the top positions of Product Hunt. An experienced speaker, speaking at many conferences in the US and to 1,000 plus audiences in every major city in China. Experience in partnerships, he has led successful partnerships in Japan, China, and Europe. He studied Electrical Engineering at the University of South Florida.

With experience and exceptional skill, Michael Dyer has worked with all clients ranging from inner-city youth, private schools, universities, corporate companies, foster children, drug & alcohol rehabilitation centers, juvenile delinquents, staff development workshops as well as implementing and facilitating relationship coaching. Regardless of the client, Michael's presence is always magnetic. He has a profound effect on all of our participants and because of these magnetic and empowering qualities he is by far one of the most highly requested facilitator.

Caitlin Krause is a globally-recognized experience designer, learning expert, author, and keynote speaker. She teaches at Stanford University about technology and wellbeing. In her books Mindful by Design (2019) and Designing Wonder (2020) and through her organizational consulting, Caitlin helps individual leaders and teams leverage mindfulness, storytelling, and design to form better human-centered relationships with mindful technology. As founder of the MindWise consultancy, co-founder of the Center of Wise Leadership, and a virtual reality, XR and AI specialist, Caitlin contributes to building products and experiences that promote humanity, innovation and emotional intelligence. She speaks worldwide, delivering keynotes and leading professional development and learning workshops. Caitlin actively guides leaders about effective uses of virtual reality and immersive storytelling to allow imagination and creativity to flourish. Caitlin has more than a decade of experience as an educator, promoting mindful leadership and learning models throughout organizations. She holds a BA from Duke University and an MFA from Lesley University, and believes in embracing creative constraints, living a life filled with moments of wonder, and connecting with passion, purpose and presence.

Passionate about music, harmony and beauty… Patrick Hilsbos has deep experience in applying advanced neuroscience technology for transformative experiences with a proven successful track record serving Fortune 500 companies, leading universities and high-growth startups. He is the CEO and Founder of neuromore which empowers leading companies to integrate and optimize neurotechnology and AI – resulting in smarter experiences, applications and ecosystems. He is also a Neuroscience Advisor to BrainMind, a private community of top brain scientists, entrepreneurs, investors, philanthropists, and academic institutions collaborating to accelerate impactful innovation in brain science.

Eesmyal is an entrepreneur with a mission to invent solutions to wicked problems through technology and social innovation. He has cofounded 8 ventures in a variety of areas including: sustainable architecture, coworking, civic engagement, carbon analytics, education, and research. He's the board chair of MAPS Canada, the cofounder and director of the Psychedelic Data Society, and the cofounder and CEO of Quantified Citizen, a mobile health research platform working to disrupt and democratize health research, starting with psychedelic science.

Agnieszka Sekula is a researcher at Swinburne University and a co-founder of Enosis Therapeutics Pty Ltd. Her research focuses on investigating therapeutic mechanisms in psychedelic treatment that can be strengthened through experience design and translating findings of this research into real life application, by developing virtual reality scenarios. She recently conducted the World's first ever case study with the use of VR and psychedelics. Enosis native VR scenarios use an innovative, patent pending mechanism, AnchoringVR™, which preserves the profound but elusive psychological insights that emerge during the psychedelic experience. Agnieszka is a scientist with a background in biomedical science and psychology. She used cutting edge biotech tools, including customized imaging robots, 3D modelling and VR, to innovate medical research all over the world, including forensic medicine in Switzerland, space medicine in Austria and translational science in Singapore. Her work has been displayed worldwide, including Shanghai EXPO, Florence Biennale or Sounds of Space Exhibition in Austria. For her outreach efforts, Agnieszka won the best speaker award at 3D MED Australia and the MiLabs Image of the Year award, among others.

Travis Deverell was startled to discover that writing an internet story about an inter-dimensional kung fu wizard had somehow become a marketable skill when accidentally found himself to be a successful author. He's now quietly getting on with it while hoping that no-one notices the entire thing is ridiculous. Under the pen name Shirtaloon he has released several books in the ongoing He Who Fights With Monsters series.

Jon Hale focuses on ESG thought leadership and product strategy for Morningstar. Prior to 2021, Jon was Morningstar's head of sustainable investing research. He directed the company's research initiatives on sustainable investing, beginning with the launch of the Morningstar Sustainability Rating™ for funds in 2016.

Jordan is the co-founder of Mitchell McClure where they work with fast-growing companies to drive greater profitability through better people development. He's worked in people development since 2009 helping leaders avoid burnout, become self-aware, and communicate better with their team. His greatest desire is to leave a legacy of love.  He lives in his hometown Greenville, SC with his wife, Kristen, and their son, Luke.

Sam LaCrosse is a nobody. He hasn't done anything amazing. He is not extraordinary or impressive. He's just an ordinary guy from Cleveland, Ohio, who now lives an ordinary life in Austin, Texas. But if you want to check him out, he writes blogs on dontreadthisblog.com and hosts Don't Listen to This Podcast. Sam is the CEO and Founder of Don't Do This, LLC, a company that makes no money. He is also a board member of Thrive Living Corporation and an ambassador for RallyCap Sports.

Jasmine is a VR content creator primarily on YouTube and TikTok. She started VR content creation at the beginning of the pandemic though she's been interested in XR for over a decade. She focuses on VR tech, product reviews and gameplay. Her goal is to make VR accessible and not intimidating by creating easy to understand videos.

Jeremy D. Nickel thrives at the intersection of spirituality and technology. A lifelong spiritual adventurer and entrepreneur, after Graduate School in Berkeley, CA and jobs in the tech world, Jeremy was Ordained by the Unitarian Universalist Association and served seven years as the Spiritual leader of Mission Peak UU Congregation, an interfaith spiritual community in Silicon Valley. He left in 2016 to launch EvolVR. EvolVR is a secular/spiritual community that is creating personal growth experiences in Virtual and Augmented Reality. In January of 2022 EvolVR was acquired by TRIPP where Jeremy continues to lead the community as the VP of Community and Live Events. When un-plugged from his Ministry Jeremy enjoys spending time exploring the great outdoors of his newly adopted state of Colorado with his wife Nicole, a UCC minister, and daughter Eliza.

Duncan Campbell is currently the Content Acquisition Manager for Roblox on the Community Expansion Team, a division of Developer Relations responsible for the growth of both developer and user communities. He's been in the games industry for over a decade with experience in partnerships, content, marketing, media, community management and development having worked at companies such as EA, Ubisoft, and HTC Vive, and more. Now, he's helping run the Game Fund at Roblox, a program with $25 million in funding to support developers and studios in their quest to build the next generation of experiences on the platform. A direct effort in pushing the boundaries of the metaverse.

Yu-kai Chou is an Author and International Keynote Speaker on Gamification and Behavioral Design. He is the Original Creator of the Octalysis Framework, and the author of Actionable Gamification: Beyond Points, Badges, and Leaderboards. He is currently Founder Partner/Chief Creation Officer of The Octalysis Group, and Chief OP Mentor of Octalysis Prime, a Gamified Mentorship Platform. Yu-kai has been a regular speaker/lecturer on gamification and motivation worldwide, including at organizations like Google, Stanford/Yale/Oxford, LEGO, Tesla, IDEO, BCG, Turkish Airline, the governments of UK, Singapore, South Korea, Kingdom of Bahrain, and many more. His work has empowered over 1 Billion users' experiences across the world. Formerly, he was the Head of Creative Labs & Digital Commerce for HTC, working on pioneering VR technologies. He was also Chief Experience Officer for Decentral, working on blockchain experiences with the Cofounder of Ethereum, Anthony Di Iorio. Yu-kai was one of the earliest pioneers in Gamification, starting his work in the industry in 2003. In 2015, Yu-kai was rated #1 among the “Gamification Gurus Power 100” by RISE, and was also awarded the “Gamification Guru of the Year” Award in 2014, 2015 and 2017 by the World Gamification Congress and the Gamification Europe Conference. He has helped a variety of companies, from seed stage startups to Fortune 500 companies such as LEGO, Uber, Volkswagen/Porsche, Sberbank, eBay, Fidelity Investments, AIG Japan, Verizon, and more. His work has been featured in Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, Business Insider, The World Journal, PBS, NBC, and many more.

Espree is Listed by Inc Magazine as top 30 Women in Tech to follow. Harpers Bazaar says her podcast is the top 10 to listen to and she is one of the faces of Clubhouse app icon, the most influential audio social app. Creator of WeareLATech.com, Unifying the LA tech eco system via the 1st LA Tech Startups Podcast + a localized Silicon Beach community event calendar + offline Experiences Producer and Host of #womenintech Podcast (Women in Tech) to share stories of 'actionable empowerment'. Listeners walk away feeling "If she can do it, so can I".

Tom Casano is the Founder of Deep, the easiest way to build a world in the metaverse. Deep is a no-code platform that provides simple tools to build virtual worlds. Tom founded Deep with a vision of billions of user-generated virtual worlds, built by regular people, openly shared and visited by everyone.

President of Grassroots Developer Education, Inc/medVR. Steven is the producer of technical competitions and hackathons at extreme scale focused on discovering the application of new technologies, innovation and mining new ideas in the fields of augmented reality (AR,) virtual reality (VR), machine learning, and quantum computing. He is best known as the producer of the Reality Virtually Hackathon at the MIT Media Lab and the Creating Reality Hackathon at the University of Southern California. His newest project is MedVR Symposium & Hackathon for VR/AR in Healthcare which is scheduled for June of 2021 at Northeastern University College of Art, Media, and Design.

Mike Wesolowski, PhD has been leading highly performing teams in science, innovation, and technology development for over a decade. He is an entrepreneur, multidisciplinary researcher and a passionate advocate of the concept of using “tech for good”. Mike is the co-founder and CEO of Luxsonic Technologies. He leads a growing team of innovators, medical professionals, and healthcare executives, that share a common mission; to improve global access to healthcare through immersive technology. Their goal is to empower the healthcare industry by providing affordable, easily distributed, and immersive tools that improve medical education, hands-on training, and virtual healthcare delivery. In 2020, Luxsonic was named one of the Top 20 most innovative early-stage companies in Canada by the Canadian Innovation Exchange. In addition to leading Luxsonic, he is also a multidisciplinary scientist and enthusiastic mentor. Mike received his PhD in Physics from the University of Waterloo and holds an Adjunct Professorship in Medical Imaging at the University of Saskatchewan. He has co-authored over 35 academic publications in fields ranging from astrophysics to radiology. His current research group focuses on the development, evaluation, and integration of innovative technologies in medical imaging. Mike firmly believes that technology, applied with the intent of bettering humanity, can be a dramatic force of positive change in our society. This belief has guided him throughout his career and ultimately led to the creation of Luxsonic.

Maura Welch is VP Marketing for Together Labs, a leader in technologies that empower people to connect, create and earn in the metaverse. Prior, Maura led marketing at TripAdvisor and was on the founding team for WeeWorld, a top 10 tween/teen site and early social metaverse platform. Earlier, Maura helped to found other innovative startups working with top brands, entertainment, and sports organizations. Passionate about mission-driven business practices that strengthen community and connectedness, she has been a Boston Globe tech/innovation columnist, a TEDx curator and served on the National Marine Sanctuaries Business Advisory Council (NOAA).