Thirty Minute Mentors

Sean O'Keefe was the Secretary of the Navy, the Administrator of NASA, and the Chancellor of LSU. Sean joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons and advice. Sean and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: leadership, career development, motivation, innovation, and much more.

Julia Stewart was the leader of two of America's best-known restaurant chains. Julia Stewart was the CEO of IHOP, and upon acquiring Applebee's, spent a decade as the CEO of the parent organization of both IHOP and Applebee's. Julia joins Adam to share her journey and her best lessons and advice. Julia and Adam discuss leadership, career development, risk-taking, culture, confidence, navigating setbacks, and much more.

Mark Sanford is the former Governor of South Carolina and a former United States Congressman. Governor Sanford joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons learned along the way. Governor Sanford and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: winning and losing elections; leadership; ethics; overcoming obstacles, challenges, and failure; authenticity; personal and professional development; relationships; and more.

LeRoy Butler is an NFL Hall of Famer, a Super Bowl champion, and the creator of the Lambeau Leap. LeRoy joins Adam to share his unique journey - overcoming poverty, bullying, and physical and learning disabilities to reach the pinnacle of success in football - and his best lessons learned along the way. LeRoy and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: leadership, teamwork, overcoming adversity, building winning cultures, developing a winning mindset, happiness, and much more.

Gary Kusin is the co-founder of GameStop and Laura Mercier Cosmetics and was the CEO of Kinko's. Gary led the turnaround of Kinko's and its acquisition by and integration into FedEx. Gary joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons and advice. Gary and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: leadership, entrepreneurship, building winning relationships, building winning teams and cultures, feedback, mentorship, and much more.

Bellamy Young was a star on the hit TV show Scandal, where she portrayed the first female president of the United States and won a Critics' Choice Award. Bellamy joins Adam to share her journey and her best lessons and advice. Bellamy and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: finding personal and professional alignment; pivoting in your career; excelling in a competitive field; leadership; human rights; lessons from Kerry Washington and Shonda Rhimes; and more.

Dr. James Downing is the CEO of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, one of the best-known and most impactful hospitals in America. St. Jude has an annual operating budget of roughly $1.4 billion, and among other achievements, has helped raise the overall childhood cancer survival rate from 20% to more than 80%. James joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons and advice. James and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: leadership, career development, innovation, decision-making, and more.

Doug Jones was the first Democrat elected to the United States Senate from Alabama in 25 years and was one of the most productive and bipartisan members of the Senate during his time in office. Senator Jones joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons and advice. Senator Jones and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: leadership, mentorship, decision-making, finding common ground, building trust, fostering productive work environments, and much more.

Amy Errett is the founder and CEO of Madison Reed, which disrupted the hair coloring market and has serviced more than 5 million customers since its inception. Amy joins Adam to share her journey and her best lessons and advice. Amy and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: personal and professional discovery and development, leadership, building winning teams and cultures, diversity and inclusion, and much more.

Dr. Jason Wersland is the founder of Therabody and the inventor of the Theragun. Jason joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons and advice. Jason and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: entrepreneurship, leadership, innovation, team-building, trust, growth and scale, mission, marketing, wellness, and more.

Strauss Zelnick is the CEO of Take-Two Interactive, one of the largest video game companies in the world. Strauss is also the founder and managing partner of the private equity firm ZMC; was previously the CEO of BMG Entertainment, then one of the largest music and entertainment companies in the world; and has earned the nickname "America's fittest CEO." Strauss joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons and advice

Joe Foster is the co-founder of Reebok, one of the best-known and most successful sportswear companies of all time. Joe joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons and advice. Joe and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: entrepreneurship, growth and scale, expanding internationally, leadership, marketing, branding, and more.

Patricia Moller was the United States Ambassador to two different conflict-ridden countries: Burundi and Guinea. Ambassador Moller led through numerous significant crises, including helping to avert a civil war. Ambassador Moller joins Adam to share her journey and her best lessons learned along the way. Ambassador Moller and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: leadership, crisis management, negotiations, conflict resolution, career development, and much more.

Chris Todd is the CEO of UKG, one of the largest private software companies in the world, valued at $22 billion. Chris leads 15,000 employees across more than 150 countries and oversees a customer base of 75,000 organizations. Chris joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons and advice. Chris and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: defining and attaining success, leadership, personal and professional development, communication, feedback, hiring, customer-centricity, culture, and more.

Nick Green is the co-founder and CEO of Thrive Market, a leading social enterprise that has disrupted the way consumers can access healthy food and serves more than a million customers around the country. Nick joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons and advice. Nick and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: leadership, entrepreneurship, personal and professional development, relationship-building, mission, capital-raising, navigating rejection, and more.

James Keyes was the CEO of two of America's largest and best-known companies: 7-Eleven and Blockbuster. While James was CEO of 7-Eleven, shareholder value increased tenfold and the company was acquired. James joins Adam to share his unique journey - from growing up in poverty to leading two household name companies with opposite fates - and his best lessons learned along the way. James and Adam discuss leadership, managing adversity and change, cultivating confidence, cultural literacy, and much more.

Lisa Lutoff-Perlo was the CEO of Celebrity Cruises and the first female CEO of a major cruise line, where she led a multibillion-dollar business and more than 20,000 people. Lisa joins Adam to share her journey and her best lessons and advice. Lisa and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: leadership, career development, crisis management, customer centricity, culture, gender equity in the workplace, and much more.

Artis Stevens is the CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, one of America's largest and most impactful non-profit organizations focused on mentorship. Artis joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons and advice. Artis and Adam discuss the ins and outs of mentorship - how to find a mentor, how to optimize a mentor-mentee relationship, how to be a great mentor, and much more - in addition to topics ranging from career development to leadership to purpose.

A self-made billionaire, Jenny Just is the co-founder and managing director of PEAK6, a multi-billion dollar financial services and technology company. Jenny joins Adam to share her journey and her best lessons and advice. Jenny and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: entrepreneurship, leadership, decision-making, risk management, investing, poker, managing personal and professional relationships, and more.

One of the greatest offensive linemen in the history of football, Ron Mix is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame and was one of the best players in the game in each of his first nine seasons. Ron joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons learned along the way. Ron and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: attaining greatness, leadership, building winning teams and cultures, building relationships and loyalty, negotiations, the social impact of sports, and much more.

Ted Leonsis is the founder and CEO of Monumental Sports, which owns and operates five professional sports teams, including the Washington Wizards, Capitals, and Mystics. Previously a senior executive at AOL, Ted is also the co-founder of the venture capital firm Revolution Growth. Ted joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons and advice. Ted and Adam discuss entrepreneurship, leadership, mentorship, personal and professional development, the human and business sides of sports, and much more.

Michael Osanloo was the CEO of P.F. Chang's, a billion-dollar restaurant chain with more than 300 locations around the world. Michael is the CEO of Portillo's, which has expanded rapidly under his leadership and is valued at over a billion dollars. Michael joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons and advice. Michael and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: leadership, career development, decision-making, customer-centricity, hiring, culture, and much more.

Jason Gorevic is the CEO of Teladoc Health, the world's largest telehealth company. Jason joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons learned along the way. Jason and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: leading people, organizations, and your own career; leading remote and hybrid teams; building a values-driven culture; hiring; feedback; how to define and measure success; and much more.

Benita Fitzgerald Mosley is the first Black woman to win an Olympic gold medal in the 100-meter hurdles. Benita has served in leadership roles for numerous prominent nonprofit organizations and is the CEO of the nonprofit Multiplying Good. Benita joins Adam to share her journey and her best lessons learned along the way. Benita and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: leadership, mentorship, motivation, mindset, overcoming imposter syndrome, building winning relationships, and much more.

One of the greatest quarterbacks of all time, Fran Tarkenton is an NFL legend and a Hall of Famer. Fran led the NFL in all-time passing yards and touchdowns at the time of his retirement. Fran joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons learned along the way. Fran and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: leadership, mentorship, personal and professional development, winning and losing on and off the field, and much more.

Allan Thygesen is the CEO of DocuSign, the market leader in eSignature. DocuSign has facilitated more than a billion eSignature transactions for users across more than 180 countries. Allan previously led a $100 billion + business within Google. Allan joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons learned along the way. Allan and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: leading people and teams, leading a global business, career development, decision-making, networking, innovation, hiring, and much more.

Tim Ryan spent two decades as a member of Congress, winning ten consecutive elections. Congressman Ryan joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons and advice. Congressman Ryan and Adam discuss a wide range of topics, including leadership, mentorship, trust, building successful relationships, developing a winning mindset, and much more.

Ania Smith is the CEO of TaskRabbit, where hundreds of thousands of freelancers have performed millions of tasks in thousands of cities across nine countries. Ania joins Adam to share her journey and her best lessons and advice. Ania and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: leadership, career development, customer-centricity, decision-making, learning from mistakes, the gig economy, diversity and inclusion, and more.

One of the greatest hockey players of all time and a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame, Chris Pronger was a six-time all-star, two-time Olympic Gold Medalist, an NHL MVP, and a Stanley Cup champion. Chris joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons learned along the way. Chris and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: leadership, teamwork, motivation, mental toughness, mentorship, entrepreneurship, culture, and much more.

GJ Hart is the CEO of Red Robin, where he leads a billion-dollar business that consists of more than 500 restaurants and roughly 25,000 employees. GJ joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons and advice. GJ and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: leadership, career development, building winning teams and cultures, building customer-centric businesses, navigating setbacks, the restaurant business, franchising, and much more.

General Michael Garrett is a retired four-star general who spent nearly four decades serving in the Army, including more than a decade in the elite 75th Ranger Regiment. General Garrett led the United States Army Forces Command, the largest organization in the Army, consisting of roughly 750,000 soldiers and 100,000 civilians. General Garrett joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons on leadership and life.

A former Fortune 500 CEO and Cabinet member, Carlos Gutierrez was the CEO of Kellogg - the youngest CEO in Kellogg history and the only Latino CEO of a Fortune 500 company at the time - and subsequently the United States Secretary of Commerce. Secretary Gutierrez joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons learned along the way. Secretary Gutierrez and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: leadership, career development, sales, building winning teams and cultures, mentorship, and much more.

Rania Succar is the CEO of Mailchimp, the leading email marketing and automation company. Mailchimp helps 13 million customers around the world send more than a half billion emails every day. Rania joins Adam to share her journey and her best lessons and advice. Rania and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: leadership, career development, hiring, innovation, email marketing, work-life balance, and more.

Jim Weber is the CEO of Brooks, which he led from the verge of bankruptcy to more than a billion dollars in annual revenue and transformed into a leader in the running shoe market. Jim joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons and advice. Jim and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: leading people and teams, leading a turnaround, lessons from working with Warren Buffett, branding, culture, personal and professional development, and much more.

Kunal Kapoor is the CEO of Morningstar, where he leads a multibillion-dollar business and one of the most influential companies in the world of investing. Kunal joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons and advice. Kunal and Adam discuss a wide range of topics, including leadership, career development, navigating a data-driven world, contrarianism, communication, mentorship, and more.

Rajiv Shah led one of the largest agencies in the U.S. government and leads one of the largest foundations in the world. The president of the Rockefeller Foundation, Raj previously served as USAID Administrator, where he oversaw 10,000 people and a $20 billion budget. Raj joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons and advice. Raj and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: navigating your career, leading major initiatives, leading in crisis, relationship building, innovation, data, culture, and more.

The highest-ranking woman in American sports, Sarah Hirshland is CEO of the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee, where she leads the organization responsible for fielding the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic teams and overseeing the Olympic and Paralympic movements in the U.S. Sarah joins Adam to share her journey and her best lessons learned along the way. Sarah and Adam discuss leadership, career development, working in sports, navigating crises and failure, lessons from Olympians, and much more.

John Simon is the co-founder of General Catalyst Partners, one of America's leading venture capital firms. John is also a managing director at Sigma Prime Ventures and the co-founder of the nonprofit GreenLight Fund. John joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons and advice. John and Adam discuss entrepreneurship, leadership, career development, building winning teams and cultures, applying business lessons to nonprofit management, and much more.

A star Major League Baseball player and New York Yankees legend, Bernie Williams was a five-time All-Star, four-time Gold Glove winner, and four-time World Series Champion. Bernie is also a professional musician and has been nominated for a Latin Grammy. Bernie joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons learned along the way. Bernie and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: teamwork, leadership, attaining greatness, performing under pressure, paying it forward, and much more.

Lieutenant General Robert Caslen spent more than three decades serving in a variety of leadership roles in the Army and has led two major institutions of higher learning, serving as Superintendent of the United States Military Academy and as President of the University of South Carolina. LTG Caslen joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons and advice. LTG Caslen and Adam discuss leadership, building winning teams and cultures, building trust, motivation, learning from failure, and much more.

Julie Wainwright is the founder of The RealReal, where she developed a new fashion category from concept to roughly $1.5 billion in gross merchandise value. Julie launched The RealReal when she was in her early 50s and The RealReal has catered to more than 33 million shoppers. Julie joins Adam to share her journey and her best lessons learned along the way. Julie and Adam discuss entrepreneurship, career development, hiring, growth and scale, overcoming adversity, workplace equity, and much more.

Chuck Templeton is the co-founder of OpenTable, a business that changed the way millions of people make restaurant reservations and currently seats more than a billion diners each year. Chuck is also a successful venture capitalist, as he co-founded and is a senior managing director of S2G Ventures. Chuck joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons and advice. Chuck and Adam discuss entrepreneurship, leadership, sales, raising and investing capital, culture, customer centricity, and much more.

Bob Muglia played a key role in building two of America's leading technology companies. Bob was the CEO of Snowflake, valued today at more than $50 billion, and previously ran a $17 billion division of Microsoft. Bob joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons and advice. Bob and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: leading people and teams, hiring and motivating talent, what leaders should understand about AI and big data, lessons learned from Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer, and much more.

The leader of one of the largest private companies in America, Alex Taylor is the CEO of Cox Enterprises, a conglomerate that generated $22 billion in annual revenue and includes a number of prominent media, communications, and automotive businesses, including Cox Communications, Kelley Blue Book, and Autotrader. Alex joins Adam to share his journey and best lessons and advice. Alex and Adam discuss leadership, impact, trust, building winning teams and cultures, success and failure, and much more.

Heidi Heitkamp is the first woman to be elected to the United States Senate from North Dakota and a Democrat who was elected in a deeply Republican state. Senator Heitkamp joins Adam to share her journey and her best lessons learned along the way. Senator Heitkamp and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: leadership; risk-taking; re-examining failure; decision-making; building relationships and consensus; the power of fun; dealing with difficult people; and much more.

John Colgrove is the co-founder of Pure Storage, which disrupted the way companies store data. Pure Storage is valued at more than $10 billion and has more than 4,200 employees and operations in more than 30 countries. John joins Adam to share his journey and best lessons and advice. John and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: entrepreneurship, ideation, creativity, vision, growth and scale, leadership, culture, and more.

The leader of one of America's largest and leading financial services firms, John Schlifske is the CEO of Northwestern Mutual, which generated nearly $35 billion in revenue last year and has more than $550 billion in assets under management. John joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons and advice. John and Adam discuss leadership, career development, building winning teams and cultures, risk management, sales, and much more.

The most recognized male figure skating star in the world, Scott Hamilton is an Olympic gold medalist and a member of the United States Olympic Hall of Fame and the World Figure Skating Hall of Fame. Scott joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons learned along the way. Scott and Adam discuss a wide range of topics, including reaching peak performance and attaining greatness, overcoming setbacks and failures, excelling in multiple careers, winning over your audience, and much more.

Charles Conn was the founding CEO of Ticketmaster-Citysearch, a pioneering internet company whose portfolio included Match.com and Evite and is known today as Ticketmaster. Charles joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons and advice. Charles and Adam discuss a wide range of topics, including personal and professional development, leadership, managing in times of uncertainty, building winning teams and cultures, managing failure, and much more.

A retired four-star general, General Frank McKenzie was the commander of the United States Central Command, where he oversaw the raid that killed Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the then-leader of ISIS, and the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan. General McKenzie joins Adam to share his journey and his best lessons and advice. General McKenzie and Adam discuss a wide range of topics: leadership, personal and professional development, building winning teams and cultures, crisis management, and much more.