An accidental influencer, Angelique Miles spent much of her professional life on top of the music business. Speaking to The Oprah Magazine, Angelique said, "Name a singer from the ‘90s and I probably signed them—Missy Elliot, Timbaland, Busta Rhymes. Back then, I was Angelique Miles, music publishing executive, creative, married to the president of Arista and Slack Music." But a combination of a divorce, 9/11, and the rise of digital music sales left Angelique looking for work. And that led to her feeling unhealthy and needing to do something about it. So she started chronicling her workouts on social media.That's when her influencer career took off! How does it feel to be a social media personality during a time when that space is dominated by people half her age? What about her journey do people connect with? How do workouts change over the age of 50?Connect with Angelique Miles on Instagram @angeliquemiles or online at angeliquemiles.comLearn more about Chanel Christoff Davis at www.ddhtax.com or on social media @SalesTaxHelp @FollowTheLeaderPodOutro music: "Everyday Sunshine" by aneleh

VR Small has dedicated her work to helping two groups she is passionate about - women and veterans. As a Navy veteran and a member of a military family, VR came back to the business world with a mission and a simple personal slogan of "changing the way we see the world and do business."To that end, VR started the Veteran Women's Enterprise Center. The WVEC aims to help veterans, active duty, reservists and female military spouse scale for success. They establish strategic alliances, leverage public/private-sector opportunities, advocate for relevant research, services and funding, while simultaneously providing on-site the personal and professional resources they need to succeed. Learn more about VR Small at veteranwomensec.orgLearn more about Chanel Christoff Davis at www.ddhtax.com or on social media @SalesTaxHelp @FollowTheLeaderPodOutro music: "Everyday Sunshine" by aneleh

Etiquette is not just a tool for the dinner table. It can be the key to the open the door to all sorts of success you didn't know you could achieve. Jacqueline M. Baker is the Principal Consultant and Founder of Scarlet Communications, which trains individuals and organizations to develop and refine important leadership and etiquette skills and embrace experiences that increase confidence and provide a competitive advantage. Starting out, Jacqueline just wanted to provide etiquette to teen girls, but very quickly corporate organizations took interest in this training and were finding applications beyond simply being well-mannered. Over the years, Scarlet has grown to encompass etiquette and leadership training, at all levels. She also has struggled with anxiety, and what are these days filled with if not anxiety and concern? How does she cope, and what are some simple things you can do to filter out the noise and negative emotions?Beyond that, Jacqueline is the host of the podcast "Just Start: From Ideas to Action," a weekly podcast that provides actionable tools, resources and stories to help you advance from wishing and dreaming to actively doing. You can learn more about the podcast at jacquelinembaker.com/juststartpodcastLearn more about Jacqueline M. Baker at jacquelinembaker.comLearn more about Chanel Christoff Davis at www.ddhtax.com or on social media @SalesTaxHelp @FollowTheLeaderPodOutro music: "Everyday Sunshine" by aneleh

"When one of us is stronger, all of us become stronger. So let's share..."How do you stand out at a time when no one is out doing anything? Jennefer Witter has spent a career getting other people the attention they deserve. Social media is stronger than ever. However, with so much of it being "noise," what do you need to do to rise above it all?Jennefer never took a business class and never had a desire to be an entrepreneur. Her entrepreneurial journey began in 2003 when she founded The Boreland Group. What she learned was that she has a natural ability for business, which was greatly honed in her former position as a vice president at Ketchum, a global public relations firm where she launched the Corporate Technology division. It generated one million dollars of revenue in its first year.Learn more about Jennefer and The Boreland Group at theborelandgroup.comYou can also purchase her book "The Little Book of Big PR: 100+ Quick Tips to Get Your Small Business Noticed" at Amazon and Barnes & Noble.Learn more about Chanel Christoff Davis at www.ddhtax.com or on social media @SalesTaxHelp @FollowTheLeaderPodOutro music: "Everyday Sunshine" by aneleh

Employers have been facing all new challenges since having to transition to a limited capacity at the office, or perhaps even all their employees working from home. How much should we permanently change in response to Covid-19? What is the "new normal"?Molly Sandlin, president of CAET Project Management Consultants, is capable of creating functional, efficient, cost effective and easy to follow solutions for complex projects - such a developing strategies to re-engineer the office to comply with new health standards. Her financial audit, analysis and accounting experience led her to positions at Feeley & Driscoll in Boston, MA and American Airlines in Fort Worth, TX before venturing out on her own. American Airlines even became a client!Learn more about Molly and CAET Project Management Consultants at caetpmc.comLearn more about Chanel Christoff Davis at www.ddhtax.com or on social media @SalesTaxHelp @FollowTheLeaderPodOutro music: "Everyday Sunshine" by aneleh

"It takes time. You have to build a relationship..."Getting noticed takes more than submitting a bid, and all the certifications in the world don't mean anything if people can't remember you. Adrienne Trimble, president of the National Minority Supplier Development Council, knows what it takes to build relationships that grow into repeat business.Trimble led the Toyota's Supplier Diversity initiative from 2005 to 2012, where she directed the development of essential supplier relationships with Toyota’s North American operations and diverse businesses across the country. Her work in making Toyota NMSDC's "Company of the Year" helped bring her to her current position as president and CEO of the organization. NMSDC matches their more than 12,000 certified minority-owned businesses to their vast network of corporate members who wish to purchase their products, services and solutions. NMSDC's corporate membership includes many of the largest public and privately-owned companies, as well healthcare companies, colleges and universities.To learn more about the National Minority Supplier Council, go to https://nmsdc.org/Learn more about Chanel Christoff Davis at www.ddhtax.com or on social media @SalesTaxHelp @FollowTheLeaderPodOutro music: "Everyday Sunshine" by aneleh

Covid-19 has changed the game for a lot of industries, and what do you do if your business is to supply larger businesses that aren't back to full strength? It's not enough to be unique or check a box - solutions are needed now more than ever.How do you find the right person to talk to? What are they looking for? How will business be different even when things return to something that looks like normal? Margo Posey is doing her best to answer those questions for minority-owned suppliers. She is the President and CEO of the Dallas/Fort Worth Minority Supplier Development Council.Posey represents the Dallas/Fort Worth affiliate relationship with the National Minority Supplier Development Council. The D/FW MSDC, based on performance, was ranked Council of the year in 2011 and 2015 and ranked in the top percentile of all Councils in all other years. She also bid and was awarded the grant to operate the Department of Commerce’s Minority Business Development Agency Business Center-Dallas in 2011. The Center specializes in procurement assistance, access to capital and import and export opportunities for its clients locally and nationally, resulting in new job creation, retention, and true economic impactTo learn more about the D/FW Minority Supplier Development Council, go to https://dfwmsdc.com/To learn more about the National Minority Supplier Council, go to https://nmsdc.org/Learn more about Chanel Christoff Davis at www.ddhtax.com or on social media @SalesTaxHelp @FollowTheLeaderPodOutro music: "Everyday Sunshine" by aneleh

"You can't be afraid of change. What you look like at $750,000 is not what you're going to look like at $2 million.”Being an entrepreneur isn't easy, so having a partner can be an essential component to success. Brittany Stovall and Paulina Sandoval founded Assured Quality Systems with one goal in mind: give manufacturers a faster, better, more cost-effective process for ensuring manufacturing quality. AQS is committed to not being a staffing company that dispatches “warm bodies” to a manufacturing site, but rather a crew of quality assurance professionals who have been meticulously screened, vetted and trained to miss no detail and waste no time. Prior to the founding of AQS, Brittany served as liaison representative for TRW Automotive and as director of operations at the Private Company. Before AQS, Paulina served as VP at the Private Company in San Antonio.What are the challenges of working with a partner? And how do mentors play a role? Learn more about Assured Quality Systems at assuredqualitysystems.comLearn more about Chanel Christoff Davis at www.ddhtax.com or on social media @SalesTaxHelp @FollowTheLeaderPodOutro music: "Everyday Sunshine" by aneleh

"They break down walls, they don't follow rules..."While the whole country faced lockdown because of COVID-19, Merrilee Kick found herself in a unique position: she could supply people with something that was desperately needed. And not just the usual need for her delicious BuzzBallz cocktails, but for something that could help keep essential workers healthy and safe. So she put her head together with her family (all of whom help run the Texas-based distillery) and sent out their own hand sanitizer to workers around the country.What is the surprising inspiration for BuzzBallz? How has the lockdown affected them? What are some of the new products on the horizon?Merrilee Kick is the CEO and Founder of BuzzBallz/Southern Champion LLC, the only woman-owned distillery and winery in the United States. They specialize in making ready-to-drink cocktails (BuzzBallz), as well as premium spirits with their Southern Champion company which makes vodka, rum, gin, and bourbon. They import/export wines and spirits, and also manufacture private label brands. BuzzBallz sell in over 46 states in the US to grocery, liquor stores, convenience stores, arenas, and airlines. Major customers include Walmart, Total Wine & More, Meijers, Ralph's, Kroger, American Airlines Center, and Spirit Airlines.Learn more at buzzballz.comLearn more about Chanel Christoff Davis at www.ddhtax.com or on social media @SalesTaxHelpOutro music: "Everyday Sunshine" by aneleh

“Fear is what holds all small businesses back.”There's a lot of fear in the world today, and small business owners are likely feeling their fair share of it. How are they going to survive an extended lockdown? Will business come back when it's over? Are things ever going to be the same?Andrea Tsakanikas, founder and president of CrewFacilities.com, took the opportunity to adapt her business model to the situation. How did a company focused on managing employee travel change course when there's pretty much no employee travel? She's here to answer that and much more about not letting fear get in the way of what you need to do.Andrea has represented investors across the US, managing hundreds of thousands of room nights of workforce lodging, rental, and travel products over the span of her career. Since 2007 she served as a management consultant with a specialization in optimizing operations of hotels, workforce and corporate housing, as well as, Class A, B & C multi-family projects, ensuring the highest returns in revenue and profitability. Learn more about her and her company at crewfacilities.com.Learn more about Chanel Christoff Davis at www.ddhtax.com or on social media @SalesTaxHelp