The Female Founder Show

How Forbes Riley Became the “Queen of Pitch”

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2375470/fan_mail/new] Forbes Riley, entrepreneur, business coach, and widely recognized “Queen of Pitch,” joins The Female Founder Show to discuss how storytelling, confidence, and communication shape success in entrepreneurship and sales. Drawing from a career spanning television hosting, infomercials, product marketing, and coaching, Riley shares how early personal challenges helped her develop the emotional connection and adaptability that later became the foundation of her pitching philosophy. Riley reflects on her rise during the infomercial era, where she built a repeatable framework centered on customer pain points, relatable storytelling, and clear messaging. She explains why entrepreneurs often overcomplicate communication and how authenticity, consistency, and visibility drive long-term growth in today’s digital landscape. From lessons learned alongside fitness icon Jack LaLanne to insights on social media, mindset, and overcoming fear, Riley argues that pitching is far more than a sales tactic—it’s a core life skill that influences leadership, relationships, and business success. Join us as we discuss: *  How childhood adversity shaped Forbes Riley’s communication style  *  Building a career in television, comedy, and infomercials  *  The storytelling framework behind successful product pitches  *  Why emotional connection matters more than product features  *  Lessons learned working alongside Jack LaLanne  *  Using TikTok, Instagram, and live video to grow visibility  *  Overcoming fear, perfectionism, and hesitation in business  *  Why pitching is a foundational leadership and life skill Thank you for tuning in to The Female Founder Show with host and entrepreneur Bridget Fitzpatrick.  If you like what you heard, please give us a review and let us know what you think! Want to hear and see more great content to help you run your business more profitably?  Go to ASBN.com.   If you want to watch the full video version of The Female Founder show, go to TheFemaleFounder.com

Aiko Bethea on Anchored, Aligned, Accountable Leadership

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2375470/fan_mail/new] Aiko Bethea, leadership coach, attorney, and founder of Rare Coaching & Consulting, joins The Female Founder to discuss her framework for building stronger leadership cultures through alignment, accountability, and intentional communication. Drawing from her new book, Anchored, Aligned, Accountable, Bethea shares how leaders can navigate difficult conversations while staying grounded in their core values. Her work focuses on helping organizations scale sustainably by developing leadership systems that support both performance and people. Bethea explores the impact of “default behaviors”—such as people-pleasing and inherited expectations—that often operate unconsciously and create misalignment between values and actions. She outlines how leaders can use values as a consistent anchor for decision-making, while also recognizing “stealth intentions” that influence behavior in subtle ways. From modeling accountability at the leadership level to understanding power dynamics within organizations, Bethea offers a practical approach to fostering trust, clarity, and connection. She also emphasizes the importance of rest and reflection as essential components of effective leadership. In this episode, we explore: *  Identifying and breaking unconscious “default behaviors”  *  Using core values as a decision-making anchor  *  Navigating difficult conversations with clarity and intention  *  Understanding and addressing “stealth intentions”  *  Modeling accountability without blame or defensiveness  *  Adapting communication based on context and audience  *  Recognizing formal and informal power dynamics  *  Prioritizing rest, reflection, and sustainable leadership practices  Thank you for tuning in to The Female Founder Show with host and entrepreneur Bridget Fitzpatrick.  If you like what you heard, please give us a review and let us know what you think! Want to hear and see more great content to help you run your business more profitably?  Go to ASBN.com.   If you want to watch the full video version of The Female Founder show, go to TheFemaleFounder.com

Amy Summers’ 10 Touchpoints for Effective Team Mentorship

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2375470/fan_mail/new] Amy Summers, entrepreneur and author of Lift: 10 Mentorship Touchpoints to Empower Your Team and Accelerate Your Career, joins The Female Founder to discuss how leaders can integrate mentorship into everyday interactions without adding to their workload. As companies grow, founders—particularly women leaders—often become the default mentors for their teams. Summers explains how shifting mentorship from a formal program to a natural, consistent leadership practice can strengthen culture, improve performance, and prevent burnout. Summers outlines how intentional mentorship can be embedded into daily moments, especially in hybrid and remote environments where connection may be limited. She shares practical strategies for distributing mentorship across teams, fostering peer-to-peer support, and using curiosity-driven conversations to better understand employee needs. By focusing on small, deliberate actions, leaders can build stronger relationships, increase engagement, and create sustainable growth—without overextending themselves. Join us as we discuss: * Redefining mentorship as a daily leadership habit * The 10 mentorship touchpoints framework from Lift * Avoiding burnout while supporting team development * Strengthening culture in hybrid and remote environments * Encouraging peer-to-peer mentorship across teams * Using curiosity and small actions to build engagement * Driving retention, accountability, and performance through mentorship Thank you for tuning in to The Female Founder Show with host and entrepreneur Bridget Fitzpatrick.  If you like what you heard, please give us a review and let us know what you think! Want to hear and see more great content to help you run your business more profitably?  Go to ASBN.com.   If you want to watch the full video version of The Female Founder show, go to TheFemaleFounder.com

Carla Small on Building Sprout Labs to Tackle Dyslexia

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2375470/fan_mail/new] Carla Small, founder of Sprout Labs, joins The Female Founder to share how her son’s dyslexia inspired her to build an AI-driven platform delivering personalized reading instruction to children. After leading a business accelerator at Boston Children’s Hospital and overseeing ventures in pediatric innovation, Small turned her focus toward early literacy intervention—motivated by firsthand experience navigating the fragmented support system available to families. Sprout Labs combines structured literacy methods with AI-powered personalization to provide daily, high-dosage tutoring tailored to each child’s learning profile. Small explains why early intervention between ages three and six is critical, how dyslexia affects nearly 20% of the population, and why many families don’t receive support until academic gaps widen. She also discusses scaling access through partnerships with specialists, offering scholarships to underserved communities, and using technology to lower the high cost barrier of traditional tutoring. Her approach reflects a broader vision: democratizing expert instruction and building a more equitable education system. Key discussion areas: * Turning personal adversity into a mission-driven edtech company * Leading innovation at Boston Children’s Hospital before founding Sprout Labs * Why early dyslexia intervention changes long-term outcomes * Using AI to personalize structured literacy instruction * Making high-dosage tutoring affordable and accessible * Expanding into math, writing, and executive function support * Partnering with specialists to scale impact nationally Thank you for tuning in to The Female Founder Show with host and entrepreneur Bridget Fitzpatrick.  If you like what you heard, please give us a review and let us know what you think! Want to hear and see more great content to help you run your business more profitably?  Go to ASBN.com.   If you want to watch the full video version of The Female Founder show, go to TheFemaleFounder.com

Domonique Worship on Leaving Law for Purpose-Driven Work

Send us Fan Mail [https://www.buzzsprout.com/2375470/fan_mail/new] Domonique Worship, executive coach and leadership advisor, joins The Female Founder Show with Bridget Fitzpatrick to explore her framework for Exceptional Alignment™ and how entrepreneurs can design careers rooted in purpose rather than pressure. After beginning her career as an attorney at a prestigious Wall Street firm, Worship found herself outwardly successful but internally misaligned. What began as a quiet sense of discomfort eventually pushed her to reevaluate her path, leading her from law into coaching and leadership advisory work centered on impact, connection, and service. Worship unpacks how Exceptional Alignment™ sits at the intersection of gifts, values, desired impact, and emotional truth. She shares practical tools for identifying misalignment, overcoming perfectionism, and building a supportive community grounded in authenticity rather than transaction. From scaling challenges and delegation frameworks to prioritizing what truly matters, her approach offers a structured yet deeply personal roadmap for founders seeking clarity, confidence, and sustainable growth. In this episode, we explore: * Recognizing the early signs of career misalignment * Transitioning from corporate law to executive coaching * The four pillars of Exceptional Alignment™ * Morning pages and values audits as clarity tools * Eliminating perfectionism and people-pleasing patterns * Delegating effectively using the 10-80-10 principle * Identifying “rubber” vs. “crystal” ball priorities * Building authentic, non-transactional professional communities Thank you for tuning in to The Female Founder Show with host and entrepreneur Bridget Fitzpatrick.  If you like what you heard, please give us a review and let us know what you think! Want to hear and see more great content to help you run your business more profitably?  Go to ASBN.com.   If you want to watch the full video version of The Female Founder show, go to TheFemaleFounder.com