The Jen Gottlieb Show

Before Solidcore had a single studio open, Anne Mahlum turned down $75,000 from an investor who wanted 30% of the company. She knew that money would become a crutch, so she walked away and risked everything on her own terms.
Anne is a fascinating person. She started her first business with nothing but a running route past a homeless shelter in Philadelphia. Then she built another one. This is a replay of one of my favorite conversations on the show, and it is one I keep coming back to.

Watch the full episode here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K1hSIhe6UmE

"Money for me has always been a trophy. It means I did a really good job." ~ Anne Mahlum

In This Episode:
- How strict standards built culture at Back on My Feet
- Why giving things away for free makes people value them less
- How the same culture principles shaped Solidcore
- The fundraising strategy that raised millions
- How she negotiated 100 Solidcore locations without security deposits
- Turning down $75K to go all in
- Why founders need skin in the game

About Anne Mahlum:
Anne Mahlum is an entrepreneur, motivational speaker, investor, and philanthropist who has built two organizations from scratch. In 2007 she founded Back on My Feet, a nonprofit that uses running to help people experiencing homelessness rebuild their lives, growing it to 14 cities with an $8M annual budget. In 2013 she founded Solidcore, scaling it to over 100 locations before selling it 10 years later and sharing millions from the sale with her employees.
Website: https://annemahlum.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/annemahlum
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/annemahlum/

Where to find me:
IG: https://www.instagram.com/jen_gottlieb/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jen_gottlieb
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Jenleahgottlieb
Website: https://jengottlieb.com/
My business: https://www.superconnectormedia.com/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@jen_gottlieb

A few weeks ago, I was on a tiny island in the Keys with my husband, phone off, and nowhere to be. A $25K speaking deal came in while I was lying on a lounge chair watching fish jump out of the water.
That moment got me thinking. There is a fine line between putting in the work and pushing so hard that you start repelling the very things you want. I had crossed that line without even realizing it, and the vacation snapped me back.
This solo episode covers what that taught me about building a personal brand that works even when you are not. Sometimes the best thing you can do for your business is nothing at all.

"If you are pushing, you will attract pushing energy, and you will push everything that you want away." ~ Jen Gottlieb

In This Episode:
- The fine line between high achieving and desperate pushing
- How rushing leads to avoidable mistakes
- Doing nothing as a productivity strategy
- Your personal brand is your most valuable asset
- Posting content four times a day changed everything
- Jen's challenge to you

Where to find me:
IG: https://www.instagram.com/jen_gottlieb/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jen_gottlieb
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Jenleahgottlieb
Website: https://jengottlieb.com/
My business: https://www.superconnectormedia.com/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@jen_gottlieb

I'm revisiting one of my favorite conversations with bestselling author Steven Pressfield, whose wisdom on fear, resistance, and creativity has inspired millions. If you've been sitting on an idea, delaying your next move, or wondering why the work that matters most feels the hardest to begin, this episode will give you the perspective—and the push—you need.
When Steven Pressfield published The Legend of Bagger Vance, many called him an overnight success. What they didn't see were the 30 years of failed novels, unproduced screenplays, and stretches of homelessness that came before it.

Few conversations left an impact on me as this one did. Steven is now in his eighties and still creating, doing what he loves, and showing no signs of stopping. I never thought about fear the same after this podcast, thanks to Steven's words.

Watch the full episode here: https://youtu.be/K3Z8bcnvNlU

"It's like the old story of an overnight success that only takes you 30 years." ~ Steven Pressfield

In This Episode:
- Finding your authentic creative voice
- How to work with the muse
- A simple process for developing great ideas
- Why resistance means you're on the right path
- Self-doubt as a sign of growth
- What a shadow career really is

About Steven Pressfield
Steven Pressfield is the author of The War of Art, which has sold over a million copies worldwide and has become essential reading for writers, artists, and entrepreneurs. His debut novel, The Legend of Bagger Vance, was made into a film starring Matt Damon and Will Smith. His other novel, Gates of Fire, is required reading at West Point. Before his breakthrough at 52, he spent decades failing as a novelist and screenwriter, at times living out of his car. His latest novel, The Arcadian, was released in May 2026.
IG: https://www.instagram.com/steven_pressfield/
X: https://x.com/SPressfield
Website: https://stevenpressfield.com/

Where to find me:
IG: https://www.instagram.com/jen_gottlieb/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jen_gottlieb
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Jenleahgottlieb
Website: https://jengottlieb.com/
My business: https://www.superconnectormedia.com/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@jen_gottlieb

Leanne Lopez Mosley once stood at the bottom of her neighbors' driveways, talking herself out of knocking on their doors to sell $35 event tickets. A toddler at home, a corporate job she was desperate to leave, and zero customers to speak of. Who knew just a few years later she would be making a million per month?
Well, Leanne did. She made $500,000 in her first full year, then had a baby, quit live launching, and crossed a million dollars in the same year. The secret was not working harder. It was getting obsessively specific about who she was talking to and what she was selling them.

Leanne walked me through Freedom Funnels, the system behind her consistent million-dollar months with no sales calls and under 16,000 followers.

If you enjoyed our conversation, you should definitely check out Leanne's Soft Girl Millions Show at https://www.richqueen.com/the-soft-girl-millions-show, and if you want to see her live, grab your spot at Soft Girl Millions LIVE at https://www.richqueen.com/rq25-soft-girl-millions-the-mastermind-live-organic-26.

"It's not courage if you're not taking the action." ~ Leanne Lopez Mosley

In This Episode:
- Quitting corporate and selling tickets door to door
- How free calls built Leanne's first $500,000 year
- Hitting a million dollars while on maternity leave
- The offers that got her to her first million
- Running her own ads and launching She Makes Bank
- Why messaging to one person changes everything
- What Soft Girl Millions actually means
- If you could call your younger and older self

About Leanne Lopez Mosley
Leanne Lopez Mosley is a Forbes-featured business strategist and creator of Freedom Funnels, the methodology behind consistent million-dollar months with under 16,000 followers, no live launching, and no sales calls. Known as the Trailblazer of the online coaching space, she teaches female entrepreneurs how to build evergreen sales ecosystems that sell without them. After 11 years in corporate, Leanne built a multi-million dollar business from scratch and is also the host of the Soft Girl Millions Show.
IG: https://www.instagram.com/theleannelopezmosley/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GROW.withleanne/
Website: https://www.richqueen.com/

Where to find me:
IG: https://www.instagram.com/jen_gottlieb/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jen_gottlieb
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Jenleahgottlieb
Website: https://jengottlieb.com/
My business: https://www.superconnectormedia.com/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@jen_gottlieb

About 1 in 5 businesses fail within their first year. So when you make $63 in year one and $350 in year two, most people would have quit. Maria Wendt didn't.
She now runs an eight-figure business with over 150,000 customers, a million-dollar month, and an average of $2,500 per reel, selling products that cost around $85. She has a team of eight, no company meetings, and launches roughly one new product every single week.

I brought her on to understand how she got there, and why she walked away from making $1M a year in high-ticket coaching to build something completely different.

"I made $63 in my first year and $350 in my second year, and yet I've made over $20 million now." ~ Maria Wendt

In This Episode:
- How Maria started and went from $63 to $20 million
- The million-dollar business she walked away from
- Eight figures, a team of eight, and zero meetings
- How Maria tracks exactly how much each reel makes her
- Saying your biggest goals out loud without apology
- The answer to growth is almost always more volume
- Maria Wendt's advice on the best way to begin your business journey

About Maria Wendt
Maria Wendt is an eight-figure online business educator based in Orange County, California. She started as a freelance graphic designer before pivoting into teaching marketing and eventually building one of the most recognized low-ticket course businesses in the online space. She has over 150,000 customers, a catalog of 300 products, and runs a lean team of eight out of an in-person office. Her mission is to help millions of people make a few extra thousand dollars a month rather than help a few people make millions.

Where to find Maria Wendt:
IG: https://www.instagram.com/maria.wendt/?hl=en
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/Maria-Wendt-Official-100090621002736/
Website: https://www.mariawendt.com/
Where to find me:
IG: https://www.instagram.com/jen_gottlieb/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jen_gottlieb
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Jenleahgottlieb
Website: https://jengottlieb.com/
My business: https://www.superconnectormedia.com/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@jen_gottlieb