Beating The Odds Podcast

About Beating The Odds Podcast

"Beating the Odds" is a podcast full of inspiration and advice from minority entrepreneurs that have overcome obstacles to build successful businesses. Each episode details their journey to success, and the issues that can sidetrack a business. Many of the challenges are unique to minority entrepreneurs while others are faced by all business owners. Some of the companies featured are large, some are small; but each story provides valuable lessons and inspiration to anyone who wants to succeed on their own. Listen, learn, and beat the odds!

Publisher

Beating The Odds

Category

business

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

27 Jul 2017

Latest episode

28 Aug 2026

Latest episodes

29 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   28 Aug 2026

   Dr. Pamela Seda: Turning 30 Years in Education Into a Business With Purpose

   Why do so many children grow up believing they're simply “not good at math”? For Dr. Pamela Seda, that question became more than a professional challenge—it became a mission. In this episode of Beating the Odds, Mike Dewey sits down with Dr. Pamela Seda, educator, author, speaker, consultant, and entrepreneur, whose career has been dedicated to changing the way students experience mathematics. After growing up in Germany as the daughter of an Air Force serviceman, Pamela returned to the United States and quickly noticed something troubling: while being good at math had always seemed perfectly normal to her, many of her classmates believed math ability was something reserved for certain people. That experience planted a seed that would ultimately shape a 30-year career in education. Pamela shares why traditional approaches to teaching math can unintentionally convince students that confusion and mistakes mean they aren't smart—and why she believes real learning happens when students are given the opportunity to think, struggle, reason, and discover solutions for themselves. She also tells the story of becoming an “accidental entrepreneur.” When her school district position was eliminated, Pamela turned decades of experience into a consulting business helping schools and districts improve mathematics instruction. She later authored Choosing to See: A Framework for Equity in the Math Classroom and built a career as a speaker and consultant. But knowing education didn't automatically mean knowing business. Pamela discusses hiring a business coach, learning marketing and sales, identifying her customers' real problems, and ultimately doubling her revenue two years in a row. Her advice to aspiring entrepreneurs is simple but powerful: get very clear about the problem you solve and exactly who you solve it for. This conversation is about much more than mathematics. It's about challenging assumptions, turning frustration into opportunity, embracing being underestimated, and building a business around work that truly matters. Click here to apply for the latest podcast grant: ⁠⁠https://galaxyofstars.org/beating-the-odds-podcast-grant/ (https://galaxyofstars.org/beating-the-odds-podcast-grant/)

2. 

   14 Aug 2026

   TLA Group Founder Telly Arnold: Know Your Numbers Before You Start

   What does it really take to build a trucking business—and why can impressive revenue numbers be dangerously misleading? In this episode of Beating the Odds, Mike Dewey sits down with Telly Arnold, founder of TLA Group, a Houston-based entrepreneur who made the unlikely leap from corporate finance and accounting into the demanding world of box-truck transportation. Armed with an accounting degree, an MBA, and more than two decades of corporate experience, Telly thought she was prepared for entrepreneurship. Then she discovered just how expensive—and unpredictable—the trucking industry can be. Telly shares the lessons she learned the hard way, from renting her first truck and struggling to book loads to dealing with unreliable drivers, costly mechanical breakdowns, fluctuating freight rates, insurance expenses, and fraud within the industry. She also explains why knowing your cost per mile can mean the difference between generating revenue and actually making money. But Telly's story didn't stop with trucking. After seeing how many aspiring entrepreneurs were entering the industry without the information they needed to succeed, she began building a new mission around education. Today, she's using her podcast, Box Truck Hustle, and her Straight Connect platform to help drivers, carriers, and dispatchers better understand the realities of the business. She also shares how she secured more than $20,000 in grants to help keep her business moving—and how discovering resources like Galaxy of Stars changed the way she approached entrepreneurship. This episode is a candid conversation about money, mistakes, mentorship, networking, resilience, and the difference between looking successful and actually building a sustainable business. If you're thinking about starting a business—or already running one—Telly's message is simple: know your numbers, find knowledgeable people, use the resources available to you, and never stop learning. Click here to apply for the latest podcast grant: ⁠https://galaxyofstars.org/beating-the-odds-podcast-grant/ (https://galaxyofstars.org/beating-the-odds-podcast-grant/)

3. 

   31 Jul 2026

   Poké Shack Founder Shai Mauth on Failure, Resilience & Starting Over

   What does it take to rebuild after failure? In this episode of Beating the Odds, Mike Dewey sits down with Shai Mauth, founder of Poké Shack, to discuss an entrepreneurial journey that spans three countries, multiple businesses, bankruptcy, the 2008 recession, and launching a restaurant just as the COVID-19 pandemic shut the world down. Shai shares how he grew up in a family of entrepreneurs, why he has always funded his businesses with his own savings, the lessons he learned from failed partnerships, and how persistence helped him build two successful Poké Shack locations in Illinois. Along the way, he offers practical advice on hiring, customer service, restaurant operations, and why learning from failure is one of the greatest advantages an entrepreneur can have. Whether you're starting your first business or navigating challenges in an existing one, this conversation is packed with real-world lessons about resilience, adaptability, and betting on yourself. In this episode you'll learn: Why failure can become your greatest business advantage How to start a business with limited capital Lessons from surviving the pandemic as a restaurant owner The realities of hiring and managing employees How DoorDash impacts small restaurant businesses Why customer experience matters more than ever Advice every aspiring entrepreneur should hear Listen now and discover how Shai Mauth truly beat the odds.

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

2 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

2 ratings

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Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.