Winning Season

What does it take to become CEO of a four-generation family business when no one hands you the roadmap? Melanie White, President and CEO of Hellwig Products and current Chairperson of SEMA, joins Winning Season to share how she went from cold-calling in outside sales to the C-suite by doing the job first and asking for the title later. Melanie gets honest about the moments that shaped her: crying in her car after a brutal cold call and finding her grit on the drive home, negotiating for the president title by proving she was already doing the work, and showing up at 5 a.m. on the operations floor during COVID because that's what the business needed.We also go deep on something rarely discussed: business travel safety for women. Melanie and I trade real stories and practical rules, from hotel floors and elevator instincts to why The Gift of Fear should be required reading for every woman on the road. In this episode: - Why Melanie did the job first, then negotiated the title and pay - The follow-up habit that can carry an entire sales career - Travel safety rules every woman in business should know - What leading a 4th-generation, 80-year-old company actually requires - Why your inner world shows up in your outer resultsConnect with Melanie: Hellwig Products (hellwigproducts.com) | LinkedIn linked in show notes CHAPTERS 00:00 – Welcome: Meet Melanie White, CEO of Hellwig Products & SEMA Chairperson 01:00 – Life on the road as a busy executive and mom 03:10 – Hotel safety: first floors, motels, and the "upgraded room" she turned down 05:30 – The Gift of Fear and trusting your gut as a woman traveler 06:50 – The elevator story: exiting gracefully when your intuition speaks 09:00 – Jacqueline's 3 travel rules: hotels over Airbnbs, the door stop, ride-share location sharing 10:30 – Melanie's 3 rules: higher floors, fully charged phone, carry-on only, never land after 9pm 13:10 – From French bakery to cold calling: how the journey started 14:30 – Crying in the car after a brutal cold call — and the grit that followed 16:45 – Cold calling lessons that still apply: preparation and knowing your product 17:15 – The most underrated sales skill: follow-up (and the 7-touch rule) 21:10 – What Hellwig Products makes: sway bars, helper springs & the "no saggy bottoms" policy 22:30 – The path to CEO: do the job first, ask for the title later 24:00 – Negotiating for president: "Go ahead, tell me no" 26:20 – Why the path wasn't calculated — and why that made her more invested 28:20 – 5 a.m. on the operations floor during COVID: learning through challenge 30:20 – Lifelong learning: Traction, Who Moved My Cheese, and the Audible library 33:10 – The Susie Batiz connection: Alive OS and inner work for business leaders 36:35 – "Your inner world is reflected in your outer world" 39:20 – AI, the future of work, and why human connection can't be replaced 41:40 – Melanie's parting wisdom: sometimes we are our own biggest hurdle 43:50 – Closing: emulate excellence, eliminate excuses Connect with Melanie LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/melaniehellwigwhite Instagram: @melaniehellwigwhite Hellwig Products (company) Website: hellwigproducts.com Instagram: @hellwig_products Facebook: facebook.com/HellwigProducts YouTube: youtube.com/@HellwigProducts X/Twitter: @HellwigProducts SEMA (her chair role) Instagram: @semashow / @sema.org

Most high-achieving women are taught to keep their heads down, do the work, and wait to be noticed. Julia Rock says that mindset quietly kills careers. In this conversation, she reveals the moves that took her from working at ExxonMobil for 12 years to leading a global business, coaching more than 1,000 professionals, and writing Uncomplicated Leadership. Jacqueline and Julia break down the moments that changed everything from learning that asking for help is a strength, not a weakness, to using self-advocacy to finally get promoted after a held-up cycle. Julia also shares how a leader at ExxonMobil told her she was not a robot and should challenge what did not make sense, a lesson that reshaped how she showed up in rooms where billions of dollars were on the line. You’ll discover: Why “take up space” is not selfish, but strategic How to build the courage to ask sharper questions in corporate settings What it really takes to lead a massive team through uncertainty Why hiring support early creates growth instead of burnout The five C’s of Uncomplicated Leadership: clarity, consistency, connection, courage, and celebration Julia also gets honest about the faith, timing, and surrender behind leaving a corporate paycheck, and how her TEDx talk unexpectedly took off after she decided to close one chapter and step fully into the next.If you’ve ever felt stuck, under-recognized, or overwhelmed by the pressure to prove yourself, this episode is a masterclass in leadership, clarity, and career reinvention. Connect with Julia Rock on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/julia-rock/ and Threadshttps://www.threads.com/@thejuliarock , or email her at [email protected]. For bulk book orders, contact [email protected].

This conversation is a faith-forward career discussion with Kelvin B Henry, whose background spans the military, Procter & Gamble, PepsiCo, ministry, and coaching. He and Jacqueline Twillie reflect on mentorship, career reinvention, layoffs, AI disruption, and the personal adversity that shaped his book Rise.Kelvin shares the framework behind Rise and how it helped him process setbacks, a cancer diagnosis, and seasons of discouragement. The episode is especially useful for anyone navigating career transition, seeking resilience, or trying to make sense of what comes next. Key topics Kelvin B Henry’s path from the University of Florida to the military, then into Procter & Gamble and PepsiCo A full-circle mentoring story where Kelvin helped Jacqueline prepare for her first major interview What it takes to succeed in Fortune 25 environments: planning, organization, collaboration, integrity, and results Why reputation becomes your brand in corporate America and how others may see strengths before you do The origin of the RISE framework as a response to adversity rather than theory The childhood football story that helped reveal Kelvin’s identity as an encourager How RISE applies to cancer, job loss, and other disruptions through recognition, reframing, information, strength, and execution Why AI should be approached as a tool and accelerator, not a reason for fear Guidance for listeners facing layoffs, especially those experiencing it for the first time The importance of taking daily, practical action when rebuilding after a setback Quotes from Kelvin Henry: “If you’re still breathing, God is still building.” “Faith doesn’t remove the adversity, it helps reframe it.” “Your comeback from any setback is literally just around the corner.” Chapters (00:00) Opening prayer and introduction of Kelvin B Henry (01:58) Jacqueline introduces Kelvin’s background and career achievements (03:23) Greek life, shared connections, and the long friendship between guest and host (04:13) The mentorship story that helped shape Jacqueline’s early career (06:57) Why Kelvin’s career took him from military service to Louisiana (09:01) Forty years of marriage and meeting his wife at the University of Florida (10:00) What it takes to thrive in Fortune 25 companies (12:27) Reputation, personal brand, and the importance of resilience (14:26) The backstory behind the RISE framework (16:14) The childhood football setback that revealed Kelvin’s encourager identity (17:55) How Rise became a book meant to help others recover with purpose (22:15) Cancer diagnosis, fear, and learning to surrender the moment (23:22) Recognize, inform, strengthen, execute: applying RISE to health challenges (26:45) How to think about AI without panic or avoidance (30:06) Why internal work comes before external movement (31:19) Advice for listeners facing layoffs in a difficult job market (34:52) Encouragement to read Rise as a group and apply the framework together (35:41) Kelvin’s closing reminder that God still writes comebacks RISE is available now https://amzn.to/4xpG2lSConnect with Kelvin on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelvin-henry/Learn more about Kelvin's coaching services https://www.abundantlyaboveconsulting.com/about

Ashwini Balasubramanian, Vice President of R&D for Transportation and Energy Business at 3M and former Harley-Davidson leader, joins Jacqueline to discuss her debut book, Map Your Ascent, and the lived experiences that shaped it. The conversation centers on navigating change, especially through career pivots, motherhood, and moments of personal uncertainty.We discuss how to move from survival mode to thriving, why generosity matters more than transactional networking, and how vulnerability can become a leadership strength rather than a liability. Key topics Ashwini shares the car accident that became a major inflection point in her life, pushing her to stop waiting for the right moment and start thriving instead of merely surviving. In the book, the core framework is the three Ps: personality, perspective, and presence. Personality is about understanding your wiring, belief systems, belonging, and which habits or assumptions no longer serve you. Perspective is about using different lenses to navigate change, broaden mindset, and adapt to new environments and roles. Presence is about showing up with impact, not just visibility, and influencing people, products, and environments in a meaningful way. Ashwini explains what it means to be rooted in transition, using her early career dress choices as a metaphor for fitting in versus becoming herself. Motherhood became another major pivot point, especially when pregnancy made testing work on vehicle test tracks physically difficult and forced her to adjust how she worked. A manager’s insight reframed her thinking: a temporary situation is not the same as a limitation. She shares how her friend Artie showed up consistently during a difficult season involving family needs, gestational diabetes, a new job, and an early delivery. The conversation highlights the women’s employee resource group Ashwini helped start and how vulnerability helped create community across multiple locations. Ashwini explains that shame fades when you recognize that many life circumstances are not self-inflicted and are often outside your control. The book’s generosity section argues that true influence is built through consistency, character, and care for people, not transactional networking. She reframes reputation as a byproduct of how you show up over time, not something you can manufacture like a brand. For people facing job market instability, she advises not to blame yourself, ask for help, and lean on the tribe you have built. The episode closes with Ashwini reflecting that writing the book was an act of trust in herself and a way to help others harness change more confidently. Chapters Chapter 1: A turning point 00:00 - Welcome, Ashwini Balasubramanian and the theme of mapping your ascent 01:04 - The car accident that changed how Ashwini viewed survival and ambition Chapter 2: The three Ps 07:24 - The three Ps framework: personality, perspective, and presence 12:46 - Learning to stay rooted while moving through major transitions Chapter 3: Motherhood and identity 16:04 - Motherhood, maternity clothing, and the shift from fitting in to being herself 17:16 - Pregnancy on test tracks and redesigning work around physical reality 20:27 - A manager reframes motherhood as a temporary situation, not a limitation Chapter 4: Support and vulnerability 21:54 - How Artie’s steady support became a model for real friendship and care 25:08 - Starting a women’s resource group and turning vulnerability into action Chapter 5: Generosity and influence 30:01 - Why generosity, not networking, is the foundation of lasting influence 33:48 - Why change rarely asks for permission and how to face career disruption Chapter 6: Closing reflections 39:18 - The win in this season: saying yes to writing a book and helping more people Get The Book: Map Your Ascent https://amzn.to/4zuJJZ1 Visit Ashwini's website https://mapyourascent.com/ Connect with Ashwini on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashwini-balasubramanian/

Kristine Frost grew up in Pontiac, Michigan, in the years when General Motors was pulling out and the families left behind built their own support systems out of mac and cheese, popsicles, and each other. She watched her grandmother, Vienna, run a government-subsidized community while her own health was failing, showing up for refugees and immigrants day after day. That is where Kristine's philanthropy started, and you can trace a straight line from it to the morning she saw a Facebook post at 4 a.m. and decided to donate a kidney to a stranger. In this conversation, Kristine walks us through the whole arc. A trained labor and employment attorney who never wanted a law firm, she started on the floor of a stamping plant outside Detroit and rose to become the only woman in the C-suite of a male-dominated industry. Ten months ago she stepped out of that seat, founded Shattered Glass Advisory, and started answering the question so many in our community are living right now: who am I when the title is gone? We talk about heart-centered leadership, leading up, the non-negotiable morning ritual that anchors her, and the piece of advice most people in transition don't want to hear at first: enjoy it. Kristine is a connector to her core, and this is a conversation you'll want to sit with. 🎧 Kristine is writing a book about the emotions of transition. She's coming back for the launch. Chapters 00:01 — Welcome & meet Kristine Frost 00:38 — Growing up a Midwesterner (and why she's really a Detroiter) 03:32 — Pontiac, Flint & GM: community built close to poverty 05:40 — Vienna: the grandmother who shaped her philanthropy 07:43 — The kidney donation story begins 10:02 — Directed vs. non-directed donation & the highly sensitized program 12:22 — Finding a match: 20 vials of blood and anonymous matchmaking 14:14 — Meeting John: December 18, 2019 17:20 — From attorney to the stamping plant floor 18:58 — What a stamping plant actually is 20:01 — Real life on the floor: leading humans, not machines 22:42 — Leading up: giving executives the yes/no 25:04 — The best leader is the best ambassador of people 25:35 — Founding Shattered Glass Advisory 28:52 — "Who am I now?" Leading yourself through transition 31:03 — The formula: non-negotiables & starting the day happy 34:15 — Wanderlust, family time & what her daughter noticed 36:05 — Live, laugh, love and D.W.Y.S.Y.W.D.E. 38:21 — Where to find Kristine & closing Links & Resources Connect with Kristine Frost LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kfroesq/ Shattered Glass Advisory: https://shatteredglassadvisory.com/ Mentioned in this episode Living kidney donation (directed vs. non-directed, the process Kristine describes) — Donate Life America: https://donatelife.net/donation/types/living-donation/ Kidney donation facts & the national waiting list — Donate Life America: https://donatelife.net/donation/organs/kidney-donation/ National Donate Life Registry (register your decision): https://registerme.org/