Is AI about to revolutionize wealth management? In this powerful episode of Battle Ready (Aired 02-19-26), host Ricky Chave sits down with Rick Figueroa, CEO of Padron Partners, to discuss the future of finance, purpose-driven investing, and why money alone will never create fulfillment.

Rick shares how AI is becoming the third major revolution in wealth management, why contentment creates financial freedom, and how investors can align their portfolios with their values. From growing up in government housing to leading a faith-driven wealth management firm, Rick explains the difference between success and significance.

Learn about value-based investing, financial stewardship, giving while living, leadership, and how to build lasting legacy beyond money.

If you're an entrepreneur, investor, or leader seeking purpose beyond profit, this episode will challenge how you think about wealth.

On Now Media TV’s Battle Ready, host Ricky Chavez speaks with veteran advocate Mike Peacock about overcoming homelessness, PTSD, and military transition struggles. Learn how resilience, peer support, and community programs help veterans rebuild their lives, find purpose, and create lasting legacies of service.

In this episode of Battle Ready (aired 02-05-26), host Ricky Chavez sits down with Todd Thomas, a leading voice in AI, energy innovation, and entrepreneurship. The conversation explores how artificial intelligence is driving explosive energy demand, the future of sustainable power, and how startups can turn waste into opportunity.

Todd shares insights from his Unleashing Abundant Energy book trilogy and his work as CEO and founder of Woodchuck AI, a climate impact company transforming construction waste into renewable energy. Together, they discuss leadership under pressure, decision-making in uncertain environments, the realities of startup life, and how AI acts as a force multiplier rather than a job replacer.

This episode is a must-watch for leaders, entrepreneurs, and professionals interested in AI, clean energy, sustainability, and building resilient businesses in a rapidly changing world.

• (00:00:15) - Battle Ready
• (00:00:46) - The Unleashing Abundant Energy Trilogy
• (00:02:31) - Woodchuck: Turning Waste Into Clean Energy
• (00:04:25) - Woodchuck: The AI Data Center
• (00:12:46) - Keeping wood out of landfills
• (00:13:31) - Battle Ready
• (00:14:15) - What's So Attractive About Starting a Startup?
• (00:16:34) - Be Flexible in Your Startup Decisions
• (00:18:02) - Plan for the Future with a Flexible Team
• (00:19:06) - Discipline in Startup Processes
• (00:22:29) - How to Reach Out to Woodchuck AI
• (00:23:40) - John Q. Public: The Future of AI
• (00:27:31) - Real Estate Companies Use AI to Write Property Description
• (00:28:26) - Woodchuck Listings Reviewed in Chat GPT
• (00:35:19) - Become Battle Ready with NOW Media TV
• (00:36:04) - Woodchuck: AI and the Waste Problem
• (00:42:19) - Startup Landscape: What's Your Goal for 2022?
• (00:45:16) - What Would You Tell a Young Entrepreneur?
• (00:47:31) - Getting Ready to Battle

In this powerful episode of Battle Ready, host Ricky Chavez sits down with Dr. Lee Powell, a veteran, pastor, author, and leadership coach whose life embodies resilience and transformation. Once a high school dropout, Dr. Powell defied the odds through discipline, perseverance, and faith—earning his doctorate and dedicating his life to helping others find purpose and lead through adversity.

Together, they explore what it truly means to lead in uncertainty, make high-pressure decisions, overcome failure, and stay calm in the storm. Drawing from military service, leadership experience, and personal setbacks, this episode delivers raw insights on trust, discipline, mentorship, and navigating life’s toughest moments without losing direction.

• (00:00:14) - Battle Ready
• (00:01:00) - Army Veteran Ricky Powell on His Experience in the Military
• (00:04:56) - Dropping Out of School to Get a Job
• (00:12:46) - Dr. Powell on Trust and Providence
• (00:16:02) - Dr. Lee Powell on His Doctorate
• (00:18:48) - How to Lead a Veteran Through His Journey
• (00:20:22) - How to reach out to a coach?
• (00:21:30) - What Do Veterans Want You to Know
• (00:23:50) - Battle Ready: Leaders and the Process
• (00:30:13) - Discipline in the Leadership Process
• (00:35:39) - Finding Your Purpose
• (00:40:50) - Dr. Lee Powell on Success and Defeats

In this episode of Battle Ready (aired January 22, 2026), host Rickey Chavez is joined by executive coach and Continuum Leaders co-founder Carlos Martin for a powerful conversation on people-first leadership under pressure. The episode explores executive coaching, self-discovery, emotional intelligence, values alignment, succession planning, and leading through burnout, growth, and uncertainty. Carlos shares real-world insights on helping entrepreneurs and senior leaders build awareness, clarity, and resilience while staying grounded in humanity. A must-watch for leaders facing real responsibility, real pressure, and real consequences.

• (00:00:00) - Battle Ready: When Organizations Grow, Pressure Expands
• (00:00:59) - Carlos Rodriguez on His Journey into Executive Coaching
• (00:02:34) - What Do You Do To Get Out Of Imposter Syndrome?
• (00:07:20) - How to Coaching Coaches During a Divorce
• (00:12:38) - Leadership in an Uncertain World
• (00:13:21) - How to See Yourself Better
• (00:17:35) - How to Lead a Sales Team
• (00:23:07) - Self-Discovery
• (00:25:33) - What is the most impact of a decision?
• (00:30:12) - Culture of Emotional Intelligence
• (00:31:19) - Marine Corps Training their Leaders
• (00:35:41) - Battle Ready
• (00:36:30) - Why Are Values the Hardest to Upholder?
• (00:38:34) - In the Elevator: Success Planning
• (00:43:35) - Including Fear and Courage in Leadership

In this impactful episode of Battle Ready, host Ricky Chavez sits down with digital growth strategist Marilyn Jenkins, founder of Law Marketing Zone, to address one of the most critical challenges facing today’s leaders: lack of visibility.

Many high-performing leaders are doing exceptional work but still losing influence, momentum, and revenue because they are not seen in an increasingly digital world. This episode reframes visibility as a leadership responsibility—not a marketing luxury—and explores how disciplined digital strategy, reinvention, and execution restore authority and confidence.

The conversation covers social media visibility, YouTube and Google strategy, leadership reinvention, delegation under pressure, and building accountable, mission-ready teams. Marilyn shares real-world examples from law firms and service-based businesses that have scaled to seven figures by adapting to modern leadership demands.

• (00:00:15) - Battle Ready: What Your Law Firm Needs to Know
• (00:01:01) - Leader Visibility
• (00:02:42) - Top Influencer Real Estate: How Social Media Is Changing Business
• (00:05:54) - The Future of Posting on Social Media
• (00:10:37) - Podcasts and Videos can be scheduled in YouTube
• (00:11:43) - Battle Ready: Reinventing Yourself Through Now Media TV
• (00:12:50) - Battle Ready: Reinvention
• (00:14:18) - What mindset shift is required to move from traditional leadership to digital leadership
• (00:15:07) - Inner reinvention: How to Overwhelm Your Clients
• (00:16:59) - How to get more views on your videos?
• (00:18:41) - How to add videos to your Google Business Profile
• (00:19:34) - How to create a blog and a transcription page on Google Business Profile
• (00:23:47) - Battle Ready: Building Teams With Accountability
• (00:24:17) - What is one of the biggest challenge leaders have when they're trying
• (00:26:20) - Delegation and Accountability
• (00:30:24) - How to Build a Team of Experts
• (00:32:35) - How a Leadership Structure Changed Team Performance
• (00:33:50) - Have You Got a Multilingual Clients?
• (00:36:15) - Battle Ready
• (00:37:16) - Why Leaders struggle to release control even when it limits growth
• (00:43:21) - Let Go
• (00:47:45) - Stay Battle Ready

In this powerful episode of Battle Ready, aired 12-04-25, host Ricky Chavez sits down with leadership coach and trust advisor Dr. Deepak Butra to explore what it truly means to lead, sell, and communicate with confidence instead of fear.

This episode breaks down why self-promotion feels uncomfortable, how to overcome the fear of rejection, and why perfectionism often sabotages performance. Dr. Butra shares practical frameworks on shifting from selling to serving, separating personal worth from outcomes, and building resilience before challenges arise.

From leadership under pressure to mindset, discipline, and consistency, this conversation delivers actionable insights for professionals, entrepreneurs, and sales leaders who want to grow with clarity and purpose.

• (00:00:00) - Battle Ready: Selling Yourself With Confidence
• (00:00:54) - Why Selling or Promoting Yourself Feels So Uncomfortable For
• (00:05:47) - Self-Serving vs. Serving People
• (00:07:11) - How to Lead With Emotion
• (00:11:53) - Battle Ready: The Fear of Rejection
• (00:12:30) - Why Personal Rejection Is So Powerful
• (00:16:53) - 3 Things Every Salesperson Needs To Do to Become a Great Sales
• (00:21:26) - Ricky and Nick on Energy Management
• (00:22:49) - Deepak on LinkedIn and His Website
• (00:24:32) - Why Perfectionism Is So Common Among High-Achievers
• (00:27:51) - Ketan On The Circle Of Influence
• (00:32:13) - Practice Makes Perfect, but
• (00:35:17) - Culture and Structure in Business
• (00:37:20) - What It Really Means to Be Battle Ready
• (00:42:24) - In the Army, Retreat is Not Defeat
• (00:42:47) - What Behavior separates Those Who Rise and Those Who Fall?
• (00:46:38) - Battle Ready: How to Stop Perfectionism at 40

In this powerful episode of Battle Ready, host Rickey Chavez sits down with Ryan Herpin, co-founder and managing partner of Impact Strategies & Consulting, for an honest and grounded conversation about leadership, uncertainty, and the pressure many leaders feel to appear perfect. With more than a decade of experience helping organizations optimize operations, increase profitability, and build resilient leadership teams, Ryan offers a refreshing, human centered approach to leading in complex environments.

Ryan shares his experience of being placed into leadership roles early in his career and the imposter syndrome that followed. Rather than pretending to have all the answers, he explains how curiosity, self-awareness, and humility became essential tools for earning trust and creating alignment within teams. The discussion highlights why the strongest leaders listen to understand not just to respond—and how asking the right questions often unlocks better solutions than giving directives.