Flawless Acceleration: Black Veteran Entrepreneur “Iron” Mike Steadman is Empowering the Next Generation of Business Leaders As a black veteran entrepreneur, Steadman has made it his mission to empower others to achieve their highest potential in the business arena. Steadman's journey to entrepreneurship began at the Naval Academy, where he discovered his love for boxing and leadership. He went on to become a three-time National Collegiate Boxing Champion. He then commissioned as a Marine Corps Infantry officer and serving until 2015. After leaving the military, Steadman turned his attention to serving inner-city youth through teaching boxing and leadership. He co-founded IRONBOUND Boxing, a non-profit that provides free boxing and fitness classes to underprivileged youth in Newark, New Jersey. Steadman's passion for mentoring and coaching others led him to co-found Flawless Acceleration, a coaching business that provides accountability and support to help individuals achieve their highest potential in the business world. Steadman's entrepreneurial spirit doesn't stop there. He recently published a book titled, Black Veteran Entrepreneur, which explores the challenges and triumphs of being a black entrepreneur in today's society. Steadman hopes his book will inspire and encourage other aspiring entrepreneurs to pursue their dreams, no matter the obstacles they may face. “YOU DON’T NEED MORE  BULLSHIT BUSINESS ADVICE. YOU NEED AN ACCELERATION COACH.” Flawless Acceleration This statement encapsulates the philosophy behind Flawless Acceleration. The company recognizes that there is no shortage of generic business advice available today, but that what business owners and entrepreneurs really need is personalized guidance and support. The company's approach is centered around accountability, building a battle rhythm, and performing at the highest levels of business ownership.   Learn More “Iron” Mike Steadman LinkedIn Flawless Acceleration VeteranCrowd Network Our "forever promise" is to build the veteran and military spouse community a place to connect and engage. VeteranCrowd is simply a national network of veterans, veteran led businesses and the resources they need to prosper. Subscribe to stay in touch.  by VeteranCrowd Network Why do thousands of merchants put us through a bootcamp to join their loyalty program? Why do they make checkout an obstacle course? It’s embarrassing. Time consuming. Intrusive. Cumbersome. Broken. Why? Because no one ever built a simple & secure way to validate our veteran status at checkout. Until now. Want to be recognized at select merchants simply by swiping your existing Visa card? Join our waitlist and be one of the first veterans to have this power in your wallet. About Your Host Bob Louthan is a VMI Graduate, Army veteran, and executive with over 25 years of experience in mergers, acquisitions and private capital formation. He founded the VeteranCrowd Network to bring veterans and veteran-led businesses together with each other and the resources they need to prosper.  

Kit Lisle - Former Military Intelligence Officer & Founder of TheOperators.pe An influential history teacher and a retired Colonel for a dad, paved the way for Kit to join the Army. Kit was an Army  intelligence officer. After spending years reading battlefield maps he translated that skill to reading marketing maps and carved out a niche for himself in the private equity arena.  He is the founder of Acclaro Growth Partners, a growth strategy consulting firm for the Middle Market M&A Ecosystem, and of TheOperators.pe, a community for PE-backed executives. Lyle is a seasoned strategist, researcher, and analyst who has a natural talent for identifying growth opportunities and executing successful strategies. TheOperators.pe Executives of PE-backed portfolio companies often find themselves faced with "Private Equity Culture Shock". To help them work through this TheOperators.pe was created.  The mission is to "empower Operators in their roles as executives of PE-backed portfolio companies, by enabling them to find the answers they need, succeed in their value creation quests more easily and efficiently, gain enhanced peace of mind and contentment by making their jobs easier, and facilitate ways for them to find their next role more quickly and efficient." Learn More Kit Lisle's LI:  www.linkedin.com/in/kit-lisle Website: TheOperators.pe VeteranCrowd Network Our "forever promise" is to build the veteran and military spouse community a place to connect and engage. VeteranCrowd is simply a national network of veterans, veteran led businesses and the resources they need to prosper. Subscribe to stay in touch.  by VeteranCrowd Network Why do thousands of merchants put us through a bootcamp to join their loyalty program? Why do they make checkout an obstacle course? It’s embarrassing. Time consuming. Intrusive. Cumbersome. Broken. Why? Because no one ever built a simple & secure way to validate our veteran status at checkout. Until now. Want to be recognized at select merchants simply by swiping your existing Visa card? Join our waitlist and be one of the first veterans to have this power in your wallet. About Your Host Bob Louthan is a VMI Graduate, Army veteran, and executive with over 25 years of experience in mergers, acquisitions and private capital formation. He founded the VeteranCrowd Network to bring veterans and veteran-led businesses together with each other and the resources they need to prosper.

Phil Dana - LinkedIn Expert, Helping Veterans Network & Transition Phil Dana grew up in a long line of veterans and when Desert Shield came around he knew he was ready to get in the fight. He enlisted in the Navy right out of high school.  He later attended the United States Naval Academy and commissioned as a Surface Warfare officer.  After the military he landed in Human Resources all across various industries.  Along the way he has spent a lot of time becoming an expert at LinkedIn. Perfecting how to best utilize it effectively and efficiently. He loves to share his experiences and teach other veterans how to successfully network and transition specifically using LinkedIn LinkedIn Tips Bring your profile to life. Include hobbies and passions. Tell a story with your profile and pictures. This allows you to share a piece of your culture and attract companies and others you will align with. Take time to follow and engage with others in the industries you are passionate about. Use it for the following: efficiently learn and grow as a professional, help others and create a solid network Learn More Phil Dana LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/militarytalent/ Honor Foundation: a transition institute created exclusively for the U.S. Special Operations community; https://www.honor.org/  VeteranCrowd Network Our "forever promise" is to build the veteran and military spouse community a place to connect and engage. VeteranCrowd is simply a national network of veterans, veteran led businesses and the resources they need to prosper. Subscribe to stay in touch. Discount Heroes by VeteranCrowd Network Why do thousands of merchants put us through a bootcamp to join their loyalty program? Why do they make checkout an obstacle course? It’s embarrassing. Time consuming. Intrusive. Cumbersome. Broken. Why? Because no one ever built a simple & secure way to validate our veteran status at checkout. Until now. Want to be recognized at select merchants simply by swiping your existing Visa card? Join our waitlist and be one of the first veterans to have this power in your wallet. About Your Host Bob Louthan is a VMI Graduate, Army veteran, and executive with over 25 years of experience in mergers, acquisitions and private capital formation. He founded the VeteranCrowd Network to bring veterans and veteran-led businesses together with each other and the resources they need to prosper.

Ryan Micheletti - Co-Founder & General Partner of The Veteran Fund Ryan Micheletti served in the California State Military Reserve for six years. He would tell you that he learned leadership, resilience and the value of a team during his time in service. This laid the foundation for his journey as an entrepreneur.  He began by starting a security company with his brother. This grew from just the two of them working overtime to now being the 2nd largest veteran owned business in the San Francisco bay area. They focus on hiring veterans. Ryan has also helped to found Vet-Tech, which works with startups by providing “advanced mentorship, traction with corporate partners and access to our international investor network.”  Ryan’s most recent endeavor was co-founding The Veteran Fund in 2021.  He truly believes that “a veteran founder, is one of the most powerful change agents that we have to actually drive positive impact in the world.” “The Veteran Fund is an early stage venture capital firm based in Silicon Valley that invests in top military veteran-led technology startups. The Veteran Fund finds, funds and scales top performing startups within the military veteran and spouse community by leveraging our unique access to the global startup ecosystem and our partners' experience launching thousands of startups worldwide.” Learn More Ryan Micheletti LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ryanmicheletti Website:  https://veteran.fund VeteranCrowd Network Our "forever promise" is to build the veteran and military spouse community a place to connect and engage. VeteranCrowd is simply a national network of veterans, veteran led businesses and the resources they need to prosper. Subscribe to stay in touch.  Discount Heroes by VeteranCrowd Network Why do thousands of merchants put us through a bootcamp to join their loyalty program? Why do they make checkout an obstacle course? It’s embarrassing. Time consuming. Intrusive. Cumbersome. Broken. Why? Because no one ever built a simple & secure way to validate our veteran status at checkout. Until now. Want to be recognized at select merchants simply by swiping your existing Visa card? Join our waitlist and be one of the first veterans to have this power in your wallet. About Your Host Bob Louthan is a VMI Graduate, Army veteran, and executive with over 25 years of experience in mergers, acquisitions and private capital formation. He founded the VeteranCrowd Network to bring veterans and veteran-led businesses together with each other and the resources they need to prosper.

Mike Hutchings - Army Veteran & CEO of Combined Arms Mike’s dad was class of 1977 at Virginia Military Institute. It was a natural path for Mike to follow his legacy both at VMI and in his military service. Upon graduation Mike commissioned as Parachute Infantry Officer with the 82nd Airborne Division. He served 5 years before transitioning into civilian life. His first landing spot was at General Electric.  He would tell you it was a great job but while working there and being selected as a Veteran Presidential Scholar with the Bush Institute he wanted to do more, especially in the veteran space, and thus began the idea of Combined Arms.   Combined Arms Mike knows first hand the challenges veterans face especially in transitioning out of the military. There are so many resources and amazing service organizations but where does a veteran even start? This is where Combined Arms comes in; supporting a veteran in two areas. First they are a one-stop-shop to find the services needed but on the backend they have done their homework and researched and vetted these service organizations to ensure they are organizations of integrity. Interested in learning more, check them out below.  Learn More Mike Hutchings LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/mbhutch/ Website:  https://www.combinedarms.us/ VeteranCrowd Network Our "forever promise" is to build the veteran and military spouse community a place to connect and engage. VeteranCrowd is simply a national network of veterans, veteran led businesses and the resources they need to prosper. Subscribe to stay in touch. Discount Heroes by VeteranCrowd Network Why do thousands of merchants put us through a bootcamp to join their loyalty program? Why do they make checkout an obstacle course? It’s embarrassing. Time consuming. Intrusive. Cumbersome. Broken. Why? Because no one ever built a simple & secure way to validate our veteran status at checkout. Until now. Want to be recognized at select merchants simply by swiping your existing Visa card? Join our waitlist and be one of the first veterans to have this power in your wallet. About Your Host Bob Louthan is a VMI Graduate, Army veteran, and executive with over 25 years of experience in mergers, acquisitions and private capital formation. He founded the VeteranCrowd Network to bring veterans and veteran-led businesses together with each other and the resources they need to prosper.

John Glen Weaver - Air Force Veteran Running for U.S. Senate John Glen Weaver grew up on a grain and livestock farm in Nebraska. He didn’t know anything other than hard work and discipline. After graduating high school he went to study animal science and Russian. A wild combination but he had a passion for both. He joined the Air Force in1999 and served for over 22 years. He was deployed 11 times across the world and served through the entire Afghanistan war. It was the United State’s withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021 that propelled Weaver to continue his service, this time in a different capacity. Weaver for Senate Weaver has the opportunity to run for an open U.S. Senate seat in Nebraska. The primaries will take place May 2024. He has a passion to continuing serving the country even out of uniform. He believes he offers a unique perspective to bring to the Senate as a service member. Check out his campaign below. Learn More John Glen Weaver’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnglenweaver/ Campaign Website:  www.weaverforsenate.com VeteranCrowd Network Our "forever promise" is to build the veteran and military spouse community a place to connect and engage. VeteranCrowd is simply a national network of veterans, veteran led businesses and the resources they need to prosper. Subscribe to stay in touch. Discount Heroes by VeteranCrowd Network Why do thousands of merchants put us through a bootcamp to join their loyalty program? Why do they make checkout an obstacle course? It’s embarrassing. Time consuming. Intrusive. Cumbersome. Broken. Why? Because no one ever built a simple & secure way to validate our veteran status at checkout. Until now. Want to be recognized at select merchants simply by swiping your existing Visa card? Join our waitlist and be one of the first veterans to have this power in your wallet.   About Your Host Bob Louthan is a VMI Graduate, Army veteran, and executive with over 25 years of experience in mergers, acquisitions and private capital formation. He founded the VeteranCrowd Network to bring veterans and veteran-led businesses together with each other and the resources they need to prosper.

Charlie Eadie - West Point Graduate, Founder, General Partner, CMD Capital Some trouble in high school ultimately led Charlie to join the military. It ended up being exactly what he needed. It changed the trajectory of his life. This highly regimented lifestyle was a perfect fit and soon Charlie was awarded the “Engineer Solider of the Year.” He continued his training at Ranger school and then decided to attend West Point. He took an unconventional route, attending West Point Prep to improve his grades and eventually landed at West Point, class of 2007. After commissioning as an infantry officer, Charlie was selected as a Marshall Scholar. He completed his post graduate work in the United Kingdom and spent 14 years serving in the Army. His Army career didn’t end the way he intended but it was part of his journey of discovering his struggle with mental health. Despite these difficulties, Charlie continued to find success in the small business and leadership arena. It wasn’t until 2020 that Charlie was diagnosed with BiPolar 1 Disorder and PTSD. It was a long journey but Charlie now has a passion to bring light to mental health. He desires that the stigma around mental health change and the access to care becomes more accessible. Mental health is one of the four focuses of investment for his latest endeavor, CMD Capital.   CMD Capital CMD Capital, also called “Command” Capital was just launched this year. Charlie and two other West Point graduates founded it with the following mission,.“We feels compelled to serve and believe that we can best serve society by investing in National Security, Infrastructure, Mental Health and Social Impact - which will bring about a more sustainable, healthy, connected and safe society.” Find out more below.  Learn More CMD Capital  Charlie's LinkedIn   VeteranCrowd Network Our "forever promise" is to build the veteran and military spouse community a place to connect and engage. VeteranCrowd is simply a national network of veterans, veteran led businesses and the resources they need to prosper. Subscribe to stay in touch. About Your Host Bob Louthan is a VMI Graduate, Army veteran, and executive with over 25 years of experience in mergers, acquisitions and private capital formation. He founded the VeteranCrowd Network to bring veterans and veteran-led businesses together with each other and the resources they need to prosper.  

Derren Burrell - Air Force Veteran, Founder Veteran Ventures Capital Derren Burrell’s father was a Citadel graduate of 1964. It was an indoctrination that began young but led Derren to graduate from The Military College of South Carolina, class of 1994. He hadn’t planned on commissioning but upon graduation did in the Air Force. He served 21 years as a financial management officer. This laid the ground work for his work in the civilian sector. Immediately upon retirement from the Air Force he went to work for TAG Resources, a financial services company. He would attribute his success at TAG Resources to his military experience. He was able to help the company grow exponentially. This led to him being tasked to raise 2 million dollars. It was this specific experience that eventually led him to found Veteran Ventures Capital.  He realized the struggle of raising capital but especially for veteran entrepreneurs. Veteran Ventures Capital Veteran Ventures Capital founded in 2015 is an investment and consulting firm focused on scaling veteran-owned businesses. Derren is the founder and president. He “oversees all aspects of the company operations and fund management of Veteran Fund I which invest in early stage / growth companies.”  Find more information below. Learn More Darren’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/derrenburrell/ Veteran Ventures Capital Website:  https://www.veteranventures.us/   VeteranCrowd Network Our "forever promise" is to build the veteran and military spouse community a place to connect and engage. VeteranCrowd is simply a national network of veterans, veteran led businesses and the resources they need to prosper. Subscribe to stay in touch. About Your Host Bob Louthan is a VMI Graduate, Army veteran, and executive with over 25 years of experience in mergers, acquisitions and private capital formation. He founded the VeteranCrowd Network to bring veterans and veteran-led businesses together with each other and the resources they need to prosper.

Lawrence Land - Lawyer, Camp Lejeune Water Contamination Suit Expert Lawrence Land, is a personal injury and wrongful death attorney out of Norfolk, Virginia.  He has over 35 years of experience practicing injury law. He has a passion to help people and their families. It's people’s stories and personal experiences that have motivated him to keep fighting for justice.  He currently helps Marines and families that have been affected by the Camp Lejeune water contamination from over 35 years ago. Camp Lejeune “What happened at Camp Lejeune between 1953 and 1987 is a travesty.”; says Lawrence.  He has spent much of his recent time becoming an expert in what happened there and how to best help those families that were affected. Many Marines have passed away and never new what might have caused their death. Lawrence wants to get the word out to almost a million Marines and their families that lived on Camp Lejeune during that time to find out if they were affected by this toxic wasted. The unimaginable chemicals that were being dumped, led to the drinking water contamination and have resulted in cancer diagnoses, limb loss and death. Find Lawrence’s contact information below.   Learn More Contact Lawrence Land    VeteranCrowd Network Our "forever promise" is to build the veteran and military spouse community a place to connect and engage. VeteranCrowd is simply a national network of veterans, veteran led businesses and the resources they need to prosper. Subscribe to stay in touch. About Your Host Bob Louthan is a VMI Graduate, Army veteran, and executive with over 25 years of experience in mergers, acquisitions and private capital formation. He founded the VeteranCrowd Network to bring veterans and veteran-led businesses together with each other and the resources they need to prosper.  

Charlie Eadie - West Point Graduate, Founder, General Partner, CMD Capital Some trouble in high school ultimately led Charlie to join the military. It ended up being exactly what he needed. It changed the trajectory of his life. This highly regimented lifestyle was a perfect fit and soon Charlie was awarded the “Engineer Solider of the Year.” He continued his training at Ranger school and then decided to attend West Point. He took an unconventional route, attending West Point Prep to improve his grades and eventually landed at West Point, class of 2007. After commissioning as an infantry officer, Charlie was selected as a Marshall Scholar. He completed his post graduate work in the United Kingdom and spent 14 years serving in the Army. His Army career didn’t end the way he intended but it was part of his journey of discovering his struggle with mental health. Despite these difficulties, Charlie continued to find success in the small business and leadership arena. It wasn’t until 2020 that Charlie was diagnosed with BiPolar 1 Disorder and PTSD. It was a long journey but Charlie now has a passion to bring light to mental health. He desires that the stigma around mental health change and the access to care becomes more accessible. Mental health is one of the four focuses of investment for his latest endeavor, CMD Capital.   CMD Capital CMD Capital, also called “Command” Capital was just launched this year. Charlie and two other West Point graduates founded it with the following mission,.“We feels compelled to serve and believe that we can best serve society by investing in National Security, Infrastructure, Mental Health and Social Impact - which will bring about a more sustainable, healthy, connected and safe society.” Find out more below.  Learn More CMD Capital  Charlie's LinkedIn   VeteranCrowd Network Our "forever promise" is to build the veteran and military spouse community a place to connect and engage. VeteranCrowd is simply a national network of veterans, veteran led businesses and the resources they need to prosper. Subscribe to stay in touch. About Your Host Bob Louthan is a VMI Graduate, Army veteran, and executive with over 25 years of experience in mergers, acquisitions and private capital formation. He founded the VeteranCrowd Network to bring veterans and veteran-led businesses together with each other and the resources they need to prosper.