Episodes

  • You Are Playing Smaller Than You Are.

    You Are Playing Smaller Than You Are.
    Jul 1 2026

    I used to walk into every room and scan it first. What do they need from me? How do I come across as credible without coming across as too much?I built a real career that way. I was also exhausted in a way I couldn't name.In this episode I'm being honest about something I don't talk about enough - the performance. The softening. The slow, quiet habit of making yourself smaller so other people feel more comfortable. And what it actually costs you every single day you keep doing it.I share the specific moment it started to crack for me, what I found on the other side, and three questions that might change something for you if you sit with them long enough.This one is for you if you're building something real and you know - somewhere deep down — that you're still not showing up as your full self.In this episode:— Why softening yourself doesn't make you more likable, it makes you trust yourself less— The difference between humility and hiding— What changed for me when I stopped performing: in my clients, my energy, and my income— Three questions to find out where you're still playing small🎙 Rise to More is a weekly podcast for founders, executives, and anyone building a life that actually means something. New episodes every Tuesday.



    This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jasnaburza.substack.com
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    12 mins
  • What He Built After the World Cup

    What He Built After the World Cup
    Jun 23 2026

    Guest: Tony Sanneh — Former U.S. National Team soccer player, 2002 World Cup veteran, 2026 National Soccer Hall of Fame inductee, and founder of the Sanneh Foundation

    Episode Description

    There's a version of Tony Sanneh's story that ends with the World Cup. Boy from St. Paul makes it to soccer's biggest stage, wins, lives well. The end.

    That's not his story.

    In this conversation, Tony and Jasna talk about what happens after the trophy — the fifteen years he spent building a free youth foundation that's now a ten-million-dollar organization, the moment fame nearly disconnected him from who he actually was, and the fear he carried for decades that he was finally ready to name out loud.

    This one is personal for Jasna. Her own kids learned to play soccer on a field Tony built, years before she knew the full story behind it.

    What We Cover

    Growing up in St. Paul and the moment his mother told him he could be anything

    The 2002 World Cup, and the strange, full-circle nature of his career in Germany

    What fame does to a person — and the friend who refused to let it change him

    Starting the Sanneh Foundation while he was still a professional athlete

    Building a $10 million, 130,000-square-foot dome that funders told him was impossible

    The Bush Foundation Fellowship and the fear he finally confronted at 30+ years in

    Why most professional sports organizations get philanthropy wrong — and what real partnership looks like instead

    What he wants his son to understand about him, and why it has nothing to do with the Hall of Fame

    Quotes Worth Sitting With

    "I'm more concerned about the world around him than I am with him."

    "Athletes don't change. The people around us change — and sometimes that changes us."

    "If someone's going to say no, I'm going to say why. My job is to make you understand it."

    "We didn't say we're going to come and fix you. We said: we have these resources, how can we work together to make your life better?"

    Tony built more than a soccer dome — the foundation now runs free youth camps, after-school mentoring, a food security program, a community center on St. Paul’s East Side, and job training for young adults entering the workforce.

    If this episode moved you, here’s how to get involved:

    Donate · Volunteer · Explore Programs · Follow on Instagram



    This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jasnaburza.substack.com
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    1 hr and 1 min
  • The Woman Who Raised Her Hand

    The Woman Who Raised Her Hand
    Jun 9 2026

    Most people wait until they’re ready.Greta Siedow raised her hand when she was 80% there, and ended up leading one of the largest women’s sporting events in the country.

    In this episode of RISE TO MORE, Greta — VP at Optum Rx and General Chair of the 2026 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship at Hazeltine, shares what happens when you stop waiting for permission and start trusting what years of showing up quietly build.1,300 volunteers.50,000 fans.One championship.Decades in the making.But this conversation is not really about golf.It is about courage.About raising your hand before you feel fully ready.About opening doors for others because someone once opened one for you.

    In this episode, we talk about

    -Why waiting until you feel “ready” may be holding you back.

    -The moment she raised her hand for a role nobody handed her

    -Leading through influence instead of authority

    -Building trust across 1,300 volunteers and one shared missionWhy women supporting women changes careersFaith, pressure, purpose, and sustaining yourself through seasons of growth

    -What it means to make sure all ships rise

    New episode is live now.

    Because sometimes the biggest moments in life begin with simply saying:I think I can do this.



    This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jasnaburza.substack.com
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    53 mins
  • You Were Trained Not to Trust Yourself

    You Were Trained Not to Trust Yourself
    Jun 2 2026

    Hey beautiful humans, this week, I did a solo episode for you all. One thing keeps coming up over and over again in my conversation with incredible women - they don’t trust themselves fully. And yet - I believe that inside of us is this magic power that is our superpower. And this is something I teach all my clients. Today, I am sharing it with you.

    You were not given a brain and a body. You were given a whole intelligence system. And the most powerful part of it is not your logic. It is your knowing — that quiet, certain, unshakable knowing that has been with you your entire life.

    The question was never whether your intuition is right.

    The question is whether you’re brave enough to trust it.

    She already knew. She has always known.

    And so do you. Trust yourself. Love you people!

    RISE TO MORE podcast is a series of deeply human conversations exploring what it truly takes to live a meaningful life and build something that matters.

    Through thoughtful, heart-to-heart conversations with founders, leaders, creators, and cultural voices, this top Minnesota lifestyle podcast explores the deeper questions of ambition, purpose, resilience, and becoming.



    This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jasnaburza.substack.com
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    15 mins
  • She Was Born for This

    She Was Born for This
    May 26 2026

    Some people have a career. Some people have a calling. Very few get to live both.Christine (Christy) Sovereign is one of them.For decades, she built her career at the highest level, and quietly, something else was always there. Her sister.In this week’s Rise to More, Christine shares what it looks like when a career and a calling finally become one, not by leaving one behind, but by bringing both together.Today, she is leading the 2026 Special Olympics USA Games, the largest humanitarian sporting event in the United States this year.She talks about the moment she said no and why she’s grateful they didn’t accept it, about leading at the highest level while building something deeply personal, and about the reality of underemployment for individuals with intellectual disabilities.4,000 athletes. 20,000 volunteer shifts. 75,000 fans. All 50 states represented.But this is bigger than an event. It’s about perspective, inclusion, and recognizing ability where the world has overlooked it.

    How to get involved: Website: https://2026specialolympicsusagames.org/

    Volunteer, donate, get tickets, and find out about fan zones and community events.

    The 2026 Special Olympics USA Games run June 20–26 in Minnesota.



    This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jasnaburza.substack.com
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    57 mins
  • How the EVEREVE Founder Built a Dream Life & Business

    How the EVEREVE Founder Built a Dream Life & Business
    May 14 2026

    In this episode of RISE TO MORE, Megan Tamte, co-founder and CEO of EVEREVE, opens up about entrepreneurship, identity, faith, fulfillment, and the real emotional cost of building one of the most beloved retail brands in the country.From the moment she stopped watching other people chase their dreams and decided to pursue her own, to the challenges that came with success, this is a conversation about ambition, alignment, purpose, and becoming who you were always meant to be.A powerful episode on business, leadership, growth, and what truly matters.Share your thoughts in the comments and subscribe for insights that spark real change.

    Follow Megan on IG: https://www.instagram.com/megantamte/

    Shop Evereve : https://evereve.com

    Learn about Ever Wonder Campaign: https://evereve.com/pages/ever-wonder

    Learn more about Jasna: www.jasnaburza.com

    RISE TO MORE podcast is a series of deeply human conversations exploring what it truly takes to live a meaningful life and build something that matters.

    Through thoughtful, heart-to-heart conversations with founders, leaders, creators, and cultural voices, this top Minneapolis lifestyle and business podcast explores the deeper questions of ambition, purpose, resilience, and becoming.



    This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit jasnaburza.substack.com
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    1 hr
  • More Will Be Revealed with Wendy Blackshaw

    More Will Be Revealed with Wendy Blackshaw
    Apr 28 2026
    She showed up to this interview the day after foot surgery. That alone tells you everything you need to know about Wendy Blackshaw.The president and CEO of Minnesota Sports and Events sat down with Rise to More this week and delivered one of the most honest, warm, and genuinely inspiring conversations this show has ever had. Over the course of our time together, Wendy didn’t just talk about the Super Bowl and the sold-out gymnastics trials — she talked about bankruptcy, breast cancer, addiction, imposter syndrome, and how every single one of those things made her exactly who she needed to be.Building something from nothingWhen Wendy and her colleague Debbie Estes founded Minnesota Sports and Events in 2019, they had two laptops and a belief that Minnesota deserved better. At the time, it was the only state of its size without a permanent sports commission — every major event like the Super Bowl required standing up a temporary organizing committee, and then dismantling it when the confetti settled.“We were literally building the plane as we flew it.”— WENDY BLACKSHAWWhat followed was remarkable: the Women’s Final Four, the gymnastics trials where Simone Biles and Sunni Lee competed in front of a roaring downtown Minneapolis crowd, World Juniors hockey with bumper cars on ice in Rice Park, and free fan festivals drawing hundreds of thousands of people to the city. All of it funded not through government appropriations, but through corporate relationships built on trust, vision, and Wendy’s signature authenticity.And she did all of this while undergoing treatment for breast cancer — a diagnosis she received the same month the organization launched.The philosophy that carries herIf there’s one phrase that defines how Wendy navigates her life and career, it’s this: more will be revealed. Not a polished five-year strategy. Not a Pinterest board of goals. A deep, lived faith that if you stay open and keep taking the next right step, the path will show itself.“I don’t need to solve the whole thing. It’s a little bite at a time. The next right thing.”— WENDY BLACKSHAWThis isn’t passive optimism — Wendy is quick to point out she’s also a worrier, someone who can get stuck solving problems in her head. But she’s learned to channel that intensity productively. She spoke about literally waking up one morning with a solution to a problem she’d gone to bed stressing over, after allowing herself to let go and trust the process.That spiritual groundedness is inseparable from her practical determination. The two halves reinforce each other constantly throughout this conversation and honestly, one of my favorite parts of this conversation. Recovery, resilience, and the truth about her north starWendy was refreshingly open about her journey in recovery. She has been sober since her twenties, introduced to Alcoholics Anonymous at 26 by a woman she met by chance. Her father died of alcoholism. She knew early she was wired the same way and she chose differently.She speaks about her recovery not as a chapter she survived, but as the foundation everything else was built on. The 12-step program, she said, taught her to give things away, and that principle runs through everything from how she leads her team to how she mentors young women coming up behind her.“You never know when there might be someone who is struggling and who might need to hear that you can have an amazing life. You just need to make some choices to get help.”— WENDY BLACKSHAWTo any executive listening who is quietly struggling: she said it plainly. Reach out. People want to help. And highly successful people have been through hard things too — she included.On confidence, rooms full of power, and just being realWendy has sat across from governors, billionaires, senators, and CEOs and asked them for money, for votes, for belief. We asked her what the secret was. Her answer? There isn’t one. She just tells the truth.She described a period working for a difficult boss that slowly eroded her self-worth — something many high-achieving women quietly recognize. Imposter syndrome crept in. She started doing therapy, started getting back in touch with who she actually was, and slowly rebuilt. That experience now informs everything about the way she leads: with warmth, with directness, and without pretense.“In the end, we’re all people. A powerful CEO has problems with their 18-year-old too. You find common ground.”— WENDY BLACKSHAWShe talked about Senator Klobuchar as someone she genuinely loved chatting with — a Vikings fan, funny, deeply human beneath the national profile. The message for anyone intimidated by big rooms: relax, be yourself, and make the ask. All they can say is no.What’s at stake right nowMinnesota just lost the 2028 gymnastics trials. Despite hosting what USA Gymnastics called a gold-standard event in 2024, the state couldn’t secure the funding to compete for the next one. Other ...
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    1 hr and 1 min
  • The Future of Luxury Hospitality

    The Future of Luxury Hospitality
    Apr 14 2026
    When I sit down with people on Rise to More, I am always looking for more than a good résumé or an impressive title. I want to understand who they are when they walk into a room. I want to know what kind of energy they bring to other people. I want to know whether their success has made them more human or less.That is exactly why my conversation with Florian Riedel stayed with me.Florian is the general manager of Four Seasons Minneapolis, and on paper alone, his career is extraordinary. He has been with Four Seasons for three decades. He started busing tables in London. He has worked in eight different hotels around the world. He helped open one of the most important hotels in Minneapolis at a time when the city needed belief, vision, and steadiness.But what you notice first is about Florian is how he makes people feel.He is one of those rare people who is fully present when he speaks with you. He does not make you feel like he is rushing to the next thing. He does not make you feel like he is scanning the room for someone more important. He is warm, calm, attentive, and genuinely interested. In a world that feels more transactional by the day, that kind of presence stands out immediately.And it made me think about something I have been noticing more and more. We talk a lot about luxury. We talk about excellence. We talk about leadership. But maybe the real luxury now is not opulence at all. Maybe true luxury is being with someone who is actually there.That is what Florian understands so well.He shared that when he first interviewed with Four Seasons in London, he immediately felt something different. He was applying for a job busing tables, but instead of treating him like a body filling a role, they wanted to know him. The interaction was warm. It was personal. It was human. The other interviews he had felt transactional. Four Seasons felt relational. Thirty years later, that moment still seems to define the way he leads.That part of the conversation struck me deeply because it reminded me how much people remember how they were made to feel, especially at the beginning. Before achievement. Before titles. Before proof. People remember whether they were seen.So much of what we call leadership today is actually performance. It is polished language, strategy decks, and status. But when you listen to Florian speak, what becomes clear is that his leadership is rooted in something much simpler. He listens. He pays attention. He cares. And he does not see those as soft skills or extras. He sees them as the work.He told me that when he hires people, he is not primarily looking at technical skills. He is looking at energy, attitude, curiosity, and whether someone knows how to connect. The rest, he says, can be taught. You can teach someone to work the front desk or serve in a restaurant. It is much harder to teach someone how to be warm, how to care, or how to bring good energy into a room.That is such an important lesson, especially for people who are always waiting until they are more qualified, more polished, or more prepared before they step forward. So many women, especially, have been taught to believe they need one more degree, one more certification, one more stamp of approval. But what if some of the most important things you bring into a room are not listed on a résumé at all?What if your attitude matters more than you think?What if your willingness to learn matters more than perfection?What if the way people feel around you is part of your gift?That was one of the strongest threads throughout our conversation. Florian has built a remarkable career, but he did not build it by forcing every door open. He built it by showing up fully, staying positive, and taking opportunities when they came.In fact, one of the most memorable parts of the interview was when he shared advice he received very early in his career. He had gone to his general manager in London and said, essentially, I am doing everything right. I am studying. I am working in multiple departments. I am learning. I am ready to be a manager. And his boss told him something that stayed with him for life: give one hundred and ten percent, stay positive, and take opportunities when they come.That was it.Simple. Clear. Not glamorous. But powerful. And he has lived by it ever since.There is something refreshing about that in a time when so much advice is overly complicated. We are always looking for some hidden formula. But often the people who rise are the ones who show up, bring good energy, and say yes when life opens a door.Another part of Florian’s story that I loved was the season when he and his wife left Four Seasons and moved to Tuscany to open a restaurant. He had always dreamed of doing it. He loved food, loved cooking, and wanted to know what it would really feel like to build something of his own. So they did it. He worked in the kitchen. She ran the front of house. They made beautiful food, worked incredibly hard, and learned ...
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    1 hr and 1 min