Brenda Workman is a professional speaker, Food for Life instructor, and founder of the Plant-Based Cooking Academy. After 16 years at a local private university, she launched a speaking business around intentional living. But a personal health transformation completely changed her mission.

Now she speaks to organizations about plant-based wellness, teaches cooking classes online and on-air (her weekly segment “Whip It Up Wednesdays” airs on WDTV in West Virginia), and trains other educators through her Academy. Her goal: to scale impact in a state where plant-based living still feels like a hard sell.

In this episode of Pivot Podcast, Brenda shares how she pivoted her business to meet her community’s deepest needs, the challenges of introducing plant-based living in West Virginia, and how she built a scalable model that lets her create real impact.

You’ll learn about:

• How a personal health transformation can completely pivot your business—and why your story matters more than your credentials
• Why storytelling (not preaching) is the most powerful tool for introducing plant-based living in resistant communities
• The difference between being "busy" and being profitable—and how to build a business you can sustain long-term
• How to scale your impact beyond yourself: Brenda's model of teaching trainers instead of doing all the work personall

Guest Links

www.brendaworkmanspeaks.com

Social Media:

https://www.instagram.com/brendaworkmanspeaks/

https://www.facebook.com/brendaworkmanspeaks/

https://www.youtube.com/@brendaworkmancooksplants

Memorable Quote

“I was raised in West Virginia, and I ate meat at every meal. My staple was biscuits and gravy. That's how I grew up. But I learned that changing my food made all the difference in my health.”

Show Notes

💥 [02:25] How Brenda built her professional speaking business around intentional living.

💫 [04:27] How she went through a health transformation and started a plant-based diet.

😌 [07:40] The emotional moment she stopped taking statins after 25 years.

🌿 [10:34] Why she strategically uses “plant-based” instead of “vegan”.

📣 [14:37] Why storytelling is the most powerful tool for change

❌ [19:17] The early entrepreneurial mistakes she made

🔄 [23:12] How she restructured her business to be sustainable long-term

🧏🏻‍♀️ [26:11] How she is helping people by listening to their needs.

👨‍💻 [31:21] Why “busy is not always better.”

🧱 [35:27] The slow cultural shift in West Virginia: resistance is real, but the walls are coming down.

…

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Thaisa Fernandes is a program manager in tech, podcast host, and author who just launched her memoir cookbook, Vegan Anniversary in the Bay Area. As a Brazilian living in San Francisco, her perspective brings a unique twist to plant-based cuisine, culture, and community.

For years, Thaisa dreamed of creating a cookbook that celebrated her decade as a vegan while showcasing the diversity of Brazilian cuisine beyond what’s typically known outside Brazil. But like many creative projects, it kept getting postponed – until her friend Izabelle Alvares suggested they collaborate on a zine together. That idea turned into something bigger: a full memoir cookbook with high-quality printing, professional photography, and personal stories tied to every recipe.

Two months into the project, Izabelle discovered she was pregnant. As Thaisa puts it, “She was creating both a book and a human baby at the same time. If that’s not an accomplishment, I don’t know what is!”

In this episode, Thaisa shares how she balances her tech career with creative projects, the process of self-publishing a cookbook, and why having a “badass friend” to make things happen with you might be all you need.

You’ll learn about:

• How Thaisa balanced a 12+ year tech career as a program manager with launching a memoir cookbook
• How an idea to create a zine evolved into a full hardcover book
• Why collaboration matters: how working with a friend made the project possible
• How to veganize traditional Brazilian recipes (including the holy grail: pão de queijo) after years of experimentation

Guest Links

http://www.thaisafernandes.com

Social media:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/thaifernandes/

Memorable Quote:

“I think sometimes we are looking for perfection. But I think just starting is a great thing. And then you can build over time, and you can perfect over time, and what is perfection for you might be different from what is perfection for other people. So keep that in mind.”

Show Notes:

💻 [02:31] Thaisa’s day-to-day as a tech program manager

🇧🇷 [05:54] The importance of bringing Brazilian culture and cuisine to veganism

📖 [08:30] The explanation of the cookbook’s full title and meaning

🔄 [10:44] The origin story: From an idea to a zine to a full cookbook

🎨 [14:23] Making a unique, story-driven cookbook with authentic photography

📚 [16:23] Why she chose the self-publishing route and prioritized quality & affordability

🎤 [18:27] How side projects complement and improve her main career

🚀 [23:04] Thaisa’s advice: Start small, bring a friend, and set manageable goals

💡 [25:33] The power of building things step-by-step and letting go of perfection

Lindsay Perez is a Certified Nutrition Specialist, lifelong wellness enthusiast, and founder of NOSHY. For over 20 years, she has, as she puts it, “lived and breathed fitness, nutrition, and the belief that food should make you feel amazing.”

The story with NOSHY began a few years ago when Lindsay broke her elbow, and it completely changed her routine. She went from being constantly active – working out, meal-prepping, coaching – to being forced to slow down. So she focused on what she could control: how she nourished herself. That period inspired her to reimagine what healthy eating could look like – comforting, satisfying, and full of flavor.

What started as a fun experiment in her kitchen soon turned into a mission: to share plant-based, protein-packed bites that bring joy, energy, and balance to everyday life. More than clean ingredients and bold flavors, NOSHY tells the story about joy, self-compassion, and second chances. In less than one year, Lindsay has scaled NOSHY from a kitchen experiment to a product sold in grocery stores across Florida, and through her own e-commerce platform.

You’ll learn about:

• How a serious injury forced Lindsay to slow down and reimagine her relationship with food
• How to market vegan products to non-vegan audiences and educate consumers
• Lindsay’s approach to work-life balance: dedicating 30 minutes a day to self-care
• The reality of building a food business from scratch –product development, marketing, logistics, and wholesale operations

Memorable Quote

"Start where you are, use what you have, and do what you can. And just start, start where you are and focus on you. And if you know that you have something good... and others are saying the same thing, just try, what do you have to lose? Just go for it."

Show Notes

🍳 [02:11] Lindsay’s background in health, fitness, and nutrition.

💡 [04:10] She explains the origin of the name "Noshi" and its meaning.

🤕 [06:23] The pivotal story: How an elbow injury and "night eating syndrome" inspired the brand.

✈️ [09:50] The product's versatility for travel, lunchboxes, and on-the-go snacking.

🌱 [14:49] Navigating vegan and non-vegan markets and ingredient education.

⚖️ [18:55] Lindsay's tips for balancing entrepreneurship with self-care.

🔮 [21:22] Future plans for the brand and learning to delegate.

📣 [23:41] Marketing strategies: logo design, social media mix, and staying approachable.

🔗 [25:54] How to find, follow, and buy from NOSHY.

Guest Links

https://eatnoshy.com

Social Media:

instagram.com/eatnoshy

facebook.com/eatnoshy