november 7, 2025

Virtual

free registration
now open!!!

11:00am - 3:00pm (ET)

SPEAKERS

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FAQ

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the speakers

Meet these inspiring women who will help break through whatever ceilings are keeping you small 

Full bio coming soon - but trust us when we say she's fantastic!

Full bio coming soon - but trust us when we say she's fantastic!

Oly Cumpian is a Body Liberation and Respectful Eating Coach who helps families and professionals move away from diet culture and foster body confidence. After a career in engineering and management, she shifted paths to address the impact of weight stigma and beauty standards. Through her workshops, talks, and signature program A Path to Body Liberation, Oly empowers others to build peaceful relationships with food and body. Based in Knoxville, she is also active in community initiatives, weaving her values of compassion, curiosity, and social change into all she does.

Full bio coming soon - but trust us when we say she's fantastic!


Dr. Dasha Lundy is a visionary leader, entrepreneur, and community advocate dedicated to awakening potential and inspiring transformation. As the Interim President of Knoxville College, she is leading the historic institution through a bold season of reimagination while restoring its legacy as a beacon for education, empowerment, and innovation. Dr. Lundy’s work centers on transcendent leadership, teaching others how to rise above chaos, lead with love, and create systems that heal and liberate communities. A former County Commissioner, Dr. Lundy has built her career around service, strategy, and stewardship—proving that true leadership begins with courage, compassion, and conviction. At the Permission Slip Conference, she hopes to empower women to embrace their purpose, silence self-doubt, and give themselves permission to become the leaders their communities are waiting for.

Karla Peters is a violinist, creative director, and the founder of The Inspired Foundry — a digital studio for brainstorming, building, and branding your inspired ideas. She’s built 150+ brands, toured internationally as a musician with her duo The OK Factor, and guided hundreds of creatives toward their next evolution through branding, coaching, and honest conversations about what it really takes to bring ideas to life.

She lives in Minnesota in a tiny 300-square-foot apartment, once owned a 246-year-old violin, and is a wannabe cheesemonger who believes good bread and better questions can solve almost anything.

Lauren Ready is an Emmy-winning filmmaker, keynote speaker, and author of Ask Like A Leader, a compelling guide to transforming leadership through the power of questions.

As the Founder and Principal Storyteller of Forever Ready Productions, Lauren helps mission-driven organizations harness storytelling to inspire action and raise support—contributing to over $18 million raised for nonprofit causes. Her award-winning work, including the documentary What We'll Never Know, has sparked real change, including influencing legislation in Tennessee around child interrogation.

A former journalist turned entrepreneur, Lauren blends decades of storytelling expertise with a passion for curiosity-driven leadership. Her dynamic keynotes teach leaders how to shift from having all the answers to asking better questions—building trust, connection, and innovation along the way.

She has been honored as a Top 40 Under 40 leader, a Super Woman in Business, and a Just Society Awards Finalist. Based in Memphis, Tennessee, Lauren lives with her husband and son and is on a mission to visit every U.S. National Park—camera in hand and curiosity leading the way.

Dawn Richardson is the Product Education Manager at Flodesk, where she creates simple, approachable resources that help entrepreneurs and small business owners grow with email marketing. With a background in software engineering and wedding photography, she bridges the gap between tech and creativity, making Flodesk’s tools easy to use for all.

After selling a successful brick and mortar bridal boutique, Anna realized her gift wasn’t in styling women for just one day - it was helping them feel seen every day. Anna is the Founder and Lead Style Linguist at Surseen, where she helps women navigating life transitions feel confident, beautiful, and authentically themselves through personal style that tells their story - before they utter a word. 

She also serves entrepreneurs through her roles as Chief of Staff at Aught and facilitator of Business 101 and 201 at Knoxville Entrepreneur Center. 

As a caregiver for her mom with advanced dementia and mom herself to an observant 5-year old daughter, Luna, she is guided through the lens of making every woman feel seen for who they are, no matter what phase of life they are in.

Erika Biddix firmly believes it’s never too late to discover your purpose, that women are capable of anything at all, and that the power of community can create magic.

She’s the founder of Aught, a company on a mission to transform lives and communities through the power of female entrepreneurship. T

Through coaching, strategy, and support, Erika
helps women redefine success on their own terms—centering fulfillment, sustainable business growth, and real-life boundaries.

Her story is shaped by community at its best—women who showed her that collaboration over competition isn’t just a motto, it’s the way forward. She’s committed to sharing this message with future generations—that ALL women deserve seats at ALL the tables (and
the opportunity to build them if that’s their thing!)

Erika lives in Knoxville, Tennessee with her three overly confident children and professor husband. If she’s awake, she’s probably hyping another woman up to chase the thing she really wants.

Sally Zimney is the award-winning leadership expert who transforms self-doubt into bold action. Ranked in the top 3% of women business speakers, Sally has spent two decades helping
leaders and entrepreneurs break through fear to step into positions of real influence.

Her #1 instant-bestselling book Speaking Story and top 2% podcast This Moved Me have empowered thousands to overcome imposter syndrome and lead with courage.

From boardrooms to keynote stages, Sally proves that when we stop playing small and start showing up authentically—imperfections and all—we don't just survive the big moments...
we thrive in them.

thank you
to our sponsors