Redefine Possibility Vol. 4 - May 2025 | Page 8

Celi Arias is an Expert Scale Strategist and founder of The Grown Ass Business®, known for her no-nonsense approach to helping entrepreneurs scale their businesses in a way that fits their lives. Through her proprietary Key Growth Systems Methodology, she teaches business owners to master the six essential systems—CEO vision, marketing, sales, finance, operations, and leadership mindset—to break through revenue plateaus and avoid burnout. With four degrees, including an MBA and Master of Divinity, and real-world experience as a former COO, Celi combines academic rigor with bold, actionable strategies to help entrepreneurs build thriving businesses.

What does the path look like for you to go from getting your masters in performance to becoming a business strategist?

I have a BFA in Modern Dance and then my second degree is in fashion design. I started a fashion line that ran me into the ground in my 20s. I literally have made all the mistakes.

There was a time where I was homeless and sleeping on my factory floor on an air mattress, and there have been times where I've closed seven-figure deals. So I know what happens in business.

I had such a hard time in my 20s that I got really curious. I got an MBA. I didn't find the MBA helpful for entrepreneurship. So I like to say that my program is an MBA for entrepreneurs because it's what you really need to know for it to work.

At 28, I was having a midlife crisis and I saw a therapist. She led me through this visualization to see myself in the future. I didn't even know what a consultant was, but I had this vision that I would be helping businesses all over the world.

I came out of that exercise and I got excited about the idea of what if this pain and this journey that I'm going through right now is meant for something bigger and more impactful. I told her the vision and she said, “maybe temper your visions a little bit,” and that sent me into a tailspin.

She unlocked this in you and then all of a sudden she was like, “Put it back in.”

She poured cold water on it. So I spent many, many more years spinning out of control thinking I had to keep making this fashion line work.

So now I'm also really careful about how I coach people. Whenever somebody comes to me and says, “Well, actually here's what I see.” I'm more like, “Cool, let's build that. Let's figure out how to make that happen.”

Let’s help demystify AI and help people make their energy and their time count. How do you see successful women making the most of their time and energy these days?

I hear the resistance to AI and the, “yeah, but it's ruining this.” I get it. But it's also going to shift the world as we know it. It's going to shift business as we know it.It's actually going to shift how we relate to each other, because the truth is AI is probably going to become sentient and I think that makes us so uncomfortable.