Don't Dumb Down Your Greatness

The most common business advice you will hear is “start networking.” Traditional advice would be to put on a suit, get some business cards, and start shaking hands. That works for most people, but that hardly worked for me. My idea of networking is “giving value.” Giving value is the best way to make sure every interaction you have with someone will get a return. No matter the situation.

This week I sit down with André Hueston Mack founder of Mouton Noir Wines. If you haven't heard about him yet, stay tuned because his brand is turning into a household name. If you ever thought to yourself "this can't be as good as it gets for me," then this interview is specifically for you. We learn about Andres humble beginnings working at McDonald's, and a passionless job in the corporate world. He knew nothing about wine, got influenced watching Frasier and turned that passion into a career as a well-paid Wine consultant for top restaurants. Eventually, he turned that new career into a business and now Mouton Noir is one of the top brands in the world. Andre drops plenty of gems and gives entrepreneurs the hard lessons he has learned on his journey so far.

What it's like to talk to billionaires for a living? I met Alex Konrad a few months ago on my visit to Wall Street. I had no idea who Alex was, but I have seen and admired his work without really knowing his name. Alex has written the cover stories on many of the world's richest people featured in Forbes magazine. I told Alex I would love to have him speak to my community about journalism and the lessons he has learned interviewing so many titans. So I quickly fired up my laptop and recorded our conversation for the masses.

Amber Hopson has the most unique story I've heard on my podcast. Amber is a hair stylist, entrepreneur, internet personality, and former major label artist. We actually take a trip from her beginnings in Compton to her success opening one of the most popular salons in the Los Angeles area. We were supposed to mainly talk about her new book "Boss Moves: What They Didn't Teach You in Beauty School." We ended up discussing much more. I relate to Amber so much because I grew up in a single parent home where my mother became my first glimpse of entrepreneurship. Watching her make a way for her family, made me want to embody those same traits. Amber talks about those struggles as well as how she almost walked into a strip club, but turned around and made a better choice. Amber said no Gucci purses for her. Life is all about reinvesting in yourself. What you'll learn: - How to find your passion by exploring multiple streams of income - How leveraging the internet can change your business for the better - Why marketing has to be your part time job - How to attract and build a large YouTube audience - Why "no one cares" should be your motivation - How to use the law of attraction Hope you enjoy. be sure to rate, review, or leave me some feedback on what you thought about our talk.

The first time I met Chinedu was in a coffee shop in New York City. We sat down and discussed ideas, but it wasn't a typical idea chat. Chinedu ran me through his process and it was fascinating to hear how detailed he was, he truly understood the customer for each product he was running me through. Chinedu is a master at bringing an idea to life, just look at what he was able to do with HopStop. In this interview, Chinedu takes us behind the scenes on how he was able to think of HopStop and how it eventually was acquired by Apple. We don't stay on the surface, we dig deep. Chinedu reveals how he wasn't a coder so he gives us tips on how to find a developer early on like he did. We get the pros and cons of outsourcing, and how to budget for your app. We learn: - How and why to get a technical advisor vs a technical cofounder - How to balance your side hustle with your main job - How much an idea is worth - How to stay motivated when things are looking down - Why keeping an inspirational group of friends is key to your success - What he does every morning to get his day started productively - Knowing when to fire yourself - Should you build companies just to sell them? This was just part 1 of our live podcast recording with Chinedu. Stay tuned for part 2, where we discuss incubating your ideas.