Journey of the Entrepreneur

We often hear about making an investment in our education, but how would it be to find an education that invests in you?  The world of traditional education may not be for everyone.  When financial roadblocks leave you on the sidelines, it’s important to recognize that there are other ways to become educated.   Take Lambda School, for example: a groundbreaking educational vehicle which is completely free upfront.  When you get a job that pays more than $50,000 per year, they take a small cut after you’ve reached that financial threshold.  “If it doesn’t work out for you, you don’t pay anything,” says Austen Allred, CEO of Lambda School.   Join Ryan and our new co-host Miranda Rose, as they learn from Austen and how he is successfully creating opportunities for affordable education and job placement.   In this episode you’ll learn about:   Investing in You Finding Solutions Getting Out of the Dreaming Stage Scaling Back Ideas Taking Action On Small Steps   Quotes:   Austen:   “The economic data is showing that people are stuck in jobs and don't have a way to move up. We hope to be a solution to that.”   “We're investing in you . . . So we're looking for folks that are dedicated and willing to live up to that investment.”   “Aligning the incentives of the school with the incentives of the student affects everything.”   “Get out of dreaming stage as quickly as possible”   “Scale back your vision and find one sliver of it that's actually doable today and start there and build up” Ryan   “You've now created an environment to help people dramatically increase their pay, by giving them a platform to learn and to grow and to experience it and in a lot of cases have a potential job ready for them when they're done”   “One of my favorite sayings in life is you're a product of the five people you spend the most time with”   “The industry is changing rapidly and there's a bigger need for qualified educated people in the digital space to take on what they're considering, what experts are saying 70 to 80 billion dollars in market shift from traditional to digital” Miranda   “I already like the piece of advice I got from you today, which was get out of dreaming stage as soon as possible, I think that's a place a lot of people can get stuck, and if they think about it too much they'll remain there and then their vision and dream dies with them, with the potential that it had on the inside of them never ever coming to fruition” ABOUT AUSTEN Austen is Co-founder of Lambda School and also Co-author of The Ultimate Growth Hacking Guide: Secret Sauce.  He’s been in the marketing world for over a decade and has helped grow many agencies and startups. Austen Co-founded Lambda School as the pathway of least resistance for people to transcend from lower or medium income to high income.  The goal of Lambda school is to expand funding to housing, to living stipends and to leverage enough cash to be able to pay people to go to school.  When things work out on the other side for students, they pay back their education. Currently they offer software engineer programs and are expanding to IOS, Android, cyber security, and UI/UX design. From there, they’ll expand to other models which work well in this format such as nursing and more.  The end goal is to build an affordable, sustainable education platform which invests in its students. CONNECT WITH AUSTEN   Twitter: @AustenAllred Web: Lambdaschool.com  

TURNING YOUR DREAMS INTO REALITY   What does it take to begin turning your dreams into reality?  It takes sacrifice, grit, and time. Creating time comes by evaluating priorities and eliminating anything that is not supporting your goal.   Dr. Scott Colonna is the first person in his family to graduate from college, but hard work and sacrifice were foundational in his upbringing.  He had to make a decision to sacrifice something in order to make his dream of business consulting become a reality. He set aside an easier path, and instead followed his passion for consulting.     Dive in to find out how you can begin turning your dreams into reality. TOPICS DISCUSSED TODAY Creating Time Sacrificing Working hard Finding solutions Delegating Building Relationships SCOTT SAID:   “we always want to be in a position to be able to help [clients] help their families”   “when you have that passion inside you, it doesn’t just stop at a certain time.  It overflows to your family”   “most people’s goals are very small. . .  I always proceed with, “Well, what’s you bigger goal?”   “I want to hire people in our companies that can bring new ideas and solutions to the table”   “I don’t undervalue experience” ABOUT DR. SCOTT   “Dr. Scott A. Colonna is a senior partner at Uppercut Consulting and Westminster Eyecare Associates. He is a native of New York City and received his Doctor of Optometry degree from the State University of New York College of Optometry in Manhattan, New York. He completed his Bachelor’s Degree in Biology from Lafayette College in Easton, PA. Dr. Colonna completed internships in primary care and ocular disease at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Newington, CT and infant and pediatric care at Beth Israel Hospital and SUNY in Manhattan, NY. While in optometry school he traveled with the Volunteer Optometric Services to Humanity organization to provide eye care in Nicaragua. He has also been part of the Special Olympics Opening Eyes program which provides free eye exams to participants of the Special Olympics. Dr. Colonna has extensive experience in pediatric and infant eye examinations, primary care, contact lens, geriatric care, and ocular disease. He is an active member of Infant See, the American Optometric Association, and the Rhode Island Optometric Association. Dr. Colonna has been practicing in Rhode Island since 2001” (UpperCut Consulting.Com). FINAL THOUGHTS ON TURNING YOUR DREAMS INTO REALITY Plan for the marketing purposes and market your platform and get the word out sooner rather than waiting until everything is set up.     CONNECT WITH DR. SCOTT   Facebook: Scott Colonna Web: UpperCutAdvantage.com  

UNLOCKING THE SECRET TO CONNECTION   Did you know that unlocking the secret to connection is quite simple-just ask questions.     Connection doesn’t happen by trying to convince another party of your viewpoint or your product.  It is created simply by asking questions and listening.   Join Craig and Ryan as they discuss unlocking the secret to connection and how you can apply that in a powerful way to growing your business and improving your relationships one question at a time.   Whether it be connecting on a personal or professional level, “as humans, we are all in the people business.” TOPICS DISCUSSED TODAY Connection Authenticity Vulnerability The power of asking why, what if and how Avoiding the one dimensional trap The business of connecting   CRAIG SAID:   “Getting vulnerable causes other people to get vulnerable”   “In businesses, using [questions] to change company cultures”   “Imagine if you took a whole year, 52 questions, and really asked your employees what they would like from their company”   “These questions let you confront problems, anticipate the challenge at hand and try to understand it better”   “It’s possible to retrain ourselves to go out there and have authentic connections- it’s totally within our power.”   “I specifically help them connect to their brand, to their tribe and connect on social media”   ABOUT CRAIG   Craig Oborn is founder and CEO of Connect52, “Transforming families one engaging question and shared vulnerable answer at a time.” Connect52 was born from a combination of his diverse personal and professional background.   Craig has embraced the Benjamin Franklin quote, “nothing ventured, nothing gained” venturing to start a t-shirt company, convenience store, and food magazine. Craig lives life with an entrepreneurial curiosity, and a desire to leave the world a better place than he found it.   He became a mediator not to mediate divorce but instead to mediate marriages. It was his use of his mediation skill set, that inspired the creation of Connect52 when he asked, “what would my life be like if I were authentically connected to my family?” 52 questions and one year later an empathic connection was formed from the vulnerably shared answers. His family transformation is creating a Revolution in Human Connection.   Craig is a sought-out TEDx speaker and business consultant, connecting companies to their tribe and creating new authentic company culture. Craig is partner in a mortgage business, The Olsen & Oborn Team connecting REALTORS to their brand, marketing and clients. As humans, we are all in the people business. FINAL THOUGHTS ON UNLOCKING THE SECRET TO CONNECTION Gather people around you who you trust, who have had experience, who are successful and allow them the opportunity to ask questions and open up your mind at what’s possible. CONNECT WITH CRAIG Facebook: Connect 52 Facebook Page Blog: Connect 52.com

HOW THE ART OF THE HUSTLE IS CONNECTING   Did you know that the art of the hustle is connecting?  Hustle has both positive and negative connotations, but for “Kamanda,” Kate and Amanda, hustling is all about connecting.   If you’re hustling to create for your business, but no one is seeing what you’ve done, then you’re missing out on the power that connection brings to drive your business forward.  Connection is the secret to hustling effectively.   Dive in and learn from Kate and Amanda as they share their journey to success which led them to Life Intended International.   TOPICS DISCUSSED TODAY Connecting Being real Being vulnerable Influencing and impacting Hustling effectively Branding   KAMANDA QUOTES:   “You can’t have a successful business . . .  without having connection”   “There’s people that feel that they’re hustling [even though] they’re not telling anyone about their product”   “Our hustle is just hustling to make connections and make an impact” ABOUT “KAMANDA”   Meet Amanda Hodgson, Vice President of International Expansion, and Kate Pallot, Director of International Business Development, for Life Intended.  “Life Intended continues to astound audiences across the globe with its gatherings of elite training experts delivering insider information to help guide high-level entrepreneurs to collaborate, execute and elevate their skill sets and deliver monetized results. We have currently added coaches that have surpassed the requirements to join the Life Intended team. They want to help you truly become the one your results require. The view can only be changed by you, let's get started.”  (LinkedIn) FINAL THOUGHTS ON HOW THE ART OF THE HUSTLE IS CONNECTING Kate: Find yourself and be honest with yourself.   You have to be you so you’ve got to know you. Just go with it but don’t stop pushing. Amanda: Other people’s opinions don’t matter.   Put your message out there and don’t worry about the negative from the haters If you feel that burning desire to get whatever’s in there out-just start. It’s a pretty messy journey.  Through everything you discover more about yourself. CONNECT WITH KATE AND AMANDA   Web: Life Intended Facebook: Life Intended International  

Transform Your Business Into a Successful Machine   How can you transform your business into a successful machine?   Ron Carucci’s expertise is in transforming businesses into success-churning machines.  His holistic approach has been proven in more than 30 countries over the past 30 years.     Dive in an find out how you can transform your business into a successful machine!   TOPICS DISCUSSED TODAY Strategy Organization Leadership Identity Direction   RON SAID:   “The boundaries [of allocating your time] need to be driven by competitive work, competitive enabling work, and necessary work . . . where you put your money should be allocated the same way.”   “An organization is nothing more than an embodiment of a strategy; it’s the machinery through which you put your intention.”   “Your organization is perfectly designed to get the results you’re getting.  If you’re getting results you don’t want, it means your machine is not built to deliver the results you want.”   “The distance between intention and impact are wider than most leaders want to believe.” ABOUT RON CARUCCI   Ron Carucci is co-founder and managing partner at Navalent, working with CEOs and executives pursuing transformational change for their organizations, leaders, and industries.  He is also bestselling author of 8 books.     He has a thirty year track record helping some of the world’s most influential executives tackle challenges of strategy, organization and leadership.  From start-ups to Fortune 10’s, turn-arounds to new markets and strategies, overhauling leadership and culture to re-designing for growth, he has worked in more than 25 countries on 4 continents.   In addition to being a regular contributor to HBR and Forbes, and has been featured in Fortune, CEO Magazine, BusinessInsider, MSNBC, Inc, Business Week, Smart Business, and thought leaders.     Ron led a ten year longitudinal study on executive transition to find out why more than 50% of leaders fail within their first 18 months of appointment, and uncovering the four differentiating capabilities that set successful leaders apart. Those findings are highlighted in his groundbreaking Amazon #1 book Rising To Power, co-authored with Eric Hansen.     These findings are also summarized by Ron in the popular HBR article. HBR selected that research as one of 2016’s “Ideas that mattered most", and recently presented on their Live Series.   Ron is a 2-time TEDx speaker.  Click here to listen to his speech on power. FINAL THOUGHTS ON HOW TO TRANSFORM YOUR BUSINESS ‘If you build it they will come’ only happen in the movies. Having a great story and telling a great story are two different things. I assumed that doing great work and having great work to offer meant that the right clients would find me. Set yourself apart and tell the world how you set yourself apart. You have to build your organization and that special thing you want to offer the world, then you have to build all the muscles around that so the world can find it. CONNECT WITH RON   Web: Navalent.com Twitter: @roncarucci Linkedin: Ron Carucci Offers:  Leading Through Turbulence Virtual Summit.  Free March 5-9!            Free Ebook: Leading Transformation: An Owner’s Manual  

Changing Your Paradigm   In today’s episode we talk about Changing your paradigm.  Paradigm shifts occur through learning, connecting and sharing experiences.  Much growth happens when we are open to learn how to learn and when we connect with and align ourselves with those who will push and challenge us.  Join Rebecca Bohman as she shares insight on changing your paradigm. TOPICS DISCUSSED TODAY Changing our paradigm Increasing our capacity to learn Being a self-directed learner Finding your own path (there’s no perfect path) Igniting your own learning Surrounding yourself with allies and mentors Being a continual learner     REBECCA SAID:   “How has your paradigm shifted over time and with experience?” “Everybody has learned something and they’ve grown some way.” “Real learning can give them that excitement and love of life, it can give them passion.” “Everything that we learn ends up moving our passions and our intentions and our businesses forward.” “You’re not put in a group that’s going to be perfect for you.. . you have to be very proactive in finding that group that can do that for you.” “[In] entrepreneurship you only learn from failure.” “We have these blocks of how we think things should be.” “Create this spark that invigorates our mind and just lights it on fire.” “See that failure . . . as a chance and opportunity to go back and continue learning.” “We can’t let the world define that success for us.” “People who learn how to make those connection with you. . . will be the entrepreneurs and business people that will survive.” “We don’t have to be perfect.” ABOUT REBECCA BOHMAN   “Creator of educational podcast and website designed to "Light your MIND on fire"​ as we work to change the paradigm about education. We strive to be a service to families, mentoring them in alternative education and options available to them. Our content ranges from homeschooling parents, educational professionals, tutors, curriculum companies, and motivational mentors. With a weekly podcast released on Tuesdays as well as an occasional audioblog called "The Spark". We manage several social media sites associated to our podcast. We would love our audience to hear your story! Check out our podcast by visiting our website theluminousmind.net and you can schedule an interview by going to theluminousmind.youcanbook.me.”  (Linkedin) FINAL THOUGHTS ON CHANGING YOUR PARADIGM Have more grace with yourself Be more patient and understanding Enjoy the journey Just start CONNECT ON SOCIAL MEDIA   Web: The Luminous Mind.net Podcast:  The Luminous Mind | Changing the Paradigm of Educational Pedagogy Offer:  Click Here  to sign up and get a free pdf download: 7 Steps to Ignite Your Learning

HOW TO CRUSH YOUR NEW BUSINESS   Today’s episode discusses how to crush your new business. “Crushing it” involves finding clarity, taking the most effective steps, and measuring metrics that matter.  Doing so will bring the results you are looking for.  Join Amanda and Ryan as they discuss ways that you can crush your business starting today! TOPICS DISCUSSED TODAY Identifying your purpose Doing the most important thing right now Having a plan and knowing consequences Measuring metrics that matter Shifting your mindset Speaking with clarity Jumping in, then finding refinement Visualizing and overcoming obstacles AMANDA SAID:   “When you want make some massive change and you want to take on that big meaty goal [be] super clear on that why.”   “I view my own clarity as a big part part of my own job.”   “Clarity can also give you distinction as an entrepreneur.”   “Do that thing that actually matters.”   “[You] don’t need a business card to go and have a conversation with someone about what it is that you do or are aspiring to do.”   “Absolute clarity isn’t a requirement to get started . . .clarity comes over time and by jumping in.”   “Prioritize your energy level and relationships.”   “High performers don’t just visualize what success looks like, they visualize what obstacles look like so when they encounter them they know what to do.”   “We tend to measure a result . . . [instead] measure a behavior which will inevitably yield the result.” BIOGRAPHY   I am a personal effectiveness expert who works with high achieving executives to launch themselves into their next level of performance both professionally and in the rest of their lives. As a traveling strategy consultant, wife, mother, step-mother and co-parent, I started my coaching business to help other senior consultants deal with the often-overwhelming prospect of expanding their families or while still ascending the corporate ladder, all while out-performing their peers and building positive, lasting relationships with their teams, colleagues, leadership, and clients. Prior to formally launching my coaching practice, I spent a decade as a strategist, mentor, and leader for a high profile consulting firm, traveling all over North America to serve my clients, all while raising a young family and pursuing several personal goals at the same time. I offer a range of performance coaching and consulting services – from individual coaching, to workshops, and keynote speeches on the subjects of personal effectiveness, leadership, and balance. (Amanda Kaufman.net) FINAL THOUGHTS ON HOW TO CRUSH YOUR NEW BUSINESS Take action now. You’re not more secure in corporate.   CONNECT ON SOCIAL MEDIA   Facebook: Kaufman Services Email: amanda@amandakaufman.net  Request a free 15 minute strategy session with Amanda!  

LIVING WITH INTENTION   Today’s episode discusses living with intention.  Choose to live intentionally by believing in yourself and taking action.  When you show up in your own life and live with intention, not only do you win, but others will also win. TOPICS DISCUSSED TODAY Understanding and harnessing the gifts you’ve been given Being the best version of yourself no matter where you are Starting now Putting in the work Making a “life list” instead of a bucket list Becoming the kind of person people want to spend time with Connecting with and being mentored by giants Kicking stress out of your life and focusing on the good Refusing to let anything into your world that does not speak your language Thanking others and sharing how applying what you learned has changed you Believing in yourself and taking action Living with gratitude daily DANELLE SAID:   “When life erupts you have two choices; you either give up or you create.” “The art of sales is just people skills.” “When people show you who they are, believe them.” “How long does it take?  It takes every day.” “A bucket list is ridiculous, why not have a life list?” “Once you go to your limits, they expand; you realize they aren’t really there.” “I wanted to get people to look at themselves and quit seeing the blockades, quit seeing the fears and to see if they just look within, they have a dream they’re designed to live and anything against that is not natural to themselves.” “If [you] don’t win today somebody else loses.” “You don’t serve a fight with fight, you serve a fight with greatness, with prayer, with goodness,  with ‘how can I help?’’ “People are so afraid of being authentic because they’re afraid of being attacked.” FINAL THOUGHTS ON LIVING WITH INTENTION Don’t dwell on the hard stuff.  Give it 24 hours or 7 hours or 7 seconds to deal with then move on. Learn to love the hard; hard is what makes you great. Choose joy everyday and take advantage of the greatness in your life. Life’s too short.  Be great to those who need it.  Don’t listen to what they say when they are hurting. BIOGRAPHY   Arising from the fires of life, the now serial entrepreneur Danelle Delgado began her journey when faced with raising her three small children on her own. Forced to make a change she went from working three jobs, 80-90 hours a week and struggling to survive, to an award winning success in business by persisting her way into alignment with some of the world’s most renowned business experts and gaining them as her personal mentors. After years of high level learning alongside them in business she went on to build multiple high-producing income streams and become an international training sensation and elite mentor to many of the worlds highest performing entrepreneurs. She has taken the stage with the likes of Grant Cardone, Les Brown, Darren Hardy, Lewis Howes and more, where her online marketing and branding techniques are unlike any other in the industry and the world has taken note. Danelle says “first it’s about building the person, then one can master the skills. Confidence and competence are quite the perfect combination.” Her 4th company, Life Intended, launched to massive success in 2015 and has never slowed down. Life Intended trains advancing entrepreneurs to maximize results, build profit and make winning in life an inevitable via live events, online training, global elite retreats and more! Life Intended now operates both in the US and Australia. Danelle is one of the most highly regarded training experts and is quickly becoming the go-to female to train sales, marketing and business strategy world-wide. (Adapted from Life Intended.Org)   CONNECT ON SOCIAL MEDIA   Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/danellebdelgado Join in every friday night at 8pm MST for a 1 hour training for entrepreneurs!

A Strategic Investment   Today’s episode discusses how to prepare and demonstrate to investors that your business is a worthy investment. Stuart Draper shares his journey of turning stumbling blocks into stepping stones as well as how to prepare for the conversation with potential investors.   TOPICS DISCUSSED TODAY Learning from adversity Getting funding for your business Surrounding yourself with good people Hiring the right people Remembering that talent is replaceable, don’t feel bad if someone quits Preparing for the conversation with an investor Working backwards from that huge vision and making it happen, one step at a time STU SAID:   “I decided I needed to go fix things and be the change for education so Stukent was born.”   “You may be onto something but you’ve got to do a lot of research to prove it.”   “Would you quit everything else you have and go for this?  Do you believe in this that much?” “When you raise funding as an entrepreneur, [investors] are betting maybe 10% on your idea, maybe another 10% on your traction that you already have and they’re betting 80% on [you as] the jockey.”     “If they can’t believe that you’re the [person who] can go execute then they won’t move forward.”   “It’s not about the idea, it’s about the execution.”   “Everytime you get to a roadblock you’ve got to go find a way;  jump over it, go over it, go around it, blast through it--whatever it takes!” BIOGRAPHY   Stuart Draper is the co-author of Digital Marketing Essentials, the bestselling text in higher education of its kind. He has experience doing internet marketing for companies that range from mom and pop shops to Fortune 500 companies. He successfully bootstrapped GetFoundFirst.com (acquired December 2015), and is now working on Stukent.com, a digital courseware company that provides the world's #1 digital marketing simulation, the world's first social media marketing simulation, and a variety of other texts, videos and projects. Stuart's work has taken him all over the globe. He has been to Romania, Mexico, China, Puerto Rico, Germany, and India to speak to audiences ranging from ten to north of 1500 people about entrepreneurship and digital marketing. (Source: Stuart Draper Linkedin)   FINAL THOUGHTS ON A STRATEGIC INVESTMENT Think a hundred times bigger than you’re thinking!   There’s so much more opportunity in this world than you're giving yourself credit for and it’s yours for the taking. CONNECT ON SOCIAL MEDIA   Twitter: @Stu_Draper Linkedin: Stuart Draper Website: Stukent.com

Building A Winning Team   Sid Krommenhoek knows first hand how powerful it is to begin with building a winning team.  He has taken a startup from inception to marketing leader--across the US and China--to IPO, but it is not something he did on his own.     By carefully building a solid team filled with members who are competent, hard working, and passion driven, he has accomplished more than many entrepreneurs only dream of.     Join today’s episode to learn how Sid’s journey took shape and to gain insight on building a winning team. TOPICS DISCUSSED TODAY Understanding what it means to be a founder Understanding what it means to be a finisher Preparing for opportunities in order to harness ‘luck’ Surrounding yourself with the right people Knowing where you’re going Building your team Trusting your team Coupling your passion with hard work Sid SAID: “You have to have that why in what you’re doing.” “[Find] remarkable people to join [your] team.” “Good ideas have founders. . . great businesses have founders who have brought on finishers to that team.”   “Sometimes the founders are the finishers. . .” “[Every team needs] true finishers.” “When you. . . couple that obsession--where you are going to sweat and hustle and scramble as much as you need to because there is a problem so important to you---with that obsession to build an answer and a solution . . . that is fit for a king, but available to the common man.” “[You need team members who] are equally bought in and properly competent to build that beautiful thing.” BIOGRAPHY Managing Partner of Peak Ventures, an early stage venture capital firm founded in 2014. My M.O. is simple- startup is hard and life is short, so let's be authentic in working with people we enjoy (even if we don't always agree) and on problems that are worth solving. My approach has context from ventures I've been a part of and in the people who I've worked alongside, both as a startup founder and investor. (Linkedin) FINAL THOUGHTS ON BUILDING A WINNING TEAM You can’t trust everyone but you better be able to trust the ones you get in the boat with. If it’s going to work--and you have to believe it is--there has to be massive trust and support within your team, both in the rocky times as well as in the good times.   CONNECT ON SOCIAL MEDIA   LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sidkrommenhoek/ Instagram: https://medium.com/@krommenhoek Twitter: https://twitter.com/krommenhoek?lang=en

THE DIGITAL ADVISOR   Meet digital advisor, James Zolman, who has a proven record for scaling businesses online.  He has generated over $50 MM in revenue over the past 10 years. Through his journey, James shares expert tips for building relationships online, creating engagement, and building authority in order to increase business revenue.  In addition, James shares powerful reasons why a sales funnel and copywriting are two of the most effective ways to start growing your business.   TOPICS DISCUSSED TODAY Scaling business through lead generation Getting over your fear of taking action Knowing and speaking to your audience Creating relationships with your audience Building a curiosity factor into your ads Creating opportunities for follow up Establishing yourself as an expert Laying out a Sales funnel Copywriting   James SAID:   “Don’t be afraid of the ad networks.” ‘The biggest clutch in scaling small business is they’re afraid.” “You can control for your audience, especially on Facebook.” “. . .  you can control your budget a lot. . . and still get a little bit of traction. .  .” “Just dive in . . . see what happens . . .see how it works. . .  learn about it. Don’t be afraid of it.” “Focus on writing your add. . .and creating the path that captures [your] audience.” “Rather than display [just] a thank you page, find another way to add value and ask for a sale.” “You don’t have to sell, you just need to build a relationship.” “Speak to your audience. . . .[use] the right messaging. . . [get a] funnel.” “First. . . get over your fear. . . just do it. . .[connect with your ] audience, [then] make sure you have a funnel.” BIOGRAPHY OF THE DIGITAL ADVISOR   “I’m a digital advertiser who has built dozens of digital assets that have generated well over $50MM in revenue over the past 10 years. I specialize in Google AdWords, Facebook Ads, Google Analytics, copywriting, and conversion optimization. I owned an ad agency (sold my book of clients), developed quality score analysis software (sold it to an agency), hired multiple agencies, and purchased Enterprise pay per click advertising software. I understand agency-life because I have lived it as an agency owner and as a client!”  (Linkedin: James Zolman). FINAL THOUGHTS   Focus on copywriting because it a powerful tool which will pull people like a magnet through an entire funnel and you’ll be able to boost your earnings. Focus on copywriting early on rather than the technical aspects, which you can learn as you go.   FOR MORE ON COPYWRITING   Copy Chief Copy Blogger Smart Blogger Only One Mike CONNECT ON SOCIAL MEDIA   LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesczolman/ FaceBook: https://www.facebook.com/jameszol Website: http://jameszol.com/

Insights From a Budding Entrepreneur   Entrepreneurship is a simple enough concept even for even a child to understand yet whether one is new or seasoned in this world, the key ingredient for all entrepreneurs simply is hard work.  There are no shortcuts to success, but success does leave clues that can be followed, duplicated, and mastered over time.   Today’s guest took a leap into the world of entrepreneurship 2 years ago, when she decided to take her finances to the next level.  Her journey began simply by observing the example of her own father--an entrepreneur--as well as her mother and grandparents, who run a family business together.   Join Maddi Harris, an 11-year old entrepreneur, who shares her observations and insight on this candid, daddy-daughter episode entitled, “Insights From a Budding Entrepreneur.”     Insights From a Budding Entrepreneur   Profit, simply put, is gross income minus costs. Buy low, sell higher. Everything is negotiable. If you can help people understand the value of the item or service you provide--and how it would benefit their life--then you can sell anything. Goals bring purpose, enjoyment, and can motivate you to go even further. Networking connects you with other people and opens the way to connect with even more customers and people. Entrepreneurship is getting out in the world and talking to people, selling your own stuff, building your business, not being employed in the 9-5 grind. Be coachable. Listen to the experiences of others and learn from them. You’re more likely to learn and grow faster if you follow people who have had success in their lives. Listen to those who have gone ahead of you. Practices does not make perfect; perfect practice makes perfect. We think we know more than we do, we become prideful, and pride can lead to business failure. Being an entrepreneur is not easy; it’s hard work. Remember to balance your time and relationships; focus on quality, not quantity. Set your mind to it and don’t quit.   Finish what you start, even if you hate it, even if it’s not fun, even when it gets tough; quitting is not an option     Final Thoughts From Maddi   Know your packaging pricing. Whether you make money or lose money, you still learn.

Journey of an Entrepreneur is never the same for any one person. We have gathered entrepreneurs from around the country to connect the pieces of the puzzle for you to help you along the way. Building Your Brand With Video Strategies Marina Simone has found how effective building your brand with video strategies can be.  Her story in business began at the age of 18, when she gained experience running her dad’s wholesale food distributing company, over the course of almost 7 years.   Eventually, Marina caught the eye of a third party company with Amazon, who observed how well she utilized her knowledge and skill set.  She took their job offer in corporate world, and effectively helped build their business from a 3 million per year to a 40 million per year business.   Marina was on salary so she didn’t get a cut of that growth in profits.  This caused her to realize that with her gifts for setting up infrastructure, systems, and building relationships and connections, she could venture out on her own.     Join Marina as she shares tips for building your brand by working from the inside out. Once you truly are at a point as a human being who is ready for success, building your brand with video strategies will naturally become more effective in promoting growth and success for your company.    Building Yourself   Are you where you need to be as a human being to have massive success? Are you more focused on making the next dollar or on making an impact? Does your why motivate you when you wake up? The more you are in alignment with who you are and what you represent, the more authenticity comes out. How is your self talk? Does it paralyze you with fear, doubt, etc? Are you a problem solver or an excuse maker? Put in the work to find creative solutions. If you’re ready to find your own answers, then you’re ready to become a leader. Get over the fear of sharing. You have a powerful message that people need to hear, even if you’re saying the same thing as somebody else.  Your experience and the way you tell it will connect with and empower others. Work on yourself. Stop making excuses. Take action.  Stay consistent. Building Relationships   Be proactive at making connections. Connect with people you want to work with. Connect with people you want to be friends with or hang out with. Connect with people in your target audience. Get the right people around you. Social media helps you connect with others. Video creates emotional connections to you. People get to know you, see if they like you and connect with you through video. Video allows others to feel more involved with you and what you are doing.   Building Your Brand With Video Strategies   Video structure: Identify problem or pain point. Tell your story or experience with this pain point so people can relate to you. Provide solution, tips, or info regarding pain point. End with a call to action: click link to watch full training, tell me how this works for you, click here to get $30 off, etc. 85-90% of audience needs education about who you are, your product, services, etc.   Be creative, think outside of the box. Break through your fear of getting in front of the camera.   Once you do FB live, don’t go back and watch, just move forward.   We fear getting in front of the camera because of a fear with our own limitations. Don’t try to be everything to everyone, but be something to someone. Speak directly to the one and it will resonate with many more.   Accept that if you can just impact one person, that person may be the one to impact a million others.  Who’s that one person who impacted Tony Robbins? Content comes from learning from others.   Share what you learn. Repurpose your content. Every time you do fb live, save it to camera roll and upload to youtube, edit pieces of it to put on instagram, use as a tripwire, send it to email list, etc. “Focused intensity over time multiplied by God equals unstoppable momentum.” We tend to share what we want to share, and not what people want to hear. Pay attention to which videos are getting the most views, shares, and likes.    Bridge the gap between what you want to talk about and what others want to hear. Final Thoughts From Marina   Let go of any stubbornness and listen to those who’ve had success and are trying to show you how to get to where you want to be.   It’s not about you, but you must invest in yourself by listening, learning, and improving your knowledge and mindset.   Connect With Marina   Facebook: Marina Simone Facebook: Moms and Heels

Gifts of the ADHD Entrepreneur   Nicholas Rizzo has found that the gifts of the ADHD Entrepreneur are often hidden within the struggles and behind the stigma.  His discovery and passion for helping others, led him to filling a niche in the entrepreneurial world for business owners who struggle with ADHD.  Through his business, Striven Life, he teaches his clients how to unwrap and harness the gifts that come with ADHD and turn them into tools for becoming the productive and successful business owners that they truly can be.   Come and learn a few valuable tips from Nicholas’ proven methods for unleashing the power of our gifts.   Gifts of the ADHD Entrepreneur   Intense amounts of drive and passion. They go all in without holding back. Insane amounts of creativity. Unique neurological wiring which lends to a fresh perspective. Natural abilities to think outside of the box and find ways to overcome obstacles. Plethora of big ideas. Harnessing Your Gifts   Become structurally unstructured. Structure is important, but too much structure drains energy and creativity. Schedule your day within time blocks, rather than hour by hour. Ask the right questions: What do I feel like I can be best at doing today? Where is my creativity pulling me? Which block of time will be the best for me to work on this? Cut out aspects for your business that suck the life out of you and are not necessary. Example:  Editing is nice, but may not be necessary.  Skip the edits or hire it out. Keep it simple. Try to understand yourself at a deeper level. Keep the purpose of your why at the forefront. Learn more about who you are and why you are the way you are. Learn more about how you work and what distracts and discourages you. Continuously evaluate yourself and your actions. Be willing to fail and to struggle because those are the best ways to learn. Find out why something isn’t working and keep trying to improve it.   Utilizing Accountability Methods   Set up daily check-ins with an accountability buddy or with yourself. Each night: journal or write down what was accomplished that day. This builds confidence and momentum and allows you to track progress. Plan and list in detail which actionable steps you need to take to get from where you are to where you’d like to be. Every week: Pick  20-30 of the most effective tasks to accomplish for that week. Every morning: Select 3-5 items from the weekly list to work on. Ask yourself: Where is my creative energy pushing me? What am i excited and passionate about? Be flexible in your choice of task.   Do something every day to help your business grow.   Final Thoughts From Nicholas   Don’t try to do it all at once. Various layers of your business such as Facebook posts, product launches, etc., don’t all have to be done as soon as you open your business.   Build your business one layer at a time.   Connect With Nicholas   Facebook: Striven Life Website: Striven Life.Com E-Book Download: The ADHD Entrepreneur Advantage Twitter: My Striven Life

Breaking Free From the “Norms”   Lindsay Judson is an example of breaking free from the “norms.”  Although she’s always been a dreamer, initially, she went the traditional route of securing a college degree.  Her profession in nursing was and still is a passion of hers, yet the ever present itch to chase other passions and to inspire her daughters to do the same, eventually pulled her away from nursing and into the world of digital entrepreneurship. Lindsay’s desire to follow her passion and to teach her daughters to be dreamers, to break free from the “norms,” and to harness the power of the mindset, is one of leading not only by word, but also by example.   Breaking Free From The “Norms” Often, we are programed culturally, either in society or within a family, to take certain steps and we follow them either without challenging them, or we spend our life wondering “what if?” The traditional route is not the only route. Breaking free from the “norms” allows you to follow your dreams. Things don’t have to be a certain way because a diagnosis, training, or culture tells you it’ll be that way. Our background and training often influence how we see the world, but we truly learn through experience, and by trial and error. Work hard, seek opportunities, and share what you’ve learned with others.   Harness the Power of Mindset   The power of the mind can override circumstances and predicted outcomes. Reprogram your thinking. Focus less on results and more on efforts.   Efforts dynamically change the nature of where we arrive and how we get there. Measure progress, rather than results. We lose desire to generate effort toward our passion when when we measure against perfection. More is learned from failures than from successes. Duplication is a principle, not a rule.   Duplicate in your own way. Dont quit in the process. Fail forward and do it everyday.   Lead By Example   Don’t stereotype others because of your background and experiences. Allow others to grow and learn in their own way. Praise efforts rather than results in order to inspire others to work harder and keep trying. Gently mold and grow others to help them to meet their potential. Provide opportunities to share your business with your children. Teach them what you have learned and how you have learned through failures. Be careful of the language used in front of your kids; focus on efforts rather than results. Allow hard work to be part of daily life. Encourage efforts and hard work; don’t give false praise. Final Thoughts From Lindsay Find what your thing is.   Jump in and figure it out later. It’s not about perfection;  it’s about effort and progress. Connect With Lindsay Facebook: Lindsey Judson Facebook Business: The Mama Bear Marketer  

Building Significant Followships Using Instagram   If you’ve considered building significant followships using Instagram, then Tony Huynh is your guy.  His passion for building businesses was ignited through his own shift toward wanting to grow a business in the fitness world.      Today, he teaches effective ways to grow your following on Instagram, and ultimately become a top influencer.  Join, Tony, The Instagram Guy, to learn a few tips and tricks to rapidly build your audience on Instagram. Understanding the Platform Instagram is a visual platform. Photos, videos, IG lives, etc. are what you’ll focus on posting. If you prefer to write, this may not be the best platform for you. Get clear on who your audience is. Post content which speaks to your audience. Check out hashtags and posts in your category and model content based on those posts. Example: in the fashion or makeup categories, selfies are huge and relevant. Share your own content, other’s content, and share viral content. Hashing Out Hashtags Hashtags are really the only way you can be found, so use them strategically. The image you choose must capture attention. Either long or short text can be used. Remember people consume info differently so change it up. Use search features to determine best hashtags in your niche. Pick those which have 100’s -10’s of thousands of posts rather than 10’s of millions in order to increase your luck at catching eyeballs. Instagram allows a max of 30 hashtags per post.   For aesthetic purposes, hashtags may be put in the first comment, but there is no right or wrong way to display them. Rotate through multiple groups of hashtags to determine which ones perform best. Shortcut:  go to keyboard settings → text replacement to set-up auto-complete on your phone so when you type in hashtag1, hashtag2, etc, it will autocorrect with a group of hashtags. Constantly switch 4-5 out of the 30 to gauge which ones work best. If you see huge spikes in likes and comments when using certain hashtags, you know you found good ones. Be aware that using the same hashtags all day looks a little spammy through the IG algorithm.   This may cause shadow banning--even though you can see your post, no one else can see it under the hashtag.   Building Significant Followships Get into Instagram Top Post & Latest Post categories by: Posting daily, as much as 6-10 times per day. The more you post the more you’ll get in categories within chosen hashtags that you're targeting in your niche, which will get you more views. Build your following, increase engagement, then funnel into product/service. Look at top influencers and viral content and model what they are doing in order to grow your instagram.   Working with top influencers is very cost effective with high roi. Consider what influencers are looking for and how you can leverage your time and energy to maximize reach. High engagement will trump large following number and will make you more appealing to top influencers. Consider if your product goes well with their audience. Negotiate: offer free product, comp a meal, etc. in return for a mention in their post. Ask to purchase x amount of posts in return for a plug for your product. Connecting with influencers: IG direct messaging or check for contact info in their profile.   Explain what you have to offer or invite them to check out (your restaurant, your climbing gym, your product, etc), then ask them to talk about it to their audience. Static vs my story: Static refers to a finished product such as a beautiful dish at a restaurant. My story shows the process behind the scenes from meeting the chef (if you have a restaurant), to watching the dish being created, plated, then served. Each story play connects with different types of audience so change it up. Final Thoughts From Tony   For beginning entrepreneurs, focus on getting those first customers and honing in on your product and service.   Doing so will give you confidence to move forward.   Consider offering product/service at a steep discount to get testimonials.   Logo comes later and much easier once you have customer base.   Connect With Tony The InstaGuy.Co: Special offer to our listeners- time doubled for free audit of your Instagram. The Fit Asian Man on Instagram tony@theinstaguy.co

Strategically Aligned Partnerships   Jared Warner built his business on the proven foundation of strategically aligned partnerships.  He’s been in the world of entrepreneurship since the late ‘90’s and has learned valuable lessons from both successes and failures.   His experience solidifies the fact that strategically aligning yourself with other businesses who are not competing, but who are drawing from the same customer base, will help grow your business faster and build long term relationships with both your customers as well as your referral partners.   Dive into this podcast to learn more about Jared’s story and how you, too, can integrate strategically aligned partnerships in order to grow your business for the long game.   Leap Strategically   Build your business on the side.   We all have the same amount of time;  don’t binge watch tv, or waste time when you could be building your business. We make a living between 9-5, but we can create a life between 5-9. We fail a lot, but must keep getting up. The best feedback you can get is from the marketplace.   Don’t let others tell you what you should/shouldn’t do; it’s not their money or reputation on the line, it’s yours.   Don’t quit your day job until you have continual provable income from your business. If your product almost works, then you’ll almost get paid. Don’t be the one who spends money to educate the marketplace so they’ll come around to your idea. You might be right, but do something else.   Align Strategically   Consider other industries that do not compete with yours, but that your ideal client also buys from. Everyone has other products and services they use. For example; chiropractors, pilates instructors, personal trainers, massage therapists, acupuncturists, or nutrition specialists, etc.,  are all people who may work with the same clients.   Marketers, software developers, web designers, video production specialists, etc., are all possibly working with the same client base.   After checking reputation/reviews of potential businesses, approach them and find ways to work with each other and refer to each other and build trust. Make sure they aren’t already referring to others.     Refer Strategically   Don’t just leave business cards; always find opportunities to work together. Consider seminars, workshops, or any event which allows you to talk to their people and vice versa.   Schedule weekly or biweekly 10 minute phone calls with each referral partner. What are 3 things I can do for you? What are 3 things you can do for me? What can we hold each other accountable for this next week? Play the long game and be authentic. If you have 6 referral partners, this only takes 1 hour per week, yet you instantly have access and connections with 6 networks.   Final Thoughts From Jared   Build your business with the goal of helping customers rather than looking at each as x amount of dollars you’ll bring in. Consider how you can really help your clients. Are you helping them or just asking for money? Take your head out of your laptop, get to events and shake hands in person.   Connect and have face to face conversations in order to build real relationships.   Connect With Jared   jared@123getfound.com 123 Get Found.Com (619) 678-0280

Building Relationships: From Platform to Personal   Meet mobile marketing rock star Amanda Read, who is passionate about the power of building relationships from platform to personal.  She knows that communication is a more effective form of marketing than sales because people buy based on how they feel about your business.  “If you don’t communicate authentically, you . . . won’t be successful.”     Her journey began when a text messaging marketing idea came across her desk; she instantly knew she was onto something powerful. Although she was ahead of her time in this marketing platform, she persisted and quickly learned how to rock this world of marketing through building relationships and trust, rather than pushing information and products onto customers.   Dive into our podcast to learn how to build relationships with your customers from platform to personal.     Determine Your Platform Choose a platform that will work for you. Remember technology doesn’t matter as much as strategy. No one will know the value of your business until you give value first. Understand opt-in regulations. Promote text to win contest for opt-in. Follow up with text thank you and valuable coupon. Open rates are close to 98% on text messages! This is real time marketing as open rate is 77% within 5 minutes. Give them something that allows them to spend time with your brand.   Build Brand Authenticity Give more than you ask for. Know your brand and your audience. Communicate to your audience as they would to each other. Speak in their language; are they moms, teens, professionals, grandparents, sports junkies, etc? Speak in a voice that resonates with them. Invite customers to events you put together just for them. Give value first. Communicate that they are valued. What is your brand voice?   Know your beliefs, values and what you want to portray. Hold to your brand voice; don’t shift your brand in response to what others say you should do.   Build Relationships Send text polls to learn what’s important to your customer. Polls might ask: do you prefer x or y? Then invite them to check out FB page for results. Add visual interest such as a graphic of results. Polls segment a list of preferences and then you can send a thank you and reward with an offer specific to that preference. This connects with them personally and builds the relationship. Remember your customers are real people with real concerns.   Sending info unique to them, not just generic info, helps them feel valued. Customers won’t care what you say until they know that you care about them. Your product is only as valuable as the perceived value. Final Thoughts From Amanda Remember that everybody isn’t your customer. Learn to move on and let go of the “no’s” even if your product will help them.   Focus on those who want what you have to offer.   Connect With Amanda Facebook: Read Mobile Marketing Youtube: Marketing Happy Hour Channel

  Meet Gaelle Lecourt, a food scientist/engineer in the flavor industry-turned business coach for women; teaching them how to “own your business so your business doesn’t own you.”     When aspects of her life created a shift in her perspective and goals, Gaelle was drawn to deeply ponder:  if my life were a blank page, how would I redesign it?   She felt she wasn’t progressing as much as the effort as she was putting into her job.  She wanted more flexibility to travel, a healthier lifestyle and also desired to provide more impact.     With those ideas in mind, Gaelle quit her job,  sold all that she owned, moved to Mexico, and took a step away from her busy life to sift out the signs that life had been sending her.  She recognized that her life experiences and gifts have been pointing toward coaching all along.     Dive into Galle’s journey to discover how she was able to take that leap and make a change, and how you can be sure you are owning your own business;  not the other way around. Is Your Business Owning You?   Have you heard yourself saying any of these? I don’t have enough time. I don’t have fun anymore. I’m working 7 days a week. These phrases indicate that your business is owning you.  If so, what are you to do? Create Infrastructure   Infrastructure becomes the solid foundation on which to build a business and leverage one’s time and long-term value.   Systems allow businesses to become scalable in order to increase productivity and profit. There are essentially two systems in most businesses that you can start automatizing early: On-boarding clients and keeping them accountable. Automating the client journey to free up your time and allow you to be in your “zone of genius.” Allow time to adjust and refine the process before setting up a system.  Once you are ready: Begin with the right tools, or you’ll end up having to redesign it all: Email, website, team members, systems, calendar, email crm, shopping cart etc. are all important tools that will need to be functional and serve your business long-term.  See link below for Gaelle’s list of favorite tools! Keep it simple. The more complicated the system, the more difficult it’ll be to adapt as your business evolves.   You can take tons of time reinventing a new method or simply build upon what is available. Progression, Not Perfection   Don’t aim to be super unique about how you build your business; be humble and open to learning. Continuously refine skills and update training Trial and error refine and optimize the system. Allow systems to evolve as work flow is developed. Success leaves clues. Replicate and streamline existing processes of successful businesses. Don’t reinvent; mirror and mimic. Hire a coach or mentor in the same field to find ways to improve business systems. Delegate. Delegate. Delegate.   Start by creating a clear standard operating process, which can be replicated and repeated. You must work through it first so you know how you want it done.   Create videos of the process in order to: Explain the flow and system and provide instructions, so you don’t have to take time to retrain those you hire. Establish expectation and communication channels. Explain any pet peeves and what to avoid. Once you have created a system, delegate. Delegating helps you fine-tune your processes.   In your head, you’ll always tweak your process, but writing it makes it real. Writing it also allows those you delegate to, to improve the process and ask questions. Take emotion out of the process and let go of things others can handle so you can work where you need to. Know there are other competent people who can help build your business.   It may be your ‘baby,’ but your time is valuable. Know Your Numbers   Know where you spend your time.   If your goal is 10 clients per week, that translates to 10 hours per week of coaching, plus 10 hours of review and assessment for total of 20 hours. Know your conversion rate. If your conversion rate is 50%, then calculate how many sales calls per month to meet your goal. Know what your time is worth. If you can make $200 per hour with a client, don’t spend your time doing anything you can hire out for less.  Spending your time scheduling, emailing, making calls, etc., on your own is the same as hiring someone to do those tasks for $200 per hour.   Know which items chew up your time, but are not profitable, and delegate those. Connect With Gaelle:   Website: Gaelle LeCourt Website: Apply for a discovery call today! Join the Facebook Group: Finding yourself abroad; Create your online business Her favorite online tools as a digital nomad: LeCourt's Favorite Tools  

Episode 12 : Purpose Driven Success   Sashka’s unique story began in South Africa, a highly creative and competitive country.  This environment helped Sashka hone in on her innate strengths and desires of becoming a big Hollywood actress.  She’s been in the performing arts industry for over two decades and has loved every minute of it.     Over time, Sashka found an intriguing parallel between successfully promoting her own acting career, and marketing.  Eventually she delved deep into the world of marketing and has created a signature system for branding and marketing .     She teaches that successful branding and marketing begin with finding your life purpose and comes from the inside out, rather than from the outside. Purpose driven success guides you to becoming the best version of yourself and to making the impossible, possible. The Power of Purpose:   Branding and marketing are more powerful when they stem from purpose and from being service-oriented. Purpose maximizes your value to followers and customers. Purpose creates laser-focus in you and strengthens your strategies.   Purpose keeps you on track. Purpose prevents both stumbling blocks and “shiny objects” from swaying you off course. Purpose empowers you to rise above challenges more quickly.   Purpose separates you from the competition and helps you stand out. Purpose creates consistent and authentic messaging across personal and professional platforms.   Defining Your Purpose:   Consider your dreams--they provide an aim which you can work towards becoming.    You have the answers inside;  you just need to ask the right questions. Sample questions to ask yourself: Who are my favorite movie/animation characters?  Why? Which types of characters do I identify with?  Why? What is it that they spark inside of me? What are my core values? What is my inner-burning? What would I love to do to serve others whether I get paid or not? Who is it in the core I want to touch and reach?   More questions and guidance on finding your purpose can be found in Soul'd Out. Write down your thoughts and experiences and recognize the patterns in your life in order to connect with your overall purpose. Be patient. Give yourself time to dig deep and tap into your core values.   Purpose Before Profit   Remember that business and personal life are not two entities; they are one. Align everything in your business and in your life around your purpose. Build your brand, logo, messaging, etc., around your purpose for a more powerful influence on clients and followers. Correlate your purpose with your business, then help customers figure out their purpose and correlate that in an authentic way. People are attracted to your values so show them. Become the tools of the trade rather than just using them. Profit is for everyone-we all want to make money, but focusing on your purpose before the profit will help you find a better way to relate and empower your followers. Look at each person as a purpose instead of as a profit to create more value and build long-term relationships.   Final Thoughts From Sashka:   Get out of your head!   Put everything onto paper.   Thoughts become things. Putting it onto paper helps you manifest what you want and need. Connect With Sashka:   Website: BrandSashka Twitter: Brand By Sashka Facebook: Sashka's Personal Page      Sashka's Business Page Book: Soul'd Out:  A Guide to Finding Your Life Purpose

Episode 11 : Determination & Grit   Meet Michael Kelly, a “Digital Nomad” in Olympia Washington, who literally takes his work on the road.  Michael built Member Vault, a content platform which provides a powerful solution for storing content in one place.  His platform makes it easy for businesses to turn subscribers into buyers, and buyers into loyal clients. This storage solution also serves as a database for resources, freebies, digital textbooks and more.  Michael built his business in response to a noticeable gap in membership course platforms, which he discovered throughout his experience working in the web dev space for over 10 years.     His journey from freelancer, to owning his own web agency, to launching and growing Member Vault grew from a desire for more:  more connection with his clients, more control for implementing creative solutions, and more freedom to perfect his final product.   Michael shares his success story through the lens of two key components: determination and grit. Determination: Be determined to find and follow what fires you up. Michael is a “do-it-yourselfer” which means that building, creating and engineering were important elements for any business venture. One of his frustrations as a freelancer, was the limited ability to provide creative solutions in response to client feedback. Be determined to pivot as necessary. Entrepreneurial journeys evolve through small pivots. Michael kept listening to his client requests and delivered what they asked for instead of what he thought would be cool and exciting for them. “If you build it they will [NOT] come,” it takes more hard work!   You must be determined to build infrastructure for marketing. Start by building long-term relationships.   When people don’t know who you are, there is no trust. Don’t be salesy, instead, be helpful and useful.   Give first to build trust; asking comes later. Provide value, network and engage. Be determined to listen to feedback without your ego.   Even when feedback is harsh (and it will be) do not get defensive.   Take a step back and find the truth in the feedback, then decide what you can do to improve.   Social Proof will come after building relationships. Social proof can be extremely powerful, but it can also be extremely dangerous. Provide value first before ever asking for reciprocity. Grit: Success comes from being able to take in criticism, brush it off and move forward by asking “what did I learn?” Even when you undergo harsh feedback and lose clients, you can learn from it. Remember, feedback is helpful and is not about you, it’s about the product.   Don’t take negative feedback personally. Focus on what you’re good at.   Be honest about what you have and what you don’t have and keep showing up authentically. You can’t be everything to everyone; every client is not your client, and that’s ok! Be transparent about your capabilities and limits- use that as a strength.   Don’t be afraid of transparency. Have the courage to keep showing up. No matter how many times you get knocked down, get back up. Work hard. Final Thoughts From Michael: Don’t take it personally.  It’s not about you.  You can be passionate about something and not take it personally.   Connect With Michael   MemberVault.co : 14 day free trial & free opt in mini-course!   Member Vault Facebook Page Member Vault on Instagram    

Episode 10 : Engaging the World Where They’re At   Bridget Richard’s background is in Social Services. After giving birth to her first child, she knew she wanted to do something more, but wasn’t sure what that would be.  After doing her research, she found a need in her field; caring for the mental and emotional health of teens.     As she transitioned into private practice, she learned that engaging the world where they are at is key to bringing them along the pathway to becoming a client.  As a result, her practice rapidly expanded 3-4 times and today, she has two filled locations with 10 therapists.   Come learn to apply these useful tips in order to “engage the world where they are at” so you, too, can build your audience along your own unique journey. Do Your Research:   Google the topics of interest in your area. Find a gap to fill. Get on the phone and call business which most closely resemble what you’d like to do. Check out their websites, customer experience, etc., to see what is available and what you can improve upon.   Local Marketing and Searchability: Find online advertising forums relating to your field and get connected. Bridget connected to Psychology Today, which is a reputable forum in her field. Local search engines offer free listings so go and claim them. Examples include Bing & yahoo.  Bridget found 20 in her area, claimed them all and updated pictures, contact info and links. Chamber of commerce also gave her a website. Build a website. Wordpress, Wix etc. Just do something.  Get started. Link each platform together and use twitter, pinterest, blogs etc, to boost your searchability. Update regularly to stay fresh and relevant. 70% of Bridget’s business comes from search engines. Connect to local schools and offer to speak to the students on applicable topics. Talk to relevant businesses (in her case, doctors offices) to let them know there’s a face to your name and that you provides legitimate and valuable services.   Do the Hustle: “Say yes, tell the world, then figure it out.” Don’t be afraid to do the work. Don’t wait until you have it “all figured out” either. Go with what you think is possible and what you really are going to do.   If you think you ‘should’ do a website, but it’s too technical and you know you won’t do it, start with a “drag and drop” site like Wix instead of a more technical type of website;  or have someone build one for you. You can do all the research in the world, but you won’t truly understand what it takes to run website, search optimization, etc until you go and do it. You’ll learn as you go. Set goals. Without a goals, urgency, etc, we all procrastinate. Track your progress and evaluate. Get outside of your comfort zone. Unless you feel anxious you’re not doing it right. When we move toward change, we start to feel anxious.   When we feel anxiety we think “that’s anxiety. It’s bad. I need to stop,” but instead frame it as “that’s anticipation.  It means things are building and I need to go.” Pushing through is the difference between success and failure.   Meet Them Where They Are: Network, Hustle and find your target demo. Remember what the customer journey looks like so you can connect with people where they are and meet those needs. Bridget knew her target demo would be in crisis so she put together a clean, simple website which allowed users to access relevant info quickly. Her website provided services listed in 3 simple tabs. Knowing her target demo created a unique customer journey which had been lacking in other websites in her field.   Website must look bigger than you are.   Perception is huge in the decision making process.   When the Going Gets Tough: Bridget’s journey felt like trying to ride a wild horse.. . . she didn’t feel like she was in control, but as she moved forward, she discovered why things worked and didn’t work. To move past doubt and feel more in control, do something proactive. Anytime she has a bad day she asks herself, “What can i do for my business today?”   Remember, it takes time to build that customer journey, to hustle and to connect. Ready fire aim! Throw it up, tell the world then go do it. Keep your purpose front and center and push through it.   If you have the purpose you’ll have the fortitude.   Final Thoughts From Bridget   Remind yourself, “The only thing holding me back is me.”   Other’s opinions and judgments don’t matter, what matters is “if you believe it and dream it, you can do it!”   Connect With Bridget   The Influential Parent Facebook Page: Facebook Lives Wednesdays at 2 PM (EST) theinfluentialparent@gmail.com The Influential Parent Website

Episode 9 : The Importance of Finding a Mentor   Meet content strategist, Jen Sabillon, who specializes in helping entrepreneurs attract clients by producing captivating copy.   Her journey toward entrepreneurship began years ago when she was a school teacher.  Although she loved teaching, Jen felt she wanted something more; more time, more happiness, more passion for life.  After the birth of her 2nd child, she also desired to find a way to be able to stay home with her kids, but she and her husband felt that finances and health insurance would not allow for her to quit her stable job.   After much consideration, and turning to the wisdom of Pinterst, she decided to become a virtual assistant.  Although she had a solid skill set, she did not have experience in this field, and was quickly turned down.  The project manager she had interviewed with, told her she has solid qualifications and much potential.  They continued to stay connected and became friends.  This friendship turned into a mentorship which drew out Jen’s strengths and pushed her first to believe in herself,  and then to take a flying leap into the journey of entrepreneurship.   Today, 8 months after jumping in, Jen has attained more:  she has more time, more happiness and more passion for life. . . . and, she is making more money than she did when she was teaching.   Come and learn as Jen discusses the importance of having a mentor to propel you to the next level in your journey. Why do we need a Mentor?   A mentor helps you find your focus.   Entrepreneurs are often crazy talented so they tend to do too many things with little focus.   A mentor sees your potential and draws it out of you, encourages, and pushes you. A mentor is an accountability partner who keeps you on track and heading in the right direction.   This is a key measuring tool for success. Mentoring is not a one way street. Sometimes we learn more by helping others than just by being their accountability partner. Mentors help open your mind to think bigger, strive harder, and to question more.   What to look for in a mentor:      Personability:  Do you feel like a person to this mentor or do they treat you like just another client on their list? Trust your gut: Does this feel right?  What doesn’t feel good is not good. If it’s the right person, they’ll understand if it’s not right for you. If they try to push things on you, they are definitely not the right person. Can they see in you what you don’t see for yourself? You know what you’re good at, but you don’t always know what you’re awesome at. Finding someone who can pull out your awesome is huge!     A good mentor can take what you’re already good at and help mold you and push you in front of the right people. Will they work on mindset: doubt is an aspect of mindset.   Working on mindset with a mentor will push you beyond what you thought you could do. Success in life is directly correlated to the amount of time you spend in personal development. Mindset comes up all the time, so work on it. Do they recognize that you are new and are willing to help you understand things you don’t understand? Mentors do not need to be expensive. Can be a friend or someone who is already in your life. Look for someone who feels right to you and can provide feedback and mindset boosts.   How does having a mentor help your business grow? Having a mentor is the basis of your networking.   Referrals help your business grow. Mentors can make you more visible and build your confidence because they help you believe that you are good enough and marketable. Having someone ahead of you on the road helps guide you through the process and cuts down the learning curve. Mentors push you farther because you have someone behind you. They become your sounding board to bounce ideas off and give you perspective from steps to take to price points.   Final Thoughts From Jen   You’ve got to find a mentor.  “Without a mentor, I would not be where I am today.” Jen is 8 months into her entrepreneurship journey and is completely booked out and making more money than she did in her stable job, with more financial freedom.     Connect With Jen   Find Jen Sabillon on Facebook Book Clubbing It Up jensabillon@gmail.com  

Episode 8 : Overcoming Procrastination   Ian is the author of Know Thyself and Move Forward, which provides 4 simple steps that guide you through solutions to everyday problems.  Ian has learned that the easiest way to overcome procrastination is to truly understand yourself and continually evaluate where you are and where you want to go.   The analogy of a pilot illustrates that it’s important to know where you started in relation to where you are heading.  A pilot must constantly readjust to stay on course, and so must we as we work toward our goals and dreams.   How to Overcome Procrastination:   Know where are you now. Understand where you want to go. Determine if you’re a visual, auditory, or kinesthetic learner. For visual learners: focus on images. Auditory learners: focus on sounds, music or quotes. Kinesthetic learners: get up and go through the motion.   Be honest with yourself and feel the purpose as a whole. Establish your starting point. Evaluate where the gap is from where you are to where you want to end up. Evaluate how to close that gap in order to attain the goal, from your point of view. Evaluate Internal Coherence.   There are 7 layers of life experience;  from your deep purpose to how we are in our environment and how we interact. There’s the science of achievement and the art of fulfilment. Focus on science of achievement to build your own steps and achieve objectives. Keep evaluating and make sure you are still aligned with your goals as you progress in order to achieve the art of fulfilment. Final Thoughts From Ian   There’s the saying that the entrepreneur works 80 hours per week so that he’s not stuck in a job working 40 hours a week, but remember that every second is so worth it!   Open up, serve and everything else will show up.   Contact Ian   www.ianrenaud.com

Meet “The Traveling Introvert,” Janice Chaka.  Born in England and well traveled, but she has lived in Mexico for over 13 years. After learning what being an introvert is and recognizing how that influences her daily life, she weaved this knowledge into her own business, which focuses on helping others shed the labels which society defines introversion to be.  Instead of letting “being an introvert define [you]” she inspire others to instead, “let it guide [you].” http://thetravelingintrovert.com   As an Introvert, Know That:   It’s ok to change your mind or do something else. Your passion isn’t always what makes you money. Find something you enjoy doing, but it doesn’t have to be your passion. Be mindful of what drains you and what fuels you.   Introversion is Misunderstood: Cambrige definition of introvert has negative connotations and is described as being “shy or having difficulty making friends.” This is not true! Introversion/Extroversion is a case of how you get your energy. Introverts need to have time to themselves to refuel so energy levels can increase. Being with people drains introverts. Extroverts get energy from being with people.   Struggles and Solutions For  Introverts: Know what introversion is an pay attention to how it influences you. Consider spreading out those draining activities to fit in other aspects of work which fuel you. Networking can be draining. Janice figured out how to network as an introvert, and then wrote a book entitled: Events for Introverts:  The How-to-Guide to Networking You don’t have to stay the whole time. Make a plan, know who you want to talk to, make that connection, then leave when you’re done. Selling can feel aggressive and annoying to have to push yourself and your business on others. Janice accidentally discovered that being a speaker at events brought people to her with questions so she could discuss her topic rather than go out of her way to discuss it with others.   Strengths in Business   Remember that everyone has strengths so do not define your strengths (or weaknesses) as an introvert or an extrovert.  Define them as they are in you as a person.   Be humble enough to know and inquire what your weaknesses are. Ask your best friend and also, someone who’s not so close to you to tell you your strengths, weaknesses and points of improvement. Knowing your weaknesses can become a strength because you can learn and grow in that area.   Building Your Business   Let people know what you do.   Most feel like a fake because they don’t have 10 or 20 years experience and are used to others (teachers, employers) telling them what to do. Allow your job title to be viewed by public on facebook Set up FB business page Twitter Utilize free platforms and work on them Take the pressure off of yourself Success is individual-you must define what success is to you. Set your own goals. Don’t follow other’s goals Invest in yourself by learning and trying new things to build your skills Find the right clients for you Take time to understand which clients you work best with Not everyone is your client Don’t be afraid to fire clients Vocalize your ideas to a friend or fellow business owner in order to understand them and see how viable they are   Final Thoughts From Janice   The struggle is real, but more important than introversion/extroversion, is personality. All personalities are valid and different Remember that introvert tendencies are not a bad thing.   Learn to work with them and embrace them. Stick to your guns and fire bad clients Self care Be ok with who you are and don’t try to be someone else.   Your journey will be unique, but beautiful!   Contact Janice   Email introvert@thetravelingintrovert.com Thetravelingintrovert podcast Thecareerintrovert.com

Russell’s skill set and experience turned his dad’s management business into a full scale company, which has grown to manage resorts and a variety of other properties, and is now considered a “big fish” in the industry.   This passion and success prompted the creation of  “Big Fish,” a digital and online marketing agency that teaches you how to become a big fish in your small pond, just as he did.  Once you do that, moving into larger markets is much easier to accomplish.   Pick Your Passion Consider what you’re good at What do people ask you for help with? What do you really love?  If you like it, there will be others who like the same thing Find that passion first   Build Authority Around Your Passion Write articles about your passion, simple 500 word articles Submit free articles to magazines, newspapers, etc., just ask them to put your name on it Link self to your articles on social media Have your pictures taken at any event or meeting where you are interacting with others, speaking etc. Seek out and take any interviews.   Connect with others you have followed or learned from and who have a larger audience   Social Listening Set up free advice portal/website Do not sell anything Only free content for 6-12 months Listen to what people are asking for. Build product around what people need, not what you can provide Offer free consultations Instead of growing organic following, which is not location specific, promote via fb ads in local market.   Target locally and understand it’s a bidding process. You get better chance of winning bid in local area when place ads in front of  small market.   Russell’s “Trust Funnel” Technique Free content first, build trust, be that authority Create engagement via article writing Amplify with ad dollars Lead audience to free articles, build value via remarketing and retargeting to other articles Then followers will convert to fans bc they’ve spent time with you Only with your fans, put a small lead magnet on thank you page after they have given email to down load Remarket even if they haven’t purchased.   Final Thoughts: Always find ways to build self up as an expert “If you want to be successful you have to portray an image of success.”   Take pictures: give first, but make sure that giving doesn’t go unnoticed. Build followers, convert to fans, convert fans to customer. Russell took 10 months to get his first 5 euro sale Don’t become disheartened, keep trying and pushing.  It’s a process.  It takes years to become an overnight success Russell Offer to You: Free Webinar training session to cover these details Free PDF checklist which shows how to design trust based sales funnel, including stages and tools, and coming up with content ideas, etc Access these offers at: www.beabigfish.online/ryan

Josh Cary, founder of Petsittingology, comes from the acting and filmmaking industry.  He built a community there and has been drawn to building online communities, websites, and understanding how to build solid businesses online.  He knows what it takes to make a business grow and flourish and shares with us the 3 W’s of how to build your community online.   His latest venture began in 2009, when he found a gap in the professional pet care space.  He figured out how to fill that gap with his expertise by providing pet care businesses with a powerful way to grow through professional websites, ranking well in google, SEO, etc.  That is often not a business owner’s strength, but it is his.

Holly was a fitness and wellness coordinator at a university. She was previously diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease, but had managed it the best she could when her health suddenly spiraled and tanked.  She spent 4 months in the hospital, where her doctor told her repeatedly to thank ‘the man upstairs,” because she got there just in time.  She would not have been around had she waited another day.     She made a difficult decision to quit her job and get her health back in order.  After losing her health, her job, and the world she knew in Virginia, she recognized that she had nothing else to lose.  Once her health was back on track, it was time to follow her dream of being a wellness coach.  A coach who would teach others to lead a healthy lifestyle beyond nutrition and exercise.  Through tapping into the deeper parts of health and wellness, she helps her clients strengthen their resolve to keep learning and to live vibrantly, no matter what they face.

Melissa spent 10 years in the advertising industry as an account executive who specialized in branding, marketing, sales, etc.  The “9-5” started to grow exhausting so she found her own way to cut out the middle-man and began a social media and marketing business.   Over time she found that she was doing more than just SM management and marketing.  She was showing businesses how to take a systematic and organized approach to their business in order to help them find the holes in their business and increase efficiency in order to maximize profits.    Using a systematic approach to maximize profitability How to identify steps: Take a step back and look at things from a high level Identify everything you do in a day Be Specific, pretend a new employee will be running your business while you’re away, or talk to a friend who will ask questions. Get clear on tasks Assign each task into one of 3 “Business Buckets” 1) Sales and Marketing Bucket 2) Clients/Customers--meetings, paperwork, emails, calls, etc 3) Policies, Procedures & Operations Identify a system: Evaluate one bucket at a time and batch like items together Example: Meetings, note taking and inputting into CRM would be a batch Work outside of meetings would be another batch, etc. Put batches in order sequentially and list amount of time it takes to complete Reevaluate batches and remove unnecessary tasks and tasks you don’t do. Wash, Rinse, Repeat: After working through one bucket Keep practicing, evaluating, and improving, then move onto the next bucket and continue process.  Continue evaluating and tracking to optimize efficiency You can’t improve what you don’t measure Get to know what type of person you are and how you work Are you a pen and paper person? Does trello work for you or a personal planner, etc?  The system of tracking must flow well with your work style and personality or it won’t stick Find what works for you. Be patient. It’s impossible to jump into a complete makeover.  Take baby sets to acclimate to the process so you can stick with the changes and see the improvement. With Melissa, this process of systematizing takes about 8 weeks with some follow up afterwards Final words of advice: Don’t be hard on yourself. Take baby steps.  Be happy with your progress and don’t compare yourself to others. So many people give up just before they become successful so don’t give up! Special offer: Visit com/strategicsocialpartners Special-45 minute free consultation to address single most important challenge/struggle in your business at this point.   Example: Photographer working like a dog, but feels like the product is delivered late, working late hours, clients happy with product but don’t come back. Photographer had not defined the process from start to finish. She did not know how long each step actually took or where her clients were in the process. She guessed from consultation to delivery would take about one month, turns out it was a 6-8 week process. A board for her pipeline was created so she can track and give a realistic timeline before taking on new clients in order to deliver in the time she promises and keep clients happy.

Kerry has a Doctorate in Physical therapy.  She loved what she did and loved her coworkers, but felt a tug on her heart that led her outside the walls of the clinic.  Each step she took created more clarity and purpose and today, she owns a Mindset and Performance Coaching Company.  She helps people get clear about their strengths, passions, and what they want their lives to be like so they can create the work and life they absolutely love.   How do I begin? Discover the false objectives in your life: Goals you’re working toward achieving that don’t align with who you are at the core.   What in your life has been scripted for you from external/societal pressures that you are not passionate about?   What if I don’t know exactly what I want? Start by removing from your life what you know you don’t want.   Disassociate from things that do not inspire or enliven you.   What is a scripted life? Living live by doing roughly the same thing every day just because that is what you are doing.   It’s hard to feel passionate about life if you’re living a “treadmill life.” Peel back what you’re not passionate about to give room for what you truly are passionate about.   How do I remove the script?  According to Ben Hardy, productivity researcher, the average American checks their cell phone 150 times/day and spends 9 yrs of their life checking facebook/watching tv.   Start by decreasing the amount of time you spend consuming other people’s material and thoughts so you have room in your head to think about what lights you up, what inspires you.   Cut back on being constantly plugged in. If all you did was read 2 pages of positive material each night and morning, your day would be that much more productive.   Before going to bed-have tentative schedule for next day.  “Tell your time where to go”.   Be intentional with use of time, don’t let your time get used up.     Morning routine--Begin Your Day With Purpose.  The 10 minute  GETUP Plan Small GETUP changes that will drastically alter your business and their trajectory. Gratitude Envision your goals Today’s why-why are you doing what you’re going to do today Unstoppable Body Purpose driven action-what adds value, depth, connection in your life   What do I put in my daily plan? Do one thing every day that scares you.  Elanore Roosevelt Eat a live frog first thing in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day. -- Mark Twain Ask yourself:   What is my frog?   When am I going to eat it? Life beings at the end of your comfort zone   Shifting from the Corporate infrastructure to the Journey of Entrepreneurship Corporate infrastructure: People tell us where to be, when to meet, when to email etc. Others tell us what to do. Entrepreneurship:   No one calls the shots for you, but you. You pave the way. You feel lost. .. .now what?   Design your life, design your day: It’s all about building your plane as you fly, but if we never knew what a plane looked like, we’d never know how to build it. Studying people who’ve done what you aspire to do is the fastest shortcut to getting there.    Someone has probably done something similar and that means there’s a market for you so it’s a good thing! What are their habits? What are their income producing activities? Set up your day with some idea of structure. Example: “Connect and Collaborate” on Thursdays.  Have a Marketing day, studying day, etc..   Some tasks take less time, some take more, tweak it as you go. Ready, fire, aim--specific income producing activities that we must stay focused on and aim towards.     How do I know when to charge for my idea or skill? Most of the time you don’t make money right away, may need to work for free to prove your concept.   When your clients get results, then you can start charging for your service. Validate your idea first:  Get clients, validate your idea.   Don’t keep making stuff for your business without clients to validate it. Generate revenue and reinvest into your business.   Adapt to the market People will consume info that is applicable to them.   Provide as much value as you can to begin with. Only after results, then you set your prices. Listen to your audience, they will tell you what they want.  Lots of people have same concerns. Reverse engineer process.  Ask questions, listen, then solve problems and solve   From scripted to unscripted.  From being told what to do to creating what you want to do. Clarity comes from taking action. As you act, then you hone in on your focus, your skills, and find your unscripted life!   Connect with Kerry--www.kerrypetsinger.com

Welcome to the Journey of the Entrepreneur podcast. I’m so glad you’re here with us. In the world of entrepreneurship, we all take a unique path, our own journey, and sometimes in that journey we find bits and pieces of information, and valuable education along the way that can be implemented into our journey, but the final picture is still somewhat unclear.  This podcast is structured to take the pieces of the puzzle and put them together to create an incredibly beautiful picture.