Travis Makes Money

674: Ryan Wenger | How to Know When to Pivot


Listen Later

As an entrepreneur, you know that the key to the success of any venture or project is knowing when it’s time to pivot and being intentional about it. Ryan Wenger, LA Magazine featured ‘superlawyer’ turned travel business innovator, is the Founder and CEO of WhereTo, a travel business manager for travel business managers.

Ryan is on a mission to make traveling cheaper and easier for all people. He has raised over $10 million in venture capital, brought together a team of world class engineers and executives, and helped build two platforms used by millions, one of which was acquired by Flight Centre.

Let’s dig into this episode and learn more from Ryan about how to know when it’s time to pivot, and how to do it effectively. 

Things you will learn in this episode: 

[00:01 - 07:12] Opening Segment  

  • I introduce today’s guest, Ryan Wenger
  • Want better interviews? Go to Guestio.com 
  • Ryan gives us some background on his story
  • Growing up in Woodstock, New York
  • Parents’ career and lifestyle
  • High School experience
  • College experience 
  • Going into Law

  • [07:13 - 18:04] How to Know When to Pivot

    • Ryan shares about his experience transitioning from law
    • Always experimental at heart
    • The inspiration to go into ‘travel’
    • Getting investors through telling stories
    • Building a new platform 
    • Building and launching process 
    • Getting passed the learning curves 
    • The story of going viral and getting millions of users
    • Getting key partnerships 
    • How to know when to pivot 
    • A glaringly obvious point 
    • Put your problems into perspective
    • A word from our sponsors 

    • [18:05 - 26:44] How to Pivot Well

      • Getting into uncomfortable positions to move forward 
      • The key to success 
      • Playing the numbers game 
      • How relationships come into play 
      • Being a good networker 
      • Ryan’s partnership experience 
      • The levels of investors 
      • How to know when to hand over leadership
      • Knowing when someone can do a better job

      • [26:45 - 34:34] Closing Segment

        • What’s next for Ryan?
        • Getting acquired by Flight Centre 
        • Merging strengths 
        • Seeing it all stand on its own 
        • Who you know or what you know?
        • Your network is what helps or hurts your company 
        • It’s ok to start from zero if you put in the work
        • ThE RanDoM RoUnD
        • How to engage with Ryan
        • Links below 
        • Final words 



        • Tweetable Quotes: 

          “I loved jumping into ideas and seeing if I could bring them to light.” - Ryan Wenger

          “You have to take an honest look at your problems and think about the pivot opportunity and weigh the cost and the benefits.” - Ryan Wenger

          Resources Mentioned: 


          • WhereTo
          • WhereFor
          • The Lean Startup
          • The Art of the Start

          • Connect and engage with Ryan on LinkedIn and Twitter. Check out https://ryanwenger.com/ to get your hands on some more awesome content and tips.

            Did you love the value that we are putting out in the show? LEAVE A REVIEW and tell us what you think about the episode so we can continue putting out great content just for you! Share this episode and help someone who wants to connect with world-class people. 

            Jump on over to travischappell.com/makemypodcast and let my team make you your very own show!

            If you want to learn how to build YOUR network, check out my website travischappell.com. You can connect with me on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Be sure to join The Lounge to become part of the community that’s setting up REAL relationships that add value and create investments.



            Check out FranBridge Consulting for premier non-food franchise opportunities: travischappell.com/franbridge

            Our Sponsors:
            * Check out Kinsta: https://kinsta.com

            Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

            ...more
            View all episodesView all episodes
            Download on the App Store

            Travis Makes MoneyBy Travis Chappell

            • 4.3
            • 4.3
            • 4.3
            • 4.3
            • 4.3

            4.3

            374 ratings


            More shows like Travis Makes Money

            View all
            The Clark Howard Podcast by Clark Howard

            The Clark Howard Podcast

            5,392 Listeners

            Stuff You Should Know by iHeartPodcasts

            Stuff You Should Know

            77,311 Listeners

            The Joe Rogan Experience by Joe Rogan

            The Joe Rogan Experience

            223,592 Listeners

            The Amy Porterfield Show by Amy Porterfield

            The Amy Porterfield Show

            4,581 Listeners

            The School of Greatness by Lewis Howes

            The School of Greatness

            21,186 Listeners

            The Model Health Show by Shawn Stevenson

            The Model Health Show

            7,349 Listeners

            Pod Save America by Crooked Media

            Pod Save America

            86,145 Listeners

            The Daily by The New York Times

            The Daily

            111,123 Listeners

            Huberman Lab by Scicomm Media

            Huberman Lab

            28,408 Listeners

            On The Market by BiggerPockets

            On The Market

            893 Listeners