Share A Dealmaker's DNA with Ilan Jacobson
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By Ilan Jacobson
The podcast currently has 62 episodes available.
How does a person become an entrepreneur in the entertainment verticals? Today’s guest can share his experience. Allen Lau is the executive advisor for WEBTOON and Wattpad. He’s a serial entrepreneur, a speaker, and an authority on entrepreneurship, the innovation economy, and the benefits of a diverse workforce. He’s also a leader in Canada’s tech community.
Listen to the episode to hear what Allen has to say about how an introvert can succeed as an entrepreneur and leader, how Wattpad came to be in the first place, and what lessons Allen has learned about very high growth.
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Allen Lau
There are a lot of buzzwords out there. One that you may or may not be familiar with is “proptech” what does it mean? You’ll learn more about it by listening to today’s guest, John Asher. John is the president and co-founder of Konfidis. Listen to the episode to hear what John knows about self-teaching, what brought him to the world of startup tech, and what Konfidis is all about.
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John Asher
Konfidis
Quotes From the Show
“You’ve got to put in the work if you ever actually want to see output.”
“This company is my midlife crisis, how about that?”
“Whatever happens in the U.S. seems to find its way to Canada eventually.”
Why are you working? That’s something that Michael Brown has been thinking about lately: what he’s working for and what his legacy is going to be.
In today’s episode, you’ll hear from Michael Brown, the CEO and co-founder of Swept. Michael has a somewhat unusual background as an entrepreneur and has managed to do many different things with it. Listen in to hear what Michael has to say about where he got the motivation and determination to hustle, why he decided to go into the kinds of companies he chose, and what his background as a mechanic has to do with his entrepreneurial career.
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Michael Brown
Quotes From the Show
“My summer was very different from everybody else’s”
“It’s very rare to have a professor who’s actually done it, successfully, who is teaching you. One of her classes is: You have to start a business for $10”
“I want to work hard so I can give more.”
When Drew started out, he had goals of creating things and finding good people to work with, and he’s managed to achieve those goals and more. He’s the CEO and president of INDOCHINO and a serial entrepreneur, and today he brings his story to the podcast.
Listen to the episode to hear what Drew has to say about building confidence from childhood, learning lessons from fear, and connecting with people in an authentic way that’s not all about networking.
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Drew Green
Quotes From the Show
“Luckily, I just had the most wonderful grandparents in the world.”
“In order to grow, in order to make stuff happen, there has to be movement.”
“I don’t want to meet people inauthentically.”
"I’ve embraced the desire to be uncomfortable, because when you’re uncomfortable you have to figure things out, you have to solve, you have to create."
Today we revisit an interview with Mo Lidsky that took place in early 2020. Mo is the CEO of Prime Quadrant and is a man with many accomplishments. He is an entrepreneur, an investor, advisor, and author. In a replay of this episode, Mo takes the time to explain how he got to where he is today and what his views are on nature vs. nurture. Listen to the episode to hear what Mo has to say about self-awareness, inspiring children, and promoting alignment among critical people inside of an organization.
Topics Discussed in This Episode
Today’s guest invented the concept of the top-line royalty fund after years of experience in his field. He explains today that entrepreneurship is just in his DNA.
Sean Morrison is the President and CEO of Diversified Royalty Corporation. In more than 20 years working with franchises and finance, he has a lot to say about his experiences, skills, and how he’s operated in various roles. Listen to the episode to hear what Sean has to say about transparency, how to access skillsets related to door-knocking and cold-calling in the modern environment, and how he developed the idea of a top-line royalty fund.
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Sean Morrison
Diversified Royalty Corporation
Quotes From the Show
“I think entrepreneurialism has always been in my DNA.”
“I’ve always wanted to be the institutional salesperson versus the retail salesperson, and the institutional one has to have a fact-based sales pitch.”
“I would say that if they didn’t spray the firehose, we would have been doomed. Did they overspray? Of course, cause it’s not their money, who wouldn’t overspray?”
What drives a person to begin a private equity firm? How do you come up with a name for a business like that or work with partners within it? These are all topics that today’s guest will touch on in his interview.
Listen to the episode to hear from Rob Normandeau as he discusses his degree and previous business experiences, what it’s like to partner with other entrepreneurs, and whether money is the best motivator, as well as what other types of effective motivators for success exist, as Rob discuss his journey, his business, and the future of his industry.
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Rob Normandeau
Seafort Capital
Quotes From the Show
“I used to always joke that since I studied law, I wanted to get admitted, do my articles, and get admitted so that my mom could tell the ladies at Bingo her son was a lawyer, and then I could move onto business which I thought was more interesting.”
“What we recognized from the start was that if we were successful, if this thing really grew and developed, we would reach a point where it made sense to bring in other investors.”
“It’s important to try to aspire to success and to wealth, but you can’t be short-term in your thinking.”
Firepower Capital – Christen Daniels
What does a head of customer success and corporate development do? What is it like to work for a fintech company? Today’s guest is Christen Daniels, and she’s the Head of Customer Success & Corporate Development at the fintech company, Georgian.
Listen to the episode to hear what Christen has to say about how she ended up in this position, why she’s not a natural risk-taker, how she thinks about risk, and what she has to say about the psychology of transactions.
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Christen Daniels
Georgian
[email protected]
Quotes From the Show
“I like having a clarity of path, a clarity of purpose, kind of understanding how the pieces are going to come together, and having a little bit of certainty.”
“It was really clear to me that I’m fairly passionate about transactions.”
“Deals are really different when you own the results.”
What do you know about the intellectual property laws in the Metaverse? Probably not much, but somebody has to, right? Julie MacDonnell is an intellectual property lawyer by trade, which is a more traditional field, but she’s doing things to disrupt that space.
Listen in to learn about Julie’s company, Halloo, what roles that she believes accelerators and incubators have played in her journey and why she recommends them to others, and why she believes that giving back is so important.
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Julie MacDonnell
Halloo
Quotes From the Show
“I’ve got this theory that many problems, business problems even, should be approached through a trauma lens.
“Any accelerator program that gives you money and doesn’t take equity, I strongly, strongly encourage.”
“The barrier to entrepreneurship is so, so low, because what we’re selling and trading and buying in this space is intellectual property.:
How does someone wind up going from a Jewish private school and university, to working in the adult entertainment industry, tp becoming a serial entrepreneur?
Josh Garellek is the co-founder of Arctic Leaf Inc and PartnerPortal.io. He’s interested in teamwork, passion, and camaraderie, bringing people who share those things and what they can do together, and how partnerships and relationships affect business and brands. Listen to the episode to hear what Josh has to say about his role in bringing a fraternity to his university and how frat life affected his entrepreneurial path, how Josh identifies his strengths and plays to them, and what Josh thinks about the Metaverse and online risks to children.
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Josh Garellek
Josh on Twitter
Josh on Instagram
Arctic Leaf
Partner Portal
Quotes From the Show
“I like sitting down and playing video games with a console controller and all that stuff, but to build the games just wasn’t fun for me.”
“Fun fact about the adult entertainment industry is that they created online transactions.”
“We’ve gotten to that point where the brand is bigger than my name.”
The podcast currently has 62 episodes available.