A Dealmaker's DNA with Ilan Jacobson

By Ilan Jacobson

Why are entrepreneurs driven to do what they do? Put in endless hours and endure countless failures in pursuit of their dreams. Ilan Jacobson is one of those entrepreneurs. He's built businesses in se... more

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FAQs about A Dealmaker's DNA with Ilan Jacobson:

How many episodes does A Dealmaker's DNA with Ilan Jacobson have?

The podcast currently has 62 episodes available.

A Dealmaker's DNA with Ilan Jacobson episodes:

June 03, 2022Episode 61: Allen Lau
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.

Topics Discussed in This Episode
Allen’s origin story and what led to his entrepreneurial journey
How an introvert can be a leader or entrepreneur
What Allen’s startup journey looked like
What happened after Allen left IBM
How Wattpad came to be
What network effect means and what people get wrong about it
When Allen transitioned Wattpad from a mobile reading app
The first lessons Allen learned about really high growth
Why some people are great at storytelling but others are not

Related Links
Allen Lau
...more
32min
May 17, 2022Episode 60: John Asher
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.

Topics Discussed in This Episode
John’s origin story
How John’s childhood growing up on a farm shaped him
How John was taught to self-teach
Why John decided to study accounting
When John concluded that accounting wasn’t for him
What big companies do well
Why John decided to move into the world of startup tech
What Konfidis is all about
The big goal for Konfidis
What John is seeing gain traction in the proptech world
Sorting through the different factors that affect housing
Shifts in who owns residential real estate in Canada

Related Links

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.”
...more
35min
May 10, 2022Episode 59: Michael Brown
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.

Topics Discussed in This Episode
Michael’s origination story
Where Michael’s hustle came from
Understanding the value of a dollar
What Michael did after high school and studying abroad
Why Michael decided to go into the kinds of companies he did
Whether Michael’s background in mechanics impacts his entrepreneurial career
Michael’s purpose right now
What Michael wants his legacy to be

Related Links

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.”
...more
32min
May 03, 2022Episode 58: Drew Green
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.

Topics Discussed in This Episode
Drew’s origin story
How to build a child’s confidence
Lessons that can be learned from fear
How to hack the skillset for meeting and connecting with people
What Drew’s first few years as an entrepreneur looked like
Drew’s thesis for what he’s doing and how he spends his time
What Drew learned about finding fraud
Why gratitude is so important
Embracing the feeling of uncomfortableness
Economic themes to double down on today

Related Links

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."
...more
38min
April 12, 2022Episode 57: Mo Lidsky
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
What Mo’s early life was like
Mo’s first business
Mo’s view on whether success boils down to nature or nurture
Times when some influence or shift changed Mo’s trajectory
Mo’s views on self-awareness
Tools that young people can use to figure out what they should be doing
How Mo puts his ideas into practice with his children
Tools that promote alignment among the most critical people in the organization
How Mo got into his current business
What Mo loves about what he does
What is enough
How philanthropy has influenced Mo’s non-philanthropic ventures
...more
46min
April 05, 2022Episode 56: Sean Morrison
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.

Topics Discussed in This Episode
What Sean does
Sean’s childhood and background
The value of transparency
The ways to hack the skillsets of door-knocking and cold-calling
Sean’s CFO role and what came after that
Sean’s desire to use his fact-based sales pitch skills
Sean’s idea for a top-line royalty fund
When Diversified Royalty Group really got started
How the advisory council Sean was a part of connected to Boston Pizza
Lessons Sean learned from dealing with the government in 2008
What Sean thinks about government spending in the past few years
The best way to find Sean online

Related Links

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?”
...more
37min
March 29, 2022Episode 55: Rob Normandeau
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.

Topics Discussed in This Episode
What Seafort Capital does
Where Rob grew up and what his childhood looked like
Where Rob’s law degree came in
When Rob thought about leaving law
The transition to a publicly listed company
Why Rob left Clarke
Rob’s move to Halifax
How Rob ended up starting a private equity firm
Why Rob wanted to expand
Where the name Seafort Capital came from
What it means to partner with entrepreneurs
Whether money is a good motivator
Good motivators for Rob
What Rob has learned about the East Coast
What Rob thinks about the future of his industry

Related Links

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.”
...more
31min
March 22, 2022Episode 54: Christen Daniels
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.

Topics Discussed in This Episode
What Christen’s childhood looked like and how she ended up where she is
Christen’s experience studying in another language
Why Christen says she’s not a natural risk-taker
Why Christen wrote for the LSAT
When Christen decided to focus on corporate law
The psychology of transactions
What Georgian does
Recommendations Christen has for entering her field
Defining and building community
Christen’s view on the future of evaluations

Related Links

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.”
...more
36min
March 15, 2022Episode 53: Julie MacDonnell
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.

Topics Discussed in This Episode
Where Julie is from and what her upbringing was like
When the chip on your shoulder goes from positive to negative
The role that accelerators and incubators played in Julie’s journey
The importance of taking the right money
How to start finding a network
Starting relationships with an authentic desire to get to know each other
Metaverse IP law
Areas of law that young lawyers should be paying attention to right now
Why Julie believes that giving back matters

Related Links

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.:
...more
34min
March 08, 2022Episode 52: Josh Garellek
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.

Topics Discussed in This Episode
How Josh grew up, what he’s like, and what he’s doing
Whether Josh got his entrepreneurial instincts from his home growing up
Whether Josh’s frat played a role in shaping his entrepreneurship
The reaction Josh got when he went to work for PornHub
Why the adult industry is an early adopter of new tech
What interests Josh about the concept of partnerships and relationships
What Josh has done to identify his strengths and double down on what he’s good at
What e-commerce brands get right and wrong
What brand is really effective
How seriously brands are taking the Metaverse
What Josh is doing with his children to mitigate online risks
What brands need to do to evolve over the next 15-20 years
How Josh would advise a young person entering the marketing space

Related Links

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.”
...more
38min

FAQs about A Dealmaker's DNA with Ilan Jacobson:

How many episodes does A Dealmaker's DNA with Ilan Jacobson have?

The podcast currently has 62 episodes available.