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Hello, and welcome back to the Bulletproof Entrepreneur podcast, the first of 2024.

We’ve  got something special for you to kick off the New Year!

‘Bitconned” is currently one of the top shows streaming on Netflix around the world is and it features my guest Ray Trapani.

It tells the story of 3 young hustlers who get caught up in the murky world of crypto investing and ultimately create a criminal enterprise and make millions.

There are so many twists and turns, and if it were a fictional story, you’d dismiss it as being too far-fetched to be believable, but it's true and it’s quite extraordinary. 

Frankly, our conversation is a warning to anyone thinking of investing in cryptocurrency. 

To hear from someone who spent years deeply involved in the shady chat rooms and learn how he was able to manipulate the system should be enough to put you off going anywhere near it - or at the very least, doing lot of research before you part with a penny 

And make sure it’s money you can afford to lose - as there is a good chance you will.

Consider this a public service announcement and share it with anyone who is considering getting involved.

• Early in our conversation, Ray candidly shares a traumatic childhood experience that had a huge impact on the man he became and the life choices he made.
• We discussed the role that Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) has on the market and why people see prices going up (often artificially through market manipulation) and are desperate not to miss out.
• We explore the role of celebrity endorsements and so-called finfluencers - if you see a celebrity endorsing any financial product, view that as a red flag and give it a miss.
• Ray shares exactly how he invests his money now as an insider who knows about crypto and what goes on in that market. - you may be surprised by his advice
• After everything he’s experienced, his own personal definition of true wealth that he shares towards the end is profound.

From Long Island, New York, ladies and gentlemen, I give you Mr Ray Trapani.

Netflix - https://www.netflix.com/gb/title/81507283 

Connect with Ray https://linktr.ee/raytrapani

This podcast is produced by GR Media
Sponsored by Capital Asset Management

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Most business owners that I know aren't entirely focused on making money or on the financial rewards, but nevertheless, creating economic security for you and your family is a vital part of why you started your business in the first place.

So whether you sell your business in the future or simply use it as a vehicle to build your personal wealth, having some deep insight into the world of money and financial success can never be underestimated.

So, I couldn't think of anyone better to round off the year than our guest, Victor Haghani. 

His background and experience are highly impressive.

From graduating from the London School of Economics through his time in investment banking on Wall Street, he was a founding member of one of the most celebrated hedge funds in the world, Long Term Capital Management.

After that blew up in spectacular fashion, he went on to try numerous different roles and is an entrepreneur who knows the ups and downs of business life intimately.

As Victor explains during our conversation, he's made money, he's lost money, and he truly identifies with what it takes to be a successful entrepreneur, both from a financial viewpoint and also from a business and personal one.

He’s recently published a fabulous book called The Missing Billionaires, and I recommend it as part of your essential toolkit for understanding the important aspects of personal wealth.

It’s often said that keeping money is harder than making money, and the numbers that he quotes are staggering.

It seems that the vast majority of the wealth that successful entrepreneurs have created over the last hundred years or so has disappeared for multiple reasons.

He explains some of the key strategies and tactics that you can embrace in order to preserve wealth within your family, both now and for future generations.

He also shares a fascinating experiment that concluded that most of us, even experienced professionals, struggle with basic decision-making principles around money and risk.

Towards the end of our conversation, Victor breaks down the precise steps you should take to make smart decisions with your money.

Links:

The Missing Billionaires: A Guide to Better Financial Decisions

The Little Book of Common Sense Investing: The Only Way to Guarantee Your Fair Share of Stock Market Returns (Little Books. Big Profits)

The Four Pillars of Investing, Second Edition: Lessons for Building a Winning Portfolio

Where Are the Customers' Yachts? or A Good Hard Look at Wall Street: 32 (Wiley Investment Classics)

Beneficiary, The: Fortune, Misfortune, and... by Scott, Janny

Where are all the Billionaires? & Why should We Care?: Victor Haghani at TEDxSPS

This podcast is produced by GR Media
Sponsored by Capital Asset Management

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I was in Cape Town a couple of months ago, speaking at a conference, and I was in the audience to witness one of the best keynote speeches I’ve ever seen, certainly the best keynote on the subject of entrepreneurship.

The speaker was Bruce Whitfield, who is a big-name broadcaster in South Africa, hosts his own daily business show and is a writer, journalist, podcaster, and incredible storyteller.

During his career, he’s met with, interviewed, and spent time with some of the best business builders, creators, and successful entrepreneurs on the planet, so he’s ideally placed to share what he views as the characteristics essential for success in business.

• He talks about the importance of optimism and looking for strategic opportunities even during the most challenging times.
• The lessons we can all learn from Dr Seuss and how to create solutions to problems
• He shares the incredible journey of Nandos and its co-founder Robbie Brozin and what it took to build a global business with over 1200 outlets in 30 countries- some brilliant insights from an incredible entrepreneur.

Towards the end, Bruce explains the vital importance of leadership in business and how the most successful business leaders approach the role.

Packed full of stories and anecdotes involving business rock stars such as Richard Branson, Jeff Bezos, and Elon Musk, and even Nelson Mandela and the Dalai Lama!

If you fancy eavesdropping on an inspirational conversation during these challenging times, you will enjoy this episode.

From Cape Town, South Africa, via London, ladies and gentlemen, I give you Mr. Bruce Whitfield.

Links:

https://www.brucewhitfield.com/

https://twitter.com/brucebusiness

This podcast is produced by GR Media
Sponsored by Capital Asset Management

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In my ‘day job’, when I speak with entrepreneurs and ask them what their single biggest financial concern is once they sold their business and received a capital sum, the answer is often ‘I don't want to lose it  - I don’t want to mess this up!’ 

So I started this podcast as a resource for founders and business owners - those who’ve taken the leap, created a business and are now in the process of growing it or possibly already sold and exited.

Anyone who’s started a business knows how difficult it can be,  and if you manage to navigate the inevitable rollercoaster ride that being an entrepreneur involves and created some economic success, the last thing you want to do is be exposed to unnecessary risks.

That's why I was delighted to invite Dave Butler to share his wisdom with our community.

Dave is the CEO of what I've often called The Best Kept Secret in Investment - Dimensional Fund Advisors and is one of the smartest people in finance.

I’ve had the pleasure of meeting him several times and I can tell you that he’s a deeply thoughtful guy, super high integrity and incredibly passionate about helping investors succeed.

During our conversation he explained his journey from playing pro basketball through his early days on Wall Street and now leading Dimensional  - and the lessons he’s learned along the way, such as:

• Why business owners with money to invest should be wary of hiring a specific type of fund manager or wealth adviser.
• The three essential areas you must focus on to maximise your chances of long-term investment success.
• His checklist of essential attributes to look for if you plan to hire a wealth adviser or money manager.

Towards the end, after over 30 years in the money management business, and now running a company that manages hundreds of billions of dollars, his personal definition of True Wealth is just brilliant.

Packed full of stories, anecdotes and words of wisdom, you're going to enjoy this conversation - ladies and gentlemen I gave you Mr Dave Butler.

Links:

Dimensional Investing

Trillions: How a Band of Wall Street Renegades Invented the Index Fund and Changed Finance Forever

www.capital.co.uk

This podcast is produced by GR Media
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Since I began the podcast as a resource for business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs, I’ve aimed for a blend of real-life conversations with founders and owners as well as practical ideas and insights from the people who can help and support entrepreneurs, such as lawyers, accountants, wealth advisors, and bankers.

But my favourite episodes are the entrepreneur stories. The real-life experiences of those who had a spark of an idea and began working on it to create something, to build something out of nothing, and hopefully to enjoy the success.

This week's episode is an incredible story of a crazy guy who had the idea to sell water in Scandinavia.

My wife is Scandinavian, and as a result, I’ve spent a lot of time in Sweden and Denmark over the years, and I can tell you that the water that comes from the tap there is as pure as you can get it. 

So who on earth would come up with the mad idea of bottling water and selling it in Scandinavia and then across Europe?

The answer is our guest today—Allan Feldt, who spoke to us from his home in Copenhagen.

During a truly inspiring conversation, he shared his ideas on;

• Knowing what it is that you are really selling—in his case, he wasn’t selling water necessarily, but was selling cost savings and employee happiness to his business clients
• He explains how he cracked the code of creating a product that everyone needs and then employing an incredibly successful sales tactic that almost any business owner can use in their own company
• And he shares his experiences on the art of negotiation and some invaluable tips when it comes to sitting down and agreeing on the terms of the sale of your business

Towards the end of our conversation, Alan shares his deeply reflective thoughts on family, money, children, and how to live a joyful life.

I absolutely loved my conversation with the Water King  - ladies and gentlemen, I give you, Mr Allan Feldt.

Resources:

https://twitter.com/AllanFeldt_

https://www.linkedin.com/in/allan-feldt-62a757/

Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies (Harper Business Essentials): Amazon.co.uk

This podcast is produced by GR Media
Sponsored by Capital Asset Management

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Have you ever had an idea for a business but thought there were too many challenges and barriers to getting started? Whether it's access to funding or more importantly, access to good quality business advice and mentoring,

Or maybe you've been in business for a year or two and you’re facing some headwinds- the economy is challenging, getting access to capital is harder than ever, and finding reliable sources of high-quality impartial advice is difficult.

Or it could even be that you’re currently working for a company and think that you could do things a bit better than the way things are done, but it’s too big a leap to take. - you’ve got bills to pay and a family to support, and starting on your own without the finances or guidance - it just seems too risky.

If so, this may be the conversation you’ve been waiting for, and I think you’ll want to get to know this week’s guest, Richard Bearman, managing director at the British Business Bank with a focus on start-ups and early-stage businesses.

I must confess that although I was aware of the British Bank, I wasn't clear on the full range of services and support they offer to British entrepreneurs. - from start-up through scale-up and beyond, they provide a complete suite of services both directly and in partnership with other organisations.

I really enjoyed my conversation with Richard, and in particular, some of the inspiring stories he shared about founders who have benefitted from the services provided by the bank and who’ve gone on to achieve remarkable things in business, regardless of the headwinds they’ve faced.

What comes through from the conversion is that Richard really cares; he wants to help, he wants to make a difference and he wants to encourage entrepreneurship across the UK.

I think Britain is a very entrepreneurial nation, and there are so many people with an idea bubbling inside of them that if only they could find a way to get started, it could change their lives.

If that's you or someone you know, I encourage you to check out the positive things that the British Business Bank is doing, starting with the vast resources they provide free of charge on their website, and I've posted a link in the show note for you to take a look.

Apparently, it was Mark Twain who said, “Twenty years from now, you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do.”

Sometimes we need a spark of inspiration, something to compel us to action.

I really think you’ll enjoy this inspired conversation - ladies and gentlemen I give you Mr Richard Bearman.

Links:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/richard-bearman-48291118/

https://www.british-business-bank.co.uk/our-people/richard-bearman/

https://www.british-business-bank.co.uk/finance-hub/

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qykl/episodes/player

This podcast is produced by GR Media
Sponsored by Capital Asset Management

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Lee Robertson is a serial entrepreneur, having founded no less than 3 companies to date. One didn’t work out and is no longer around; one became a huge success, and he sold it to his colleagues in a management buyout; and the third one is currently thriving and keeping him busy.

Lee, who came from humble beginnings and spent his early career in the Royal Navy, entered the financial services industry as a direct salesman in his twenties. In the days before Google, he made cold calls every day from numbers he found in the Yellow Pages, which must be a fantastic way to develop thick skin—something that all entrepreneurs need!

He’s always been considered a pioneer and keen to employ forward-thinking innovations, which helped propel his success.

An early adopter of the concept of “personal brand”, Lee was a regular in the press and on TV, which gave his company a huge boost and provided fuel for their growth.

During the conversation, he shares a step-by-step guide on building your own personal brand to help grow your own company.

And he shares his views on an organisation called “The Company of Entrepreneurs”, a City of London Livery Company that he found incredibly helpful as he evolved his career and grew as an entrepreneur. - worth checking them out as they’re very much open to members - link below.

Towards the end, he offers some wise words about what matters and what’s really important - something that all entrepreneurs need to be reminded of from time to time.

And he signed off with some fantastic book recommendations, most of which I'd never heard of but will certainly be checking them out - and if you’re building a business, you should too.

Packed with insights and ideas that I know  will be helpful to you, ladies and gentlemen, I give you Mr Lee Robertson.

Resources

Lee’s Twitter (X)

Lee Robertson Chartered FCSI FRSA | LinkedIn

Octo Members

Worshipful Company of Entrepreneurs

Do the F*cking Work: Lowbrow Advice for High-Level Creativity eBook : Buirge, Brian, Bacher, Jason, Richburg, Jason: Amazon.co.uk: Books

Break From the Pack: How to Compete in a Copycat Economy eBook : Harari, Oren: Amazon.co.uk: Books

High Frequency Change: why we feel like change happens faster now, and what to do about it

Word of Mouth Marketing: How Smart Companies Get People Talking eBook : Sernovitz, Andy, Godin, Seth, Kawasaki, Guy: Amazon.co.uk: Books

Chris D

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Gurinder is the founder and CEO of Otto Car, the company that provides cars and finance to most Uber drivers in London.

Currently, over 5,000 vehicles on the road are provided through the services of Otto.

In the few years since the business was founded and they were operating out of offices in shipping containers in a West London car park, they’ve hit £50 million in annual revenue and are growing faster than ever - and they've done it all without having to give up any equity or selling to VCs or PE.

• Coming from an immigrant family background, Gurinder was quick to identify cultural shifts impacting his dad's business, and he used the same strategy to get on board with new and emerging trends in his own business. He realised the importance of hitching your wagon to a company or sector that was growing fast - a bit like a support frigate for a huge aircraft carrier - in his case the aircraft carrier was Uber.
• According to Gurinder, the foundations of Otto’s success are their core values and being mission driven. He explained that when it comes to values, ‘you can't do mission without marching’ - in other words, you need to walk the talk and demonstrate it through your daily actions
• He describes the period during COVID when his company was losing £6,000 every hour and he really found out who his allies were - and crucially, who they weren't. - he uses strong language, but it only goes to highlight exactly how important this is to him - and if you’re an entrepreneur, I think you will understand

Towards the end of our conversation, he shares an anecdote that involves expensive wine and a life lesson, and it’s worth listening just to hear that!

I learned a lot and was greatly inspired and entertained - and so will you be.

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Gurinder Dhillon.

Resources

Otto Car

https://www.linkedin.com/in/gurinder-dhillon/?originalSubdomain=uk

Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future: Amazon.co.uk

Blue Ocean Strategy, Expanded Edition: How to Create Uncontested Market Space and Make the Competition Irrelevant

The Score Takes Care of Itself: My Philosophy of Leadership: Amazon.co.uk

This podcast is produced by GR Media
Sponsored by Capital Asset Management

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This episode is a first.

After 35 episodes of the Bulletproof Entrepreneur podcast, I thought it was time we explored the dynamics where a husband and wife set up in business and have to manage two different relationships - the business partners working together and the life partners raising a family and having a quality home life away from the business.

Richard and Sonia Dixon met when they were young and started working together at a small travel agent in a less salubrious part of Birmingham where a business partnership blossomed kind of at the same time as a personal partnership.

Their story tracks the evolution of the travel industry front the time when the only way to book your holiday was by walking into a shop on the high street through the early days of the internet and online booking and took them to a position where they had a team of over 200 people and a thriving business.

Before it all came crashing down.

• You’re going to hear about what it takes to grow a business from almost nothing to become a significant player in a highly competitive sector.
• You’ll learn the meaning of the word Resilient when they explain that they were so close to hitting all-time revenue targets that they were about to take the entire team on a trip of a lifetime to Mauritius when the pandemic arrived, and their company was literally a few days from bankruptcy.
• And of course, you’ll learn how they cracked the code of building a world-class business together whilst building a happily married family life together - so many valuable lessons for all of us.

And towards the end, Richard shares insight for all business owners who find themselves in a position of leadership when they haven’t actually formally been trained for it - and let's face it, that’s most of us.

If you work with a family member or simply love to hear an incredible business and life story that encompasses more ups and downs than the average rollercoaster, you're going to enjoy this inspired conversation.

Ladies sand gentlemen, I give you…

Richard and Sonia Dixon

Links:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/richard-dixon-4aa76721/?originalSubdomain=ukm 

Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion and Purpose

The Leadership Book by Neil Jurd: A step by step guide to excellent leadership: Amazon.co.uk

This podcast is produced by GR Media
Sponsored by Capital Asset Management

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Roheel Ahmad is the co-founder of Forsythe Barnes, a recruitment company, but not just any recruitment company. The business has been listed on the FT250 Fastest Growing Business list for three years running.

In under 8 years, it’s grown from zero to almost £100m in revenue, has a team of 80 and has recently opened an office in New York with plans for LA and Dubai.

And they’re just getting started.

During the conversation, Roheel shared the 7 key ingredients that make up the secret sauce of his business success. Some of the highlights include.

• How to disrupt an entire industry by embracing digital content and simply doing things differently to the way they've been done for decades.
• The vital importance of relentless ambition and reminding your team about it regularly 
• Creating a meritocracy where, if you're good enough, you're old enough.

Towards the end, Roheel shares a thought that most entrepreneurs will relate to. It’s about using his business as a platform to see discover what he’s truly capable of - a platform for achieving his full potential.

Our conversation is full of practical ideas and real-life experiences that will be so helpful if you’re building a business.

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Roheel Ahmad

Links:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/roheelahmad/

https://www.forsythbarnes.com/

https://wondery.com/shows/business-wars/

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Shoe-Dog-Memoir-Creator-NIKE/dp/1471146707

https://jamesclear.com/atomic-habits

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Grover-Winning-Collection-Hardcover-Relentless/dp/9124214019/ref=sr_1_3?qid=1694868379&refinements=p_27%3ATim+Grover&s=books&sr=1-3

This podcast is produced by GR Media
Sponsored by Capital Asset Management