Establishing Your Empire

In this episode we are having a fascinating conversation with Tony D’Urso, a podcaster, author and an entrepreneur who helps millions of people learn from the success of others. Tony’s podcast, the Tony Durso Show, is one of the most successful shows in the podcasting space, pushing 25 million listens. He’s also the author of the Amazon bestseller book, ‘Elite  Entrepreneurs.’ Throughout the episode, we dive into creating a vision for yourself and your business, finding your purpose and action plans to make your goals come true.

Started his career in sales and lead generation.  After working in several positions related to sales and climbing up the corporate ladder, he took a leap of faith to get out of the corporate environment and start his own business venture. We talked about Tony’s fascinating career journey, the events that led him to translation from his corporate job to  a venture of his own, and the challenges that came with it.

At first glance revision for business may seem like something minor but it's a big contributing factor to the long-term success of any business venture. Tony shares with us his talks on why setting a vision is so important, how a vision is different from goals, and the role a vision plays in defining the trajectory of a business. We further dive into some valuable information on how to create strategies and action plans to build a strong and sustainable business.

Another area we touch on is Tony’s journey as a podcaster and an author. We dive deep into how podcasting became a method to share his wisdom with countless people, some of the strategies to grow a successful podcast. He further explains why only a few podcasts actually gain enough momentum to be successful and how to avoid ‘podfading.’ We also dive deep into his experience as a bestselling author and strategies for upcoming authors to get their message to the right audience. Wrapping up the episode, we talk about Tony’s future plans and the amazing charity work he’s doing.

[01:00] Getting to Know Tony – We start the conversation with Tony’s career journey, his current work, and some of the experiences and learnings that led to his success.

[07:29] Leaving Corporate Career – What led Tony to get out of the corporate environment to follow a path of his own and how he tackled the challenge of transitioning from the corporate world.

[15:40] Vision – Why the vision is one of the most important for a success of a business venture, how a vision is different from a goal or a purpose, and how a good business strategy contributes to the success of a business venture.

[25:28] 30-60-90 Plan – Tony explains a strategy of short-term planning to bring in an income from any business.

[32:28] Podcast Life – Tony shares with us how he got into the world of podcasting, the learning curve of starting his own podcast, and what contributed to the massive success of Tony’s podcast.

[35:30] Mentorship for Podcasters – Why every podcaster should get a mentor that helps the podcast succeed and how to find a ‘secret mentor.’

[40:20] Becoming an Author – Tony shares with us some of the learnings from writing his bestseller books, including how the norms related to writing books have evolved over the years and his workflow for reviewing and publishing his books.

[43:40] Marketing for Books – What contributed to the success of Tony’s books and some tips and tricks for new authors to make their books successful.

[47:42] Future Plans – Tony shares with us his goals for the next few years and how he uses his podcast and other ventures to help people and communities around him.

[52:16] Advice for Youngsters – Tony shares with us some key pieces of advice for young people to succeed in life and make the world a better place.

Connect with Tony

Website: tonydurso.com

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/tonysdurso

Twitter: twitter.com/TonyDUrso

Tony’s Books:

tonydurso.com/books

Podcast:

tonydurso.com/podcast

Mentioned in the Episode

Beach Money: Creating Your Dream Life Through Network Marketing

goodreads.com/book/show/3526437-beach-mone

Quotes

“If you put your vision map together, you can accomplish what you want in a lot shorter amount of time.”

“Before the events of 2020, Blubbry said 70% of broadcasters would not make it to the next year. And what you need to speed up and get past that curve before it defeats you is get a mentor”

“If we all put more and more shoulders together we can change things.”

The startup sector is a key contributor to the growth of new innovations and progress in all sorts of industries. In today’s episode, we have a deep conversation with a leader in connecting startups and entrepreneurs with investors. Hall T. Martin is the founder and CEO of TEN Capital Network, a Funding as a Service platform that facilitates investor introductions to help startups engage with investors for their capital raise. Since its beginning in 2009, TEN Capital Network has built a network of over 14,000 investors and has helped startups raise over $900 million. Throughout today’s episode, we dive into some fascinating learnings from Hall’s career journey and valuable pieces of strategy for entrepreneurs as well as investors.

Hall’s career journey started when he moved to Austin in the mid-’80s to work at a local company. After several years in the corporate arena, he got into angel investing. We talk about how he went from there to founding TEN Capital Network and his current role in connecting startups and investors. In addition to being an angel investor, Hall has been a blogger for over 20 years, and he’s the host of the Investor Connect Podcast, which has been continuously active since 2014. We talk about Hall’s approach to content generation through blogging and podcasting and how content generation helps him with his startup and investment-related work.

Getting into startups, we talk about where to start getting involved in the startup sector as an investor as well as an entrepreneur. Hall shares his thoughts on the different roles incubators and accelerators play in the startup culture and how to make use of these entities to develop a business idea into a successful business venture. We also take a look at the startup sector from an investor’s perspective, diving deep into how to evaluate a startup, building a crowdfunding strategy, and the value of keeping an eye out for potential opportunities that emerge from new technologies and trends. 

[02:27] Hall’s Story – We start the conversation with a deep look at his mission, career journey, and how he got into the angel investment and startup sector.

[08:25] Blogging & Content Creation – Blogging is one of the major methods Hall shares his wisdom with the world. We talk about how he started his blog and how it contributes to his work.

[11:30] Advice for Startups -  Hall shares some tricks and tips for those who are interested in getting into the startup arena and some places to get inspired and connect with like-minded people.

[13:42] Incubators and Accelerators – The difference between a startup incubator and a startup accelerator and the roles they play in nurturing entrepreneurship.

[15:43] Getting Started with a Business Venture – We dive deep into what an entrepreneur needs to do to get started with a business idea, develop it into a viable business, and get funding from investors.

[20:10] Value of a Startup – How investors should approach evaluating a business and how to avoid some of the most common mistakes investors make when evaluating startups. 

[24:14] Investing in the Future – How to identify new innovative technologies and business trends that have the potential to become profitable and robust businesses.

[27:15] Blockchain  - Hall shares his take on the current trends related to blockchain and innovations related to Web 3.0 and how these trends might influence the investment and startup sector. 

[31:55] Getting Into Crowdfunding – How an amateur investor can start getting involved in crowdfunding investments and how to budget for an effective investment strategy.

[38:08] Content Creation Routine – We take a look at Hall’s daily routine and how he has incorporated his process of content generation into his daily routine.

[41:11] Lessons Learned – Some of the important lessons from Hall’s career and a story about one of his favorite startup ventures.

Resources:

Connect with Hall

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/halltmartin 
Blog: angelinvestinginaustin.blogspot.com
Podcast: angelconnect.libsyn.com
Company Website: tencapital.group

Quotes

“Always go talk to the customer, and try to figure out what they need… and if you think you’re going to raise funding, then start bringing that dialogue to the investor.”

“I’m a believer that you bring the investor on the journey with you.”

“The big mistake most startups make with their pitch is that they focus on the product. They treat the investor like a customer.”

“The success I’ve seen come up is when you get in on the next-generation technologies.”

We start the conversation with one of the buzzwords we’ve constantly been seeing all over the online space in recent weeks; Metaverse. Stave’s grasp on the technologies that enable the concept of Metaverse is fascinating. Steve shares his take on how the next phase of virtual reality is going to look like and opportunities that may emerge from it for businesses as well as individuals. 

Steve’s career journey is a combination of multiple fields. We talk about where he started, the experiences he gathered in his time in Hollywood, and how he managed to take a leap of faith to start his first business venture. We dive deep into how his business ventures evolved over time, instances where he had to pivot and take actions to find the right market, and some lessons he learned throughout his journey of entrepreneurship. Steve also talks about how he became an author and the process of writing a book and working with publishers.

Innovative ideas are a key component of a successful business venture. However, it takes a lot more than just an idea to build a successful business. Over the years, Steve has worked with many startups and has seen how and why most startups fail. We dive deep into what it takes to build a successful startup, how to create the right value proposition, how to get funding and work with investors, and how to build your dream business by avoiding the common mistakes that make most startups failures.

[04:10] The Metaverse – Steve shares his take on the evolution of virtual worlds and how virtual reality evolved into the point where we’re talking about Metaverse and what may come next.

[12:13] Being Prepared for the Metaverse – What Metaverse means for the future of tech companies, entrepreneurs, and individuals and how they could be prepared to get ahead of the game if and when the concept of Metaverse becomes mainstream.

[14:50] Steven’s Journey – We talk about Steven’s career journey through multiple fields, and how he got into the technology sector, and the amazing work he does with startups and entrepreneurs.

[21:40] Jumping off the Cliff – Leaving a great job in pursuit of one’s own venture is a decision that takes lots of courage. Steve shares with us what inspired him to take that leap of faith.

[30:00] Pivoting as a Business – Steve shares a story of how he had to pivot and take quick actions to find the right business for the multi-user game engine they had built.

[36:10] Advice for Startups – Steve shares his wisdom on how startups may pivot and keep their spirit and morale up and tactics for vetting business ideas.

[43:14] Becoming an Author – As an author of multiple books, Steven has a lot of experience in writing. He shares with us his unique approach to writing and the process of publishing.

[53:20] Building a Startup – We explore the process of developing a successful startup from the initial idea to getting investors interested in the business. Steve also talks about some common mistakes entrepreneurs make when developing a startup and how to avoid them.

[59:50] Working with Investors – How to identify the right investors for your startup and some red flags you should be considering when raising funds.

Connect with Captain Hoff

Website: www.foundersspace.com
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/foundersspace
Instagram: instagram.com/foundersspace
Twitter: twitter.com/FoundersSpace

Steven Hoffman’s Books:

Make Elephants Fly: The Process of Radical Innovation:
goodreads.com/en/book/show/34523667

Surviving a Startup: Practical Strategies for Starting a Business, Overcoming Obstacles, and Coming Out on Top:
goodreads.com/en/book/show/54287803-surviving-a-startup

The Five Forces That Change Everything:
goodreads.com/book/show/58742013-the-five-forces-that-change-everything

Quotes:

“Something I tell entrepreneurs is, you can have big dreams. But look at your pocketbook. You’ve got to make this work. And don’t expect anybody to give you money.”

“Tone of voice is really important. When you ask for what you want to ask for, you have to make sure to do it in as friendly and non-pushy a way as possible. If you’re going to ask for a lot, make sure to do it in a nice way because people are people. Emotions matter.”

“Most startups fail. Not because they try too many ideas, but because they stick with the same idea too long.”

“If you have to educate a person why they need your product, forget it.”

Shawn Flynn started his career as a business owner, where he founded and grew a successful company in Beijing, China before returning to the US to work with companies ranging from fast growing Silicon Valley startups to established overseas public companies. He brings his international experience working with all stages and sectors of businesses to his role as Principal at an investment bank with expertise in mergers and acquisitions, capital markets, financial restructuring, and valuation. Shawn is also the host of the award-winning show "The Silicon Valley Podcast".

In this episode we discuss everything from living abroad and language learning to how and when to raise capital so you can scale your startup. 

Wen Zhang's amazing story begins as she dreams of venturing into the world while growing up in an isolated mountain town in rural China. Wen completely transformed her life by teaching herself English using just a cassette machine. Despite countless challenges, she pushed forward to become the only person who ever left her hometown, and achieved her dream of seeing the world. 

You can’t help but become motivated listening to her story and Wen wants to empower and enable others to achieve their dreams as well. This is why she founded INNW Institute, with a mission to empower entrepreneurs and startup founders to connect with investors and customers. In this episode we cover how to nail your pitch to get funding, common mistakes founders make and how to avoid them, starting your day with meditation and how to create and achieve goals to make your dreams come true.

INNW Institute: https://www.ifnotnowwen.com 

If Not Now, When Podcast: https://anchor.fm/wen-zhang

Neil Dumra is a coach, author, CaCao expert and entrepreneur. This is a little different episode as it’s more focused on health and natural healing.  We begin talking about ceremonial cacao and the benefits of starting your day with this powerful drink. We then dive into Neil’s journey into starting multiple companies, meditation and silent retreats, and long term remedies for physical and mental health. 

• 3rd Eye Meditation Lounge: https://3rdeyemeditationlounge.com/ 
• 3rd Eye Tonic: https://www.3rdeyetonic.com/ 
• Rooted Integration Project: https://www.rootedintegrationproject.com/

Daniel Barrett is a producer, musician, author and entrepreneur. He is the founder and CEO of Rubicon Artist Development which is an innovative music studio and development program that works with artists such as Ruthie Foster, who is a singer-songwriter that has earned three Grammy Award nominations. In addition to producing and mentoring artists, Daniel is the founder of the award-winning and internationally touring band Porterdavis. A few years ago his career took a major right turn when remodeling his house turned into a disaster and Daniel decided to do something about it. That something became a flooring installation and design business.

• https://danielbarrettmusic.com 
• The Remembering Process: https://amzn.to/3ioUxlG 
• Rubicon Artist Development: https://rubiconartistdevelopment.com 
• Barrett Flooring + Design: https://barrettflooring.com

Greg Davis is an award winning filmmaker and a photographer that is represented by the National Geographic Image Collection. He has worked his way from local festivals to international exhibitions and his fine art prints continue to be sought after and hang in private and institutional collections worldwide.

We talk about how Greg made a significant life change from a decade long career in technology to one of self assessment and exploration and traveled around the world, camera in hand. We cover how to make the move from the corporate world to following your passion to becoming a successful artist that has sold 7-figures worth of fine art prints.

Greg’s award winning work has been exhibited at prestigious galleries around the country and he has also been published in print internationally in the U.S., Great Britain, Papua New Guinea and Mexico.

Greg Davis Photography: https://gregdavisphotography.com

Gusto Event Space: https://gregdavisphotography.com/gusto-studios

Cloth Paper Dreams Film: http://clothpaperdreams.com

Ahad Ghadimi has led the turnaround and transition of multiple companies. In several instances, he knew little of the industry or the product before ever taking over.  He rocketed his career when he created a swimwear line that, faster than any other company in history, went from conception to a feature in Sports Illustrated’s Swimsuit Edition. The question he is always asked:  how do you do it?  So, Ahad decided to capture it all in a book titled ‘Turnaround Artists’ that has been endorsed by over 100 Global CEOs.

On this episode of Establishing Your Empire I host Adam Johnson and LJ Luciano. Adam Johnson is one of the winningest players in pro beach volleyball history. He has won over $1.6 million dollars in prize money with 44 event titles. Johnson and Karch Kiraly just missed qualifying for the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games when Kiraly suffered an injury in the final qualifying event. He won the King of the Beach in 1994, he was a member of the U. S. National Team, a three-time All-American at USC and is in the Hall of Fame. Also joining us is LJ Luciano who co-created the self-proclaimed ‘Coolest Group in the Sand’ The Sand Wannabes.  The group has over 10,000 members and provides a medium for players of all levels to find where to play, meet other players and chat about volleyball.