What drives you to become a successful entrepreneur? Have you truly discovered your "why?"

Austin Hulsey is someone who has spent years discovering where his skills and passions intersect as an entrepreneur.

Austin is the CEO and Founder of NutriFitt, a Nashville-based startup specializing in high performance natural supplements and nutritional education. His mission is to inspire people to find their true-life why, take insane action, and never settle until their dreams become a reality.
Austin has an Associates degree in Health Sciences and is currently finishing his Bachelors degree in foods, nutrition and dietetics at Tennessee State University.

In 2010, he founded Avera Skincare, a company specializing in local handmade cosmetics. In 2015, he founded Precision Pressure Washing & Sealing which provides residential and commercial maintenance services. He is also co-author of the children's book Nanook.

In our discussion on the podcast, Austin and I talk about the following topics:

• How he started young as an entrepreneur
• Whether we think entrepreneurs are born or made
• When Austin starting participating in mastermind groups—and the power they bring to entrepreneurs
• His first business (in the skincare industry)—how it did well initially but ultimately failed
• The key to success (discovering your “why”)
• How he learned to let failure mold vs. break him
• Why doing everything by himself was a mistake
• How he started his current nutritional supplement business (NutriFitt)
• How the business is different (such as having a registered sports dietician on staff)
• Ways he is dealing with the hype and competition in the supplement industry
• Austin's Top 5 tips to entrepreneurs:
◦ Find a mentor
◦ Network, network, network
◦ Join a mastermind group. Have a laser focus. Great quote: “If you have six great ideas, eliminate five of them.” — Jeff Hoffman
◦ Combine crazy action with insane faith

How would you like a proven system to get more business referrals?

Stacey Brown Randall has perfected the art of dramatically increasing the referrals for her own business and her clients' businesses. It is a major focus of her consulting practice, which is to help business owners avoid business failure.

She knows – she’s been there, done that and got the t-shirt!

What Stacey learned when her first business failed is now what is making all the difference with her current business’ success.  And she is sharing all of her secrets.

Her online programs and live coaching sessions provide a blueprint to follow to take control of your business by increasing sales through “sticky” clients and creating a strategy to unleash a referral explosion in your business.

Stacey calls herself a business growth accelerator…with a focus on helping solopreneurs, micro/small business owners and people on commission make more money and find more time.   

Stacey is a three-time entrepreneur and a certified productivity and time efficiency coach. She also has a background in sales and marketing, is an adjunct professor, and an aspiring author.

Stacey received her Master’s degree in Organizational Communication and is married with two young children. She and her husband also just welcomed the newest member to their family as they have the privilege of raising their 8-year-old nephew.

We cover a lot of ground in our discussion, with topics that include:

• Stacey's first entrepreneurial venture (in HR generational consulting)
• How she got her first big client
• Why the business ultimately  failed
• The three secrets she learned from the experience (i.e., work on new business development every day; have the right mindset; and pay attention to how to scale the business when the time is right to do so)
• Why just building her own brand and reputation was not enough from a business standpoint
• How she developed a “bulletproof mindset” (and what it means for her)
• The advice someone gave her about building a “lifestyle business” that was totally counterproductive to success
• What happened when she did not pay attention to shifts in the market
• Her experience in having to go back to a corporate job (in the financial services industry) for 15 months
• How she launched her second business as a productivity coach
• How she developed her referral strategy (which ironically came from her original business failure)
• What is making the difference in results with her current business (which has a primary emphasis on helping clients develop a referral and client retention strategy)
• The first mistake most people make with referrals (and if you are having to ask, you’re doing it all wrong!)
• Other mistakes she saw from the financial services model
• Details about Stacey’s online course, Growth By Referrals
• Who will benefit most from the course (anyone in “human to human sales,” such as residential and commercial Realtors, mortgage brokers, financial advisors, CPAs, attorneys, home builders, interior designers, acupuncturists, business coaches, marketing consultants and others)
• Why referability is not a short-term fix
• Why Stacey thinks paying for referrals is dead wrong (and better ways to “pay back” people who send you referrals)
• The true reason people give referrals (and it’s not about you)

Learn how to launch and scale your business with the Startup Equation, an amazing new visual tool and methodology created by Ja-Naé Duane and her husband, Steven Fisher.

For over 20 years, Ja-Naé has focused on one mission: to make life better for as many people as possible. With that goal in mind, she founded or co-founded five different organizations, including Wild Women Entrepreneurs, The Leaders, the National Artistic Effort and the Massachusetts Artist Leaders Coalition.

She currently leads the Revolution Institute while also teaching at Emerson College and Northeastern University. At Clark University, she holds the position of Entrepreneur-in-Residence.

The author of How to Start Your Business with $100 and The Startup Equation: A Visual Guidebook to Building Your Startup, Ja-Naé excels at advising startups because she understands from personal experience what it means to be an social entrepreneur. Over the years, her work has caught the attention of The Associated Press, NPR, Classical Singer Magazine, The Boston Globe and Business Week. In 2007, she was nominated as one of New England’s Most Innovative Leaders.

Topics we discussed:

• How she studied opera and began her career as an opera singer and sang around the world, including at the White House
• How she changed course in 2008 when the economy collapsed, including running social media for a site for networking events called Rise.com
• What that led to—starting Wild Woman Entrepreneurs with three other women and $100 - that quickly grew to 55 chapters in seven countries in less than nine months
• Exactly how they invested that first $100 (and why bartering for certain services was essential to their growth)
• Other tips to leverage the resources you have and growth hack your products or services
• How she allocates time today to help other entrepreneurs who are just starting out (and her advice for those who are seeking “free”  advice)
• How she and her husband came up with their book, The Startup Equation — and what the “equation” looks like depending on what kind of business you want to start
• How the equation changes as your business grows
• What their Startup Periodic Table of Elements is about
• How you can use it to pivot your business (and why it’s like a “choose your own adventure” type of book with over 140 infographics and 40 interviews with entrepreneurs from different industries around the world)

How would you like to 10x your business success? That is one of the goals of Scott Hansen in working with his clients. Scott is a high performance coach, sought after speaker, podcast host and published author. He joins me on today's Go For Launch podcast.

Along with working with Fortune 500 companies, Scott has trained and coached entrepreneurs and executives on how to live a life of purpose and significance. Scott is the creator of Success Blueprint On Demand, an exclusive, high performance program teaching entrepreneurs how to 10x their business, get more clients and build multiple income streams online. In addition, Scott is a contributing writer at biznews.com and Entrepreneur.com.

He is also a web-show TV host, and creator of Success Hackers, one of the most popular business podcasts on iTunes.

Topics Scott and I discuss include:

• How he worked in corporate sales and marketing before he had a "calling" to jump into entrepreneurship

• Why he advises new entrepreneurs to build a bridge from their corporate paycheck—and not to get too aggressive and quit their day job before the time is right

• Why being an entrepreneur is not for everyone • How he met an early mentor who was instrumental to his success (and who still advises him today)

• How his mentor convinced him to get into podcasting

• The most common themes that have emerged in his conversations with successful entrepreneurs, including:

- Don’t just chase the money…either have a passion and a purpose or identify a specific gap or need in the marketplace

- Hire a mentor — someone who is doing what you want to do (and don’t wait until you’ve “made it” to pay for their advice!)

- Surround yourself with people who play bigger than you

• Tips from Scott's 10x mantra to help entrepreneurs multiple their success by a factor of 10, such as:

- It starts with your mindset (80%) vs. your skill set (20%)

- Why you have to get out of your comfort zone and take your blinders off

- Ways to stand out in your marketplace

• His new book, Success Hackers, that launched in February 2016 (visit his website below to get a free copy)

Do you know how to network like a boss? If not, pull up a chair and learn some strategies from one of the masters of networking, Dave Delaney. He joins me on today's podcast.

Dave is best recognized for his work in the digital marketing, social media strategy and business networking spaces. He is the author of the acclaimed book, New Business Networking, and he has a bi-monthly column in The Tennessean newspaper. He also writes regularly on Futureforth (his company's blog) and on his personal blog.

Dave has been featured in Billboard Magazine as a digital marketing expert to follow on Twitter. In 2015, Forbes featured him as a professional networking expert to watch. He has also appeared in articles in USA Today, Entrepreneur, Mashable, Venture Beat, The Tennessean, Nashville Business Journal and Toronto Globe and Mail.

The Nashville Business Journal calls him a "power leader of technology in Nashville." He is the recipient of the prestigious Digital Media Champion AIM Award by the American Marketing Association in Nashville.

Do you know what to look for in a web developer? (Hint: The

Hiring a credible web designer and/or developer is critically

Today on the podcast, I talk with David Somerfleck about how to

David has more than 20 years of marketing, branding and PR

David's goal is to inspire and encourage business owners and

He enjoys learning new languages, practicing aikido, and hiking

David Taylor is on a mission to change how people fuel up in the mornings. His company, Mobius Nutrition, has launched what I like to call the "breakfast of entrepreneurial champions." It's a breakfast shake that is extremely nutritious and convenient for entrepreneurs and anyone else with a busy lifestyle who needs a great kick-start to their morning with minimal effort. (Check the Show Links for a discount code to try Mobius Breakfast.)

David is the founder and president of Mobius Nutrition. Born in Alberta, Canada, he attended Missouri University of Science and Technology, where he earned a B.S. in Chemical Engineering. It was while he was in school that he found a passion for health and fitness and began leading workouts with his fellow students.

After graduating in May 2013, David began work as a consulting engineer in the food and beverage industry, where he saw first-hand how modern processed food is made. He soon after realized his true passion lay in helping people maintain a healthy and optimal lifestyle. During the fall of 2013 he reached out to his college friend Michael, and along with his wife, Megan, the three of them founded Mobius.

David and I cover a lot of topics about his journey to launch Mobius Nutrition and Mobius Breakfast, including:

• How they initially tried to launch another pre-workout product using a crowdfunding campaign (which failed)
• How the regrouped, focused on research and reformulated the concept into a breakfast blend
• What they did on the second, successful crowdfunding campaign (via Indiegogo)
• What regulatory challenges they faced in entering the supplemental products/food category
• How they partnered with a company that specializes in supplement formulations
• How they sourced a U.S.-based manufacturer and filed for a provisional patent
• What is working best for Mobius Nutrition to attract new customers and increase their sales

If you want to know how to become an "infopreneur," Bailey Richert is an excellent person to teach you. In fact, that is what infopreneurs do—they package their knowledge around a specific subject and sell it to others in a variety of ways.

Bailey joined me on this week's Go For Launch podcast. She is a business coach who helps individuals launch profitable online enterprises as infopreneurs—or respected experts in their fields who create value and profit by sharing their passions with others in a manner that supports their ideal lifestyles.

After working the 9-5 grind as a consultant in California until 2014, she quit my job and enrolled at MIT to study entrepreneurship. She then launched a successful online travel education company, DontDieAbroad.com, and has expanded into teaching "infopreneurship" to other people (e.g., how to create and sell digital informational products online).

Her new book, Life Experience Millionaire,  is available on Amazon, and she offers a free video training course that outlines her 6-step process to launching an infopreneur business.

Topics we discuss include:

• Why you should give away 90% of your content for free
• How to grow your email list then keep it warm by communicating regularly (at least once a week)
• How to build your community (and gain their trust)
• What are the best information products to create (based on your desires and skills)
• Where the real money is for infopreneurs
• What the “job” of the successful infopreneur entails (and why it’s valuable)
• Why infopreneurship provides great flexibility for entrepreneurs
• How Bailey gets a lot done as a solopreneur
• Her “can’t live without” tool (ClickFunnels)
• The first infopreneur who really inspired Bailey (Natalie Sisson of Suitcase Entrepreneur)
• Her revenue streams that include speaking, online course and coaching

There is no one better to appreciate the power of business checklists than an entrepreneur who has actually flown planes! Pilots literally live or die by their ability to follow checklists religiously. / / That's something I discussed at length with Matt Miller on the latest episode of the Go For Launch podcast. Matt is president and founder of School Spirit Vending, a concept he developed in July 2007. / / Matt graduated from the United States Air Force Academy in 1989 and was an Air Force pilot for nine years. After his military service, Matt worked in both the medical and advertising fields. / / As a father of three, with years of expertise in both print media and vending, Matt was able to see school fundraising from a unique, outsider's perspective. One day, after a child in his neighborhood came by the house selling items for his school's fundraiser, Matt decided to create a business that would help schools and their clubs or organizations raise money more simply. Year-round, hassle-free fundraising with School Spirit Vending was born. / / The School Spirit Vending concept and its simplicity has caught on so quickly that schools all over the country are already benefitting from the program with great results. School Spirit Vending allows children to purchase inexpensive stickers during the school year. It is a revenue-sharing model that ultimately raises money for each school. The company has raised over $3,000,000 for community schools, and this is increasing every day. To date, they are more than 2,000 schools around the United Stated and growing rapidly with a recently franchised model and plans for international expansion. / / Matt talks about his previous experience running a vending company selling candy and gumballs mainly to restaurants in the Houston, Texas area. However, when the market downturn of 2007-2008 occurred, his business took a massive hit, to the point that he was forced to deliver pizzas for Pizza Hut, in addition to running a full-time business and keeping up with his parenting duties and church activities. / / As a former pilot, Matt learned invaluable lessons about the power of checklists and systems. We talk about the tragedies that befall both pilots and entrepreneurs who "fly by the seat of their pants" and fail to develop and take processes seriously. / / Matt shares a special free resource, an ebook called Live Your Dreams: Top 10 Reasons Why You Need To Start A Vending Business.

There are far too many candy-ass 20-somethings with virtually no real-world experience, touting themselves as "lifestyle entrepreneurs," business and life coaches.

However, if you want real wisdom you can apply to your life as an entrepreneur, you need to talk to someone who has truly lived and actually built companies, someone like Dean Roberts.

When Dean approached me to be a guest on the Go For Launch podcast, I was struck by how rambling and crazy his entrepreneurial journey seemed. At 77, he has enjoyed a wild ride through life so far. Born in 1939, he was expelled from school in 1956...joined the Navy in 1957...and spent the next 40 years having two kids, three wives and building and operating his business called Greenleaf Dollhouses, the world's oldest and largest dollhouse manufacturer (now run by his children, Lisa and Dean Jr.).

Dean is the author of I'll Fix My Head Before I'm Dead, an autobiography that reads more like the back of a Dr. Bronner Magic Soap bottle.

Join Dean and me as we talk about some of his wilder adventures as an entrepreneur, and his essential philosophies for leading a better life.

The four most dog-eared books on his nightstand include:

Meditations by Marcus Aurelius

Master Game by Robert S. De Ropp

Insight Meditation by Joseph Goldstein

Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill

Two other favorite books of mine that I mention are:

The Obstacle Is The Way by Ryan Holiday

The Success Principles by Jack Canfield