Know Pain, Know Gain

“When people tell me that I can’t do something, it motivates me more.”

In this episode, Jay talks to Jayme Powers, the Proprietor of Sigh! champagne bar in downtown Sonoma, California. Sigh! has been awarded the number 8 spot among the Top 25 champagne bars in the country by Travel and Leisure Magazine.

Started as a leap of faith, Jayme speaks of her story from working in a winery, to launching her champagne bar, and then expanding into a new location. She talks about her passion for people, educating them about sparkling wines and champagnes, slowing down to get ahead and the wonder of her journey in retrospect.  As she’ll tell you in the podcast, it’s definitely not just about sitting and drinking champagne all day!

Visit https://jayrooke.com/040-Jayme-Powers/ for resources and show notes.

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Episode Highlights:

00:50     That leap of faith

07:09     The reality sinks in

20:49     Just take a deep breathe

35:34     That first step experience

41:32     The really good problem

“Making wine and selling wine successfully, and then employing people that may continue to work for you… it’s tricky”

Craig Haserot, founder of Sojourn Cellars, started out launching his winery as a side project that gradually developed into a full-blown business. Sojourn Cellars is a highly acclaimed winery in Sonoma which makes world-class wines.

In this episode, Craig talks about how it all started, his philosophies about wine, the process of making good wines, and how vintners are now making better wines than 5 years ago. From Chardonnay to Pinot Noir, let Craig’s journey help you navigate your own path in pursuing your passion.

Visit https://jayrooke.com/039-Craig-Haserot/ for resources and show notes.

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Episode Highlights:

01:50  The Pinot Noir difference

03:14  Sojourn roots

08:30  Hobby to business

20:27  How it all started with Craig

40:55  The business model that worked

“Our job is to sell fun...fun is what we are about...so we need to project that and build a culture here where fun is acceptable”

Steve Page is the President of Sonoma Raceway, an international motorsports track that hosts NASCAR, Indy Car and NHRA races.  Steve is all about being in the right place at the right time--prior to his 27 year career as President, Steve headed up Special Projects for the Oakland A's, and impressively began his career as the Press Secretary for Leon Panetta.  

In this episode, Jay and Steve discuss the motorsports industry, creating a deliberate culture of fun, how to sell experiences, and the possibilities that exist when we ignore fear and convention by pushing ourselves outside of our comfort zones.  

Start your engine, and tune in for an entrepreneurial roadtrip.....

Visit https://jayrooke.com/038-steve-page/ for resources and show notes.

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Episode Highlights:

00:51    All about the Sonoma Raceway

05:35    The first tenet

13:13    Having fun working

22:55    Car person or not?

35:41    Stan Lee and me

“It’s like growing a tree...your growing this organic thing called your business, and that’s where you want to find a reputable, very smart and savvy value growth person who will help you grow your business”

Dr. Natasha Todorovic-Cowan goes by not any other title but a “Change navigator”. She helps businesses and people navigate the external and internal world. A co-founder of NVC Consulting, Dr. Natasha coaches and trains clients by using the Spiral Dynamics tools to guide them through change.

In this episode, Dr. Natasha speaks with Jay about the difference of a lifestyle business and a business you want to exit, flipping businesses and why you would need a value growth advisor within your business. Also, let her educate you about what culture is, it’s importance in mergers and why entrepreneurs need to understand it. You may be surprised at what you learn.

Visit https://jayrooke.com/037-dr-natasha-todorovic-cowan/ for resources and show notes.

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Episode Highlights:

00:43   Natasha, the change navigator

08:14   Lifestyle business or something to exit?

20:45   Does my business need a Value Growth Advisor?

28:20   The lost of not manifesting the full value

29:07   Know the truth about the culture

“I love these practices and I love what I do because I need it too.”

Kai Van Bodhi is a Peak Performance Coach that has teaches entrepreneurs how to execute at the top of their game and avoid burnout.  He's trained in acupuncture, herbalism, Qigong, Tai Chi and Chinese Medicine, and he blends these practices with Modern Neuroscience to teach entrepreneurs to perform at their highest levels.

In this episode, Jay and Kai had a powerful exchange around maintaining focus, avoiding burnout, accessing levels of higher performance coaching, the importance of proper mindset, self-care and so much more.

Visit https://jayrooke.com/036-kai-van-bodhi/ for resources and show notes.

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Episode Highlights:

4:06   Kai’s day to day

9:55   Fight or flight mode

19:47 Why of Kai

29:27 Focus, energy and clarity

40:41 The importance of breathing

“When you are in a position when you are being forced to do things that are not consistent to your values, then you have to be more creative, and you have to find another way. There are lots of ways to be successful”

Take some time in your day to get to know Andy Palmer. Andy is the CEO and founder of Tamr and Koa Labs in Boston. He was named Boston's Angel investor of the year, and has helped found or fund more than 50 innovative companies in technology, healthcare, and life sciences.

Jay and Andy have a frank conversation about the emotional challenges of entrepreneurship, touching on burnout, overwhelm and maintaining your values while you navigate your entrepreneurial journey.  Luckily, Andy shares some secrets about what has made him so successful, and some of the takeaways that he's learned from advising hundreds of founders in his role as an investor and business mentor.

Tune in and listen to the conversation as Jay and Andy explore how knowledge and mastery of one's self is the truest determinant of success if you want to be a thriving entrepreneur.

Visit https://jayrooke.com/035-andy-palmer/ for resources and show notes.

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Episode Highlights:

00:55    Boston Cambridge startup Innovation Ecosystem

08:08    Partnership model for Entrepreneurship

13:55  Know yourself

22:47  Learning balance

27:43  The best organizational model

“Experience does not have a shortcut”

In this episode, Jay will be talking to Fawaad Saleem, the Founder of Digital Tribe and channel partner in Pakistan for e-commerce giant Alibaba.

Jay and Fawaad discuss the mindset shifts necessary to transition from the corporate world to entrepreneurship, and how to think about effectively scaling one’s business model. They also explore how the internet has radically changed the entrepreneurial landscape and what it’s like to be an entrepreneur in Fawaad’s hometown of Karachi, Pakistan.

Visit https://jayrooke.com/034-fawad-saleem/ for resources and show notes.

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Episode Highlights:

2:02    Fawaad’s roots

8:28    Work on things you are passionate about

15:23  The start of Fawaad’s entrepreneurial journey

27:39  Entrepreneurial flavor of Pakistan

36:06  The Alibaba opportunity

Today Jay will be speaking with Alex Ledoux and Mehtab Bhogal co-founders of Karta Ventures; a group of experienced entrepreneurs and operators with the mission to help entrepreneurs sustainably grow their companies.

Alex is a 26 year old serial entrepreneur with 3+ exits. After co-founding and selling several businesses even while in college, he later served as CEO of ice.com. After completing his tenure there he co-founded Karta Ventures. He is currently based at Salt Lake City.

Mehtab himself is a serial investor-entrepreneur and  executive. By 23, he has already launched and scaled several direct-to-consumer brands and e-commerce ventures which earned over 7 figure revenues in 12 months. Mehtab is based in Vancouver Canada.

Listen as Alex Ledoux and Mehtab Bhogal talk to Jay about how the company started off from a funny Reddit story and how the Karta Ventures approach is helping other businesses grow. Learn more on how you don’t need a big capital to start off your own business and how being creative can serve your company much more than you think.

Visit https://jayrooke.com/033-karta-ventures/ for resources and show notes.

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Episode Highlights:

1:35 The start of the “Karta ad-Venture”

13:20 Ways a business can start with a small capital

17:44 Get investors get your ventures going

27:16 Find time to learn

32:05 The entrepreneurial landscape and the millennial flavor

Salvador is a passionate and successful entrepreneur that never forgot his roots. In 2009, after finishing his degree he helped his parents open up their very first business Picazo Cafe, now a hot spot in Sonoma Valley and is known for it’s delicious food and friendly environment. Salvador is also the founder of Puente-International a distributor of Mexican heritage spirits.

In this episode Jay and Salvador had a compelling talk about the history of Puente-Internacional, loving success versus loving your product, consumers and distributors, immigrant entrepreneurship and so much more.

Visit https://jayrooke.com/032-salvador-chavez/ for resources and show notes.

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Tammy Lane escaped her job as a CPA and launched Facebook Faucet, where she helps business owners create an automatic client flow from Facebook advertising. She is also the author of “Get Clients Now! The Ultimate Guide to Creating a Flow of Clients with Facebook Ads” and has been featured in Forbes Magazine, on NBC, CBC, Fox and many other media outlets.

In this episode Jay and Tammy had an exciting chat about Facebook ad strategies, beginner tips for Facebook ads, Tammy’s journey from being a CPA to a successful entrepreneur and so much more.

Visit https://jayrooke.com/031-tammy-lane/ for resources and show notes.

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