Neil Thompson Speaks!

Today I’ll be speaking with Alicia Shapiro of Aliro Marketing. Alicia formed Aliro Marketing in 2012 to help companies build brand awareness through social media, email marketing, and blogs. Want traffic to your website? Want to increase sales? Alicia is one to call.  I’m interested in speaking to Alicia about her previous corporate life, the importance of social media in building a business, and her advice for wantrepreneurs.

I’m speaking with Mitchell Levy of AHAthat.com and THINKaha.com. He consults with companies to turn employees into thought leaders. The author of over 50 books, one of which is entitled “Are We Ready for a Female or African-American President?: Over 40 Executive Yes, Maybe and No Viewpoints!” – I think we know the answer to that one - I’m interested in speaking to Mitchell about his businesses, his interest in thought leadership, and all those books – where does he find the time to write them?

I'm speaking with Armando Aguilar – The Prudent Money Man. Retirement planning, life insurance – Sleep at Night Counselor? – I definitely have to ask him about that one.  With over 30 years in the financial services industry as a Life Insurance Agent, Stockbroker, Financial Consultant and Retirement Adviser, I’m interested in speaking to Armando about his company, his desire to be solo, and some money tips for those inevitable lean times.

Amy Rasdal – consultant extraordinaire. She runs two companies. Rasdal Associates is a consulting firm that caters specifically to the IT and medical device industries. Billable at the Beach offers tips, tools, tricks, workbooks, and templates plus customized one-on-one time.  With over 15 years of independent consulting experience, I’m interested in speaking to Amy about her companies, her defining moment in deciding to become self-employed, and her tips for reluctant entrepreneurs. It's bound to be an interesting half hour. It's Neil Thompson Speaks!

Author, speaker, coach, consultant – Gregg wears many hats. As an author, he has written two books, "Bad Behavior, People Problems & Sticky Situations: A Toolbook for Managers and Team Leaders," and "The Respectful Leader: Seven Ways to Influence Without Intimidation." As a speaker, he uses professional theater to engage his audiences. As a coach, he works with executives on developing strategies to implement in their businesses. I’m interested in speaking to Gregg about his journey to entrepreneurship, his tips for reluctant entrepreneurs, and future plans.

What Carlton knows about starting a business could fill warehouses. He’s currently the CEO of Emerge Memphis, a tech incubator that serves the mid-South. He has almost 20 years of experience bringing early stage companies to market. His career has spanned many industries – nanotechnology, software, oil & gas – you name it. I'm interested to talk to Carlton about his career, his work at Emerge Memphis, and his views on entrepreneurship.

Todd has lived an interesting life. He's managed a snowboard shop. He's interned with a high school photographer. He's bartended. He's been a bellman. He has started four businesses and sold two. He's a hustler in the truest sense of the word. His passion for storytelling and understanding the world has him focused on his newest venture. I'm interested to talk to him about the twists and turns of his career, his new business, and his plans for the future. It's Neil Thompson Speaks!

David Fares has lived quite the life. He has worked as a consultant, an attorney, a mediator, a facilitator, a trainer, a college professor, and a Learning, Performance and Quality business executive. He is currently the President and Senior Consultant at New Perspectives, LLC. New Perspectives offers consulting, training, and mediation services - among other things. I look forward to learning about David's journey through his many careers, his entrepreneurial spirit, and his plans for the future. It's bound to be an interesting half hour!

Joe Hage is a busy man and a marketing dynamo.  At over 320,000 members, Joe is the creator of the Medical Devices Group on LinkedIn and the founder of Medical Marcom, his medical device consulting firm. He also started the 10x Medical Device Conference as a networking opportunity for Medical Devices Group members. A former employee who went into business for himself, I'm curious to find out about his transition to entrepreneurship, his passion for medical device marketing, and his plans for the future.

Dwayne Morgan is a man of many talents. Poet, public speaker, producer, and author. He started his production company, Up from The Roots, out of high school and has been going strong ever since, producing events such as When Brothers Speak and the Toronto International Poetry Slam. Dwayne joins Neil Thompson Speaks! to chat about his passion for poetry, his public speaking career, and his future plans. You don't want to miss it!