NetWorkWise Presents: Conversations with Connors

Costas Mandylor was born in Melbourne Australia to Greek parents. In his early teen years, his first job was as a dishwasher in nightclubs, in his late teens, he learned how to work the door at night clubs, he considered this, one of his greatest educations in life. In the normal world his two loves were boxing and soccer, which kept him fit and mostly out of trouble. In 1988 he took an adventure to Los Angeles California and found himself stumbling into an acting class, soon after into the entertainment industry. He loved old movies and as time passed he found himself to be fortunate enough to work and become friends with some movie legends like Robert Loggia, Anthony Quinn, Don Rickles and many others. He has learned many lessons since. He has lived between New York and LA for 28 years and his grandfather’s words still ring true to him, “respect your true friends and never double cross your partner”.

Mandylor is known for his roles in Virtuoso, Saw V and Saw VI. His newest venture is Cliffs of Freedom which was released in early March of 2019.

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David M. Cunic is a licensed physical therapist, business consultant, certified leadership coach, and cannabis industry expert and consultant. David’s expertise in sports medicine, orthopedics, and manual therapy has allowed him to work with prestigious doctors from numerous professional and Olympic sports teams. His motto in both health and professional circles is U.C.S. -- “Use Cannabis Safely.”

As one of the original pioneers in the cannabis lab testing market, David empowers and educates private investors, real estate owners, farmers, physicians, and other professionals on smart and safe ways to get involved in this ever-changing sector. David consults with cannabis companies in 11+ states, bringing with him a unique, in-depth knowledge base on the ins and outs of regulations as they vary from region to region. He advises with many start-up companies and works with several SME’s cannabis executives, ensuring and enhancing their success within their respected focus.

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Michelle Tillis Lederman was so impressive the first time we spoke to her on our 29th episode, that we just had to bring her back for another conversation.

Michelle Tillis Lederman named one of Forbes Top 25 Networking Experts, is the author of several books including The 11 Laws of Likability , Nail the Interview, Land the Job and her newest book, The Connector's Advantage. Michelle is the CEO of Executive Essentials which provides custom communication and leadership training and coaching programs. Michelle has appeared on NBC, CBS, Fox, Gayle King, and NPR and been featured in the Wall Street Journal, NY Times, Working Mother, US News & World Report, Monster.com, USA Today, CNBC, and About.com. She holds degrees from Lehigh University and Columbia Business School

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Over the past nearly 20 years, Justin Smith, aka Just Blaze has become a fixture in Hip Hop music and culture. He began producing for well-known artists in the late 1990s, leading to a breakout role in producing the majority of Jay-Z’s “The Dynasty: Roc La Familia” and its follow-up, the celebrated perennial fan favorite "Blueprint”, which reshaped the sound and sonic styles of Hip-Hop music upon its release. Just reached international fame for his production of Cam’ron’s 2002 summer smash “Oh Boy” and instantly became a household name in Hip-Hop culture.

Since then, he’s gone on to produce for Snoop Dogg, Usher, Mariah Carey, Kanye West, Talib Kweli, Busta Rhymes, Rick Ross, Drake, Kendrick Lamar, Ludacris, TI & Rihanna, and many more. In between record production projects, he also broke into scoring various video game projects for EA Sports, Capcom and Midway, and created soundscapes for Hollywood hits such as Ice Age 4 and The A-Team as well as various TV projects, such as hosting VH1's "Master of the Mix" DJ competition show. 

In recent years, Just has also been touring extensively worldwide as a festival and club DJ (largely due to his surprise EDM hit "Higher" featuring Baauer). Other recent career highlights include producing five tracks on Eminem’s Grammy-winning comeback album “Recovery”, the street anthem "Lord Knows" by Drake and Rick Ross, and the breakout hit "Freedom" from Beyonce's smash album “Lemonade.” With all of this under his belt and new projects in the works, Just shows no sign of slowing down anytime soon.

In this conversation with Adam Connors, Blaze discusses how he continues to be successful over many years despite the fact that he says many in the music industry have a short shelf-life. 

And of course, Blaze discusses his perspective on what networking means to him and how he has been able to stay relevant thanks to the strong relationships he has formed. 

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The Entrepreneurs' Organization (EO) is a Global business network of 13,000+ leading entrepreneurs in 186 chapters and 58 countries. EO enables business owners to learn from each other, leading to greater business success and an enriched personal life.

They educate, they transform, they inspire and they offer invaluable resources in the form of global events, leadership-development programs, an online entrepreneur forum and executive education opportunities, among other offerings designed for personal and professional growth.

Recently, Adam Connors had the opportunity to speak at one of the New Jersey Chapter's recent conferences. Following Adam's talk, he sat down with some of the Entrepreneurs there for a one-on-one conversation. This special episode of Conversations with Connors features a chat with 10 entrepreneurs from nine vastly different companies. Below is a small snippet about what you can expect to hear in this podcast:

Todd Leonardis & Steven Schneider – Kramer Industries

Todd and Steven run a very niche business that sells mainly to manufacturers. Through their very different backgrounds, they were able to partner up together to significantly grow their business over the course of many years.

Jeff Chavkin – Geoscape Solar

Jeff runs a solar energy business that started out in a very complex way. His wife was a partner but they were going through a divorce. Another partner of his had a wife who was best friends with his now ex-wife. His experience through EO allows him to get through that and still have a successful business more than a decade later.

Mark Ciapka – ADS Works

Mark builds complex web applications for any industry who needs them. Mark loves talking to people and always comes up with an excuse to start a conversation. His natural knack for conversation lends itself well to what networking is all about.

Brian Tweer – Jersey Shore Supplements

Brian owns a business similar to that of a Vitamin Shoppe or a GNC. But he built a relationship with customers that was so strong, that pretty much his entire staff are individuals who used to be customers. That kind of rapport and trust built with those in his community has allowed his business to grow significantly.

Kevin Mahoney – FindTape.com

Kevin Mahoney sells all kinds of different tapes. It could be any kind of adhesive tape or the tape you see police put up at crime scenes. Through his networking experience, Mahoney was able to avoid losing a large amount of money in lawsuits to patent trolls.

Susan Michael – Wealth Management Expert

Susan runs a wealth management company. Susan has an incredible story detailing how she went from a teacher, while also being a military spouse and raising two children, to running her own wealth management company.

Andrew Tupler – Tupler Financial

Andrew runs a financial company. He networks by meeting with different individuals across different industries a couple of times a year over breakfast or lunch, to discuss all the different ways in which everyone can mutually benefit one another.

Ellen Pietrowitz-Phillips – L-E-M Plastics

If there is a device that has plastic on it, it’s likely that Ellen was somehow part of the process of getting it there. She has parts on cell towers as well as on the international space station. Her business was hit by a hurricane twice. And let’s just say that without networking, her business would no longer exist today.

Sejal Lakhani – Techerwerxe

Sejal runs a business that acts as the IT department for businesses who need one. Her networking style involves being on the phone constantly.

All of these incredibly successful entrepreneurs do a much better job of telling their own stories and we highly recommend you listen to the full episode of Conversations with Connors. It’s worth noting that Entrepreneurs Organization is an exclusive invite-only group. That’s how you know these particular entrepreneurs are at least one step above many others.

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Chris Schembra is a sought-after dinner host and facilitator whose passion lies in facilitating profound human connection in a deeply disconnected world.

He is the Founder + Chief Question Asker of 7:47, an organization which uses theater + food to help companies build more human relationships. Their research and strategy is centered around empathy, loneliness, and creating emotional connections in the workplace. Since it’s inception, 7:47 has worked with over 4,500 leaders and sparked over 300,000 relationships.

Aside from 7:47, Chris is a Partner at OHenry Productions which both invest in and produce commercial theater. He’s led social campaigns with over 1,000,000 (million) participants, and the projects Chris has been involved in have been awarded 14 Tony Awards, 7 Emmy’s and a Grammy.

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Jesse Lee Peterson is the author of several books, but his latest is "The Antidote: Healing America from the Poison of Hate, Blame, and Victimhood.” He is the founder and president of BOND, the Brotherhood Organization of a New Destiny, a nationally recognized nonprofit dedicated to “Rebuilding the Family by Rebuilding the Man.” He is a talk show host, counselor, activist, media commentator, and columnist at WND.com Jesse has appeared on ABC, CNN, MSNBC, C-Span, and is a frequent guest on Fox News, "The Sean Hannity Radio Show," and other national media outlets. His national radio show (The Jesse Lee Peterson Show) airs, M-F, 6-9 a.m. PT / 9-12 Noon ET and is simulcast on Newsmaxtv.com His popular YouTube web-series “The Fallen State” is fast becoming one of the most talked about shows online. For more about Jesse visit JesseLeePeterson.com To learn more about his nonprofit go to Rebuildingtheman.com

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He’s a realty star, entrepreneur, author, podcast host and restauranteur. He’s been working since he was 12 in the hospitality industry and has held many roles, everything from bar tending, valet and general management. When he was 19, Chris Joined Bravos “Housewives of NJ” which aired for 5 seasons.  Bravo subsequently offered his family their own show- “Manzo'd With Children.” Most recently he’s the co-host of a Podcast called “Dear Albie” which has recently launched and has already become one of the fastest growing and highest rated podcasts.  As much he loves doing the show, his true love is being around people and seeing the smiles that are on their faces when they are eating at 10th Street Pizza in Hoboken, where Chris can found pretty much 24/7.

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