Real Entrepreneurial Stories with Levi Lawrence

Entrepreneur - Dave Carroll

Current or Primary Business(s) - Big Break Enterprises

Topics of Conversation

• Storytelling is a superpower - you can affect real change in words and sounds alone
• Love, look and look again - Build compassion in your organization
• ADHD adult diagnosis, a superpower in disguise?
• Investment in relationships/customers over time compounds
• Leveraging huge exposure (United Breaks Guitars) for longer-term opportunities
• Meaningful stories and concepts can reach anyone, at any age.
• Giving people the benefit of the doubt until they prove you wrong
• Reach out for advice, you will be surprised who will take the time
• The Business of Art and being a creative
• Songwriting/Storytelling as a Service (SAS Model)
• Say yes to everything - a double-edged sword

Books and recommendations

• The Business of Creativity by Philiy Page
• Seize The Opportunity by Applwood books
• Tell your authentic story with Ryan Williams
• With great power comes great responsibility  with Dan Harris and Jerry Colona

Entrepreneur - Bryan Clayton

Current or Primary Business(s) - GreenPal

Topics of Conversation

• Sometimes it's better to not hire an industry expert, hire a motivated person and teach them your systems instead
• Business is hard, but you should have a fire in your belly to get through the obstacles
• Find a hacker and a hustler - ideal business partnership
• Need a beta testing stage, helps to identify skill gaps in the team  - then address the missing skills 
• Build, measure, learn cycle
• I don’t have an articulate thought - but very cool to see such a small add-on service (cigarette butts) increase a businesses revenue so drastically
• Be patient, plant seeds and keep watering them, they could grow and become something huge
• Become a ‘learn-it-all’
• Hitting a plateau leads to resentment
• Naivete can be a powerful tool
• Keep sight of what matters
• Whether you plan to sell or not, if you build it to sell it will run smoother

Quotes and Soundbytes

• Feel the fire in your belly
• Naivety can serve an entrepreneur well
• Luckily I’m not very creative
• Be paranoid you don’t know enough
• Don’t worry about level 10 when you’re at level 3

Recommendations and Links

• The E-myth by Michael Gerber
• A Million Miles in a Thousand Years by Donald miller

Entrepreneur - Edward Rocha

Current or Primary Business(s) - The Morning Goals, Rola Languages

Topics of Conversation

• Don’t build the ship while sailing
• Sometimes you need to Pause and regroup
• Pause sooner rather than later
• Making the worst decisions when he didn’t have money, decisions out of necessity that were not necessarily the best 
• Learning to be unfocused in a very focused way - any seed he plants has to relate to the overall vision 
• Can you trust that your team will run the business without you? 
• Don’t hire someone like yourself
• We need more diverse voices with access to wealth
• Think about the 3 things that will make you happy. Be selfish. 
• Find your cheerleaders who are there to support you, people you can be authentic with and who will guide you to whatever your life plan is
• Be honest about your mission - opportunities will be more likely to arise
• Don’t negotiate your values, but give people the time and space they need to come around
• Make money with what makes you happy - It is possible 

Recommendations and Links

• The 4-hour workweek by Timothy Ferriss
• Never split the difference by Christopher Voss and Tahl Raz

Entrepreneur - Gerry Valentine

Current or Primary Business(s) - Gerry Valentine

Topics of Conversation

• Writing a book and why - The thriving mindset and lessons from a life of overcoming disruption
• Value Perspective - Solving client's problems instead of selling expertise, selling solutions.
• Building a "Practise" vs. "Business"
• Thriving is not only surviving  the disruption but coming out of the disruption better
• Writing is not about perfect grammar or wording, it’s about  trading in the currency of ideas 
• "Interrogating your own ideas" by writing
• Surround ourselves with people who can lift us up and who we WANT to return the favour for.
• As an entrepreneur, you make daily mistakes Every Day.
• New knowledge/technology is a disruptive force and we can't go back.
• Goal Setting Question - If successful, What will you have that you do not have now
• Good writing is writing what other people want to read
• There is a shortage of people who are able to thrive through disruptive times
• Selecting a Coach

Books and recommendations

The Thriving mindset -Gerry Valentine

Entrepreneur - Chantal Brine

Current or Primary Business(s) - EnPoint

Topics of Conversation

• Mentorship is one of the most transformational tools - how can we help more people access that tool
• A mentor acts as a mirror
• We are all both mentors/mentees, just depends on circumstances, what stage we are in, the subject
• If i go back i would have hoped to take 5 steps further 
• I know my “why”
• Fostering relationships is important
• The buck starts and stops with youThe weeds are inevitable
• Work should be meaningful
• Get out of your own way. Listen to your instincts
• She created something that no one could do on their own, she found a way to work together to create more impact
• Mentorship doesn’t happen to you, you have to want it and embrace it
• Mentors have no stake in the actions of your conversations. Coaches have a bias because of the nature of their role
• Technology is the engine, the heart and soul are the people we work with

 Quotes and Soundbytes

• I love what I do, I choose what I do
• Find a mentor
• Invest in yourself
• It can never be just me

Recommendations and Links

• The Confidence Code - Katty Kay & Claire Shipman
• Getting to Maybe - Richard Michael Fischl, Jeremy R. Paul
• No Rules Rules - Reed Hastings, Erin Meyer

Entrepreneur - Sylvie Desjardins 

Current or Primary Business(s) - NxCareer

Topics of Conversation

• Navigating Imposter Syndrom
• Hardship fuels the fire - pursuing a more impactful legacy
• If you don’t have a mentor go get a coach, invest in yourself
• Networking - create the connection, entertain the relationship and then meet new people
• Networking needs to be a habit
• Power of the hidden job market
• Network before you need something from your network (networking should be a proactive strategy vs short term tool)
• Being a better speaker, take the time to understand your audience
• Stop low-balling yourself - whatever you think you deserve add 20K more
• Create networking habits just like brushing your teeth - create blocks in your calendar specifically for networking - focus on giving (making introductions, sending resources, etc).
• Understand your non-negotiables when job-searching, understand your ‘why’

Recommendations and Links

• Atomic Habits - James clear
• Into the wild podcasts 
• Miracle Morning - Hal Elrod
• E-Myth Revisited - Michael Gerber
• Escape Velocity - Dan Martell Podcast

Entrepreneur - Shane Borthwick

Current or Primary Business(s) - Impact Wealth

Topics of Conversation

• Entering the family business at 21 
• Innovating and growing the new aquaculture industry in its earliest stages
• Finding the right client FIT before selling
• Aligning goals with values
• Long term relationships vs. short term sales
• Changing directions as an entrepreneur 
• Considering social, environmental risks of investments
• Understanding personal guarantees on business loans
• Don’t underestimate the influence of the government on industries
• Find clients that value your time as much as you value theirs
• What happens after the government support ends. Hope for the best, but prepare for the worst.
• Irony that entrepreneurs are risk adverse on personal investment 
• Business is there to help your personal needs
• People, practice, process

Recommendations and Links

• A Promised Land – Barack Obama
• Ten Lessons For a Post-Pandemic World – Fareed Zakaria
• Long walk to freedom - Nelson Mandela
• Former Governor of the Bank of Canada, Mark Carney

Entrepreneur - Steve Anderson

Current or Primary Business(s) - CoLo Consulting
Personal Website: https://www.steve-anderson.co/

Topics of Conversation

• Starting with small steps 
• Find the people that understand your situation
• Share what you’re doing with your network. Build in front of an audience, be vulnerable.
• If something isn’t working, try something new
• Failure isn’t ‘not succeeding', it’s not living up to your potential
• Use the skill sets you have
• Success is being able to live the life that you want to have
• Tell people about your idea earlier than you feel comfortable

 Recommendations and Links

• The Art of Community- Charles Vogl 
• Kindle
• Peak by Anders Ericsson 
• Company of one by Paul Jarvis
• The Mom Test by Rob Fitzpatrick
• Getting Naked by Patrick Lencioni

Entrepreneur:  - Angélique Binet 

Current or Primary Business(s): Social Media Love Lab

Topics of Conversation

• Beware the "Buffet" of service offerings and lack of focus
• Working on self-perceptions to improve in your business, self-confidence & pricing - Know your own value
• We all have fear, it’s an auto protection
• "Unselling" your clients, filtering and offering an out to curate the best fit
• Make your mission greater than you fear
• 3 prong marketing approach - Social, Speaking and "playing" with those further ahead
• Your business grows as much as you grow
• Swim with big fish - those who are 1 -2 levels above where you are
• "Don’t believe everything you think"
• Money is not for the rich, it’s everywhere
• As you grow you share what you learn - Share your journey

Entrepreneur: Barbara Fletcher

Current or Primary Business(s): Barb Fletcher Associates

Topics of Conversation

• Being entrepreneurial in the civil service 
• Building a business as a solopreneur
• Tactical tips for business owners on stress management
• As a business owner how much do you have to do and how much is too much
• Practical advice or tips for wellness for people working from home.
• Tools and language around heart math
• Positive change of Covid = the move towards better understanding individualization in the workplace
• Don't wait until wellness is in critical condition before tending to it

Recommendations and Links

• Tiny habits by BJ Fogg 
• Clubhouse