Self Made Strategies

Episode 085 - Mollie Plotkin, founder of Mollie Plotkin Group

Our guest, on this episode, is the founder of Mollie Plotkin Group.  She was struck with the idea that Philadelphia needed a one stop sports marketing agency for athlete appearances and keynotes.  She wanted to create a sports marketing agency where people would find their favorite professional athletes for their events.  More recently she has re-imagined the company, focusing on sports, wellness, diversity and inclusion, and leadership speakers, with an expansion of services offered.  She came up with a new name, new website, and a renewed passion for what her organization does.  Whether it's a kickoff meeting that needs some spark, a conference that needs a keynote speaker, a virtual program in need of an engaging leadership expert, or a team in need of some wellness training, Mollie Plotkin group is there to help.

Here for your listening pleasure are the Self Made Strategies of Mollie Plotkin. 

On this episode you will hear Mollie discuss:

* How she began working with athletes and sports personas to create experiential brand marketing (before it was as popular as it is today)

* Why Mollie's advice to everyone is "network, network, network"

* How experiential marketing (creating experiences for your audience) inherently adds value

* Why an organic approach to opportunities can be better than trying to "force" it 

* Mollie's best practices for dealing with PR problems during a crisis

* Strategies for finding opportunity during this trying time

Production Credits:

This Self Made Strategies Podcast is a SoftStix Productions LLC jawn. This episode was produced and hosted by Tony Lopes, remotely, in Philly, PA USA; and edited by the team at SoftStix Productions LLC.

The Self Made Strategies Podcast is sponsored by Lopes Law LLC (www.LopesLawLLC.com).

Make sure you subscribe to the Self Made Strategies Podcast on your favorite podcasting platform. You can find us on: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Blubrry and many other podcasting platforms.

Don't forget to visit www.selfmadestrategies.com to sign up for our newsletter, or to get more information about our guests.

Follow us on:

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Episode 084 - Dominic Wells, founder of Onfolio and Human Proof Designs

This week's guest is the founder of Onfolio and an authority on buying, selling, and growing online businesses. He is also known for bootstrapping Human Proof Designs and scaling that business to a seven figure revenue and then exiting early last year.

In fact, during 2019, he bought 20 plus websites valued from roughly $30,000 to $500,000 each. He is here with us to talk about investing in online businesses, specifically content and affiliate based sites rather than the traditional eCommerce sites and getting above market average returns, also scaling remote teams and also content marketing for SEO.

Here for your listening pleasure are the Self Made Strategies of Dominic Wells.

On this episode you will hear Dominic discuss:

* How he began investing in websites

* What factors to look for when investing in websites as an asset

* The best practices SEO

* Lessons learned from investing in websites

* How to keep your website running with strong SEO

* Strategies to use to build your skillset when investing in new markets

* How he has scaled his business using a remote team

* Strategies for scaling a business reliant on a remote team

Production Credits:

This Self Made Strategies Podcast is a SoftStix Productions LLC jawn. This episode was produced and hosted by Tony Lopes, remotely, in Philly, PA USA; and edited by the team at SoftStix Productions LLC.

The Self Made Strategies Podcast is sponsored by Lopes Law LLC (www.LopesLawLLC.com).

Make sure you subscribe to the Self Made Strategies Podcast on your favorite podcasting platform. You can find us on: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Blubrry and many other podcasting platforms.

Don't forget to visit www.selfmadestrategies.com to sign up for our newsletter, or to get more information about our guests.

Follow us on:

• Facebook • Twitter • Instagram • LinkedIn

Episode 083 - Ron Coury, Author of "Tenacity: A Vegas Businessman Survives Brooklyn, the Marines, Corruption and Cancer to Achieve the American Dream: A True Life Story"

This week's guest is a major business figure in Las Vegas, NV, and a former U.S. Marine. Most recently he wrote the book Tenacity, a memoir focusing on the determination necessary to overcome any and all unjust obstacles that may stand in the way of one's dreams.  As he lived and climbed the ladder of success, for 45 years in Las Vegas, he faced a barrage of constraints, including political and police corruption, bribery, coercion, and even death threats along the way.  He also had a couple of offers to settle matters, discreetly with a few "well-placed bullets."  His choices would have life altering circumstances for many.

He also started 20 different businesses after arriving in Las Vegas from the Marine Corps.  Along the way, he dealt with death threats from competitors, as well as with some police and political corruption.  Those obstacles had to be dealt with effectively to maintain his businesses and and ultimately to ensure his success.

As if that was not enough, he also had to fight and beat esophageal cancer.

Here for your listening pleasure are the Self Made Strategies of Ron Coury.

On this episode you will hear Ron discuss:

* How Ron got his start in Las Vegas

* What tenacity is and how Ron used it to succeed

* Why being an "observational entrepreneur" led Ron to many of his successes

* The importance of a customer-focused business

* How Ron dealt with significant of corruption and hurdles

* The entrepreneurial best practices that Ron developed and still uses today

* And many other (harrowing) stories from Ron's life (and book)

You can check out a preview of Ron's book, "Tenacity," (or purchase it) here: https://a.co/aXBm1Cf

Production Credits:

This Self Made Strategies Podcast is a SoftStix Productions LLC jawn. This episode was produced and hosted by Tony Lopes, REMOTELY (because of COVID-19) in Philly; and edited by the team at SoftStix Productions LLC.

The Self Made Strategies Podcast is sponsored by Lopes Law LLC (www.LopesLawLLC.com).

Make sure you subscribe to the Self Made Strategies Podcast on your favorite podcasting platform. You can find us on: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Blubrry and many other podcasting platforms.

Don't forget to visit www.selfmadestrategies.com to sign up for our newsletter, or to get more information about our guests.

Follow us on:

• Facebook • Twitter • Instagram • LinkedIn

Episode 082 - Justin Wineburgh, President and CEO of Alkemy X

This week's guest is the President and CEO of Alkemy X, a production company that brings "big ideas to life by working together in an end-to-end process that allows (them) to ideate, produce, and deliver faster (and better) than you ever thought possible."  Alkemy X has offices in offices in Philly, LA, NY, and Amsterdam, and their team has a proven track record of bringing a unique approach to every production or project they are involved in.

Justin is not your average lawyer. In fact, as Justin points out during this episode, he considers himself a "reformed lawyer." He built the entertainment practice at Cozen, by maintaining strong friendships that eventually led to a big opportunity.  In the course of representing one of Justin's best friends, in a lawsuit over the film The Ring, Justin found himself quickly making a name for himself as an attorney that could help film and entertainment producers get things done. This opportunity begot other opportunities, which eventually led to Alkemy X (check them out here: https://www.alkemy-x.com/), a production company based in Philadelphia, reaching out to Justin because the company was failing. Alkemy was hit hard by market factors (the commoditization of post-production equipment, consolidation of the market for post-production services, etc.), and found itself spread thin, having difficulty in a tough film/media production market.

Justin, who at the time had served as outside counsel for Alkemy, came up short when he tried to help by recruiting a new CEO to rescue Alkemy. That’s when Alkemy's Chairman of the Board asked Justin if he would be willing to take over the company. This was in November 2015, and Justin had built a large media-and-entertainment law practice at Philly-based Cozen O’Connor, and was enjoying life as a partner. Justin, knowing the media and entertainment business to be a fickle one, actually said "no." But, ultimately that did not end the discussion.

Justin knew his life would be pretty solid if he continued on at the firm, but wanted a challenge.  Something inside of him told him this new opportunity could provide a big upside as well as add some excitement. As Justin mentions in this episode, he just thought to himself "the worst thing that can happen is I have to go back to being a lawyer."  So Justin finally decided to resign from Cozen and take on a new challenge at Alkemy. He started on February 1, 2016 and has since transformed Alkemy into a top production house, including receiving recognition by winning six 2019 Addy Awards from the Philly Ad Club, including "Best of Show" for The Plastic Ocean. Justin has also expanded the business and added a strong VFX line.

Here for your listening pleasure are the Self Made Strategies of Justin Wineburgh.

On this episode you will hear Justin discuss:

* How Justin started a thriving media and entertainment legal practice

* Why doing something once really well can catapult your career

* The importance of being an active student, even in the face of great success

* How to identify the leading minds in your field and learn from them

* Why understanding the important details of your business is critically important for success (in Justin's example, from the episode, as distribution outlets were changing formats were changing that brought on the need to understand the impact of those changes on a budget of a project)

* Why asking the right questions asking as well, and why you shouldn't have any shame or feel weakened by asking someone to elaborate

* How to find the skills and assets that uniquely qualify you to be successful

* Justin's best practices for bringing an organization "back from the brink," as he did with Alkemy X

Production Credits:

Episode 081 - Greg Star, Co-Founder of Carvertise

This week's guest is the Co-Founder of the largest ride-share/private vehicle advertising service in the United States, and the recent recipient of the Delaware SBA’s 2016 Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award, as well as the 2015 Junior Achievement of Delaware's Business Benchmark award. He also sits on the Board of Directors for Preston’s March for energy, a nonprofit that provides adaptive bicycles to children with special needs.  His ride-share/private vehicle advertising company, Carvertise (https://carvertise.com/), has had 300% year-over-year revenue growth and has created a driver network of over 350,000 drivers across 48 states. Working with clients such as Discover, Lyft, EA Sports, and Buffalo Wild Wings, Carvertise has launched over 500 major advertising campaign across the United States. Carvertise was named DIW's 2015 Tech Startup of the Year and has been covered by major press outlets including Forbes, Inc Magazine, WHYY, The Philadelphia Inquirer, The NewsJournal, and Delaware Today.

He is also considered a thought leader on Entrepreneurship, Marketing, and Networking, and is currently a contributor for the Philadelphia Business Journal, as well as several other regional business journals.

Here for your listening pleasure are the Self Made Strategies of Greg Star.

On this episode you will hear Greg discuss:

* The hardest part about starting Carvertise and introducing a new concept to market

* How Greg felt when Carvertise started to catch on, and Greg started receiving rewards and recognition for his innovative concept

* What Greg wishes he had known when he started Carvertise

* How Greg and his co-founder, Mac, came up with the concept to drive higher brand recall, better data verification, and more precise geo-targeting led to Carvertise partnering with top brands

* The specific roadblocks Greg advises other startups to watch out for

* Why innovators and startups need to surround themselves with smart advisors

* How conducting client surveys, and staying customer-centric, has helped Carvertise to continue growing roughly 300% year after year

* Greg's reasons behind why some startups fail

Production Credits:

This Self Made Strategies Podcast is a SoftStix Productions LLC jawn. This episode was produced and hosted by Tony Lopes, REMOTELY (because we are obeying the COVID-19 social distancing guidelines) in Philadelphia;and edited by the team at SoftStix Productions LLC.

The Self Made Strategies Podcast is sponsored by Lopes Law LLC (www.LopesLawLLC.com).

Make sure you subscribe to the Self Made Strategies Podcast on your favorite podcasting platform. You can find us on: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, iHeartRadio, and Spreaker.

Follow us on:

• Facebook • Twitter • Instagram • LinkedIn

Episode 080 - Dana Riker Jackson, CEO of Riker Opportunity Institute

This week's guest believes that people are an organization's greatest asset and specializes in helping organizations bring out the best in people to achieve high organizational performance. She works with organizations to increase employee engagement, improve talent development, and sustain a high performance culture. She also works with leaders by equipping them with the knowledge and tools to help their people grow lead and succeed by empowering them to facilitate change effectively, increase emotional intelligence, make innovation everyone's job. Create an engaging workplace with high levels of trust and passionate employees and attract and retain top talent.

She also has facilitated several leadership training programs, including Leadership Mainline (which I was fortunate enough to be a part of in 2019). She is the CEO of the Riker Opportunity Institute. You can find the Riker Opportunity Institute at rikeropportunityinstitute.com.

Here, for your listening pleasure, are the Self Made Strategies of Dana Riker Jackson.

On this episode we discussed:

* How Dana got her start, working with organizational leaders, and how she developed the Riker Opportunity Institute

* Dana's core values, built into the acronym of her name (RIKER), and why Relationships, Inspiration, Knowledge, Engagement, and Results & Responsibility should be core concepts for you

* What TRUST is in an organization (and what the acronym stands for)

* How to get people engaged by being engaging

* The 4 core behaviors, emerging from the TRUST system, and why Acceptance, Openness, Congruence and Reliability are critical to building trust

* How to become a more flexible leader

Production Credits:

This Self Made Strategies Podcast is a SoftStix Productions LLC jawn. This episode was produced, edited, and hosted by Tony Lopes, REMOTELY (because we are obeying the COVID-19 isolation orders) in Philadelphia.  The Self Made Strategies Podcast is sponsored by Lopes Law LLC (www.LopesLawLLC.com).

Make sure you subscribe to the Self Made Strategies Podcast on your favorite podcasting platform. You can find us on: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, iHeartRadio, and Spreaker.

Follow us on:

• Facebook • Twitter • Instagram • LinkedIn

Episode 079 - Teague O'Malley, Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction

This week's guest was once Banana Republic's Creative Director for Global Windows, though he believed that you shouldn't design "into windows," you should just come up with cool ideas and figure out how to put a window around them. He focused on dynamic presentations that would make someone turn their head. Once they turned their head, he let the product tell the stories. He also believed that creativity is "created equal." When working on a team, he found that collaboration led to improved creativity and often they would just head down to the waterfront, wherever they were working around the globe, to come up with better ideas, and then they would take those raw ideas, go back, use them left brain and help whittle them down into what later became their window presentations. But this week's guest also believed that creativity can come from anywhere. So whether it was store employees, at the various retail locations that he worked at, or other members of his team, every idea was created and treated equally.

Now he's providing the community with tools and programs for wellbeing, including Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction, Cultivating Emotional Balance, and also breathing classes to help people obtain a relaxed nervous system and overall wellbeing. He also creates walking Mandalynth installations, where you can actually walk through a mindfulness exercise, often at the Jersey shore, but also around the world.

Here, for your listening pleasure, are the Self Made Strategies of Teague O'Malley.

On this episode we discussed:

* How Teague climbed the corporate ladder at Banana Republic, only to discover that he wasn't happy with where he found himself

* Why Teague started teaching Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction, while still at Banana Republic

* How marketing and mindfulness are similar

* Where Teague finds his creative inspiration

* What tools to use when you are faced with waves of anxiety

* How awareness and judgment effect your ability to focus on the present

* Why you should be equally happy with who you are, but also focused on growth

Production Credits:

This Self Made Strategies Podcast is a SoftStix Productions LLC jawn. This episode was produced, edited, and hosted by Tony Lopes, REMOTELY (because we are obeying the COVID-19 isolation orders) in Philadelphia.  The Self Made Strategies Podcast is sponsored by Lopes Law LLC (www.LopesLawLLC.com).

Make sure you subscribe to the Self Made Strategies Podcast on your favorite podcasting platform. You can find us on: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, iHeartRadio, and Spreaker.

Follow us on:

• Facebook • Twitter • Instagram • LinkedIn

Episode 078 - Adam Swords, of Swrdz.com and AdamSwords.com

This week’s guest was born and raised in Warwickshire, England and is now living in Los Angeles, California.  He always had a creative inclination that he would explore as a child by drawing the ideas he had in his head. But he could never realize those ideas on paper and it wasn't until he picked up a camera that he was able to finally translate those images and stories into something tangible. He’s always photographed the things he’s most passionate about, which lead him to the worlds of high-end automobiles, luxury lifestyle and martial arts (because those are the things he is most passionate about, and because he is a martial artist). From California to Corsica, and everything in between his clients include: McLaren, Aston Martin, Lamborghini, Jaguar, Land Rover, Honda Motorcycles, Dell, Callaway, Canon, Sony, Microsoft and Nokia.

His latest projects include work with Record Producer Michael Blakely, his own everyday adventure apparel brand (aptly named Swrdz – swrdz.com), and the brand new “Adam’s Words” Podcast.

Here, for your listening pleasure, are the Self Made Strategies of Adam Swords.

On this episode we discussed:

* How Adam got his start in photography (check out his work here: http://www.adamswords.com/)

* Why taking a chance, after facing a cancellation, led to a meeting with a creative director in London that catapulted Adam's career

* How Adam "pounded the pavement" with his portfolio in hand to get more work

* Adams latest projects, including working with Record Producer Michael Blakely

* Adam's leap into his own everyday adventure apparel brand (aptly named Swrdz – swrdz.com)

* And Adam's brand new “Adam’s Words” Podcast

Production Credits:

This Self Made Strategies Podcast is a SoftStix Productions LLC jawn. This episode was produced, edited, and hosted by Tony Lopes, REMOTELY (because we are obeying the COVID-19 isolation orders) in Philadelphia.  The Self Made Strategies Podcast is sponsored by Lopes Law LLC (www.LopesLawLLC.com).

Make sure you subscribe to the Self Made Strategies Podcast on your favorite podcasting platform. You can find us on: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, iHeartRadio, and Spreaker.

Follow us on:

• Facebook • Twitter • Instagram • LinkedIn

Episode 078 - Adam Swords, of Swrdz.com and AdamSwords.com 

This week’s guest was born and raised in Warwickshire, England and is now living in Los Angeles, California.  He always had a creative inclination that he would explore as a child by drawing the ideas he had in his head. But he could never realize those ideas on paper and it wasn't until he picked up a camera that he was able to finally translate those images and stories into something tangible. He’s always photographed the things he’s most passionate about, which lead him to the worlds of high-end automobiles, luxury lifestyle and martial arts (because those are the things he is most passionate about, and because he is a martial artist). From California to Corsica, and everything in between his clients include: McLaren, Aston Martin, Lamborghini, Jaguar, Land Rover, Honda Motorcycles, Dell, Callaway, Canon, Sony, Microsoft and Nokia.

His latest projects include work with Record Producer Michael Blakely, his own everyday adventure apparel brand (aptly named Swrdz – swrdz.com), and the brand new “Adam’s Words” Podcast. 

Here, for your listening pleasure, are the Self Made Strategies of Adam Swords.

On this episode we discussed:

• How Adam got his start in photography (check out his work here: http://www.adamswords.com/)
• Why taking a chance, after facing a cancellation, led to a meeting with a creative director in London that catapulted Adam's career
• How Adam "pounded the pavement" with his portfolio in hand to get more work
• Adams latest projects, including working with Record Producer Michael Blakely
• Adam's leap into his own everyday adventure apparel brand (aptly named Swrdz – swrdz.com)
• And Adam's brand new “Adam’s Words” Podcast

Production Credits:

This Self Made Strategies Podcast is a SoftStix Productions LLC jawn. This episode was produced, edited, and hosted by Tony Lopes, REMOTELY (because we are obeying the COVID-19 isolation orders) in Philadelphia.  The Self Made Strategies Podcast is sponsored by Lopes Law LLC (www.LopesLawLLC.com).

Make sure you subscribe to the Self Made Strategies Podcast on your favorite podcasting platform. You can find us on: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, iHeartRadio, and Spreaker.

Follow us on:
• Facebook • Twitter • Instagram • LinkedIn

EPISODE 077 with Tim McDermott, Chief Business Officer of the Philadelphia Union

Tim McDermott joined the Philadelphia Union as Chief Business Officer on Jan. 27, 2016. He oversees all of the club’s business operations, including its USL team, Bethlehem Steel FC, which played its inaugural game in 2016, as well as the Philadelphia Union Academy.

Since joining the Union, McDermott’s efforts have been focused on increasing the brand strength, fan base, and revenue opportunities. Under his oversight, the Union achieved their highest ever single-season partnership revenue in 2017 and achieved consecutive seasons of ticket revenue growth for the first time in franchise history. The club also won the 2017 J.D. Power Award for Best Fan Experience in Philadelphia and was named the 2017 MLS Digital Team of the Year as well as the 2018 eMLS Team of the Year.

Tim leads the business operations of the Philadelphia Union, Bethlehem Steel FC (USL), and the Union Academy. Tim is also a self-proclaimed growth acceleration leader and idea guy…who loves his family more than anything.

On this episode we discussed:

* How Tim is using his innovative approach to help the Philadelphia Union overcome the challenges associated with COVID-19

* The development strategies Tim is implementing to help improve the community around the Philadelphia Union, despite dealing with the COVID-19 Pandemic

* How Tim's constant curiosity has helped him focus on innovation

* Tim's approach to keeping the Union's team engaged while working remotely

* How you can help the Philadelphia Union and the surrounding community

Production Credits:

This Self Made Strategies Podcast is a SoftStix Productions LLC jawn. This episode was produced, edited, and hosted by Tony Lopes, REMOTELY (because we are obeying the COVID-19 isolation orders) in Philadelphia.  The Self Made Strategies Podcast is sponsored by Lopes Law LLC (www.LopesLawLLC.com).

Make sure you subscribe to the Self Made Strategies Podcast on your favorite podcasting platform. You can find us on: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, iHeartRadio, and Spreaker.

Follow us on:

• Facebook • Twitter • Instagram • LinkedIn