Taking a leap of faith and pivot into a new ground can be scary, but it is what it takes to be a successful entrepreneur.

Welcome back to the Micro Empires Podcast! I’m your host, Jennifer Ives Grimson. In this episode, I interview one of the most inspiring native Nashvillian entrepreneurs with a huge heart for the community, Joshua Mundy.  His passion and visionary skill set have developed him into a serial entrepreneur with the ability to think of many incredible ideas and quickly take action to set a goal to meet the needs of the community. 

Let’s dive right in as we talk about how he took his leap of faith into the entrepreneurial world and pivot with a fresh foundation. 

[00:01 - 07:39] Opening Segment

• I introduced Josh to the show and talk about how we met
• I share some of Josh’s amazing current project
• Josh tells us about his background and her money culture he grew up in
• • Grew up in a rather poor family
  • Hustling to make money since he was in a very small age 
  • Savings mindset
  • The late encounter of investment and stock exchange

[07:40 - 14:29] Coachable Mentality 

• Josh talks about his early entrepreneurial mindset
• • Risk-taker mentality
  • The eager to create something out of nothing
  • The lack of Mentorship
  • Learned everything the hard way
• Josh talks about the importance of gaining and sharing knowledge as fast as possible 
• • Especially in the African-American community 
  • Learn from others mistakes 
  • Having the Coachable Mentality 
  • Learn to be coachable 
  • Even though it is your risk to take
  • The solution to helping you move forward 
• Josh talks about the Park Center company where we were working for
• • A place that helps the individual with mental illness get skills to get employment 
• Starting his own Janitorial company while working for someone else

[14:30 - 28:39] Stepping out on faith

• Josh talks about him stepping out on faith 
• • He talks about a sermon he got about Peter walking on water
  • He took the pivotal moment to focus on entrepreneurial
  • Been 17 years working for himself
• Sold his Janitorial company at 24 and starting a coffee shop 
• • Facing a huge mess
  • Open for 45 days only
  • Lost a huge amount of money
  • Spending 2 years to recover 
• Trying to create several companies and failing several times 
• • Landscape company 
  • Maintenance business company 
  • Buying some property 
• Josh shares the story about signing a lease when he doesn’t have any money
• • Starting a dry cleaner company in the middle of the recession 
  • Grew his business 
  • Struggle in the first  5 years
  • Expanding his reach

[28:40 - 49:31] Planting the seed in the community

• Create an organization called “The inner Circle”
• • An entrepreneurial community to share information 
  • Fighting against the struggling mentality in the community
• Joining an entrepreneurship center 
• Open The Lab Nashville in 2017
• • A creative co-working space
  • Incubated some of the best company
  • Occupied the whole building with 3 different companies
• Josh talks about the Leadership Connect he was a part of
• •  Meeting once a week to talk about different issues 
  • The lack of diversity in the tech field 
  • Getting the African-American community out of the ‘affordable box’
  • Went to Austin to learn about the infrastructure
• Quick shoutout to my Podcast Producers: Streamlined Podcasts
• • Use promo code: jives and get a discount
• Revelation to start a Tech School in 2019 
• • The Philosophy of “I Just Go”
  • Approached by Juan Clark to mow his brand called ‘hood geek’
  • Came out with a name “Pivot Tech School” 
  • Start to recruit people and instructors 
• Helping people to get opportunities by training them with skill sets
• Investment in the education sponsorship 
• • Engage with your investment and follow it
  • Mentoring program from the sponsor  
  • Setting people up for success

[49:32 - 01:11:41] Pivoting to a Fresh Foundation 

• Josh shares the story when the building got hit by a tornado on March
• • Watching the building got ripped off
  • Losing 3 income streams in a second 
  • Dealing with the shock 
• Building a company from a fresh foundation 
• • Revelation to pivot
  • Spent a month to process the loss
  • Starting in the fresh foundation
  • Got prepared for COVID19
• Pivoted to the virtual classroom
• • Start the virtual classroom 
  • Expanded the growth model
  • Opening the door for everyone 
• Josh shares the story about Deandra, a girl who got the scholarship 
• • She did not have the money for a deposit 
  • Diandra used her talent to fund her pivot and create her way
• The goal to get a thousand minorities to get six figures in 3 years
• What is the one thing that you would need to be a successful entrepreneur?
• • Be willing to take a risk and to fail 
  • Develop a tough skin
  • Be willing to bet on your self

• Innovation is created in the pressure 
• • Have the mindset of winning

[01:11:42 - 01:13:08] Closing Segment

• How to get more from Joshua?
• • See links below
• Final words

 

Tweetable Quotes:

“Public opinion around failure is what paralyzes people from taking that leap into entrepreneurship.” - Joshua Mundy

“You can really achieve what you put your mind into.” - Joshua Mundy

“ If you want  to be a successful entrepreneur, you have to be willing to take a risk and to fail.” - Joshua Mundy

“You have to conquer your fear of failing because innovation is only created in the pressure.” - Joshua Mundy

 

Resources Mentioned:

• https://www.pivottechschool.com/ 
• Streamlined Podcasts

 

If you’d like to connect with Josh you can find him on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Learn more about Joshua and his project on his website at https://www.joshuamundy.com/. 

You can connect with me on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. I’m excited to know more about you. Also, feel free to shoot me an email at [email protected].You can call or text 213-973-7206. 

 

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This podcast is about YOU.  We all have a story; whether your story is a lot like mine or totally different. Maybe you have a good job, but you know in your heart that you want more. 

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