Hey everyone, I have a special episode for you today. In today’s episode, I interview the three founders of Think Branded Media, where they document culture, art, people, and their process in the form of beautifully captured and edited video. Here's a quick bio on each of them:
Daniel Nanasi is a first-generation American hailing from Budapest, Hungary. He was born in Brooklyn, New York and grew up in Dallas, Texas. He has worked with celebrity hip-hop artists and rock icons as well as executives from Fortune 100 and Fortune 500. Daniel believes telling stories of people from various industries, professions, and walks of life is an honor and a blessing.
Beau Ethridge has always been motivated by that which is creative. It began with drawing and painting and quickly grew into photography, lighting, design, installation, collaboration, and ultimately storytelling. Over the last 10 years, Beau has carved out a career by being a communicator and creative director, especially when it comes to conveying ideas and executing those ideas with a team.
Johny Cane is one of Think Branded Media’s directors and serves as their in-house post production supervisor. He has produced multiple Emmy nominated and Emmy award winning programs and has extensive experience in the industry heading up video production and video marketing departments. He is a graphic designer and animation whiz.
The guys and I had a great conversation. I learned a lot about their backstory and how they came to form such a strong and unbreakable partnership for their company. We dived into some of the biggest challenges they have faced throughout their careers and the experiences they've learned from those hardships. We also focused quite extensively on what it takes to develop a great partnership and team atmosphere on this episode.
Boiling down the conversation to what makes a good partnership really "click”, it takes trust, a knowing of yourself and your weakness, and a knowing of your partner's strengths and weakness. Going into a partnership is much like a marriage and the relationships built between these three amigos was not done overnight. It takes steady growth and understanding of one another. In fact, Beau put it beautifully when he said, “Before you sign any partnership agreement, are you able to even be friends with this future partner?”
Show Notes
[3:30] What makes the guys and their brand so unique?
[4:25] Daniel is a first-generation American and grew up in Brooklyn.
[6:40] Who is Beau? He and his siblings were adopted and through that, he developed a new definition of what it is to be with family.
[9:10] Johny was a punk and a loner when he was growing up.
[10:00] How did the guys meet each other?
[16:15] Daniel talks on how he met Johny.
[18:55] The guys don't particularly like being called videographers. They see themselves more as storytellers.
[19:55] Real entrepreneurs ask the hard questions on how they're going to make their dreams a reality. A “wantrepreneur” (as Mark Cuban coined the phrase) doesn't even take the first step.
[20:25] The three guys just dove in head first into this project. None of them had a backup plan.
[20:55] Daniel still has a sink or swim mentality.
[22:30] If you're young and have 40-50 hours a week, dive your time in half and get a part-time job so you can pay the bills.
[23:10] The other half of your time, work for free, intern, and learn as much about the industry you want to be in.
[24:10] What kind of challenges has Daniel faced? His mentor and leader had unexpectedly died of a heart attack.
[30:35] Why did Daniel and Beau leave AGORA Entertainment and start their own company?
[32:45] While Daniel and Beau were running this huge company, Johny was a one-man band working for himself.
[34:35] Beau really felt like he had to cut the rope and break free from AGORA.
[35:50] Daniel and Beau even lived at the studio itself because they didn't have any money for rent.
[36:35] Daniel explains what founder's syndrome is.
[38:15] Partnership is like a marriage. How have the guys structured their partnership in this new venture?
[40:55] Daniel talks about some of the benefits of working in a co-working space.
[52:10] When the guys finally came together in a partnership, they didn't have any money. All they had was determination.
[56:15] Beau believes what's working for them now is that they know their strengths and weaknesses and know when it's time to get additional help.
[1:00:05] Entrepreneurs make the mistake of thinking that if only they had more money, it'll solve their problems. Of course, this thinking is wrong.
[1:04:20] You can never afford to undervalue mentorship.
[1:08:05] There is no back door. There is only forward. You have to keep going forward.
[1:09:45] Fear has always been a motivating factor for Beau.
[1:13:50] How do the guys craft such amazing stories in their film?
[1:18:00] What advice would the guys give to an up and coming entrepreneur? Are you really passionate?
[1:22:45] One of the challenges of partnership is that the guys have to constantly check their egos at the door.
[1:24:00] Beau leaves us with a reminder to be comfortable in our own skin.
[1:24:40] Johny's piece of advice is to never forget your gut feelings.
Ambition Quotes:
"Put failure out of your head." - Johny Cane
"Invite the conflict." - Edward Lewis Von Hohn
Read:
The Energy Bus by Jon Gordon
Watch:
Steve Jobs on Beautiful Polished Rocks
Follow:
Mark Cuban
Stephanie Ferguson & Teegardin & Associates
Marcus Lemonis
Connect with the guys:
Think Branded Media
