The Entrepreneur Ethos

On this episode of the podcast, I speak with Kevin Homes, founder, and CEO of Founders Network, a peer mentoring network for tech founders. We talk about his journey from history major to semiconductors to almost going to Guatemala to founding Founders Network nine years ago. We talk about how hard it is to be a startup founder and how that inspired Founders Network.

As an aside, I’m a member of Founders Network and also this year, the San Francisco regional director, so you can say I’m a fan of what he’s doing.

The reason I’m such a fan is that I know first hand the power of peer mentorship and why it’s vital for all entrepreneurs to have a kitchen cabinet to help them out. Being an entrepreneur is one of the hardest jobs out there. It’s borderline insane to think that your new-fangled gizmo is going to change the lives of customers or even change the world.

There is a lot of failure in being an entrepreneur and having a consistent, like-minded set of peers helping each other out is what The Entrepreneur Ethos is all about. In fact, you’ll hear during the episode the essence of what Founders Network is and part of Kevin’s fantastic forward to my book.

If you want to take a deep dive into how peer mentorship works or you’re interested in what a group like Founders Network is all about, then this one is a must-listen.

Now, let’s get better together.

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On this episode, I speak with Nathan Rose, entrepreneur and author. We dig into crowdfunding and how lots of people use it to fund their ideas. Nathan is a world traveler who now lives in the country of Georgia. His experience with the digital nomad lifestyle has given him some great insights on how to stay productive.

Nathan has lived and worked all over the world. This has made him appreciate being regular and orderly in his life, so that he may be violent and original in his work.

One of his productivity hacks is that he sets daily goals as well as using the desktop background to display these goals so that he always sees what he needs to work on. He also focuses on one thing at a time to get away from working on random things that might pop up like dirty dishes.

If you’re looking to crowdfund an idea, Nathan’s upcoming book, Rewards Crowdfunding, will shed some light on the process including what category of products do the best. 

Rewards crowdfunding is a great example of what one has to do to be successful in any type of creative project -- be it a book, product, company, or even a nonprofit. We also discuss what he feels is the most beautiful type of art to create.

Now, let’s get better together.

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Today I talk with Marc Guberti, author, podcaster, and all-around online media guru. We talk about how he got into writing books, doing podcasts and YouTube -- all while going to college. He has published over 27 books and hosts 3 podcasts. In fact, he starting podcasting before he went to college and he just recently graduated with a finance degree even though he’s known for marketing.

Marc tells us how he cranks out 7 episodes a week for his podcasts and why if he wants to know anything about marketing, he’ll just interview someone. He breaks down his daily routine to stay so productive. We talk about why he feels now is the time to start creating. He also gives us some insights into how he actually comes up with all the content.

If you ever wanted to write a book, do a podcast, or get on YouTube, then you need to listen to Marc’s advice. He’s at the vanguard of all this and the one thing that I find the most interesting is his virtual summits, which in today’s world, is even more important.

Now, let’s get better, together.

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On this episode, I take a look back at the first ten episodes of the podcast and reflect on what I learned and why I decided to do a podcast in the first place. I always like to take a step back and figure out what’s working, what’s not, and what I plan on doing about that.

Today on the podcast, I interview DJ DiDonna entrepreneur and author. We talk about why sabbaticals are a powerful tool for both organizations and individuals. I met DJ at the Story Grid Nonfiction workshop in Nashville, TN right before the COVID-19 shelter in place.

DJ’s journey to taking a sabbatical goes directly through his experience as an entrepreneur and the struggles he had with burn out. We explore the benefits of a sabbatical and some surprising data on who takes them. He is also working on a book from the findings of the research collected from the Sabbatical Project, an organization that’s looking to champion the idea that sabbaticals add a lot of value to both people and organizations. His research has revealed, among other things, that sabbaticals are not only for the privileged but can benefit all sorts of people. 

We also talk about how a life disruption gives us the same type of perspective as a sabbatical and in some cases, that’s too late to do anything about. That’s why he wants to change the culture surrounding sabbaticals and get more people to take them.

Now. Let’s get better, together.

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Durfee Foundation -- Gives Sabbatical Awards

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My guest today is Candice Smith, co-founder, and CEO of Caregiven. She founded Caregiven after her experience caring for her father during his end of life. Her experience was similar to mine while I was a caregiver for my late wife Jane. Her vision is to get caregiving away from the transactional communications that dominate the end of life to a more meaningful experience.

I first met Candice at a Founders Network retreat and we bonded over our shared experience with grief and loss. This conversation is going to do deep into grief, loss, caring for a sick loved one and a lot of points in between. We also talk about the challenges of being a non-technical founder, being a first-time for-profit founder, and how talking about end of life is tough for a lot of people.

She also talks about her experience being isolated in a hotel on self-quarantine for COVID-19 before she could fly back to her home to be with her family.

Before we jump into it, if you’re troubled by a conversation about loss and grief, then you may want to skip this one. I know that for some, it’s hard to talk about these sorts of things and I can respect the fact that everyone is on their own journey. I would encourage you to listen even if it’s a bit uncomfortable because by talking about loss and grief, we can get better at dealing with it.

Now. Let’s get better, together.

Actions to Try or Advice to Take

Memento Mori: The one perennial truth – rich or not, successful or not, religious, philosophical, it doesn’t matter – you will die

Pomodoro Technique: Break tasks into 25-minute chunks.

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On this episode of the podcast, I speak with Khiry Kemp, founder, and CTO of Oppti, a SaaS platform that gives high school students access to opportunities like internships and volunteering. He got the startup bug after a brief stint in consulting. He’s also a Guinness Book of World Records holder along with his co-founder Weston. That world record led them to actually form Oppti.

Khiry and I met through Founders Network, which is a peer-mentoring community for startup founders. We talk about the importance of a co-founder that complements you and why it’s important to set a daily intention to make things happen. He’s also a HUGE oatmeal guy for a surprising reason for someone his age.

We talk about how easy it is for him to do the same thing day in and day out and why that’s a powerful habit to have, most of the time. He tries to do the same thing every day to reduce his cognitive load so he can make important decisions. He also uses his daily workouts to do a mental cleanup so that he can reprioritize what he has to do as well as getting bursts of ideas for problems he needs to solve. I had a great time chatting with him and it was great to hear what it was like to break a world record.

Now. Let’s get better together

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On this episode of the podcast, I talk with Anji Desai the co-founder of Dezen, a planet-friendly fashion brand that’s championing the idea that fashion can be sustainable. Anji has been at a wide variety of startups -- all of which had nothing to do with fashion. That wide variety of experiences has made the challenge of learning fashion a lot easier.

I first met Anji at Founders Network which is a peer mentoring network that I have been part of since 2017. It’s a great group of founders that help each other through the good and the challenging times. Anji and I talk about a wide variety of topics including what she does daily to be successful as well as the Indian art of mind-body connection.

What I loved about this conversation is how Anji embraced being uncomfortable about her lack of knowledge in fashion and how she and her co-founder work together to complement each others strengths.

Now, let’s get better together.

Actions to Try or Advice to Take

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Dezen -- Planet Friendly Fashion

Ayurveda -- Mind and Body Connection

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In this episode, I talk with Marvin Liao, who is a recovering startup, big tech company, and VC guy. He worked at Yahoo for over a decade during its heyday and most recently left 500 startups where he was a venture partner and in charge of their San Francisco accelerator program. I first met Marvin at 500 startups when my company, Lab Sensor Solutions, was part of Batch 14.

I learned a lot from Marvin and the other mentors at 500 start-ups. The most important thing was the power and art of pitching, which is all about telling better stories as well as practice, practice, and more practice so you didn’t have to drink Marvin’s infamous punch.

In our conversation, we explore Marvin’s daily routine and how it allows him to calm his mind and think deeply about the world. We talk about how the minor gains build-up to bigger gains over time. His LinkedIn posts about startups and the world are epic and one of the most valuable reads to see what’s going on in the startup and the rest of the world. It’s his deep learning and monitoring of the world that has made Marvin a successful investor in the world of startup alchemy. 

Now, let’s get better together.

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Today I’m talking to Mark ‘Ski’ Struczewski (“Mister Productivity”). He helps entrepreneurs & executives get the right stuff done in a distracted world. In addition to being a productivity expert, Mark is a speaker, host of The Mark Struczewski Podcast and an online trainer. His strategies have guided CEO’s/Executive Directors, business owners, business corporate specialists and entrepreneurs to get back control of their time. You can find out more about how to connect with Mark and his mission to create confident leaders at misterproductivity.com.

On the podcast, We talk about the power of daily habits and how now, more than ever, is the time to learn something new. Mark’s attitude on life and opportunities is infectious and it was great to be able to share our experiences and what we’re doing to make ourselves better.

If you’re looking to be more productive or learn some new habits during the COVID-19 pandemic, then go check out Mark’s website and productivity challenge.

Now, let’s get better together.

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