Kathryn Finney is an investor, visionary entrepreneur, philanthropist, and startup champion.  She is the  Founder and Managing General Partner of Genius Guild and author of BUILD THE DAMN THING: How to Start a Successful Business If You’re Not a Rich White Guy.  

She is the chair of The Doonie Fund and founder and former CEO of digitalundivided, a social enterprise focused on creating a world where Black women own their work. 

She also founded The Budget Fashionista (TBF) and became one of the first Black women to have a successful seven-figure startup exit when she sold that business.

Interestingly, she is a Yale-trained Epidemiologist.  Her work has been recognized by the Aspen Institute, Entrepreneur Magazine, Marie Claire, Ebony, Inc. Magazine, Black Enterprise, and in many other great publications.

Kathryn was really fun to talk with.  We explored her journey as well as many of the obstacles that women and particularly women of color encounter as they build businesses.

-What does Kathryn do to work for the world? 

-How Kathryn found purpose on his work.

-How Kathryn transitions from epidemiologist to venture capital.

-What vocation means. 

-Kathryn’s writing process for her new book. 

-What is a personal advisory board and why you should have one 

-How to use the MVP concept in your life. 

-How to process feedback 

-How to become a “builder’

Show notes at: https://themeaningmovement.com/kathryn

Our guest today is known as “the building public guy”  Kevon Chung started his career running a VC backed startup.  After leaving that career he has been reinventing himself as a solopreneur building an online business.

In this interview Kevon shares with us some tips and tricks on how he started making friends online, building free things like his “Build in Public Guide” and “Making Twitter Friends” email course, and how those products and efforts have gradually grown his following online.

Today he is continuing to “Build in Public” as he runs a 5 figure online business.  He finds meaning by being able to share, teach, and help so many people through his work.

-How being vulnerable will make people trust you 

-How Kevon found his niche  without any industry knowledge

-How looking back may give you the answers you are looking for

-How Kevon tried and failed at being a Youtuber

-Why and when to quit chasing an idea

-Advice on how to build in public 

-Why you should use “I” before “you” in your writing

-How to start on twitter

-How to be social on twitter

-How Kevon thinks about meaning and purpose

Show notes at: https://themeaningmovement.com/kevon

Dr. Melvin Varghese is a licensed psychologist, podcaster, and course creator.

After starting a podcast to grow his therapy practice, he soon found an audience of therapists who were hungry for education and tools to help them grow their businesses.

Today Mel is the creator of an online course and mastermind for private practice  therapists..

Through his work he helps therapists create additional income streams and transition from the therapy chair to making online income.

-What Dr. Melvin does

-His path into psychology

-Mel’s transition from the therapy chair to online therapy

-His thoughts on multiple streams of income

-The strip mall model for building a business

-Ideation of the online course for therapists

-The benefits of Melvin’s podcast for therapists

-How Mel encourages therapists to share their voice through podcasts

-Busting the myth — transitions aren’t smooth, they’re tough

-Downstream effects of trauma and how to begin working through it

-Insecurities with money — identifying and overcoming them

-About “brain spotting” and tuning into your body and mind

-How Mel thinks about the work that he does

-Why you should think about your calling in terms of an active verb

Show notes at: https://themeaningmovement.com/mel

D.J. Vanas is an enrolled member of the Ottawa Tribe of Michigan, a celebrated speaker, thought leader, best-selling author and former U.S. Air Force officer. 

Through his work, DJ inspires people to apply the Native American concept of the warrior spirit and related principles to serve at their best, stay resilient, and lead with courage.

For over two decades of doing this work, he’s delivered his dynamic programs to clients such as Walt Disney, NASA, Intel Corporation, Mayo Clinic, the U.S. Army, Subaru, Costco and hundreds of tribal governments and organizations. He’s also been invited to speak at The White House - twice.

In today’s conversation we get to explore what it means to be a Warrior in our modern lives, the subject of his latest book, The Warrior Within.

-What DJ does

-What does it mean to be a warrior? 

-How DJ Vanas found purpose. 

-DJ’s military background and experience

-The obstacles DJ overcame in his path

-About DJ’s newest book

-What it means to become an elder in tribal communities

-How to have a healthy relationship with fear

-How to have clarity throughout each day

Show notes at: https://themeaningmovement.com/dj

This is the first installment of a mini-series we are calling Finding the Meaning Movement.  In this series, Dan welcomes Raj Lulla of Fruitful Design & Strategy as a cohost for some “Build in Public” style conversations about The Meaning Movement, the current state of Dan’s work with the Meaning Movement, and personal/ business / marketing problems that he’s seeking to solve for himself and onbehalf of all of us.

Our hope with sharing this conversation is that these conversations will serve as a model, template, and diving off point for you in your own journey toward more alignment and meaning in your work.

The work that Dan is doing and that questions that he is asking about his life and about this very podcast is the same work that we are all doing in some capacity in our own lives.

We hope this takes you places that you need to go.

Shownotes: https://themeaningmovement.com/ftmm01

Mac Prichard is a career expert, communications strategist and business owner. He holds a Master’s degree in public administration from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. He believes in making a difference in communities through his service and relationships. 

Mac is the founder of Mac’s List — a platform to connect people to jobs in the Pacific Northwest with an emphasis on facilitating a more human hiring process. He started Mac’s List in 2001 —  informally at first — and went on to become a certified B Corporation in 2017. Today, it serves job seekers and employers as a regional job board that brings people together to find better jobs as well as helpful resources.

Mac is also the author of the book ‘Land Your Dream Job Anywhere’ and the host of a weekly podcast ‘Find Your Dream Job.’ 

Mac is also a long time internet friend of the Meaning Movement, having included us in his annual podcast round ups, featured Dan on his podcast, and much more over the years.

In this episode you'll learn:

-What Mac does

-Mac’s journey into entrepreneurship

-Having a vision and knowing where you want to go

-Mac’s motivations behind choosing to make a difference

-Obstacles Mac faced in transitional phases

-Starting Mac’s List

Show notes at: https://themeaningmovement.com/mac

Marlita Hill is a choreographer, educator, and author of multiple books. She has built an entrepreneurial practice at the intersection of faith and art. Her conversations and questions revolve around exploring ways faith and creativity can coexist for artists. 

Through her work, she supports artists in nurturing these parts of their identities together.

Marlita runs two programs — Nail That Niche and The Kingdom Artist Initiative — to empower artists in these ways.

In this episode you'll learn:

-What Marlita does

-Helping people understand the work that they do

-Looking through the lens of a choreographer

-Marlita’s journey into dancing and choreography

-From idea to manifestation: a series of decisions

-Understanding what you’re trying to build

-Identity of your creation influences all decisions

-The tornado brain and laying the initial foundation

-Finding threads that tie your story together

-Chart out the different things you do

-Notice the integrations and how they feed into each other

-Identifying themes and crossovers

Show notes at: https://themeaningmovement.com/marlita

Jon Ostenson is one of the foremost Franchise Consultants in the US. He is also an owner/investor, author, and international speaker specializing in the area of non-food franchising. 

He is the founder and CEO of FranBridge Consulting where educates clients about non-food franchises and helps them start businesses that fit their goals. He has vast experience in the industry, drawing expertise from his previous professional roles as both the president of an Inc. 500 franchise system and as a multi-brand franchise owner.

Jon is also the author of ‘Non-Food Franchising’ and ‘The Franchise Path’. He is also a frequent contributor on franchising for publications such as Forbes and The Franchise Journal.

In this episode you'll learn:

-What Jon does

-Getting into business ownership and franchise investments

-Investments and risks: nothing is ever de-risked

-The franchise system

-Entrepreneurship: playing by the book

-Leadership and partnering

-The golden handcuffs

-Leaving things behind and transitioning

-Assessing risk-levels and systems in place

-Kinds of non-food franchises

-Encouraging varied types of businesses and scaling them

-Complementing and diversifying business strategies

-Jon’s business investments and ownerships

-The path to owning franchises

-Common pitfalls to watch out for when moving to own franchises

Show notes at: https://themeaningmovement.com/jon

A friendly disrupter of the status quo, Timothy Edred has been inspiring people to live a full life for nearly 30 years. He is a husband, father, writer, speaker, seeker, coffee snob, pipe smoker, bourbon drinker and a person of faith. 

Tim helps people and organizations release their potential by pushing limits without hesitation. He has influenced countless people throughout the world by helping them dream again, rediscovering perspectives and reaching their desires.

Tim is currently pursuing his Ph.D. in organizational management and leadership with an emphasis on aloneness and authenticity — two words we explore together in this interview.

In this episode you'll learn:

-What Timothy does

-The transition he is making

-Conversations on paying bills

-Health crises on the way

-Encounter with a rare disease

-Water flows around obstacles

-Struggles that change your ways

-Follow the process

-Moving through one phase to the next

-Who are you?

-The process of grief

Show notes at: https://themeaningmovement.com/Tim

This is the 100th episode! 

Dan reflects on the past 100 episodes and what he's learned from building this show and what's to come.  He shares the changes that are coming starting next week and previews the next season for the show.

Please hit the subscribe button and leave a rating wherever you're listening.

Let's go! 🚀