The Risk Big Podcast - Stories of starts with entrepreneurs leaders

​Beth Snyder joined The Risk Big Podcast to discuss how she built her business in rural Missouri that has a global customer base and raving fans (10s of thousands of followers online and locally).

Beth is an entrepreneur and the founder of 1canoe2, an "an illustration company that cultivates community through cheerful, heartfelt paper goods and gifts."

When Beth started, she wanted to do what she loved, which included starting a business built around her love for design and art. Long before her 1canoe2 start with a partner, she had the entrepreneurship bug. She loved making money by selling things she created, and even paid for college this way (Find out how on the podcast). She had her start with 1canoe2 while working as a graphic designer and built her empire as a side hustle with a friend.

Eventually, she was running her business out of a remodeled barn. And, over a period of years, she turned it into a business she could run full time from her new office space in the rural town of Fulton, MO along with her employees.

She and her staff began going to conferences all over America and getting her products into retail space across the country. And, her online / ecommerce offerings have continued to grow over the years with her biggest Black Friday ever in 2017.

She took some big steps and made some bets on herself to do what she really loved to do. I hope you're inspired by her story to follow your passion.

Out of all the conversations I've had thus far, this one means as much as any of them to me personally. Meet Clyde Lear, the founder of Learfield Communications which is now one of the largest college sports media companies in America after merging with IMG recently.

Clyde sold the company a few years back and is retired now. But, his story of the start in 1972, how he got seed funding from some mentors, and the story behind his confidence in selling is gold.

If you're struggling with the idea that you can't start something let Clyde inspire you with some of the below insights into his story:

1. Why he started a media company and how it pivoted to add a sports element even though he's a self proclaimed nerd.
2. How he started and how hard that was.
3. How he got Chrysler to agree to trade with him dozens of cars for ad space on his network they never used.
4. How he created a culture to grow his company and have fun.
5. A story about how a lost opportunity early in his career became a blessing in disguise.

Clyde is a mentor of mine. My friends and I have a terrific and deep relationship with Clyde as he's invested in our lives. He's become a dear friend. This is one of the interviews in my podcast series that I'd highly recommend you listen to when it's released in January.

Shawn Burcham is a visionary entrepreneur. He's the founder, with his wife, of Pro Food Systems, which they started out of their garage after college.

Through determination, persistence, and hard work, they started a company that's now in over 35 states, employs more than 100 people, and thanks to their visionary leadership, is now a completely employee owned business. They sold the ownership back to employees!

Think about it: A swiftly growing company with founders who want employees to be invested in the company, so they sell the company to the employees. It's an interesting model, and a story you'll want to hear Shawn tell.

And, when you drive to PFS in Holts Summit, MO, you'll notice his beautiful new corporate office he's building just down the highway from the Capital City.

Shawn is also an inspiration on a few other levels:

1. He's a devoted husband and father with three daughters (I hope he writes a book about how to raise three daughters as Amy and I are trying to do the same thing. #DaughtersAreAwesome).
2. He's committed to his employee's growth and well being -- He invests in training, everyone (only employees) has access to buy shares in the company, and his company is often voted one of the best places to work.
3. The culture he's built at his company is of utmost importance to him. As I'm interviewing these founders, it's interesting to talk so much about how culture is so important in their businesses. These folks want to take care of their people and provide a place wherein people are proud to work.
4. Shawn talks on the podcast about having an "open book management" policy which he explains as being as transparent as possible with the whole team, leading them by example and ensuring everyone has access to information to feel good the state of the company.

Shawn is also a pilot, so he will often fly to one of the many states they do business to meet with his company's partners. He's incredibly interesting.

Man, 49 minutes... That's how long my first interview was. But, I wanted to start with someone I was comfortable talking to who is an inspiring entrepreneur and leader.

That person was one of my best friends. I knew I could crash his business in the late afternoon and we'd have a quiet space to have what was supposed to be a 30 minute conversation (It lasted 49 minutes...).

Anyway, Gabriel Hulsey, the founder of Redwood Financial Group which is an insurance company, is one of my best friends. We had a great conversation on his founder's story. And, we talked about how he got to where he is today as a successful business owner with really impressive earnings every year he's been in business.​

I loved talking to him about the risk he took when he left a SIX. FIGURE. JOB. to start Redwood Financial Group that included no promise of any pay, whatsoever.

It's not easy to take those types of risks and become an entrepreneur when you have three young daughters, a wife, and a mortgage. Gabe has been an inspiration to me due to what he has been through since he began this journey. It's inspiring, you'll want to hear about it.

On top of that, Gabe gives some great thoughts on his staff culture, his sales process, and much more. He'll be the first interview we release in the wild.