Venture with Virtue

Jim is a serial entrepreneur with over 25 years experience in Financial Services and Big data industries.

He has successfully started and sold several companies in this space.

He's an active angel and venture investor and founder of MCAP Partners and The Angel Advisors.

Currently he is the CEO for TradeRocket a servicing platform for the development and deployment of efficient working capital solutions.

Find out... - How Jim got started in business - His tips for growing your business today - The role Jim's Catholic faith plays in his business - How he nurtures his faith - How he balances faith, family and work - Inisights on achieving real success

For almost a decade, Roma starred on the hit CBS show, "Touched by an Angel." Currently she is the President of LightWorkers Media, the joint venture owned by her, her husband Mark Burnett and MGM. Roma and Mark produced "The Bible" series on the HISTORY Channel, the feature film "Son of God", tv series including "The Women of the Bible", "The Dovekeepers" , "A.D. The Bible Continues" , and "Answered Prayers". They were also executive producers for "Little Boy" , "Woodlawn" , and "Ben-Hur" and the documentary "Faithkeepers".

You probably recognize some of Mark's other shows like SharkTank, Survivor, The Voice and The Apprentice.

Roma is at the helm of their latest venture called LightWorkers.com and she's going to tell us all about it on the show.

- What is LightWorkers and why did Roma start it? - How did Roma use social media to launch the new site? - When did Roma start courageously living out her faith in the public eye? - Roma has achieved "worldly success", but find out how she defines Real Success. - What is Roma's 1 Key Takeaway for You if you want to live your faith in the business world?

• Wes is an author, keynote speaker and inbound sales strategist that launched The Sales Whisperer almost 12 years ago.
• He is the author of It Takes More Than a Big Smile, a Good Idea & a Twitter Account To Build a Business That Lasts and The Definitive Guide to Infusionsoft.
• He was a line backer for the US Air Force Academy that went on to serve in the Air Force for 5 years after he graduated.
• As Wes will tell us, he didn't start a business and flip it for a big exit.
• However he has built a successful business that has provided financial stability for his family of 9.

Wes shares...

1. How he started The Sales Whisperer

2. His faith journey

3. Insights on achieving real success

GREG PALEN

• Successful entrepreneur with extensive experience serving as a board member on numerous public and private companies and non-profits including
• Chairman of Spectro Alloys, an aluminum manufacturing company
• Managing partner in Palen Property Management
• Chairman of the Board for Polaris, a multi-billion dollar PowerSports company that launched the Snowmobile industry and expanded product line to include ATVs, motorcycles, and electric and military vehicles.
• Chairman of Curium Healthcare Holdings, Inc., a pharmaceutical and food supplement company
• Director of Valspar Corporation, a painting and coating manufacturer acquired by Sherwin Williams in 6/2017 for $11.3 billion

• Serial Entrepreneur
• Currently Cofounder, Chairman and CEO of Atlanticus Holdings, which has delivered over $25 Billion in lending products since its inception
• He has been actively involved in private equity and VC investing for over 25 years
• He cofounded a private Catholic school in Atlanta
• Currently serves on the board for Piedmont Healthcare and the Lumen Institute
• Previously he served on the board for Catholic Charities of Atlanta, Children's Healthcare Foundation and St. Jude's Children's Hospital in TNSerial Entrepreneur in the Environmental Industry

1. BUSINESS JOURNEY

- How he got started in business - How he grew a successful business - Tips for you for growing your business today

2. FAITH JOURNEY

- The role their Catholic faith plays in their business - Specifics on how they nurture their Catholic faith - How they balance faith, family and a successful business career

3. INSIGHTS ON ACHIEVING REAL SUCCESS

- How they came to understand success beyond financial wealth - How they define success now - Uncover the role of virtue in their success journey

Earl is a Serial Entrepreneur in the Environmental Industry. He started his first business EarthCon in 1998, which made it on the Inc 500 List for 3 years in a row and was the fastest growing company in the Environmental sector. In addition to serving as the CEO of EarthCon, Earl has started three other successful businesses in the environmental space that all still operate today.

Earl's BUSINESS JOURNEY

• How he got started in business
• How he grew a successful business
• Earl's tips for you for growing your business today

Earl's FAITH JOURNEY

• The role his Catholic faith plays in his business
• Specifics on how he nurtures this Catholic faith
• How he balances faith, family and a successful business career

Earl's INSIGHTS ON ACHIEVING REAL SUCCESS

• How he came to understand success beyond financial wealth
• How he defines success now
• Role of virtue in his journey

003: FRANK HANNA

BACKGROUND

• Serial Entrepreneur – taken one of his company's public, been involved in private equity for 25 years and worked with leaders as diverse as the president and the pope.
• Featured in PBS Documentary The Call of the Entrepreneur.
• Served on the boards for numerous think tanks and nonprofits.
• Involved in founding 8 new Catholic educational institutions.
• Founder of the Solidarity Association that guards the Hanna Papyrus, which is the oldest copy of the Gospel of Luke and the Lord's Prayer in the world.
• Author of 2 books…What Your Money Means and A Graduate's Guide to Life

BUSINESS JOURNEY

• Be patient, but be ready. He had the idea for his first business in 1982, but the opportunity for it to happen didn't present itself until 1989. He was ready when the opportunity did arise and was able to do business with Cargill the largest private company in the world at the time.
• Relationships – don't look at others as a potential way to make money or improve your business. Look at others as a relationship that needs to be fostered because relationships are a key component of our true wealth.
• Don't worry about always selling others on your idea. Foster relationships and be enthusiastic about what you are doing. If someone doesn't want to invest, then it's ok. Maybe that's not what they are there to do. That relationship will serve another purpose down the road.
• How did Frank grow his initial idea into a $1.5 billion portfolio of nonperforming loans?
• From the beginning he was always thinking about how he could scale the business.
• Established a beachhead and well positioned as a first mover. When US government gave stamp of approval for banks to sell off these types of loans, the market expanded rapidly and his company was already positioned to take advantage of the opportunity.
• So why did Frank sell a successful business to a private equity company?
• Within a few years competition with very deep pockets increased significantly.
• Better chance of success partnering with a larger company than trying to go it alone.
• The decision paid off. He was able to take some money off the table and retain 20% ownership to participate in future success.
• One of the keys to his success was finding larger companies to partner with. e. Cargill and Goldman Sachs
• Project integrity by practicing it on a daily basis. Developing it as a habit.
• Only way to improve intellectually, emotionally and physically is to work out. There are ways to work out for each of these areas of our lives. Most people focus on the physical, but need to work on intellectual and emotional as well. Building habits of virtue is the best way to accomplish this.
• Frank's Tip For You – Best way for a small business to accelerate growth is to find a way to hitch yourself to a larger business. Bill Gates did this in the early days with IBM. What do the larger business look for in a smaller business before they will partner with you? Transparency and Integrity. Listen for more details on how to build credibility with larger businesses.

FAITH JOURNEY

• As Christians, hopefully there are a number of pivot points in our life when we intentionally decide to live out our faith. Frank has several, but he shares the one time that had the biggest impact on him to intentionally live his Catholic faith. Minute 13
• Typically if he could work hard enough and want something bad enough, he was able to get it…except for this one thing that was totally out of his control.
• This was a bad thing, but the older he has gotten the more he has realized the many good things and blessings he has received that are out of his control as well.
• What is Frank's daily challenge to himself? Every day he asks himself, 'has everyone I have encountered left me better or worse?' At the end of every day he does an examination of conscience to see how he did.
• How does Frank balance a successful business career, his family and his faith?
• He doesn't believe balance is the right approach. It is about establishing priorities.
• What are his priorities? God, wife, children, parents, other family members, work.
• Once the priorities are set, keeping them in order is the bigger challenge.
• How does he monitor this? Not with hours and hours of prayer, but with 3 checkpoints throughout the day including daily Mass. While daily Mass isn't a requirement for Catholics, prayer is. If we aren't taking time to talk to God, then we can't be putting Him first.

INSIGHTS ON ACHIEVING REAL SUCCESS

• Money is a gift from God. We should be deliberate about how we use it. If not, then we can jeapordize our soul and that of those we love.
• What is the essence of wealth?
• Almost everyone wants to be successful. Most people want to be wealthy, but think money is the only measure of wealth.
• Frank knows several Billionaires personally. What is the one thing that the happy Billionaires have in common? It's the same thing that all of the unhappy Billionaires don't have. It's a happy marriage. While this isn't THE KEY to happiness, it is an essential part.
• Who is truly wealthy? Someone filled with well being. Typically someone that has a good relationship with God and is happily married.
• 2 Main Elements of Wealth – Human relationships and hope for the future
• How can you be wealthier than Warren Buffett? 29 minute mark
• Keys to being wealthy? Engage in hopeful activity. What is one of the most hopeful things you can do in this world? Minute 32
• We are happiest when we are fully human. What do we need to be fully human? Full of Virtue.
• Misconception about Competition – It is not always a good thing. We can become more like an animal or more like a man, depending on how we choose to compete.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

• Realization that faith is a gift. We have to practice our faith daily. As Christians Christ warns us that we will be persecuted for our faith. If we view our faith as a burden or set of rules we must follow, it is going to be difficult to stick with when persecution comes our way.

RESOURCES MENTIONED

What Your Money Means and How to Use it Well – Frank Hanna

A Graduate's Guide to Life – Frank Hanna

Strangers in a Strange Land – Archbishop Charles Chaput

• Hopeful analysis of the culture we live in

TOM CLEMENTS - BACKGROUND

• Serial Entrepreneur – successfully transformed 2 separate private small businesses into lucrative, public companies.
• Chairman and Founder of one of the country's first, prosperous internet endeavors back in the mid 90s.
• Sold that company, Conduit Software for $70 million.
• Founder of the 1st Catholic college in the state of Georgia.
• Author of How to Run a NonProfit

BUSINESS JOURNEY

• Deliver value to customers. One way Tom does is is by figuring out how his product/solution helps customers cut costs in quantifiable dollars and cents.
• Key Challenge in Business – build a sales model that is replicable and not overly customized so it can't be scaled.
• Get creative. Don't rely on a budget to produce results. Sometimes when you are forced to think creatively it produces the best results.
• Don't be afraid to ask for something. Asking just 1 question made Tom $10 Million in just 1 hour.
• Key Takeaway = Provide value to others in whatever it is that you do!

FAITH JOURNEY

• Searched for happiness for many years and NOTHING made him happy, except 1 thing.
• Find out how Tom starts his day and his main tip for practicing his faith
• On living his faith in the business world…What happens when you say something a certain way to a customer and you know they might not continue doing business with you as a result?
• Find out what Tom learned after 39 years of marriage.
• Humility and it's essential role

BOOK – How to Run a NonProfit

• The book is really Complete A to Z Guide that is even applicable to someone starting or running a for-profit business without a business background
• My favorite part, Tom gives specific guidance on how to put his advice into practice.
• Many questions an executive director or president must ask. If Tom had to pick just 1 thing for them to focus on, what would it be? Listen to find out more.
• Is X the greatest and highest use of our resources. Find out why.

THOUGHTS ON ACHIEVING REAL SUCCESS

• Life is not a Win Win. Life is about selflessness. Love is selfless.
• Real JOY comes when you aren't looking for the win for yourself!

RESOURCES MENTIONED

How to Run a Nonprofit – by Tom Clements

The Brothers Karamazov – by Fyodor Dostoyevsky

Catholic Entrepreneur. Host of Venture with Virtue. Helping others achieve real success in the high stakes venture of life.