Interviews with CEOs and Entrepreneurs about the frameworks they are using to build and scale their businesses.
Episodes
Monday Apr 24, 2023
Monday Apr 24, 2023
Michael Episcope is the Co-CEO of Origin Investments, a private equity real estate firm designed for the needs of high-net-worth individuals, family offices, and wealth management firms. We discuss ways business owners can remove investment bias from their processes, why you need to consider investing in a fund, and how to make better decisions in business.
Time Stamps
[00:30] Michael's entrepreneurial journey
[04:25] The power of curiosity in business
[08:25] Michael's experience with management blueprints
[11:10] Innovation in business
[13:55] How to remove investment biases from your processes
[17:15] Why decision-making is essential for business success
[20:05] Individual investing versus investing in a fund
[24:24] Deals going wrong in a fund structure
[25:30] How Origin Capital is transforming the way people invest
[29:04] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
Work with Steve - Stevepreda.com
Michael's email: Michael@origininvestments.com
Monday Apr 17, 2023
Monday Apr 17, 2023
Mike Kaeding is a residential real estate developer and the CEO of Norhart - a company focused on building exceptional apartments that create a better way for people to live. We discuss ways to attract amazing talent, the exciting future of smart homes, and how your company can put a dent in the universe.
Time Stamps
[00:30] Mike's entrepreneurial journey
[03:00] How Mike grew the family business after taking over its leadership
[06:25] Mike's experience with management blueprints
[08:14] How to find and hire the very best people
[10:30] What it takes to build a great culture
[13:21] Why you need to be as transparent as possible with your people
[15:16] Mike's mission: To drive down the cost of housing
[19:50] The exciting future of smart homes
[21:40] Eliminate unproductive friction for performance
[23:56] How everyday people can become real estate investors
[26:03] Lessons learnt from entrepreneurs building unicorn companies
[28:40] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
Work with Steve - Stevepreda.com
Monday Apr 10, 2023
Monday Apr 10, 2023
Will Bowden is the Founder and Owner of Grasshopper Farms - local Michigan farmers on a mission to grow and provide high-quality cannabis. We discuss the future of cannabis farming, how to dodge shiny objects, and the difference between outdoor and indoor cannabis farming.
Time Stamps
[00:40] Will's entrepreneurial journey
[03:20] Key differences between outdoor and indoor farming
[05:50] Factors that determine high-quality cannabis
[08:46] Will's experience with management blueprints
[13:35] Grasshopper farm's core competencies
[16:37] How Will manages the seasonality of his business
[21:20] There's more to cannabis than meets the eye
[25:50] Will's non-profit and what it's all about
[29:57] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
Work with Steve - Stevepreda.com
Grasshopper farms on Instagram
Monday Apr 03, 2023
Monday Apr 03, 2023
Jordan Gal is the Founder of Rally, a technology solution that creates a seamless checkout experience for customers. We discuss the benefits of building a unique business, ways to create a satisfactory store experience for your clients, and how the unbundling of marketplaces is redefining ecommerce.
Time Stamps
[00:30] Jordan’s entrepreneurial journey
[04:10] Jordan’s experience with management blueprints
[06:16] Why you’re better off building a unique business
[08:40] What is unbundling and why it matters in eCommerce
[12:42] Understanding the buying process of the future
[16:13] The biggest shifts in eCommerce happening today
[19:04] Trends accelerating the future of eCommerce
[21:48] How Jordan and his team finance business growth
[23:40] How to create a novel storefront experience
[26:59] Why you need to create a friction-free buying experience
[28:32] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
Work with Steve - Stevepreda.com
Connect with Jordan on Twitter
Monday Mar 27, 2023
Monday Mar 27, 2023
Tyler Sickmeyer is the marketing thought leader and Founder of Fidelitas, a full-service marketing and advertising agency that serves clients worldwide. He is also the owner of the San Diego Sharks Basketball Team. We discuss the easiest way to build a lead gen flywheel, the benefits of investing in a professional sports team, and how to maximize the ROI of your social media campaigns.
Time Stamps
[00:50] Tyler's entrepreneurial journey
[02:33] Tyler's experience with management blueprints
[05:47] The main cogs in the Omni-channel Flywheel
[07:28] How to maximize your social media return on attention
[10:17] Leveraging the different types of media to drive brand awareness
[12:38] Understanding the strategic partnership approach
[17:20] Tyler's first action when interacting with a new client
[19:17] Why Tyler invested in a basketball team
[23:33] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
Work with Steve - Stevepreda.com
Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap...And Others Don't by Jim Collins
Monday Mar 20, 2023
Monday Mar 20, 2023
Stephen Sacks is the Founder of Funding Nav, a company focused on delivering real-time advice and execution to owners of businesses looking to raise additional liquidity. We discuss how to make your business franchisable, ways to grow your business without loans, and how to succeed by learning from other people's failures.
Time Stamps
[00:45] Stephen's entrepreneurial journey
[03:07] Why Stephen chose the franchising route
[06:13] How to know if your business is franchisable
[08:31] Factors that define a successful franchise
[11:00] Why the more successful franchises focus on IP and branding
[12:12] Key difference between a blue-collar and white-collar franchise
[14:36] How to grow your business without loans
[19:36] Fuckup Nights: The global movement where stories of failure are shared.
[24:01] Why you need to learn from other people's failure
[25:10] The #1 business opportunity in the world right now
[30:55] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
Work with Steve - Stevepreda.com
Stephen's website - Fundingnav.com
Monday Mar 13, 2023
Monday Mar 13, 2023
Rob Hirschfeld is the Founder and CEO of The RackN Digital Rebar platform that helps organizations scale their automation efforts. We discuss ways to turn customers into raving fans, the fastest way to build trust in your business, and the pros and cons of open-source software.
Time Stamps
[00:30] Rob's entrepreneurial journey
[02:06] Understanding the meaning of the "Digital Rebar"
[04:15] The Build an Internal Champion framework
[07:06] The foundation of RackN's sales function
[08:36] How to generate interest for a new product in the market
[11:05] Ways to leverage the power of trends in marketing a business
[13:00] Pros and cons of open-source software
[16:40] Why you need to have repeatable standards for how things work
[21:38] The easiest way to build trust in your business
[22:33] Things that make an automation platform scalable
[27:08] The experience curve and ways to improve your productivity
[29:05] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
Work with Steve - Stevepreda.com
Connect with Rob via email: IamRob@rackn.com
Rob’s website - Robhirschfeld.com
Monday Mar 06, 2023
Monday Mar 06, 2023
Indiana Gregg is a tech entrepreneur, singer-songwriter, and the Founder & CEO of Wedo - the world's first commission-free social freelance platform. We discuss the pros and cons of being a digital nomad, easy ways to get people to switch to your platform, and how to use network effects to scale your business.
Time Stamps
[00:30] Indiana's entrepreneurial journey
[04:21] The significance of having a new social marketplace
[07:58] Indiana's experience with management blueprints
[12:22] The easiest way to convince people to switch to your solution
[14:12] How Indiana plans to use network effects to scale her platform
[15:55] Who is a digital nomad?
[19:17] Steve shares his experience with digital nomads
[21:14] The drawbacks of being a digital nomad
[24:20] How to find the best candidates on freelance social networks
[27:20] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
Work with Steve - Stevepreda.com
Monday Feb 27, 2023
Monday Feb 27, 2023
Francis Pedraza is the CEO of Invisible Technologies, an operations-as-a-service company that works with clients to solve complex scaling challenges and optimize mind-numbing workflows. We discuss ways to delegate at the speed of thought, how to stop wasting time on routine tasks, and the drawbacks of using an outsourcing company.
Time Stamps
[00:49] Francis shares his entrepreneurial journey
[04:09] The cons of using an outsourcing company
[06:45] Understanding the basics of operations as a service
[07:58] Custom apps and process automation
[10:36] An Amazon store for business processes
[12:01] Why strategy is about getting what you want
[15:17] Lessons from Sun-Tzu's Art of War
[17:53] Why time and change are inseparable
[20:50] How to build a partnership culture in your organization
[22:53] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
Work with Steve - Stevepreda.com
Connect with Francis via Email: Francis@invisible.co
The Art Of War by Sun Tzu
Monday Feb 20, 2023
Monday Feb 20, 2023
Dan Roam is a creative director, visual storyteller and bestselling author who helps businesses tell their best stories, solve complex problems, and navigate change through visual storytelling. We discuss the power of visual storytelling, how to clarify your own thinking, and ways to tell a story with ten emotional turns.
Time Stamps
[00:40] Dan's entrepreneurial journey
[04:16] The power of visualizing concepts
[06:12] Why visual storytelling is better than narrative storytelling
[10:15] How to draw pictures that describe your strategic ideas
[13:02] What is the visual decoder?
[18:47] How to draw a "When" picture
[20:30] Dan's book: The Pop-Up Pitch and what it's all about
[23:33] The history of the hero's journey
[27:21] The type of pitch that is guaranteed to work
[29:21] Telling your story with 10 emotional turns
[33:24] What makes storytelling so effective?
[35:55] Parting thoughts
Links and Resources
Steve and Greg Cleary's Book: Pinnacle: Five Principles that Take Your Business to the Top of the Mountain
Work with Steve - Stevepreda.com
The Back of the Napkin (Expanded Edition): Solving Problems and Selling Ideas with Pictures by Dan Roam
The Pop-up Pitch: The Two-Hour Creative Sprint to the Most Persuasive Presentation of Your Life by Dan Roam