Addoway’s mission is to bring the next generation of “social commerce” to the masses, where people buy and sell items with their friends and the merchants they trust. While other notable marketplaces like eBay use stranger’s experiences to create reputation, Addoway integrates directly with Facebook, giving users recommendations to reputable sellers through people they already know.

I have to say Fred and his partners have come up with something quite different in terms of ‘social purchasing’ and it will be very interesting to see just how far this business will go. Considering Fred left a Fortune 500 company managing a portfolio of $60M to launch Addoway I am sure Fred believes it will go a very long way. Reading the replies to our questions it is clear that Fred is inspired!

In particular I absolutely love Fred’s answer to our question on the biggest lessons he has learned in business:

Don’t wait to long to come out with an idea or wait to share it with others. If you are afraid someone is going to take it, then it’s probably too late. Some of your ideas are not going to work, but you can’t let that stop you. Companies like Google and Apple have come out with ideas that just didn’t go anywhere. They realized it quickly and changed course. You have to adapt and evolve to change.

Also in particular look at how Fred and partners have leveraged Social Media (Twitter, Facebook) to achieve such remarkable growth.

Enjoy the interview – and please let me have your comments and feedback on Addoway below.

To Our Success

Michael

PS: Follow Fred on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/addoway

Fredrick Nijm Interview

Fredrick Nijm, co-founder and Corey Kossack, Managing Partner

First off – can we have a little background information on you – Where you live? How old you are? (if you don’t mind answering) What motivates you? What inspires you?

I live in Arizona, but grew up in New Jersey. I came to Arizona to go to college when I was 17 and I have been here ever since. I am 30 years old now and have a B.S. in Biology and MBA in Marketing. I am inspired to change the way people think and view decisions they make. My ultimate dream is to be a motivational speaker and help people realize their true potential through positive thinking, the right attitude and patience.

Other Questions:

1) You are CEO of a new startup called Addoway.com. Tell us about Addoway, how the company formed and what made you go into this niche?

Addoway is an online marketplace for all things fashion, collectibles and much more. Our missions to bring the next generation of “social commerce” to the masses, where people buy and sell items with their friends and the merchants they trust. We recommend independent merchants that friends have purchased from in the past, merchants that friends know personally and others who are upfront about their identity and reputation.

Addoway was formed out of one idea to change the way people buy and sell online. My partner and I were upset with marketplaces at the time and knew we could create something better. So after about 5 years, multiple ideas and iterations of the platform Addoway was born. We chose social commerce because we felt that eCommerce lacks trustworthy transactions. Relationships are not being made online and leveraged to help merchants sell more and buyers feel confident in their purchase.

2) I understand you left your job at a Fortune 500 company managing a portfolio of $60M to launch Addoway with the help of co-founder Anthony Saia and Corey Kossack. That is very brave. Tell us what made you make the jump to being a Start Up Entrepreneur? What motivated you?

I always believed that I was here to do something more. I had a very professional job and had a desire to move up the corporate ladder, but something inside of me kept telling me there was something greater than this for me. What I was doing wasn’t risky enough for me and I am one to take risks. Well one Saturday, I had a vivid dream while I was in San Fran that I was sitting in a coffee shop and needed some air. I grabbed my coffee and stepped outside. I was just staring down this long road (you know what I mean if you have been to San Fran) and I suddenly starting smiling. It felt so real and so incredible. I could feel that air brush up against my face as if I wasn’t dreaming at all. At that very moment in my dream, I said to myself, “you work for yourself now.” I woke up and quit my job 2 days later. I will never forget that dream. Well all have them and I finally had mine.

3) As I understand it, Addoway is an online marketplace where people buy and sell with their friends and the merchants they trust. The site also integrates with Facebook’s social graph and recommends merchants their friends have purchased from in the past. Can you explain the concept a bit further – why do you think there is a need for a service like Addoway for example?

Other marketplaces use stranger’s experiences to create reputation. At Addoway, we don’t feel that is enough. You don’t really know who you are dealing with online by just a feedback score and a generic name. People want to trust more and they are just not able to online, so we created a platform that promotes trust – an essential element in building relationships, which is required to grow your business.

4) I understand Addoway launched in public beta in April, and since has reached over 100,000 user-generated product listings and tripled traffic to the site in the last 60 days. That is impressive growth. What strategies have you used to make people aware of your service? How have you promoted yourselves?

Believe it or not everything has been a “grassroots” effort. Everything has been established through social media sites like Twitter and Facebook. Our first sellers came through Twitter. We found each other. I love talking about social media and eCommerce and after I built up a following they wanted to know what I did. When you start trusting information from another person you begin to trust what they are about. We built Addoway from the ground floor with passion, determination, and our loyal fans. There is a considerable ROI in social media.

5) Can you share some of the biggest lessons you have learned personally and as a business as you have launched Addoway? If you were to start again, what might you do differently?

Don’t wait to long to come out with an idea or wait to share it with others. If you are afraid someone is going to take it, then it’s probably too late. Some of your ideas are not going to work, but you can’t let that stop you. Companies like Google and Apple have come out with ideas that just didn’t go anywhere. They realized it quickly and changed course. You have to adapt and evolve to change.

6) How has technology played it’s part in your launch? Did you have to create any custom applications / software?

Without technology, I don’t know how any of this would be possible. Addoway is 100% custom. Everything about it was created from scratch from one guy –  Anthony.

7) What was the scariest part of starting your own business?

The scariest part for me was the idea of never starting it. It is an invigorating experience to wake up every morning and know that I am doing something I absolutely love and believe in and I work with the greatest people – my friends.

Do you have any suggestions for coping with set-backs, negative experiences?

I am a firm believer in positive attitude and energy. You need to believe that you are going to have non-successful moments. I don’t call them failures unless you choose to just give up, but if you have the desire to win and succeed, then you are always going to find another way, another tool and that is success. Set-backs happen, because there are always things outside your control. Just remember to evolve and adapt to change and you will be fine.

9) How do you keep your business focus – Do you have any suggestions for entrepreneurs who are experiencing challenging times?

Never lose site of the end goal. Why did you create this business? How is the world different by your creation. Don’t ever forget the reason you decided to venture off and follow your dream. There will always be challenging times. Life itself is just not easy. It is not meant to be easy. There would be no reason to live if there weren’t any challenges. Challenges make us who we are and make us great. Look for the challenges and embrace them.

10) Is there anyone that you look up to and model yourself on? (You can name more than one person)

My ultimate role model has and always will be my grandfather. He was an incredible father, grandfather and just an all around great man. He believed in nothing more than being humble and showing love.

11) Do you have any favourite business related or indeed any book that you can recommend to other entrepreneurs?

Tribes: We Need you to Lead Us by Seth Godin – people are yearning for change and a group of people connected to each other needing change need a leader to lead them through it all. Be that leader.

12) What is the best advice you have ever been given?

No one can achieve greatness without risking greatly

13) What advice would you give to a Young Entrepreneur starting their first business today?

People will take you seriously if look upon yourself the same. Don’t falter in the face of adversity, because it exists. You need to rise above it.

14) What do you like best about the Internet?

It’s open and ever changing. It constantly adapts and evolves with the time. Everything is online.

15) What do you like least about the Internet?

The speed. I think it should be even faster.

16) Have you any plans (personal or business) that you can share with us about your future plans / goals / lifetime goals?

Right now, I want to continue building an innovative platform with my partners that continues to change the way people perform transactions online. Social Commerce is the future and Addoway is at the forefront of this change.

My ultimate long term goal is to be a motivational speaker. I coined the term: EATING To Success. I was once 300lbs and through my own personal motivation and positive attitude, I lost all of the weight over time. E = Energy, A= Attitude, T = Time. Are you eating today?

Follow Fred on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/addoway

Hi Everyone,

Today we have an awesome example of Social entrepreneurship. Young Social entrepreneurship!

Ethan Austin of Newport Beach, CA had his charitable idea realised when he received a chance phone call from a college friend. The tip off his friend gave Ethan even rocked his world, as he packed his bags and left California for Chicago where he now works and lives. Ethan isn’t scared of taking big leaps.

“People who take action inspire me. Talk is cheap.”

Read on to see how dedication and giving your all to your cause pays off in more ways than one, and GiveForward’s goal of giving hope to those in need of medical financial aid.

With GiveForward, you can create a personal fundraising page for ANY person, cause or non-profit you care about and then easily collect donations from friends and family all over the world.

Creating GiveForward.org is a huge achievement by Ethan and partner – Desiree Vargas. One of the finest examples ever of Young Entrepreneurs making a real difference in the world.

I love Ethan’s answers to our interview questions and in particular his answer to our question: Can you share some of the biggest lessons you have learned so far as an entrepreneur?

1: Be flexible
2: Don’t be afraid to launch a product that is less than perfect
3: Everything will take longer than you expect

I could not have put it better myself!

Enjoy the interview and let me have your comments below.

Michael

Social entrepreneurship – as defined by wikipedia.org

Social entrepreneurship is the work of a social entrepreneur. A social entrepreneur is someone who recognizes a social problem and uses entrepreneurial principles to organize, create, and manage a venture to make social change. Whereas a business entrepreneur typically measures performance in profit and return, a social entrepreneur focuses on creating social capital. Thus, the main aim of social entrepreneurship is to further social and environmental goals. However, whilst social entrepreneurs are most commonly associated with the voluntary and not-for-profit sectors, this need not necessarily be incompatible with making a profit.

Ethan Austin Interview

1) You’re a co-founder at GiveForward. How did you end up here?

I was in California in 2008 when a friend from college called me up and told she had met someone named Desiree Vargas at a Super Bowl party and that I should call Desiree about a business idea. Desiree, (the real brains behind GiveForward) was starting the company and had been working on it for about three or four months. I had been toying around with a similar idea for a website, but I didn’t have the guts or cash to start it myself. It took me a couple of weeks before I decided to call Desiree, but once I did, we both realized we had similar visions and we instantly clicked. She had already taken the leap to start the business, so it gave me the courage to take the leap as well. Three months later, I was on a plane moving to Chicago to launch GiveForward with her.

2) Can you share some of the biggest lessons you have learned so far as an entrepreneur?

Be flexible – Once your business is up and running, the market will tell you what works and what doesn’t work. You might think you have the best idea in the world when you write your business plan, but 99% of the stuff you’re writing goes out of the window the day you launch. Listen to the market and adapt. Businesses that succeed are ones that are willing to change.

For instance, with GiveForward, we started out thinking that our biggest segment of users would be people raising money for non-profits. We were dead wrong. The people who really loved our site weren’t non-profits. They were people using the site to raise money for their friend or family member’s medical expenses like chemo treatments and organ transplants. At first we fought it and tried to push the non-profit stuff because that was our original vision for the company. But, over time, more and more users kept using our site for medical expenses. In the fall of 2009, we finally stopped fighting it and instead chose to embrace it. We started focusing all of our attention to the medical fundraising aspect of the site around that time and that’s when GiveForward really started to gain traction.

Don’t be afraid to launch a product that is less than perfect – A lot of people are afraid that customers won’t like your product if it’s not perfect. But if you wait until something is perfect, you’re never going to launch it. With GiveForward, our website was absolutely terrible with all types of bugs and glitches when it was first released in 2008. At the time, I’m positive that 97% of people that came across our site probably thought we sucked. But since we only had like 10 or 15 visitors a day, it really didn’t really matter all that much. We had no reputation yet, so we had nothing to lose. The key for us was that the product was out there and we could make incremental improvements as we went along. Since that time, we’ve gone through multiple iterations of the site and we continually improve upon it. Just remember that whenever you see a website or a product, it probably didn’t start off looking the way it does now.

Everything will take longer than you expect. There is no magic wand. Success is not going to happen overnight. If you run your business the right way and treat people with kindness, respect and compassion good things will happen to you.

3) If you were to start again, what might you do differently?
I would reach out to more mentors and ask them for help. It’s amazing what happens when you just ask. There is really nothing to lose and usually you’ll find that people are more willing to offer support than you’d think.

4) What’s next for GiveForward? Where do you see them in say 5 years time?

With GiveForward, our goal right now is to form partnerships with hospitals and cancer non-profits so that we can get the word out to as many people as possible who need our services. Things change so quickly in business that it is impossible to say where we’ll be in five years, but for now our long term vision is that when someone has a friend or loved one who gets sick and needs help paying for their medical expenses, GiveForward is the resource that immediately comes to people’s minds.

5) Are there any other business or charity ideas in the pipeline?
No. Right now I’m really just focused on trying to make GiveForward a great company that empowers people to do good.

6) Do you have any recommended strategies for getting a user who visits once to come back and use your site again – other than of course good friendly service?

If you can make people laugh, you can get people to come back. Give people surprises by adding unexpected bits of humor hidden throughout your website. If you build a vanilla website that looks and feels like every other vanilla website out there, no one is going to remember you and no one will have a reason to come back. You might do a good job at not offending anyone, but at the same time you’re not going to make anyone fall in love with your site either.

When you are creating content for your site, talk in your own voice. Be quirky. Be weird. Be funny. But bottom line — be yourself. You have to accept that you’re going to have some casualties but the payoff of winning over fans is far greater. You need to build a website that some people are going to fall in love with and some people are going to hate. The people who love it are going to tell others. The people who hate it, probably weren’t going to come back anyway.

7) How do you market yourself online?
We don’t spend any money on traditional media or online ads. We’d rather spend our money doing things that make our users really happy. For instance, we send all of our super users t-shirts as a way to say thanks for doing business with us. A walking, talking billboard who can share their own personal GiveForward story is going to be generate many more users than an ad on Facebook would.

Do you have any suggestions for coping with negative experiences?

Ignore the squeaky wheels. No matter what you do, there will always be a small percentage of users who think your site is terrible and they will let you know about it. They are going to tell you 10,000 ways your site could be better. Ignore them. Be polite and respectful when you respond to them, but don’t feel like you need to act upon their every demand.
9) How do you keep your business focus – Do you have any suggestions for entrepreneurs who are experiencing challenging times?

Relish the small victories. In December of 2008, GiveForward had been live for about five months and we weren’t gaining very much traction at all. It was frustrating and at times I thought that maybe we were in over our heads. But around that same time I had posted a fundraiser on the site for my buddy’s two-year old daughter whose mom had just passed away from cancer. I ended up receiving a $500 donation on my fundraising page from a stranger I had met during a jog in LA. This was just a small, tiny victory, but it meant a ton to me at the time. It showed me that we were on the right track and that the technology we were giving people had the potential to change lives. We just needed to get the word out about to people.

10) What people do you look up to and model yourself on?
I’m a big fan of Seth Godin. In fact, if I thought about it long enough, I’d say that at least half the answers in this interview can probably be traced back to some book or blog post he’s written. He’s a smart guy, but mostly he’s a decent person with good values.

11) Do you have any favourite business or related books that you can recommend to other entrepreneurs?
Seth’s books Purple Cow is a must read for anyone starting a business. But my favorite Seth Godin book is his newest book, Linchpin. I bought 50 copies of it to give out to my business partners, friends and staff members.

REWORK by Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson is also excellent. Lastly, Hug Your Customers by Jack Mitchell is a great book on customer service that I would definitely recommend.

12) What is the best advice you have ever been given?
Do what’s going to make you happy. If you’re not passionate about your work, then quit and do something you’re passionate about. Life is too short to muddle through without a sense of purpose.

13) Based on your experiences, what advice would you give to a Young Entrepreneur starting their first business today?
First, you have to jump in. The hardest part of any business is committing to taking that initial plunge. But once you take that plunge and commit, your business takes on a life of its own. You build on your existing momentum and things get easier each day.

Second, don’t try to be all things to all people. If you’re trying to be all things to all people no one is going to fall in love with your site because it won’t resonate with any one particular group of people. Instead, focus on being really good at one thing and build your company around being the best in the world at that thing.

Third, focus your attention on your existing customers rather than focusing on obtaining new customers. If you meet a customer’s expectations she may or may not be loyal to your company. But if you do something extraordinary to exceed her expectations, she is not only going to be loyal, which will bring you more revenue, but will also tell her friends about your company too.

Lastly and most importantly, treat everyone you meet with kindness and compassion. People can spot the BS pretty quickly. But if you genuinely care about people, you will build a reputation and your business will grow. It’s not going to grow overnight, but eventually things will fall into place and your business will take off.

14) What do you like best about the Internet?
The fact that it levels the playing field. Anyone with a laptop and an Internet connection can start a successful business these days.

15) What do you like least about the Internet?
Email. It’s a time suck.

16) Have you any plans (personal or business) that you can share with us about your future plans / goals / lifetime goals?
Right now, I absolutely love what I do and couldn’t be happier, so I don’t see myself switching careers anytime soon. Will I be doing the same thing in ten or fifteen years? That’s impossible to predict.

Thank you for the great interview Ethan and good luck for the future!

Click Here For GiveForward Website

I’m pleased to introduce to you a fantastic young entrepreneur whose hugely successful and rapidly expanding business in frozen yoghurt is taking the US by storm. Meet Natasha Nelson of Yogurtini – Natasha and her popular and creative company are based in Southern California, the perfect location for an entrepreneur who best describes herself as “a true beach girl” and who is constantly inspired by the youthful and creative culture of the south west’s famous beaches.

Natasha and the company are a persistent advocate for good ingredients and good causes, including helping out in the Haiti earthquake. She also took care of her terminally ill mother in Arizona and still found time to work at night. Honored in the  ”Top 35 entrepreneurs under 35” by the Arizona Republic & AZ Magazine in March 2010, a keen traveler and always pushing forward with a drive to learn, innovate and lead the market.

Natasha Nelson is one of the most inspiring female entrepreneurs we have ever interviewed at RetireAt21.com and I just love her tip for coping with setbacks:

Get up, dry your tears, move forward, lose the baggage and learn from your mistakes

Enjoy the interview and let us have your comments.

Michael

I have always been an entrepreneur since I was a child. I think it is in my blood, my mom was also an entrepreneur. I love creating a business that focuses on something I am passionate and excited about, watching it grow and working with my staff to create fun and motivating projects for everyone. Business can be an art. One friend calls me the “business artist”. I love that!

I can’t honestly say that money doesn’t motivate me, but not for all the reasons people may think. I just returned from Haiti after the earthquake with 40 doctors, nurses and EMT’s. After a trip like that your heart changes. Money can go a long way in a third world country, especially after a disaster. My sister and I have a heart for Haiti, Sudan and many parts of Africa. Yogurtini has worked with the community and many philanthropic companies and raised thousands of dollars from everything to Parkinsons research to raising funds for prosthetics for an ASU student who lost her leg in Haiti when a building collapsed on her, she now is rock climbing with her new prosthetic.

I’m always inspired by my sister’s perfectly cool blend of funky style with a combination of being the brainiest and having the keenest street smarts that would be completely obscure to any stranger that meets her…and most importantly, God’s grace when you know you have really messed up.

Natasha Nelson Interview – Yogurtini Founder Inspires Young Entrepreneurs

1) You founded self-serving frozen yogurt company Yogurtini – what drew you to this unusual niche market?

My sister and I have been frozen yogurt fanatics since we were kids. We were both living in CA but in different cities, we were always visiting different yogurt shops and texting each other when we would find a new flavor we liked. When we would return home to Arizona to visit family and friends we were not satisfied with the choices we had. We had the same idea at the same time, which we often do. So, I wrote up a business plan, we started researching, became yogurt experts after a year and Yogurtini was launched.

2) Yogurtini is expanding across the U.S. – with a healthy profit. What has allowed you to grow so quickly in such a short space of time?

We were surprised how quickly we were profitable. It always comes down to having the best yogurt in town, we hear it over and over. After 944 Magazine readers voted us “Best place to chill”, College Affair voted us “Best Sweet Spot” and we were nominated in The Phoenix New Times for “Best Frozen Yogurt” we knew we had hit the mark. Our reputation was spreading like wildfire and within a few months we had many offers from investors who saw potential in our business and people asking about franchising. After about 9 months of going through the franchise registration process we have hit the ground running.

3) What next for Yogurtini? Where do you see the business in say 5 years time?

Our franchising program has started off so well I honestly wouldn’t be surprised to see us with 100-300 stores in the next five years nationally. We have the team, inspiration and personal drive to make this happen.

4) Yogurtini is about fun and eating. I notice that there’s also a big focus on healthy eating. How do you and your team keep on top of fashion trends in this industry?

I’ve always considered myself a newshound and no one can beat me at Trivial Pursuit’s Pop Culture edition. I read the Wall Street Journal and Teen Vogue. Been doing it since I was 14 and my mom got me a subscription for both.

I also keep my nose in the yogurt gossip and believe we have created some of the trends that some of the other larger shops are following us on. My sister has made some amazing flavors partnering up with companies like Sambazon who brought the Acai’ berry from the Ambazon. Soon after, we saw Acai’ yogurt being offered by our competitors. We have a few new things up our sleeves as well, which I can’t share with you yet! We also like to get CRAZY. Sriracha hot sauce and yogurt covered pop rocks are two of our most popular toppings…you aren’t gonna find that at TCBY, Red Mango or Pinkberry.

5) Do you have any recommended strategies for getting customers who buy once to come back and buy from you again – other than of course good service?

Yogurtini is almost a lifestyle. Our brand reflects the lifestyle of those who want to eat healthy, have fun, want to create their own treat and most of all get away into a fun environment for a few minutes, enjoy your yogurt and listen to some great tunes. When you find a favorite, you keep coming back.

6) How does your physical shop market itself online? I see you’re a Twitter and Facebook user; how important is it to use these sites to reach your audience?

If you aren’t using Facebook and Twitter you are way behind. Our “Twitter Tuesdays” have become somewhat infamous at our Tempe location near Arizona State University students. I am always working on the next online marketing tool. Study, study, study.

7) Do you have any suggestions for coping with set-backs, negative experiences?

Get up, dry your tears, move forward, lose the baggage and learn from your mistakes; and my personal favorite “fake it ‘til you make it”. All easier said than done…but sounds good, huh? That is what I try to do.

8 ) How do you keep your business focus – Do you have any suggestions for entrepreneurs who are experiencing challenging times?

It’s not easy for me right now, just like everyone else. I have a lot of distractions in my personal and professional world. I don’t rush what I don’t have to; I work when I have the motivation and that next “big idea”. Sometimes I am not able to focus for a week…then the next week I wake up in the middle of the night with an idea and I can’t stop working on it for a month. Is that manic? I don’t know if it’s healthy but it works for me. I have worked for myself for almost seven years now. I think a lot of entrepreneurs go through that. Most of my friends and family work for themselves, so I’m surrounded by other entrepreneurs with similar experiences.

9) What people do you look up to and model yourself on?

That is easy, my mom. She was a workaholic. I am not, but she taught me a good work ethic. There wasn’t a day she didn’t work on something while I was growing up whether it was her career, her masters degree or her other businesses she started. She had a very level head when it came to business. I try to be more like her everyday and find myself thinking “What would my mom do?” – I can’t leave out my father, he has such a great demeanor with people and engaging people in a conversation where you feel like the only person in the world he cares to listen to at that moment, there is no one who doesn’t like my father. I like to think my business partners and employees enjoy me as a person as well, if they do, I owe that to my dad.

One of my first bosses when I worked for an Advertising and PR agency deserves a shout out too, Shawn Buckley. He was young and likeable but we had a respect for him and just a wee bit of fear. I never missed a deadline working for Shawn. I also never missed a party he would throw. He taught me a lot on how to manage people without losing your temper but getting a big point across you wouldn’t ever forget. I also knew I could knock on the door and talk to him as a friend. Plus, he had class. I hope my employees and partners say that about me one day.

10) Do you have any favourite business or related books that you can recommend to other entrepreneurs?

I love to read but it’s not always the business books that inspire me. For instance, I just read one of Chelsea Handlers books and it was hilarious, it put me in the best mood. I felt creative and so motivated after that read! I read ‘Gone With the Wind’, my classic favorite I try to read every few years, and suddenly took on the spirit of Scarlet, she had gusto and a no holds barred, “I won’t take anyone’s crap attitude” – But, if I need to know about a specific subject I do my research. If I am hiring a consultant, you bet I want to speak their language and sound like I know what I am talking about. I am also a huge advocate of public relations and publicity. The best book I read on that was ‘The Fall of Advertising and Rise of PR’ by Al Ries. Every entrepreneur should read that one. I have a few other books that have helped me in the yogurt industry but those are on my secret shelf.

11) What is the best advice you have ever been given?

Personally, a prayer my father gave me during a hard time about accepting things I cannot change and changing the things I can. I believe it is called the serenity prayer. In business, my mom always repeated “don’t let them cheat you”. Maybe that was from a bad experience she had and my sister and I would roll our eyes, but we always remember she probably knows better so we check, check, check. Check your books! Check backgrounds on people you work with!

12) You’ve had a difficult 12 months out of the business. Based on your experiences, what advice would you give to a anxious Young Entrepreneur starting their first business today?

We haven’t had many difficulties to date but my best advice is to find people who will be honest with you who have experience…and use their advice. If your first business fails, try again. No one is a winner every time. Accept that before you even start.

13) What do you like best about the Internet?

It’s fast and immediate; I can create my own brand and impression I am in control of.

14) What do you like least about the Internet?

If someone posts something on your FaceBook you don’t want anyone to know about it and it goes out to all of your friends and family…also accidentally seeing all your exes with their new girlfriends, ick!

15) Have you any plans (personal or business) that you can share with us about your future plans / goals / lifetime goals?

I want Yogurtini to grow into something bigger than my family ever imagined when we first had the original idea for one shop. I want to create a business atmosphere of fun and growth with my employees. I love the team and family feel a good leader can create.

Personally, that is easy. I’m still a girl looking for true love, aren’t we all? And yes, the beach house in my secret spot in Hawaii is right underneath that. Learning, understanding and working on sustainable ways to help impoverished countries is on my list too. I currently work with Transformational Development Agency ( http://www.tdaafrica.com ) in my free time and went with them to Haiti. An entrepreneur can use their skills for empowering change globally as well. That is what I would like to be remembered for and would love to work on that with my sister in the future. Yogurtini will be the just a blip on my obituary I hope.

Hi Everyone,

Today at RetireAt21.com we are delighted to interview Jason Ryan Dorsey – AKA “The Gen Y Guy and author Y-Size Your Business: How Gen Y Employees Can Save You Money and Grow Your Business

Generation Y—sometimes called Millennials — are the fastest growing segment in America’s workforce. Almost 80 million strong, they already comprise the entire 18-to-32 demographic. Along with their ever-present cell phones and new definition of “business casual,” they bring tremendous potential to the workplace (just ask, they’ll tell you). However, Generation Y’s approach to employment can make them a challenge for managers and executives to attract, retain, motivate, and develop.

In Y-Size Your Business, Jason Ryan Dorsey—The Gen Y Guy®—shows you why embracing Gen Y employees gives you an immediate competitive advantage and positions your business for long-term growth. In today’s economy, the opportunity Gen Y presents has never been more attractive. Gen Y is cost-effective to employ, brings a timely skill set to the workplace, and wants to make a difference from their first day of employment.

Jason has also delivered something like 1800 keynote speeches plus he has appeared on 60 Minutes, 20/20, The Today Show, and The View. Jason is a remarkable young man with a timely message for business owners and entrepreneurs today.

The like the advice that Jason lives by:

You choose the life you live

That pretty well sums up Generation Y.

Enjoy The Interview – and let me have your comments

Best Wishes

Michael

PS: I also loved Jason’s advice for entrepreneurs regarding what to do in challenging time:

Do something every day that moves you forward. Something concrete and tangible. Cold-call people. Write something. Go to a meeting. If you keep focused on moving forward you will eventually get where you’re trying to go.

SPOT ON!

Jason Dorsey Interview

Here’s more about Jason in his own words:

My name is Jason Dorsey and I live in Austin, Texas—home of great live music, excellent queso, and wearing flip flops to fancy restaurants. I’m now 31 years old and wrote my first bestselling book at age 18. Since that time, I’ve written four more books, delivered 1,800 keynotes as far away as India, and been featured on lots of national TV shows. However, I still text message my mom every day.

I was initially inspired to pursue this path by a mentor. He helped me to see that my personal journey overcoming all kinds of obstacles to become a junior in college at age 18, while at the same time finding great mentors and positioning myself for big job opportunities, was something that I should share. He said I should write a book for people my age so they, too, could get a head start on the real world. I listened. I had no idea that the book would turn into a bestseller, lead me to start my own company, and ultimately become a way for me to help business execs all over the world. Now I would say I’m most inspired by helping people of all ages recognize the potential that Gen Y brings to the workplace—and the cost-effective actions employers can take to unlock Gen Y’s workplace performance. It’s cool, because I essentially get to help Gen Y get more of what we want and at the same time employers come out ahead, too.

1) You are known as the GenY Guy – tell us a bit more about this title?

This title was the easiest way I could explain what I do. I help people better understand, lead, sell to, and work with Gen Y. Now I meet people all the time who say, “Hey, aren’t you that Gen Y Guy?” The name has definitely stuck.

2)  Do you think that being a good speaker is something you’re born with, or can it be learned?

I think some people have a natural personality for speaking (these are people like me who constantly talk to strangers while shopping for groceries). Ironically, that doesn’t mean you have to be an extrovert to be a good speaker. Many of the best speakers are introverts who simply come out of their shell when given a stage and a microphone. I have also seen lots of people develop their speaking skills simply by practicing (all you need is an audience) and asking for constructive feedback after every speech. I know I’m a much better speaker now than I was thirteen years ago. Some people think that my style is entirely natural, but it’s actually me trying different things 1,800+ times to see what really works for my audiences.

3) Can you share some of the biggest lessons you have learned personally and as a business as things have grown? If you were to start again, what might you do differently?

If I were to start again I would have asked more questions about how to build a business that lasts for a long period of time. I simply had a dream and started doing what I thought was necessary to move forward. While this took me to a certain level, I eventually realized I was doing a lot of things the hard way. I finally went to my mentors and advisors and asked, “How do I grow my business in a way that gives me more control over my lifestyle yet allows me to make a bigger impact?” Some of the best advice I ever received, and continued to receive, was from other entrepreneurs who had already struggled with this same question and found their own set of answers.

4) What next for you? Where do you see the business in say 5 years time?

My focus now is leveraging the message and methodology in Y-Size Your Business. I believe the information in this book can profoundly impact the success of business that employ Gen Y. I now spend most of my free time (i.e. Airplane time) thinking about how to take my message to a more meaningful level. My hope is that in 3 – 5 years I will be helping people without having to actually show up—that way my wife can finally get me to mow the yard. Then again, maybe I should keep speaking…

5) You have really built a niche for yourself as a generational expert, being featured in Fortune, on 60 minutes an other news programs, how important is personal branding and do you have any tips for young entrepreneurs for how to stay true to their brands?

In a business like mine, personal branding is extremely important. For all intents and purposes, I am the business. If your situation is similar, then anything you can do to show that you are a thought-leader will help to build your credibility, visibility, and influence. This could include writing a column, monthly podcast, Twitter, or responding to others who already use these channels. For me, I built my brand by becoming very clear on the results I delivered and focusing all our marketing on those results. If your business is bigger than you, then personal branding is more of a career move than a business strategy. Either way, the more people who have a positive association with you, the more doors will open.

6) Do you have any suggestions for coping with set-backs in business or coping with adversity?

Yes. My # 1 suggestion for dealing with setbacks is to go help someone else. Really. When things seem incredibly bleak go find someone in need and help them. This will shift your focus off yourself, allow you to clear your head, and make someone else’s day a little brighter. This also keeps you from making rash decisions which sometimes make the setback worse. In terms of overcoming adversity, my best strategy is to surround myself with people who believe in me. These are family, friends, and mentors. They want me to succeed not because of any financial gain but simply because they want me to be happy and live my dream. I show the same support toward them.

7) How do you keep your business focus – Do you have any suggestions for entrepreneurs who are experiencing challenging times?

Do something every day that moves you forward. Something concrete and tangible. Cold-call people. Write something. Go to a meeting. If you keep focused on moving forward you will eventually get where you’re trying to go.

8 ) Is there anyone that you look up to and model yourself on?

I greatly respect my parents and grandparents. I strive to demonstrate their unwavering love. In terms of business, my role models are my mentors. They have not only built successful companies, but contributed to the community and taken time to help other people achieve their dreams (people like me).

9) Do you have any favourite business related books that you can recommend to other entrepreneurs?

Absolutely. Here are some of my favorite: Think and Grow Rich, The Little Red Book of Selling, Rich Dad, Poor Dad, The Rockefeller Habits, and The Alchemist.

10) What is the best advice you have ever been given?

You choose the life you live.

11) As someone who has achieved success at a relatively young age, what advice would you give to a Young Entrepreneur starting their first business today?

Focus on learning every single day. As soon as you take your focus off learning and growing you start to get stagnant and lose some of your spark. For me, that means asking lots of questions, introducing myself to people who could help me, reading everything I can get my hands on, and then taking educated risks (and learning from my failures and my successes).

12) What do you like best about the Internet?

It gives me something to read when I’m waiting in line for coffee.

13) What do you like least about the Internet?

Dial-up.

14) Have you any plans (personal or business) that you can share with us about your future plans / goals / lifetime goals?

I am about to go on my first vacation without my cell phone or laptop. I’m nervous and excited!

Buy The Book At Amazon.com:
http://www.amazon.com/Y-Size-Your-Business-Employees-Money/dp/0470505567

What a cool site my next interviewee runs. It’s called SongWhale.com – a free entertainment service delivering premium digital content directly to your handheld device. Founder Ty Morse has always been interested in music – he’s even written two ROCK operas! When asked who he models himself on, Ty humorously replied “Doctor Who.”

One piece of advice from Ty really jumped out – it is:

Design a compelling brand, and care for your customers. There may come a time when your brand is your last defence.

A little bit more background information on Ty: (Ty’s sense of humor is everywhere )

How old are you (if you don’t mind answering)? Don’t mind at all. I’m 27 years old. How much do you guys weigh?

What motivates you? Iron Maiden, Horses, Jack Lalane, Tony Little, Richard Simmons

What inspires you? Tall mountains, deep purple sunsets, drum solos, and hard work from my staff. AND–Odd personalities.

Enjoy the interview – I look forward to your comments very much.

Michael

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Ty Morse Interview

First – some background information on Ty:

I live in Pittsburgh, PA just a few blocks from our company headquarters in Lawrenceville (just a few miles from downtown Pittsburgh). Pittsburgh has easily been one of the most important aspects of our success, as the city is chalked full of talented young people graduating from Carnegie Mellon, University of Pittsburgh, Duquesne, and many others. In addition, it’s a small big city so we have built tons of wonderful partnerships within the city that have helped us to grow at a faster than normal rate.

1) Hi Ty, thank you for doing this interview. Our readers will appreciate it, I’m sure. Firstly, tell me about your company: SongWhale.com – tell us how the company formed?

My business partner Jon and I have started various companies over the years, but Songwhale was created specifically to monetize digital content through a platform that combines SMS, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and Direct-To-Device (USB, SD, MicroSD). Initially, Songwhale was created in an effort to generate revenue on music content in the mobile medium, but later we would expand to sports, real estate, retail, and more. Jon and I have always loved music and we own a record label together as well (Royalty, Etc. Records). As the music industry suffered due to declining cd sales we decided to take music content and allow users to access it for free via their handheld devices while supporting the platform with sponsorship and advertising of relevant partners.

2) You have written two rock operas. Are there any strategies you use to create Rock Operas that you now use in your business?

Creative thinking and arpeggios.

3) Can you share some of the biggest lessons you have learned personally and as a business as things have grown? If you were to start again, what might you do differently?

Beware of overselling your business as you grow. You must be able to make decisions about which clients you wish to serve. Make sure your infrastructure can keep up with your sales and any surprise successes you may encounter.

4) You keep the content free to the end user. How has this strategy been working for you?

This is only the case for our American business, and it has worked well in the current market. In our expansion into Asia the mobile market is still a paying market, much the way American mobile business operated 5 years ago–this is the model we are pursuing in those markets. Today, for-pay American mobile services no longer dominate and as such the free content method is used.

5) You’ve grown your business quite quickly. Any tips for young entrepreneurs looking to make a splash in their industries?

Design a compelling brand, and care for your customers. There may come a time when your brand is your last defense.

6) Do you have any suggestions for coping with set-backs, dealing with adversity?

Stay positive, and do not burn bridges. Casting blame has a limited value. After blame is assessed, do not fixate on it but correct it and move on.

7) How do you keep your business focus – Do you have any suggestions for entrepreneurs who are experiencing challenging times?

Get an accountant. Staff parties–you tube, CDs, video games. Create products that can be used in more than one place. Fire lazy staff.

8 ) Is there anyone that you look up to and model yourself on?

Doctor Who

9) Do you have any favourite business related books that you can recommend to other entrepreneurs?

The Art of War, the Prince, Bridges of Madison County, Hunt for Red October, War and Peace, Hammer of the Gods, and The Devil is Dead

10) What is the best advice you have ever been given?

Do not burn bridges. Especially the Bridges of Madison County.

11) You have more than songwale. You and your partner have Royalty Etc. Records, a record label; Frankenstein: The Rock Opera, a production company; and Songwhale. How important do you think it is to do more than one thing? (Not keep all eggs in one basket)

It’s great for a financial profile, but do not dilute your primary talents too far, and do not be afraid to pick something and get behind it. Jon and I have always been focused on music, and every company we have started has revolved around music at the core. We started Songwhale so that we could fund recording more records. Musicians don’t make much money.

12) What do you like best about the Internet?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nda_OSWeyn8

13) What do you like least about the Internet?

Internet Explorer 6! It is the worst thing about the internet.

14) Have you any plans (personal or business) that you can share with us about your future plans / goals / lifetime goals?

Yes. We are going to film Frankenstein: The Rock Opera and present it to the world. We are also going to train and go one on one with US Soccer pro Jay DeMerit. Lastly, we will lose to Billy Mitchell in Donkey Kong.

Hi Everyone,

Today I would like to introduce you to the definitive authority on the business practice of “freesourcing” – Mr Nathan Egan of FreeSource Agency.

Freesourcing is a methodology that Nathan teaches to business and organizations in order to drive efficiency and stay competitive.

I think Freesourcing is something many of us already practice – without knowing there was an ‘official’ name for it

After working with Linkedin.com Nathan decided it was time to start his own company, building social media strategies for clients. He’s worked with some really top notch people including Forbes and Mandarin Oriental.  Nathan is 32  years old and operates out of Kennett Square, Pennsylvania.

I love Nathans answers – one in particular that struck me was what Nathan had this to say about being an entrepreneur:

Being an entrepreneur is a 24/7, 365 days a year type of situation, so you really need to understand that it is going to be your entire life. You are going to fall down and skin your knees, but don’t bother with pads. Get used to the sensation of the pain and eventually you will become numb to it and will be able to absorb the impact of the challenges you will face daily.

Enjoy the interview – I look forward to your comments.

Best wishes

Michael

Nathan Egan Interview

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1) Hi Nathan – thank you for being on this interview. You are founder of freesourceagency.com a business which you founded after first working with Linkedin.com – tell us how the company formed and what made you go into this niche?

• In many ways, Freesource founded itself. When I was working at LinkedIn, my clients and prospects kept asking me to help them build social media strategies “on the side.” When I finally decided to leave LinkedIn, I left on Friday and collected my first client check the following Wednesday. Originally, it was just myself and it was very much a freelance concept – my mission was to help businesses make sense of all of the wonderful free resources (freesources) available on the web. Today, that mission is still the same even though things have changed quite a bit; most notably, we have 7 full-time employees and primarily service Fortune 1000 companies.

2) You are the creator and definitive authority on the business practice of  “freesourcing,” a methodology he teaches to help organizations drive efficiency and stay competitive. Could you delve a bit deeper into freesourcing?

• Freesourcing is a business process much like outsourcing, crowdsourcing, insourcing, homesourcing, etc. Social media and web 2.0 services represent the most powerful shift in technology we have seen in our lifetime and the majority of these tools and platforms are available for free. The art and science of “freesourcing” has become necessary because all of these tools are useless unless you know how to use them. When you are freesourcing to the full extent of what is possible, you have optimized your business for the current market and this puts you in a position of power over your competition.

3) Can you share some of the biggest lessons you have learned personally and as a business as things have grown? If you were to start again, what might you do differently?

• I have always been an entrepreneur, and I have probably written over 50 business plans for concepts that hardly got off paper. I thought I knew a lot about being an entrepreneur from experiencing failure, but I’ve come to realize how challenging it is when your concept comes to fruition, let alone does well.
• My biggest takeaway from my experience is that you have to keep putting yourself out there to be successful. No one is going to do it for you; but eventually if you do it enough, you will find yourself in the right place at the right time. Most of those business plans I wrote that “failed” didn’t fail because they were bad ideas – it’s just that the timing wasn’t right.
• If I were to do it again, I would just leave myself a little more time for planning.

4) Where do you see the business in say 5 years time?

In five years Freesource will have completely redefined the landscape for corporate B2B marketing, sales, and communications. In five years Freesource will be a 35 million dollar a year business.

5) You tend to focus on larger companies like Forbes and Mandarin Oriental, but do you have some strategies you can share with smaller entrepreneurs looking to get started?

3 Steps (in this order):

1. Start small
2. Provide tremendous value
3. Network like crazy

My first clients were very small operations (mostly entrepreneurs and professional service providers) who were looking to learn how to use social media. I serviced them like they were big clients and leveraged their networks to earn more business, eventually becoming very big clients.

6) Do you have any suggestions for coping with set-backs, dealing with adversity?

Always look at things that don’t go “well” or “as planned” as learning lessons – if you have that mind-set, than everything that happens will have value.

7) How do you keep your business focus – Do you have any suggestions for entrepreneurs who are experiencing challenging times?

Focus is one of my biggest challenges and I have often found myself alone with that burden. I find it to be extremely helpful to ask those around you to help you find your focus as they can frequently see what you cannot. If your business is just you, ask your friends, partners or spouses for help.

8 ) Is there anyone that you look up to and model yourself on?

There are key people in my life that continuously push the envelope for what I know human beings to be capable of and they do it all while keeping their personal and professional life in balance. Without naming names, I look to those people when I need the extra motivation to keep going.

9) Do you have any favorite business related books that you can recommend to other entrepreneurs?

I like short inspirational books that tell stories that you can apply immediately. One of my all time favorites was written by my good friends Gail Steinel and Mike Policano called “Excuse Me, Aren’t You In Charge?” (Amazon: http://bit.ly/3tuhPX
For straight up business support and honing your value proposition I recommend “Value Prop” by Jose Palomino (Amazon: http://bit.ly/4dRiNA ).

10) What is the best advice you have ever been given?

My parents always told me not to be a follower – that is how I got to where I am today.

11) As someone who has achieved success at a relatively young age, what advice would you give to a Young Entrepreneur starting their first business today?

Being an entrepreneur is a 24/7, 365 days a year type of situation, so you really need to understand that it is going to be your entire life. You are going to fall down and skin your knees, but don’t bother with pads. Get used to the sensation of the pain and eventually you will become numb to it and will be able to absorb the impact of the challenges you will face daily.

12) What do you like best about the Internet?

I love how powerful the web has become. Software as a Service (SaaS) has completely redefined the computing and technology industry. I also love the incredible pace of change in the Internet space. I enjoy waking up everyday to see all of the exciting new ways the internet can be leveraged and my favorite thing is passing that knowledge on to my clients in meaningful and valuable ways.

13) What do you like least about the Internet?

Although I love the transparency of the Internet, I battle with the new challenges of privacy. While I like to sell and evangelize all of this technology for business purposes, I still have personal issues with disclosure of my location, being accessible 24/7, etc.

14) Have you any plans (personal or business) that you can share with us about your future plans / goals / lifetime goals?

Whether personally or professionally, I will always be pushing myself to new extremes. I love doing things that I never thought I would be able to do.

Nathan Egan’s website: freesourceagency.com

Hi Everyone

Here’s a nice little interview with Chris Stanchak, CEO of TicketLeap.com one of the fastest growing online ticketing companies. Chris founded TicketLeap.com in 2003 to bring professional-grade ticketing to events too small to get the attention of the big ticketing companies. Like many entrepreneurs before him, Chris spotted a gap in the market and an opportunity. In this case it was the OPPORTUNITY to put cutting-edge ticketing in the hands of every event organizer, whether they were selling 100 tickets or 100,000 tickets.

Chris has had a few challenges along the way, such as his first ticketing event (before Ticketleap) being canceled due to events on September 11, 2001. It is clear that Chris has great tenacity and does not give up easily. The Mark of a True Entrepreneur in my opinion!

I was in particular very impressed with the reply Chris gave to: What is the best advice you have ever been given?

Success of a company is all about the people involved. Hire talent over experience.

Spot on advice!

Chris is a honors graduate of The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, with dual concentrations in management and marketing. He lives in Center City Philadelphia — just two blocks from TicketLeap headquarters. Chris is an active member of the tech entrepreneurship community in Philadelphia.

Enjoy the interview – I look forward to your comments

best wishes

Michael

Chris Stanchak Interview

CEO of TicketLeap

Background Info on Chris:

“I’m 32 living in Philadelphia, PA. Being successful, winning and delivering an exceptional product that people find useful all motivate me.  My inspiration is seeing innovation being created in the world and knowing that anything is possible.”

1) You are CEO of TicketLeap.com – a company that has been named one of the fastest growing companies of the year in Philadelphia. How did you start TicketLeap?

I had a friend who was holding an event and trying to sell tickets, but Ticketmaster wouldn’t help them out so I set him up with a system to sell his tickets and TicketLeap.com took off from there.  Unfortunately, the event wasn’t even held due to the events of September 11^th.

2) TicketLeap.com helps sell and organize event tickets, so you seemingly have a lot accounts. What has allowed you to grow, while at the same time retaining an excellent reputation for service?

Historically, we did not start out with a lot of resources which meant we didn’t have the best of technology, but we compensated by going above and beyond with our customer service, a value that is now engrained in the life blood of the company, having one of the best products in the industry.

3) Can you share some of the biggest lessons you have learned personally and as a business as TicketLeap has grown? If you were to start again, what might you do differently?

Always ask for help when you need it, trust your instincts and know the difference between the two.

Were I to start again, I would have changed our initial strategy in raising money.  We started out trying to raise too much for the product we had at the time and struggled to anchor interest at the time.  Had we raised a smaller amount and focused back onto the product before pursuing more financial backing, our growth would have accelerated much faster.

4) What’s next for TicketLeap? Where do you see the business in say 5 years time?

Next we’ll be focusing on the social aspects of events.  In five years, TicketLeap.comwill be an essential part of how all people host their events.

5) Do you have any recommended strategies for getting customers who buy once to come back and use your service again – other than of course good service?

Always focus on customer service – if the customer is happy, regardless of what their agreement says, they’ll keep coming back to work with you.

6) Do you have any suggestions for coping with set-backs, negative experiences?

Try to recognize that it’s all temporary and always keep your eyes on the future.

7) How do you keep your business focus – Do you have any suggestions for entrepreneurs who are experiencing challenging times?

We maintain our focus by holding regular and frequent meetings on various levels of the company that act as a pulse for the progress and activities taking place.

8: Is there anyone that you look up to and model yourself on?

I take influence from many people and places – Steve Jobs, Guy Kawasaki, Richard Branson – but I always make sure to try to be myself.

9) What is the best advice you have ever been given?

Success of a company is all about the people involved.  Hire talent over experience.

10) As someone who has achieved success so young, what advice would you give to a Young Entrepreneur starting their first business today?

Don’t think or act like you know everything.  You don’t have to as most everything has already been done before.  With that in mind, choose your advisors carefully.

11) What do you like best about the Internet?

The immediacy of it.

12) What do you like least about the Internet?

Having to occupy my hands in order to type.

13) Have you any plans (personal or business) that you can share with us about your future plans / goals / lifetime goals?

A lifetime goal of mine is to have a business incubator somewhere in the tropics where young, smart people can create and innovate for the future.

The TicketLeap.com story:

Chris Stanchak founded TicketLeap.com in 2003 to bring professional-grade ticketing to events too small to get the attention of the big ticketing companies. He saw an opportunity to put cutting-edge ticketing in the hands of every event organizer, whether they were selling 100 tickets or 100,000 tickets.

No event would be too small for even our earliest TicketLeap team — from Halloween parties and student activities with a few dozen tickets to sporting events, music festivals, conferences, expos and everything in between.

In our first months, the voice on the other end of the phone was often Chris’s mother and first employee, Connie Stanchak. She defined our customer service philosophy, as we know it today, years later: Every client is our best client, and no event is too small for our help.

Hi Everyone!

Do you Tatango?

Today we have a very interesting interview for you with Derek Johnson – founder of SMS Marketing startup Tatango.com – a Test Messaging Platform that allows the thousands that use Tatango every day to keep their group connected through group SMS.

Tatango.com was born out of a gap in the market, a gap which Derek like a true entrepreneur spotted and quickly filled. Tatango.com has taken off so well that Derek dropped out of the business program at the University of Houston and launched Tatango in late 2007, initially offering the service for free. Today users pay a monthly fee of $20 to $200 depending on the number of texts sent, and now has about 10,000 registered users. (You do the math )

I think you are really going to enjoy this interview and get a lot of inspiration from it.

Derek also gave us one of the cleverest answers ever to my question: What do you like least about the Internet?

It never sleeps, I have to sleep, it’s so much better than me.

Come to think of it – he could have gave the same answer to: What do you like best about the Internet?

Enjoy the interview – I look forward to your comments.

Best Wishes

Michael

PS: Check out the answer to question 12 in particular: What advice would you give to a Young Entrepreneur starting their first business today? Very impressive answer — and Derek includes his own Cell Number as demonstration of his commitment to customer service.

Derek Johnson Interview

First – a little background information on Derek:

I’m 25 years old, and have spent most of my life in Bellingham, WA, a small city just north of Seattle. Anyone that knows me, knows I’m an extremely motivated individual, I love to build businesses, it’s my passion. What motivates me though to do what I do? I think I just like the challenge.

1) You are the founder of tatango.com, which is a group text messaging platform. What gave you the idea for this type of platform?
The idea came to me one afternoon when I was having lunch with a friend. She was in a Sorority and they were having trouble contacting all the girls in the house at the same time about meeting times, events and other urgent information. They had tried Facebook, Email and phone trees, but they had all been proved inefficient. That’s when it came to me that text messaging would be the perfect way to reach all the members of her house at the same time. Looking for a solution for my friend, I went online and couldn’t find anything that really solved this problem. A few days later, Tatango was born.

2) You have thousands of groups using Tatango all over the country, which is really impressive. Could you share some strategies for how you grew your customer base?

It’s really not rocket science how we got to where we currently are. The majority of our new Tatango groups come from referrals, so we spend a crazy amount of time making sure our current groups are happy. Seems simple enough right?

3) What is the formula for becoming a successful entrepreneur?

This is always heavily debated, but I firmly believe you are either born with the entrepreneurial mindset or aren’t, you can’t learn something like that.

4) What next for tatango.com? Where do you see the business in say 5 years time? Any other budding ideas you can share with us?

Right now we are solely focused on making Tatango the best group sms product out there. We think we have our product very close, not sure what is next though. We don’t think too far ahead into the future, we just focus on what’s going on currently and how we can do what we are doing better. Recently I have started a new company called Derek Media, which is a company that manages brands on Twitter, Facebook and blogs for our clients. You can check it out at http://www.derekmedia.net

5) Do you have any recommended strategies for getting customers to recommend you to other customers?

Most of our new clients for Tatango come from references from current users. You have to keep your customers satisfied with your service. We accomplish this by being available 24/7 to answer questions about any technical difficulties, or just general inquires about Tatango. Also, we have allowed our customers to get to know us and create a personal relationship with us by using Facebook, Twitter, Blogs and videos. If you have a great product and customers are happy with their experience then they will recommend it to people they know.

6) Does social networking play any roll in your business? If so what?

Social networking plays a huge roll in our business. We are constantly updating our Twitter status (www.twitter.com/tatango) and engaging in conversations with people interested in our product, or just anyone who has something interesting to say. We also have a Facebook fan page (http://www.facebook.com/tatango) where fans can post questions and comments and we post videos, links and pictures about what’s going on at Tatango. We have a very strong online presence and have allowed our customers to get to know us on a personal level which provides them with more confidence in our product.

7) Do you have any suggestions for coping with set-backs, negative experiences?
No matter what happens, you are probably not the first person who has gone through it. Seek out guidance from those who have gone through it before, it will save a lot of time and energy. There will always be set-backs, but you have to handle them appropriately and not let them get you off focus. There is no experience that is a negative – every experience gives you an opportunity to learn and grow.

8 ) Do you have any suggestions for entrepreneurs who are experiencing challenging times?

To be honest, when things get crazy, frustrating, or just near impossible, I never think about throwing in the towel. For me, those are the fun days! When do you get to test your skills and determination more than at those points in your business career? Those are the sort of obstacles that make what I do such a challenge and so rewarding.

9) Is there anyone that you look up to and model yourself on?

My father is my biggest role model. He has experience with both his own startups and working for large national companies. His knowledge and experiences have always been a great resource for me as a young entrepreneur. He is one of the hardest workers I know, and a brilliant entrepreneur. In many ways he has inspired me to become a young entrepreneur.

10) Do you have any favorite business related or web design related books that you can recommend to other entrepreneurs?

College sucked the joy out of reading for me, so you most likely will never find me reading a book. I think the only book I’ve read in the last two years is the “The 4 Hour Work Week”, which is a must read for any entreprenuer.

11) What is the best advice you have ever been given?

Gary Player didn’t give me this advice personally, but he said

“the harder I work, the luckier I get”.

This is so true in business and life.

12) As someone who has achieved success so young, what advice would you give to a Young Entrepreneur starting their first business today?

1.Start Small – Start small and you will be able to quickly see if you have something interesting before you look to expand.

2.Don’t Re-Invent The Wheel – No matter what problem you are experiencing or challenge you have in front of you, you aren’t the first person to ever go through it. Seek out advice or guidance from someone that has gone through the same thing you are going through, this will save you from making a lot of costly mistakes in the future.

3.Be Available – I’m the only Internet CEO I know who makes himself as available to his users as I am. The majority of our users know my personal cell phone number (206.334.4012 if they have forgot it) and they know that if they ever have a suggestion or any feedback about our website, they are able to get a hold of me. I think communicating with your users is extremely important and is the sole reason why we keep launching features that users love and our competitors copy.

13) What do you like best about the Internet?

I love how much information is available, there is never an excuse not to be able to find the information you need.

14) What do you like least about the Internet?

It never sleeps, I have to sleep, it’s so much better than me.

15) Any advice for how young entrepreneurs can bootstrap? (Not spending a ton to get something off the ground)?

Yeah, don’t waste money on stupid shit that doesn’t bring in revenue. It’s pretty simple. I remember when we were starting out, it took weeks for my employees to get me to spend the $40 to put up a Tatango sign on our front door. In my mind, the sign wasn’t bringing in business, so why spend money on it?

Related Links:

tatango.com – Group Text Messaging Done Right.

Join the thousands that use Tatango every day to keep their group connected through group SMS.

Hi Everyone

Today we have a very inspiring interview with Joshua Dorkin, the Founder of BiggerPockets.com

BiggerPockets.com is a really cool networking site for people in Real Estate. As you will see, Joshua is incredibly passionate about what he does. As always there are lots of Great Takeaways – one in particular which got my attention was Joshua’s reply to what was the best advice he had ever been gave:

Live your life as you’d like to see it lived from the vantage point of your deathbed

That is an awesome reply and sums up my own views perfectly – as Joshua puts it: ‘life is short; live it well, and remember that in the grand scheme of things you don’t want to have any regrets’

I was also particularly interested in how Joshua managed to ‘recession-proof’ his site

Enjoy the interview – I look forward to your comments.

Best Regards

Michael

Joshua Dorkin Interview

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Bigger Pockets in Real Estate – The Joshua Dorkin Interview

About Joshua:

“I’m 33 and live in Denver, Colorado with my amazing family. I’m motivated by the drive to succeed in business, with the ultimate goal to take care of my family and to help others. The funny thing is, had you asked me a decade ago what motivates me, you would have had a very different answer. The great thing about what I do is that it allows me to achieve those things that I care about! I’m inspired by the good in people. Every day on my website, I see people come to the help of others. While some are motivated by things like greed and money, others just want to help. That is an incredible thing and is one of the wonders of humanity, in my opinion.”

 

1) Hi Joshua, Thank you for doing this interview, we appreciate it. You are the founder of BiggerPockets.com – tell us how the company formed and what made you go into the niche of real estate

 

2)  What you do is quite unique, allowing people in real estate to network with each other, is this a model you can see working for other Niches?

More About BiggerPockets.com

BiggerPockets.com was founded by Joshua Reed Dorkin in August 2004. An entrepreneur, web designer, real estate investor, and one-time realtor, Joshua was not satisfied by the online offerings of other real estate sites out there, and decided to build one himself.

Mr. Dorkin’s vision for BiggerPockets has helped to propel it into becoming one of the top real estate destinations online. His vision for the site and its future has brought national press attention to both Mr. Dorkin and to BiggerPockets.

Hi Everyone,

Today we have a great interview with “The Unemployed Millionaire” – Matt Morris

Matt lives in Dallas, TX and is 33 years old and is also Founder of Success University

At just eighteen years old, Matt Morris entered into his first entrepreneurial venture. At twenty, he dropped out of college to pursue business full-time. At twenty-one, he was homeless, $30,000 in debt, living out of his beat up Honda Civic and bathing in gas station bathrooms.

It was then that he made a life-changing decision to re-invent himself and his career. Due to a massive commitment to personal development and modeling the success of others, his life began to change quickly. By the age of twenty-four, Matt was earning a six-figure income as an entrepreneur and by the age of twenty-nine, Matt was a self-made millionaire.

As you will see from Matt’s amazing answers, we all have a lot to learn from Matt

Enjoy the interview and I look forward to your comments

best wishes

Michael

Matt Morris Interview

The Unemployed Millionaire

Hi Matt, thank you for agreeing to this interview. Before we start the interview proper can you tell us a little about what motivates you, inspires you, your rules for business success?

“What motivates me is having the freedom to live life on my own terms. No boss, no fighting traffic, no alarm clock, no having to miss my daughters swim class, no limitations on when I can take a vacation. I’m inspired by people who are willing to do what it takes to achieve their dream lifestyle. I was blessed to have found the drive and determination to find a way to win in life.”

“The formula for success is SUCCESS = Effort x Skill”

“Keep yourself in great physical shape. When the body is healthy, the mind stays healthy. Physical vitality is a key element in mental vitality.”

1) Thanks Matt, that is awesome. I love the SUCCESS = Effort x Skill quote. You are founder of SuccessUniversity.com – tell us how the company formed and what made you go into this niche.

I started Success University because of a passion for personal development and the massive impact it made in my life. At the age of 21 I was homeless, $30,000 in debt, living out of my beat up Honda Civic and bathing in gas station bathrooms. One night after not bathing for 2 or 3 days, I actually showered naked in the rain in the middle of a church parking lot because I couldn’t find a gas station open in the little town I was in. That night, my life hit rock bottom and I was searching for something, anything, that could help me turn my life around. I popped in a cassette tape by Tony Robbins and was inspired by his story of overcoming adversity which led me to develop a massive commitment to personal development. I began reading a new book on success every 2-3 days studying anything I could get my hands on that would lead me to a successful life. That began the process of re-inventing my life. From 21 to 24 I was able to achieve a six-figure income as an entrepreneur, traveling around the world and living what was a dream life for me. From age 24 to 29 I became a self-made millionaire. Based on what I learned through the personal development industry, I decided to start Success University to help others transform their life.

2)  Great passion often comes from an early struggle. Did you face any adversity early on?

At the age of 4 my parents divorced. About a year later, my father broke into our house and murdered my mothers boyfriend shooting him dead right in front of her. My father went to prison while mom worked 2 jobs to pay her way through college and eventually law school. We lived on food stamps, lived in a trailer park and definitely struggled. When my father got out of prison, he became a severe alcoholic despite having gone through re-hab. When I was 13 my father committed suicide.

3) Can you share some of the biggest lessons you have learned personally and as a business as things have grown? If you were to start again, what might you do differently?

The formula for success is SUCCESS = Effort x Skill
When I first got started in business I spent all my time on working hard (effort) and got very little results. When I began studying others to learn the so called “secrets” and increasing my skill, my level of success increased dramatically. If you want to become an expert in any field, become an expert which can be accomplished by simply reading 5 books on any one subject. That will put your level of knowledge in the top 1/2 of 1% of everyone else in your industry.

If I had it to do differently, going into business, I would have found the most successful person I could find doing what I wanted to do and I would ask them to be my mentor. I would study their techniques and strategies for success and I would interview them to pull out their beliefs as it relates to becoming a success. So not only would I study the how to’s, I would study the mindset and metal processes they went through to become a success.

4) What next for you? Where do you see the business in say 5 years time?

I’ve actually sold Success University and given up my title as CEO so I can enjoy my daughter who is 9 months old. I’m enjoying her growing up to concentrate on my writing career, internet marketing and am a partner in a $150 million a year travel club which is in line with my passion for traveling the world.

5) You have over 70,000 students in 175 countries worldwide, the company has generated over $10 million in its first three years in business, this is quite impressive! Could you share some strategies for how you reached such a wide audience?

We actually produced 109,000 customers in just over 4 years generating over $20 million. The #1 strategy was getting the right people involved in the company early on, attracting the right people as we went along and making sure they fell in love with working with us so they never left. I’m smart enough to know that I’m not smart enough to know everything. By surrounding myself with people much smarter and more talented than I am, together, we have made amazing things happen. We also followed the strategy I outline in one chapter of my book – “Why invent the average when you can copy genius”. Most of what we did was not a revolutionary concept. We studied our competition as close as possible to find new and unique ways to market and figured out ways to make those ideas even better.  Because we found so many great ideas and implemented them so quickly, we became the #1 most popular personal development website on the internet.

6) Do you have any suggestions for coping with set-backs in business?

Expect them and be grateful for them. The most successful businesses realize that challenges are inevitable. The degree to which you can bounce back from a setback is the degree to which your business will grow. As tough as this may sound, be grateful for the setbacks because they teach you one of the most important lessons of all – what NOT to do. When the team rebounds from a setback, that team will be stronger than it was before the setback. It’s why the MARINES and the Navy Seals are such a tight group – they go through hell together. By taking the valuable learning lessons from setbacks, you set yourself up for much greater successes in the future.

7) How do you keep your business focus – Do you have any suggestions for entrepreneurs who are experiencing challenging times?

Keep yourself in great physical shape. When the body is healthy, the mind stays healthy. Physical vitality is a key element in mental vitality.
Follow the Action Management chapter in my book The Unemployed Millionaire. You must take control of your day and focus on your top revenue generating priorities rather than let your day be eaten up with reactive actions such as emails, phone calls, and other interruptions. Be laser focused on your time management.

Also, continually set goals and keep those goals in front of you at all times. The goals are like your roadmap and without them you lose focus on where you’re going and you end up running in circles getting nowhere.

Is there anyone that you look up to and model yourself on?

Tony Robbins for his unique ability to create a system to keep yourself in peak states of motivation. His training above all other speakers have made a profound difference in my life.

My mother for her directness, her love and the pursuit of her dreams. Despite all our struggles, she finished law school and is a judge today. If I can be half the parent to my children that she was to me I will consider myself a massive success in life.

9) Do you have any favourite business related books that you can recommend to other entrepreneurs?

The Unemployed Millionaire – by me
Good to Great by Jim Collins
21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership by John Maxwell
Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki
Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand – even though it is a fictional book, it’s been the greatest book on success I’ve ever read.

10) What is the best advice you have ever been given?

You don’t become in life what you want; you become in life what you are.

11) As someone who has achieved success at a relatively young age, what advice would you give to a Young Entrepreneur starting their first business today?

Find a mentor to learn from, become an expert in your field, work your ass off, and NEVER quit.

12) What do you like best about the Internet?

The ability to earn millions from anywhere I am in the world.

13) What do you like least about the Internet?

The time sucking activities like email.

14) Have you any plans (personal or business) that you can share with us about your future plans / goals / lifetime goals?

To world school my children. My wife and I are going to find the smartest and most well rounded teacher and hire them to travel the world with our family to teach our children history, not out of history books, but to teach them history in the places in the world where the history actually happened.

Matt’s Websites:
MattMorris.com
SuccessUniversity.com