School Teacher to Millionaire CEO - with Lisa Collum - EP 283
Entrepreneurship doesn’t always look like what we see in movies or on social media. You don’t need a big fancy office, expensive equipment, and a big team of people to be successful. You need the willingness to learn and change directions if needed. That might mean failing a few times and feeling like you have no idea what you are doing. Successful entrepreneurs know that finding success lies in figuring things out as you go, asking for help when needed, and knowing when it is time to pivot. Today’s guest is a former teacher who took $100 and turned it into a multi-million dollar company without any business experience, no business degree, and learned everything along the way.
Lisa Collum is the founder of a curriculum company, Top Score Writing, Inc. While teaching at a Title I school, Lisa developed an innovative step-by-step program proven to dramatically increase writing scores on standardized assessments. The results of her curriculum attracted a lot of attention, and she was even investigated by the board of education twice because they didn't believe the results she got were possible. School officials were calling her wanting to know her secrets, and from there, her company was born and is now used nationwide. As a busy entrepreneur and mother of four, Lisa is also the owner of a nonprofit, Coastal Middle and High School, which is a part of her mission to help all children succeed.
Lisa’s message in this episode is to go for it without waiting to have the “perfect" plan otherwise, you'll never start. Figure it out as you go, fail a few times, and keep moving. If you can identify a problem that others don’t know they have, and be the person committed to finding the solution, you will be successful. So many people see an opportunity for success but talk themselves out of it thinking it will be too hard or that they don’t have the resources. The key is to know that you may not know all the answers now, but you can figure out where to find them. Another huge part of the equation is finding what you are passionate about, and committing to helping people in that area. If you are not in your business for the right reasons, you will burn out and be unfulfilled. Tune in to hear more of Lisa’s inspiring story of going from teacher to CEO.
Key highlights:
- Lisa’s story of growing up and knowing she wanted to be a teacher ever since she could remember
- How Lisa took her first class of students from a pass rate of 38% to 95% on the state writing test, and then to 100% in the years after
- Leaving her teaching job and being contacted by schools to sell her writing curriculum
- How one $75 binder sold turned into multiple binders and is now a nationwide company
- Tony shares how he stumbled his way into entrepreneurship as well
- You don’t need to start with a big team - go slow and build as you grow
- The struggle between humility and owning your success
- Why we should stop the idea that we need to be discrete about money
- Building a business sometimes means identifying a problem that people don't even know they have
- Lisa’s story of answering the phone pretending to be different people in the beginning stages of her company
- Lisa’s advice to people just building a business
- The most successful people don't think about “How am I going to do that?” They ask, “Who do I know that can do this?”
- When is it time to hire help in your company and how do you let go of control?
- The importance of having a passion for whatever you are doing in your business
Resources mentioned in the episode:
Book: Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike by Phil Knight
Connect with Lisa Collum:
Website: topscorewriting.com
Instagram: @lisacollumceo
Facebook: Lisa Collum CEO
Twitter: @lisacollumceo
TikTok: @lisacollumceo
LinkedIn: Lisa Collum
Connect with Tony:
Instagram: @365driven
Facebook
LinkedIn
Before I Became a Business Coach
Before I became a business coach:
Corporate Experience
- I put myself through engineering school while working full-time construction jobs.
- Led multi-national teams of up to 75 people.
- Managed up to $200M joint ventures and global projects, with $1M operational daily burn rates.
- Joined a startup and led the technical bidding strategy which resulted in $1 Billion in awarded contracts in the first year.
- Utilized legal contracts expertise to successfully reject 96% of unsolicited change orders, protecting my client from $4.8M in one year.
- I’ve received over $1M in corporate training in leadership, operational development, contracts, processes, risk management, communications, and Human Resources.
- Worked extended months in UK, France, Italy, Angola, and Rep of Congo.
- Member of three M&A project teams, resulting in a 9-figure and two 8-figure acquisitions.
Personal Experience
- Active entrepreneur since my first LLC in 2001.
- Started 9 companies/ brands, failed at 5, succeeded in 4.
- Built and led two online communities with hundreds of thousands of registered members.
- Built a digital marketing creative agency which consisted of website design, logo design, cart implementations, and marketing creative.
- Built multiple 7-figure companies with zero loans, zero capital raises, zero debt.
- Sold two assets for millions net. LS1tech and PerformanceTrucks
- Nominated to serve on the SEMA marketing advisory team, still active there.
- Helped/ advised 12 of my former staff members and friends build 7, 8, and 9 figure businesses over the last 20 years.
This is why I’m qualified to do what I do. It’s who I am, and always have been.
-Tony
Using PR To Amplify Authority - with Jeremy Ryan Slate - EP 282
A lot of people confuse the difference between PR and marketing, but the purpose of PR is to get people to have a certain idea and feeling about you. This is where you build your “know, like, and trust” factor. Respect will not just be handed to you, and just because you put content out, does not mean the customers will come. You have to make sure you are consistently offering value and working on building that relationship with your audience to the point that they view you as an authority figure in your niche. Podcasts are a great way to do this, but people focus on the wrong things when they get started. Today’s guest is here to break it all down by explaining the key differences between PR and marketing, and where to put your efforts so that you build trust, leading to getting more people through your sales door.
Jeremy Ryan Slate is back on the 365 Driven Podcast for a third time to share his tips to stop wasting energy on the wrong metrics in your PR efforts. Jeremy is the founder of the "Create Your Own Life" Podcast, which studies the highest performers in the world. He is a former champion powerlifter turned new media entrepreneur, and he specializes in using podcasting and new media to create trust and opinion leader status. Jeremy was named the #1 Podcast to Listen to by INC Magazine in 2019, as well as being named a Top Influencer by Forbes. After his success in podcasting, Jeremy and his wife Brielle Slate founded "Command Your Brand" to help entrepreneurs get their message out by appearing as guests on podcasts.
In this episode, Jeremy and Tony discuss the unique opportunities that podcasting presents due to there being no gatekeeper. This means that anyone that wants to get their message out, can do so with podcasting, but sadly the number of podcasts that die out due to “pod fade” is very high. What causes this? Jeremy says that it is due to people putting too much focus on the wrong metrics instead of making sure they have a solid business foundation, and then using their podcast as a PR vehicle that brings people in with the knowledge and value they have to offer. Just starting a podcast won’t mean the audience will come, so tune in to learn how you can set yourself up as an authority in your space and avoid these common mistakes.
Key highlights:
- Why Jeremy believes that traditional media is dead and podcasting is now the media
- What is “pod fade” and why does it happen?
- What is the difference between PR and marketing?
- Should you focus on download numbers when you first launch a podcast?
- Common mistakes people make when starting a podcast for their business
- Why Jeremy is particular about the type of clients he works with
- What NOT to do as a podcast guest
- Why over-pitching yourself and your offer is bad PR
- What Jeremy would say to someone that wants to get their message out there
- How to get people to remember you and your message
- How to respectfully disagree with people online
- Jeremy and Tony’s thoughts on the divisiveness happening right now, and how to spot the BS
Resources mentioned in the episode:
Episode 249 of 365 Driven: Fake Media Influence Exposed - with Kimanzi Constable
Connect with Jeremy Ryan Slate:
Website: commandyourbrand.com
Website: jeremyryanslate.com
Instagram: @jeremyryanslate
Facebook: Jeremy Ryan Slate
Twitter: @jeremyryanslate
LinkedIn: Jeremy Ryan Slate
Podcast: Create Your Own Life
Connect with Tony:
Instagram: @365driven
Facebook
LinkedIn
The Truth About Network Marketing - with Toni Vanschoyck - EP 281
There are a lot of opinions about network marketing, and with that, come many skeptics. You might have heard this business model called a “pyramid scheme”, which has the connotation that only the people at the top are gaining at the expense of others, and that is it difficult to make a lot of money, but done right, it can change lives. Network marketing has gotten a bad stigma over the years, but today’s guest is on a mission to change the perception of this industry and show others the great things that it can do for people.
Toni Vanschoyck has been working with start-up network marketing companies for over 20 years after owning 2 successful traditional businesses that she started after being burnt out from her corporate job. She has now earned millions with her network marketing business, has sat on advisory boards, and has also been a liaison and helped small startups and small business owners through using social media, increasing sales goals, relationship building, and retention of current customers and representatives. Toni has also written three best-selling Amazon books under the series “Effing Simple” and has created the first CRM campaign for network marketers and small business owners.
In this episode, Toni is honest about the fact that she also used to be a skeptic about network marketing, until she realized that she just wasn’t doing it right. Toni learned that in order to be successful in network marketing, you can’t be ego-driven. Being a person of service, leading with value, and always having the objective of helping people first, is what will lead to success, and that goes for any business. She emphasizes the importance of having systems in place and explains what she teaches people in order to lead them to a path of success in this industry. Toni explains the benefits of joining a networking marketing business vs. a franchise model, and also encourages everyone to be bold and speak your truth instead of conforming to what others want you to be. So many people can be quick to judge, but once we take the time to get educated, the judgment fades away.
Key highlights:
- Toni’s background and how she got into network marketing
- Why she is on a mission to change the perception of network marketing
- The importance of having a system in place for everything
- Business has never been easier than it is now because you can learn from others
- Why does networking marketing have a bad stigma?
- How Corporate America is similar to a “pyramid scheme”
- What is the risk in joining a networking marketing company compared to a regular entrepreneur journey?
- The benefit of joining networking marketing or franchises
- How to make the income you want with network marketing
- How to overcome the fear of selling
- The importance of leading with value and always looking to help others
- Stress management and taking care of yourself need to be a priority
- Toni encourages people to speak their minds and she shares her story of having to advocate for her son and his medical needs, and how people come to her for help to advocate for themselves
- Don’t be afraid to be bold about your opinions, show up with research and facts, have an open mind, and be a thought leader
- Toni’s advice to someone that doesn't know how to start in network marketing, in business, or their career in general
Connect with Toni Vanschoyck:
Website: effingsimple.com
Instagram: @tonivansofficial
Facebook: Toni Vanschoyck
YouTube: Effing Simple
Connect with Tony:
Instagram: @365driven
Facebook
LinkedIn
Fear is Lying to You - with Setema Gali - EP 280
Fear often keeps people from going after what they really want in life and keeps them complacent in a job or position in which they are not utilizing their full potential. This is because we’re taught to lie and say the “right” thing instead of what we actually want and what’s real in our hearts. This leads to people living an average life due to fear of looking dumb to others, having people laugh at their goals, and because of fear of failure. Successful people know that failure is not something to avoid or be fearful of. Failure is the path to greatness. Important lessons lie in failure, so don’t let your fear hold you back and lie to you about what you actually want in life. This episode is packed with lessons, wisdom, and a success story that was built from pushing fear aside and putting in the necessary hard work to be great.
Setema Gali is a former NFL player for the New England Patriots and won the Super Bowl in 2002. Setema is honest about the extreme dedication it took to get him there, his transition out of football and into being a mortgage broker, and the adversity he faced after the 2008 market crash. From being a successful professional football player to losing it all and selling his Super Bowl ring, Setema shares what he learned as he reinvented himself and came back stronger and more grateful than ever. Now he helps others realize their potential, and he speaks on stages breaking down old barriers, weak stories, and mediocre results. Through his coaching programs, live immersion events, digital trainings, and daily podcast, Setema has changed the lives of thousands of people, helping them set their dreams high and their commitment higher.
Setema believes that having the ability to have calm energy about you is a superpower, and in today’s world with so many distractions pulling us in different directions and the polarity that we are exposed to on a daily basis, learning to control our emotions and being aware of our energy, is a very important skill. You don’t want to miss Setema’s comeback story and the incredible insight he shares in this episode.
Key highlights:
- Setema’s background and childhood growing up as an uncoordinated child that didn’t even like football at first
- What sports taught Setema at an early age
- What Tony learned from sports growing up
- Why do people have a fear of going after their goals?
- Emotional control is a strength and high performers usually have their emotions in check
- Being aware of the energy you give off
- You should be the same person online that you are in person
- Being real in a world of filters and fake influencers
- Tony’s advice for hiring or promoting someone
- People undervalue time nowadays - don't fall for get-rich-quick schemes - time is not something you can shortcut
- People overestimate what they can do in one year, and underestimate what they can do in 10 years
- What post-NFL looked like for Setema including being depressed and losing everything
- How Setema reinvented himself by joining a company, getting into sales, and eventually following his calling to help others reach their goals
Connect with Setema Gali:
Website: setemagali.com
Instagram: @setemagali
Facebook: Setema Gali Jr.
YouTube: Setema Gali
Connect with Tony:
Instagram: @365driven
Facebook
LinkedIn