Neil Thompson Speaks!

Today I’ll be speaking with Alicia Shapiro of Aliro Marketing. Alicia formed Aliro Marketing in 2012 to help companies build brand awareness through social media, email marketing, and blogs. Want traffic to your website? Want to increase sales? Alicia is one to call.  I’m interested in speaking to Alicia about her previous corporate life, the importance of social media in building a business, and her advice for wantrepreneurs.

I’m speaking with Mitchell Levy of AHAthat.com and THINKaha.com. He consults with companies to turn employees into thought leaders. The author of over 50 books, one of which is entitled “Are We Ready for a Female or African-American President?: Over 40 Executive Yes, Maybe and No Viewpoints!” – I think we know the answer to that one - I’m interested in speaking to Mitchell about his businesses, his interest in thought leadership, and all those books – where does he find the time to write them? 

I'm speaking with Armando Aguilar – The Prudent Money Man. Retirement planning, life insurance – Sleep at Night Counselor? – I definitely have to ask him about that one.  With over 30 years in the financial services industry as a Life Insurance Agent, Stockbroker, Financial Consultant and Retirement Adviser, I’m interested in speaking to Armando about his company, his desire to be solo, and some money tips for those inevitable lean times.  

Amy Rasdal – consultant extraordinaire. She runs two companies. Rasdal Associates is a consulting firm that caters specifically to the IT and medical device industries. Billable at the Beach offers tips, tools, tricks, workbooks, and templates plus customized one-on-one time.  With over 15 years of independent consulting experience, I’m interested in speaking to Amy about her companies, her defining moment in deciding to become self-employed, and her tips for reluctant entrepreneurs. It's bound to be an interesting half hour. It's Neil Thompson Speaks!

Author, speaker, coach, consultant – Gregg wears many hats. As an author, he has written two books, "Bad Behavior, People Problems & Sticky Situations: A Toolbook for Managers and Team Leaders," and "The Respectful Leader: Seven Ways to Influence Without Intimidation." As a speaker, he uses professional theater to engage his audiences. As a coach, he works with executives on developing strategies to implement in their businesses. I’m interested in speaking to Gregg about his journey to entrepreneurship, his tips for reluctant entrepreneurs, and future plans.

What Carlton knows about starting a business could fill warehouses. He’s currently the CEO of Emerge Memphis, a tech incubator that serves the mid-South. He has almost 20 years of experience bringing early stage companies to market. His career has spanned many industries – nanotechnology, software, oil & gas – you name it. I'm interested to talk to Carlton about his career, his work at Emerge Memphis, and his views on entrepreneurship.

Todd has lived an interesting life. He's managed a snowboard shop. He's interned with a high school photographer. He's bartended. He's been a bellman. He has started four businesses and sold two. He's a hustler in the truest sense of the word. His passion for storytelling and understanding the world has him focused on his newest venture. I'm interested to talk to him about the twists and turns of his career, his new business, and his plans for the future. It's Neil Thompson Speaks!

David Fares has lived quite the life. He has worked as a consultant, an attorney, a mediator, a facilitator, a trainer, a college professor, and a Learning, Performance and Quality business executive. He is currently the President and Senior Consultant at New Perspectives, LLC. New Perspectives offers consulting, training, and mediation services - among other things. I look forward to learning about David's journey through his many careers, his entrepreneurial spirit, and his plans for the future. It's bound to be an interesting half hour!

Joe Hage is a busy man and a marketing dynamo.  At over 320,000 members, Joe is the creator of the Medical Devices Group on LinkedIn and the founder of Medical Marcom, his medical device consulting firm. He also started the 10x Medical Device Conference as a networking opportunity for Medical Devices Group members. A former employee who went into business for himself, I'm curious to find out about his transition to entrepreneurship, his passion for medical device marketing, and his plans for the future. 

Dwayne Morgan is a man of many talents. Poet, public speaker, producer, and author. He started his production company, Up from The Roots, out of high school and has been going strong ever since, producing events such as When Brothers Speak and the Toronto International Poetry Slam. Dwayne joins Neil Thompson Speaks! to chat about his passion for poetry, his public speaking career, and his future plans. You don't want to miss it!

If writing is in the blood, it's coursing through Josh Baxt's veins. A 20 year writing veteran, Josh Baxt of Baxt Communications is in the business of providing clear and concise copy for healthcare and biotech companies. I chat with Josh about his beginnings in writing, his motivation for going solo, and his plans for the future. Should be fun! 

On this episode of Neil Thompson Speaks!, I'll be joined by Angela Kung of Angela Kung Acupuncture Clinic. Acupuncture? Chinese herbs? Energy Healing? Angela does it all. She also spent years as a competitive figure skater. I'm curious to hear about her pre-acupuncture life, her job as an acpuncturist and business owner, and plans for the future. Tune in!

Mortgage industry vet turned entrepreneur Robert Perry calls in to Neil Thompson Speaks! to speak about his new venture, STRATUS Sales & Technology Consulting. After years in the mortgage game, Robert realized that the same strategies mortgage companies use to withstand the downtimes in the housing market can be applied to the manufacturing sector. Robert probably won't give up the family jewels, but I want to know what spurred him to start STRATUS, what services his company provides, and where he sees the company going. It's sure to be an interesting episode!

All publicity is good publicity. I wonder if Jessica Yingling would agree with that? She's the founder of Little Dog Communications, a PR firm that helps biotech companies craft and communicate their message. I'm interested to hear Jessica's story. Why did she leave Corporate America? How did she get past the fear of starting her own venture? What's next for her company? Tune in to find out! 

"How did you go from Engineering school to being a career coach?" That's my burning question for Angela Copeland, founder of Copeland Coaching. I'll chat with her about her beginnings in STEM, her eventual transition into career coaching, and everything in between. I suspect she has an interesting story to tell. Tune in to hear it!

Bette Frick, owner of The Text Doctor and author of the book, Business Matters: A Freelancer's Guide to Business Success in Any Economy, is on Neil Thompson Speaks! I'll ask her about her journey from corporate employee to maven of technical writing, her advice for aspiring freelancers, and her plans for the future. Tune in!

I have a business and I want to increase my brand. What can a blog do for me?  I'll be speaking with Dayne Shuda, founder of Ghost Blog Writers, to get an answer to that question. I'll ask him about his beginnings in corporate America, his start with Ghost Blog Writers, his pitch to convince potential clients to hire his business, and much more. Tune in!  

Professional speaker, entrepreneur, and all-around good guy Bob Dietrich stops by Neil Thompson Speaks! to talk about his journey from company man to self-employed man. Take notes, people. This guy has some gems!

Professional barber Orestes Verge, better known as Big O to his friends and family, will join Neil Thompson Speaks! to talk about how he stumbled onto barbering, his experiences owning his own barbershop, and how he eventually became the line-up king of Southern California. 

Robert Budd, kettlebell king and owner of A Body In Motion, will stop by to tell us about his journey from powerlifter to power business owner.