Finding Founders

Today I talk with Eric Twiggs about procrastination and a simple trick to combat it. Eric Twiggs, is your procrastination prevention expert. He's conducted 20,000+ hours of procrastination consulting, and in that time has learned the tricks of the trade. In this episode of Founder Wisdom we give you the tools you need to get more done and be more successful. findingfounders.co --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/finding-founders/support

Let's face it, you aren't inspired when you hear about success. Real inspiration, comes from hearing someone's lowest moments, the point where they almost broke, and then rising with their success. I'm your host Samuel Donner, and on each episode of Finding Founders we interview the founders behind companies, movements, and even drug cartels. We tell their whole life story to reveal vulnerability so you can learn from victory. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/finding-founders/support

Update: So last week, we finished our drug dealer series and wow what an incredible experience. It was so interesting to dive into this underground world and it was awesome to see so many new listeners come to the podcast. Finding Founders is growing more and more every day and if you’d like to support us, just share with a friend or post a screenshot to your socials. It really helps. Anyway, finishing up this series reminded me of first one that we ever did. I actually traveled over to Puerto Rico to interview leaders in the community and hear how the entrepreneurial community recovered after the 2017 hurricanes. Today I wanted to do a rebroadcast of the 1st episode in a three part series on Puerto Rico. I hope you enjoy. Puerto Rico Series Part 2 Puerto Rico Series Part 3 When all is smooth sailing, community is something that we often take for granted. But when the waves get rocky, there’s truth in the saying “it takes a village” -- after all, difficult times are made easier when we know we have othe

Today we tell a story of a battle between Microsoft and Apple. This incident would start a war between the two computer giants that would rage for years to come. After the story, I'll ask business lawyer, Asha Wilkerson, what we can learn from this and how we can apply these lessons. findingfounders.co http://www.ashawilkerson.com/ --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/finding-founders/support

In the last episode of the drug dealer series, we sit down with Frederick Hutson, founder of Pigeonly, a platform that helps people connect with incarcerated loved ones. Of course, such an idea was not created without due experience. Growing up around the world of drugs, Frederick knew that the biggest money makers in town were drug dealers. However, Frederick did not turn out to be your average "small town hero" drug dealer. After working in the Air Force, he grew an underground marijuana operation that would move $22 million dollars of product a year. His knack for fine-tuning and calibrating a business ended up taking him much farther than he ever anticipated. Join us as we learn how Frederick’s journey through culture shock, intense contemplation, and a desire to problem-solve led him to founding Pigeonly. Links From the Episode Pigeonly Site: https://pigeonly.com/ Socials: Twitter: @IAMFastFreddy Instagram: @iamfastfreddy LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/frederickhutson/ Long-Term Recidiv

This episode has a little update on the Finding Founders community and then goes straight into a rebroadcast of Founder Wisdom #001 -- You’ve probably been giving your team the wrong criticism. This is the Founder Wisdom. Where we’ll answer that question by distilling advice from our founders and the books they recommend. I asked MasterClass founder David Rogier what book I should read if I’m trying to manage people more effectively. He recommended “The Man Who Lied to His Laptop" by Clifford Nas. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/finding-founders/support

Today, we hear the story of Juan Bedoya, who grew up working on the sugarcane fields of Guatemala. Growing up in poverty, Juan was determined to never return to a life with nothing. To make this happen, he traveled to the US and turned to the drug business, which dazzled him with promises of immense riches and a carefree life. At his peak in the drug business, Juan was moving about $150 million of drugs per year. Undoubtedly, he achieved his goal of living a lavish lifestyle, but his ambition prevented him from realizing he had more than enough. Juan shares with us a story of flying too close to the sun, but while falling down receiving the chance to grow a new pair of wings. So sit down with us as Juan reveals how motivation, faith, and reflection allow for a true success story, where money is not the hallmark of a meaningful life. 1976 Guatemala Earthquake:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1976_Guatemala_earthquake --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/finding-founders/support

Today we reconnect with Mike Kiamanesh, founder of Oval.bio, a company creating a life extension pod. A few weeks ago, Finding Founders hosted a virtual summit on Biohacking and Mike was one of our panelists. In his panel he talked about a lot of interesting stuff, (click here for the entire live virtual summit), and he touched briefly on a really interesting part of his business: the company structure. Today we look at how a decentralized company can make sure the power of life extension technology isn't just for the elite. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/finding-founders/support

Growing up in the streets of Harlem, David Norman faced childhood trauma, drug addiction, and incarceration. He dealt heroin and even killed a man. After years of imprisonment, David never thought he would be challenging his mind and graduating from one of the world’s most prestigious universities -- until he did. David kicks off part two of our Drug Dealer series—a compilation of stories about a different kind of entrepreneur—one who demonstrates the same independence, hustle, and perseverance of our previous founders, but whose attributes evolved under different circumstances.  Sonia Sanchez poem: https://poets.org/poem/not-small-voice  Columbia Article: https://gs.columbia.edu/news/david-normans-journey-incarceration-ivy-league  Learned Helplessness: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/learned-helplessness  Harlem in the 60s and 70s (in pictures): https://medium.com/the-cool/forever-beautiful-harlem-in-the-1970s-d45523262a09 --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/finding-founders/support

Pixar had sunk millions of dollars into Toy Story 2 and it was almost deleted... Today on the show we analyze how Pixar failed and the steps they took towards recovery. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/finding-founders/support

Today we reconnect with Ben Taft, founder of Mira Labs. I first talked to Ben in the summer of 2020 right as the pandemic was getting underway. We talked about the music business, about fish bowl lenses, about crazy investments... take a listen here its full interview #29. In this update episode we cover some developments with Mira, how Ben thinks augmented reality is placed for the future, and what the story is behind his massive success with Universal and the Super Nintendo World. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/finding-founders/support

In this episode, we sit down with Ryan Longmuir, founder of Regis Banqueting, a catering service that raked in 1.3 million euros back in 2016. But for Ryan, business and catering go far beyond bringing in money, which was his main aspiration when he sold thousands of pounds worth of drugs at 20 years old. How did Ryan flip from selling ecstasy pills to providing a renowned catering service? It took some moments of deep reckoning, a new commitment to faith, and definitely a huge leap of faith as well. Such moments also drove him to help others improve their own lives. Ryan shares how passion and goodwill intertwined to get him out of a tumultuous and cyclical life and into one filled with meaning and love. Join us as we learn how kindness motivates entrepreneurship and can lead to triumphs over many challenges, in both life and business. Social Media Twitter: @RegisBanqueting Instagram: @RegisBanqueting Facebook: @regisbanquetingltd Regis Banqueting Site: https://www.r

Today we explain and employ the Feynman technique to try to understand complex topics. I'm joined by Matthew Fernandez, a senior editor at Finding Founders, and we try to test our knowledge of bitcoin and see, how much do we actually know and how can we improve and expand that knowledge. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/finding-founders/support

What does it mean to be an entrepreneur? Is it focusing on growing one company after the other? Is it a rejection of the corporate world? After climbing the corporate ladder and serving as the CEO of several companies, Keith Leimbach sits down with us today to share what running a business means to him-- and why he chooses to run several businesses ranging from laundromats to small companies. Links From the Episode Good to Great by Jim Collins - https://www.amazon.com/Good-Great-Some-Companies-Others/dp/0066620996 Keith’s Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/diversified-income-experiment-passive-income/id1483644631 Social Media Twitter: @keith_leimbach --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/finding-founders/support

Today we talk to Maxwell Nee, he built a $1M+ events-based, online coaching business that grew 300% during the COVID-19. He tells us how he did by breaking down 10 key principles. Read more on how he did it below! 10 Steps to Filling an Online Event – Without Paid Advertising www.linkedin.com/in/maxwellnee/ --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/finding-founders/support

How do you make your company bigger, stronger, and more notable? Or, perhaps, that isn’t the right question to ask. After burning through millions of dollars of funding with his first company Shyp, Kevin Gibbon learned that company growth is not necessarily growth through funding or massive scaling. After working as a developer for companies like Raytheon and Boeing, Kevin Gibbon ventured into founding his own companies and currently runs Airhouse, which helps other entrepreneurs bring their creations to the forefront. Slow and steady doesn’t always win the race -- Kevin’s success has been a result of learning from massive trial and error, while maintaining the vigor to continuously forge ahead. Join us as we talk about his entrepreneurial journey of finding balance between unbounded optimism and incisive problem-solving. AngelList Venture: https://angellist.com/ Airhouse Website: https://www.airhouse.io/ Kevin Gibbon Social Media: Linkedin -- https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevingibbon/ Instagram -- h

Last week, Finding Founders partnered with expert biohackers ☕️to share all the secrets of longevity… and maybe even lead you to the fountain of youth! ⛲️Who wants to live forever?

Living a life defined by self discovery, personal development, and putting out positive energy, Rachel Bell fulfilled her longtime dream of helping others by becoming a life coach. While she took a fascinating route through entrepreneurship, art, and social media marketing to reach her position helping those around her, she learned how to empathetically share her philosophy with those around her. As a podcaster, hosting Pay Day with Ray Ray, and running her wildly successful business coaching course Vortex, she helps aspiring leaders take important steps towards loving themselves and others in order to get what they actually want out of life. Informed by her eclectic life experiences, from a farm in Colorado to independence across the Pacific, Rachel shares insights from her most intense memories and role models. Join us as we talk about her unique journey to her even more unique position as she shares insightful advice on everything from business management, to marketing, to living a fulfilling life. ---

Today we are catching up with friend of the show Dalton Combs of BoundlessMind. Last time we talked to him, BoundlessMind was on the verge of being acquired, although we didn't know that at the time of the interview. Since then, Dalton has been searching for his next company, and he's been inspired Dalton to start Temper. For all those interested here's a link to his old episode... --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/finding-founders/support

Valentine’s Day. For couples, it’s an event defined by romantic tropes of chocolates, sunsets, and candle-lit dinners. For singles, however, it’s another reminder that those constant “swipe- lefts and -rights” have been in vain. But according to today’s featured founders, Dani Fankhauser and Natalie Frangi, finding romance shouldn’t have to be so agonizing. This episode will have two stories linked by the theme of dating. One story will follow Dani Fankhauser, someone who initially let religion lead her dating life, but after a years-long exploration of self, she recognized the areas where modern dating falls short and founded XO, a revolutionary dating app that gamifies user-matching. As we forge ahead into Dani’s story, we’ll explore the parallels between her journey to XO, and Natalie’s to NUiT. Natalie Frangi, a woman who fought her way from Lebanon back to Texas to pursue a career in Chemistry, has faced challenges in her life, and was even once held up at gunpoint. However, all of this served to stre