Episode Summary
Michael Parrish DuDell is an entrepreneur, keynote speaker, and the bestselling author of Shark Tank Jump Start Your Business, the official book from ABC's hit show Shark Tank. Michael was given a 30-day deadline to finish the book and was on the set of Shark Tank frequently getting to know the investors. Listen in for some key Shark Tank insights and get a behind-the-scenes look at how to pitch the Sharks.
What Was Covered
- 03:35 - How did Michael become a Millennial generation expert?
- 05:00 - There are more Millennials than baby boomers currently.
- 05:50 - Michael talks about Seth Godin and the project they worked on together.
- 06:50 - Why did Seth pick Michael?
- 08:00 - A warm introduction and showing your personally really makes you stand out from the crowd.
- 08:40 - How did Michael get selected to write the Shark Tank book?
- 11:50 - What are some of the biggest challenges people have when pitching to the sharks?
- 14:10 - The minute you leave your home, you have to be 'on'.
- 14:35 - Don't get defensive when you get asked questions by the investors. They want coachable people.
- 15:50 - Best piece of advice? Do as much research as you possibly can on your investors.
- 17:10 - We take risks every day. We don't know if anything will work.
- 19:05 - Michael talks about the co-founders of Pipsnacks and shares their personal stories.
- 20:15 - What's next for Michael?
- 21:15 - How do you build a great team? He disagrees with Barbara Corcoran on this.
- 22:40 - Michael talks about Mark Cuban and Kevin O'Leary.
- 25:40 - Show as many 'proof points' as possible that your idea is going to work.
- 26:20 - The most important thing you need to know? Just be a human being! Michael explains further.
Tweetables
Be A Human When You Pitch. Don’t be Boring.
Do research on what the investors care about before you pitch.
Self-awareness is the secret to success.
Build a team that has different skill sets.
Links Mentioned
jRobinett Website
Selling Secrets For Funding
Michael Parrish DuDell Website
Michael Parrish DuDell Twitter
The Domino Project
Personal MBA
Shark Tank Jump Start Your Business by Michael Parrish DuDell.
Shark Tank Secrets to Success by Michael Parrish DuDell.
The War of Art by Steven Pressfield
Want the Transcription?
Crack The Funding Code!
Register now for the free webinar
Share The Show
Did you enjoy the show? I'd love it if you subscribed today and left us a 5-star review!
- Click this link
- Click on the 'Subscribe' button below the artwork
- Go to the 'Ratings and Reviews' section
- Click on 'Write a Review'
Episode Summary
Stephen Hall is the co-founder of ORock Cloud, an industry leader in cloud computing security. His main target audience is the Department of Defense and he discusses what it takes to pitch to that caliber. He is also a member of the Pasadena Angels and talks on why this particular angel group is different from the rest.
What Was Covered
- 03:30 - Did Stephen always know he was going to become an angel investor?
- 06:00 - Make sure you're passionate about the problem you're solving.
- 07:20 - A great team prevents burnout.
- 07:40 - What makes Pasadena Angels different from other angel investing groups?
- 10:10 - What is the financial range the Pasadena Angels like to invest in?
- 11:50 - What does Stephen look for in a pitch?
- 12:45 - The Pasadena Angels will mentor an entrepreneur, even if their idea doesn't meet their criteria.
- 13:55 - Stephen talks about his company, ORock Cloud.
- 17:15 - Stephen had to rework his product three times before he was happy with it.
- 18:05 - If you're a founder who can express empathy to the founders, and that sets you apart from 90% of the pitches they will hear.
- 19:20 - ORock Cloud has three locations – L.A, NY, and London.
- 20:10 - What makes ORock Cloud unique? Who’s the competition?
- 23:10 - John mentions how Stephen is an excellent story teller. Stephen recommends getting a mentor to help you with this skill.
- 23:40 - Being coachable is a key trait investors and entrepreneurs look for.
- 24:25 - Stephen recommends Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki.
- 25:55 - Final thoughts? Have a great team.
Tweetables
A great team helps prevent burnout.
Laser focus is a competitive advantage.
If you are not coachable you will not get funded.
How to help Department of Defense with security.
Links Mentioned
J Robinett Enterprises
John Livesay Funding Strategist
ORock Cloud Website
Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki
Want the Transcription?
Crack The Funding Code!
Register now for the free webinar
Share The Show
Did you enjoy the show? I'd love it if you subscribed today and left us a 5-star review!
- Click this link
- Click on the 'Subscribe' button below the artwork
- Go to the 'Ratings and Reviews' section
- Click on 'Write a Review'
Episode Summary
Nisa Amoils has a background in law, entertainment, and beauty tech. Nisa is an advisor on four boards and discusses the importance of entrepreneurs utilizing their advisory board's expertise, on today’s show. She started investing when she went through the 37 Angels boot camp and, through her unique experiences in law, has a ton of helpful advice to share with our listeners.
What Was Covered
- 02:50 - How did Nisa get started?
- 06:50 - How did Nisa become an entertainment lawyer?
- 08:25 - Why did Nisa leave the entertainment industry to become an investor?
- 10:25 - John does a recap of the 37 Angels and what they're about.
- 11:30 - What should a good pitch contain? Nisa says to go through the standard checklist - team, market size, product, go-to market strategy, existing investors, etc.
- 12:10 - What makes a good pitch is how entrepreneurs present the information and how concise they are about getting their message across to investors.
- 13:00 - Nisa talks about a company she invested in called Refresh, a woman's only club.
- 15:15 - What did Nisa like about Refresh's pitch?
- 19:15 - When it comes to investing, Nisa travels between New York and Silicon Valley.
- 19:35 - Nisa is currently on four advisory boards for companies she's invested in.
- 20:25 - A strong advisory board is critical, especially for first time entrepreneurs.
- 21:10 - You often don't know whether an entrepreneur is coachable until you're working with them.
- 22:40 - What should entrepreneurs look out for when they're selling their company?
- 24:15 - Nisa recommends The Creator's Code and The Startup Playbook
- 25:30 - Nisa tries to answer every email she gets.
- 26:05 - It's a lot harder being the entrepreneur than it is being the investor.
Tweetables
Why now is key when you pitch.
Be passionate, concise and authentic.
Show investors how you think.
Have an exit strategy to show ROI.
Links Mentioned
J Robinett Enterprises
John Livesay Funding Strategist
37 Angels Website
The Creator's Code by Amy Wilkinson
The Startup Playbook by David Kidder
Nisa on LinkedIn
Nisa on Twitter
Want the Transcription?
Crack The Funding Code!
Register now for the free webinar
Share The Show
Did you enjoy the show? I'd love it if you subscribed today and left us a 5-star review!
- Click this link
- Click on the 'Subscribe' button below the artwork
- Go to the 'Ratings and Reviews' section
- Click on 'Write a Review'
Episode Summary
Guy Spier is a Zurich-based investor and the author of, "The Education of a Value Investor". In June 2007 he made headlines by bidding US$650,100 with Mohnish Pabrai for a charity lunch with Warren Buffett. Guy talks to John on some of the key lessons he learned from that three hour lunch with Warren Buffett and how he helps founders get funded.
What Was Covered
- 04:30 - How did Guy get started?
- 07:00 - Guy worked for an investment bank that ruined his reputation. When he left, no one wanted to hire him.
- 08:10 - His father encouraged him to go into business for himself.
- 10:30 - What did Guy learn when he met Warren Buffet?
- 16:25 - Always be humble and always try to give value to others.
- 18:15 - Focus on being interested in someone vs. being interesting to them. You'll have a better conversation.
- 19:15 - It's not about how you feel, it's about how you make other people feel.
- 20:00 - What kinds of questions did Guy ask Warren Buffet?
- 26:10 - The more you understand yourself, the better of an investor you become. Guy explains further.
- 29:05 - Left brain and right brain are members of a team. Don't fight yourself. work with yourself instead.
- 31:15 - Emotions are a call to action. If we don't feel them, then we won't take the actions we need to take.
- 32:15 - How does Guy help founders get funded?
- 37:55 - Last piece of advice? Always generate more value than you take.
Tweetables
Generate more value than you take.
Emotions are a call to action.
Be humble and helpful to everyone you meet.
Accept help from people close to you.
Links Mentioned
J Robinett Enterprises
John Livesay Funding Strategist
Aquamarine Fund Website
Guy on Twitter
Guy's LinkedIn Group
The Education of a Value Investor by Guy Spier
TED Talk - The Power of Vulnerability
Want the Transcription?
Crack The Funding Code!
Register now for the free webinar
Share The Show
Did you enjoy the show? I'd love it if you subscribed today and left us a 5-star review!
- Click this link
- Click on the 'Subscribe' button below the artwork
- Go to the 'Ratings and Reviews' section
- Click on 'Write a Review'
Episode Summary
Linda Kaplan has helped create fantastic advertising campaigns throughout the industry, including the Aflac Duck, and she has composed famous jingles such as “Kodak Moments” and “I'm a Toys 'R' Us Kid.” Linda is also the co-author of Grit to Great and discusses with John how any entrepreneur can become extraordinary with these four characteristics – Guts, Resilience, Initiative, and Tenacity.
What Was Covered
- 04:10 - What lessons did Linda learn from growing up in the Bronx?
- 08:10 - Linda talks about James Patterson's grit.
- 09:45 - Why did Linda and Robin write Grit to Great?
- 10:20 - Only 2% of prodigies become somebody or do something with their lives.
- 11:55 - So many successful people grew up ordinary and did not have the “IT” factor. However, they did have the GRIT factor.
- 12:10 - GRIT stands for Guts, Resilience, Initiative, and Tenacity.
- 15:25 - None of you are special.
- 15:45 - The only reason why Linda made it was because she was resilient.
- 16:15 - How can somebody become resilient?
- 16:45 - It took James Dyson 15 years to create a better vacuum.
- 18:55 - Pivot, pivot, pivot until you find something that works.
- 20:35 - Linda shares a story on how her small advertising agency was able to win the Wendy's account.
- 26:00 - The most important thing you can do is make your bed in the morning.
- 26:50 - Break your problems into smaller problems and tackle the smaller pieces one by one.
Tweetables
Fail forward.
Finish what you start.
None of you are special.
Pivot, pivot, pivot until you find something that works.
GRIT stands for Guts, Resilience, Initiative, and Tenacity.
Links Mentioned
J Robinett Enterprises
John Livesay Funding Strategist
Grit to Great Website
Linda Kaplan Thaler Twitter
Want the Transcription?
Crack The Funding Code!
Register now for the free webinar
Share The Show
Did you enjoy the show? I'd love it if you subscribed today and left us a 5-star review!
- Click this link
- Click on the 'Subscribe' button below the artwork
- Go to the 'Ratings and Reviews' section
- Click on 'Write a Review'