Speaking of Startups William Bissett, CFP

 



Serial entrepreneur, Joel Puthoff is our guest for Speaking of Start-Ups episode 166. 



Joel is the founder of Linxy a location/check-in social app that “bridges the gap between the digital world we live in and the real time connections that people desire.” 



Joel got his start as an entrepreneur at an early age with his first lawn care business in his teens, then sharpened his skills in college with the Youth Entrepreneurs Across America  group. His participation in the group was pivotal, but it wasn’t until he signed up to teach the skills he had learned that his knowledge and expertise in the business world grew by leaps and bounds. 



Key takeaways from episode 166:  



How negatives in life and business present opportunities 

Why sports and most notably experience in college sports translates into success in the business world 

The big letdown of the business experience in college 

How mental frameworks and models help uncover hidden potential 

How Young Entrepreneurs Across America helped shape his journey 

Why teaching something leads to mastery 

How curiosity helped Joel write his first book 

Embracing “the more you learn, the more you realize you don’t know” 

What you allow yourself to be capable of exposes you to a world of learning and experiences 

Learning from beta launches 

Failure creates strength 

Why culture makes such a huge difference in your company 

Why you should be thinking in terms of teams 

How Linxy is using technology to lose technology 

Monetizing your app 

And much more… 



From college sports to the board room, you’ll want to tune into today’s insightful interview with Joel. And click on the title if you’d like to get a copy of Joel’s book, Capability Fuel. 



 



William Bissett is the owner of and an Investment Advisor Representative of Portus Wealth Advisors, a Registered Investment Adviser. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Opinions expressed on this program do not necessarily reflect those of Portus Wealth Advisors. The topics discussed and opinions given are not intended to address the specific needs of any listener.  



Portus Wealth Advisors does not offer legal or tax advice, listeners are encouraged to discuss their financial needs with the appropriate professional regarding your individual circumstance.  



Investments described herein may be speculative and may involve a substantial risk of loss. Interests may be offered only to persons who qualify as accredited investors under applicable state and federal regulation or an eligible employee of the management company. There generally is no public market for the Interests. Prospective investors should particularly note that many factors affect performance, including changes in market conditions and interest rates, and other economic, political or financial developments. Past performance is not, and should not be construed as, indicative of future results.  

In our 165th episode of Speaking of Start-Ups, we meet up IN PERSON to Chance Smith Co-Founder of GoghNow.



We were able to utilize the great podcasting studio at Tabbris - which continues to be an awesome spot for entrepreneurs and the entire start-up ecosystem.



In our podcast today, Chance and I were able to dive into the key elements of their business - GoghNow.



GoghNow is the app that brings musicians to your private space at the tap of the button. Learning the ropes from stints at Red Ventures and through talent acquisitions, Chance is using his love of music and people to transform the spaces they frequent.



As with any start-up, they’ve grown, pivoted, and grown some more.  Now they are positioned to explode out of the Charlotte market onto bigger scenes through their attention to detail, customer service, and “just a piece of the pie”.



Key takeaways from episode 165:



* How different jobs inspire and encourage different modes of personal and professional growth

* Turning beats into a sales generating machine

* Leveraging connections to grow your brand

* How collaboration expands ideas and possibilities

* Why travel broadens both your personal and business vision

* How studying your customer avatar AND behavior helps spawn new business ideas

* Using brand ambassadors to help scale

* Understanding your strengths and weaknesses to best allocate time and energy

* Handling the inevitable “no”

* When to push into new territory to expand your business



Whether you’re interested in hearing more of your favorite musician or learning where to find them next, you’ll want to hear how Chance and his team are making that happen.



 



William Bissett is the owner of and an Investment Advisor Representative of Portus Wealth Advisors, a Registered Investment Adviser. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Opinions expressed on this program do not necessarily reflect those of Portus Wealth Advisors. The topics discussed and opinions given are not intended to address the specific needs of any listener.



Portus Wealth Advisors does not offer legal or tax advice, listeners are encouraged to discuss their financial needs with the appropriate professional regarding your individual circumstance.



Investments described herein may be speculative and may involve a substantial risk of loss. Interests may be offered only to persons who qualify as accredited investors under applicable state and federal regulation or an eligible employee of the management company. There generally is no public market for the Interests. Prospective investors should particularly note that many factors affect performance, including changes in market conditions and interest rates, and other economic, political or financial developments. Past performance is not, and should not be construed as, indicative of future results.

 



In today’s 164th episode of Speaking of Start-Ups, we veer off the traditional path of interviewing founders and talk to one of the professionals that supports them on their quest to glory through financial literacy.



Russell Kroeger is a partner at Upstart Wealth Management, and founder at Trayecto, a platform to help/educate other advisors of the complex financial world surrounding founders, their employees, and the decisions made that impact all of them.



This is one of the most technical episodes we’ve had to date, but definitely worth the listen for those interested in broadening their understanding of equity compensation.



Key takeaways from episode 164:



* How the start-up space differs from a financial planning perspective

* Educating founders and their key employees along the way

* Building the framework to explain the complications of equity compensation

* The psychological impact of mismanaging money and making prudent financial decisions

* How to structure and manage equity from a founder’s perspective and the employees

* What is a venture capitalist for people?

* How facilitating self-discovery pays off financially

* Why good questions help create a road map for success

* How to find the right financial planner/partner for your journey



Get your pen and paper ready to take notes for this highly informative episode.



William Bissett is the owner of and an Investment Advisor Representative of Portus Wealth Advisors, a Registered Investment Adviser. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Opinions expressed on this program do not necessarily reflect those of Portus Wealth Advisors. The topics discussed and opinions given are not intended to address the specific needs of any listener.



Portus Wealth Advisors does not offer legal or tax advice, listeners are encouraged to discuss their financial needs with the appropriate professional regarding your individual circumstance.



Investments described herein may be speculative and may involve a substantial risk of loss. Interests may be offered only to persons who qualify as accredited investors under applicable state and federal regulation or an eligible employee of the management company. There generally is no public market for the Interests. Prospective investors should particularly note that many factors affect performance, including changes in market conditions and interest rates, and other economic, political or financial developments. Past performance is not, and should not be construed as, indicative of future results.

 



Welcome to episode 163 of Speaking of Start-ups where we interview William Ward, founder of Flexie.



Flexie is a talent cultivation platform that helps companies source, hire, and retain quality young talent while giving the job seekers the availability to curate their working experience, build up a reliability score, and showcase their skills for future prospective employers.



William is a survivor of modern civil war. He used his family’s thirst for knowledge and desire to help others to create Smile For Liberia, a program that’s aided over 2,000 of his homeland’s people as well as awarded over 200 scholarships to young Liberians.



Learn how to keep moving forward no matter what life throws your way from this driven entrepreneur.



Key takeaways from episode 163:



* How solving other’s people’s problems helps solve your own

* Why saving money before you get started is a great reliever of stress

* Why the current employment landscape for young workers is broken and how to fix it

* The benefits of partners in scaling a business

* Using AI to do the things you don’t need to do and shouldn’t be

* Why financial literacy is such a huge hurdle for young Americans

* The importance of mentors and the impact they can have on your business

* Importance of getting your idea to market, BUT ALSO being flexible enough to accept feedback and constructive criticism

* Looking for multiple streams of income for your business

* Why networking with other entrepreneurs is about cooperation not competition

* Data Doesn’t Lie

* The pluses and minuses of the Charlotte start-up ecosystem

* William’s biggest life lessons from his entrepreneurial journey… so far



Get ready for a ride across continents, cultures, and a truly inspiring story.



 



William Bissett is the owner of and an Investment Advisor Representative of Portus Wealth Advisors, a Registered Investment Adviser. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Opinions expressed on this program do not necessarily reflect those of Portus Wealth Advisors. The topics discussed and opinions given are not intended to address the specific needs of any listener.



Portus Wealth Advisors does not offer legal or tax advice, listeners are encouraged to discuss their financial needs with the appropriate professional regarding your individual circumstance.



Investments described herein may be speculative and may involve a substantial risk of loss. Interests may be offered only to persons who qualify as accredited investors under applicable state and federal regulation or an eligible employee of the management company. There generally is no public market for the Interests. Prospective investors should particularly note that many factors affect performance, including changes in market conditions and interest rates, and other economic, political or financial developments. Past performance is not, and should not be construed as, indicative of future results.

In today’s episode of Speaking of Start-Ups we interview Justin Kelsey, a serial entrepreneur and Jack-Of-All trades kind of guy who likes to keep his mind and body busy. Justin is the CEO and founder of SwitchFrame, a new video testimonial creation engine that allows companies to simplify the video testimonial collection process using an AI teleprompter that teaches customers hot to record the perfect video.



The service chops them up and spits them out to make the testimonials imbeddable and accessible to your whole team as an ad, social post, and more for the brand to use.



In this episode you’ll about the passion that drives Justin in his business with SwitchFrame as well as how he's able to channel his energy into other projects that keep him at the top of his game.



Key takeaways from episode 162:



* How doing pro formas and working financial models helps make sure a business scales

* Seeing opportunity everywhere

* Being open to new experiences and embracing a “let’s see what happens” philosophy

* Paying attention to your surroundings and using that to feed your intuition

* Why passion keeps you going past the inevitable walls entrepreneurs face

* The difference between the risk of working or someone else and entrepreneurial risk

* How systematizing your business at the beginning helps scaling easier

* How ADD/ADHD can be an advantage as an entrepreneur

* Finding your team

* Using referral and agency partnerships to build your business

* Feedback! Feedback! Feedback

* Window shopping your own business

* And much more…



Get your notepad and pen ready, and dive into today’s episode.



 



 



William Bissett is the owner of and an Investment Advisor Representative of Portus Wealth Advisors, a Registered Investment Adviser. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Opinions expressed on this program do not necessarily reflect those of Portus Wealth Advisors. The topics discussed and opinions given are not intended to address the specific needs of any listener.



Portus Wealth Advisors does not offer legal or tax advice, listeners are encouraged to discuss their financial needs with the appropriate professional regarding your individual circumstance.



Investments described herein may be speculative and may involve a substantial risk of loss. Interests may be offered only to persons who qualify as accredited investors under applicable state and federal regulation or an eligible employee of the management company. There generally is no public market for the Interests. Prospective investors should particularly note that many factors affect performance, including changes in market conditions and interest rates, and other economic, political or financial developments. Past performance is not, and should not be construed as, indicative of future results.

In today’s episode we welcome Ahriana Edwards to Speaking of Start-Ups.  Ahriana is the founder of Vaila Shoes, Vaila short for available “because it’s about time ladies with extended shoe sizes have options available to them." Through her Vaila line, which is now being represented in Macy’s department stores, Ahriana focuses on footwear for the workplace and after hours.



In this episode you’ll learn how Ahriana’s journey from a curious and artsy child helped shape her journey as a budding entrepreneur.



Key takeaways from episode 161:



* How acting at an early age helped shape her entrepreneur journey

* How curiosity inspires not only companies, but all the aspects of bringing a company to life

* How university hackathons helped her learn and embrace the entrepreneurial process

* Why being a big fish at a smaller school helps get access to more opportunities

* Leveraging the relationships built at a small institution

* Why solving your own problems becomes a solution for others

* Researching adjacent industries when you can find what you’re looking for in your own

* Why it is so important to be super specific with the questions you ask your customers

* Building inventory of physical products is about knowing your customer

* You can’t say the right thing to the wrong person and you can’t say the wrong thing to the right person

* When to let go of things you’re not passionate about in your business and bringing on the right team members to help you do so

* Finding employees who feel your pain

* And much more…



Since the inception of her company in 2020, Ahriana has 10x’d her sales and revenue each. Listen to find out how this young woman is taking big strides in the footwear industry and solving problems for women worldwide.



 



William Bissett is the owner of and an Investment Advisor Representative of Portus Wealth Advisors, a Registered Investment Adviser. Registration does not imply a certain level of skill or training. Opinions expressed on this program do not necessarily reflect those of Portus Wealth Advisors. The topics discussed and opinions given are not intended to address the specific needs of any listener.



Portus Wealth Advisors does not offer legal or tax advice, listeners are encouraged to discuss their financial needs with the appropriate professional regarding your individual circumstance.



Investments described herein may be speculative and may involve a substantial risk of loss. Interests may be offered only to persons who qualify as accredited investors under applicable state and federal regulation or an eligible employee of the management company. There generally is no public market for the Interests. Prospective investors should particularly note that many factors affect performance, including changes in market conditions and interest rates, and other economic, political or financial developments. Past performance is not, and should not be construed as, indicative of future results.