Build The Damn Thing Genius Guild

Welcome to Season 2 of Build The Damn Thing!
Episode 1 - Build The Damn Thing: Leaning into your purpose
 
On this episode of Build the Damn Thing, Kathryn Finney and four other builders talk about how their backgrounds have influenced their sense of purpose when creating their startups. They discuss how they have taken the lessons learned from the historic, systemic obstacles their ancestors have overcome to build their own companies. And by sharing the stories of how they are succeeding and living their best lives, they are giving permission for other builders like you to do the same.
 
Guests:
Brian Aoaeh - ReFashiond
Dr. Lisa DeRoche - Roosevelt Institute
Patrice Grell Yursik - ​​Afrobella
Felecia Hatcher - Black Ambition
 
Stay Connected!  
Kathryn Finney
Website: https://www.kathrynfinney.com/ 
Twitter: @KathrynFinney
Instagram: @hiiamkathryn
Facebook: Kathryn Finney
 
Genius Guild
Website: https://GeniusGuild.co
Twitter: @GeniusGuild
Instagram: @geniusguild
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/genius-guild
 
Subscribe to our podcast + download each episode on Google Podcasts, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.
________
 
Credits:
Produced by Genius Guild Content Studios
Executive Producers:  Kathryn Finney and Darlene Gillard Jones
Post-Production Company: Prosper Digital TV
Post-Production Manager: Joanes Prosper
Post-Production Supervisor: Jason Pierre
Post-Production Sound Editor: Evan Joseph
Co-Music Supervisors: Jason Pierre and Darlene Gillard Jones
Show Music: provided by Prosper Digital TV
Main Show Theme Music: "Self Motivated" Written & Performed by Tamara Bubble
 
Full Transcript
Kathryn Finney
So let me start off by saying, if you haven't listened to season one of Build a Damn Thing, run to your Spotify Apple Podcast. Wherever you listen to podcasts, and listen to season one. It's gonna give you an amazing context for what we're talking about in this new season. You’re gonna learn all about how I came to be. Also, make sure you get a copy of my book, Build a Damn Thing, How to Start a Successful Business When You're not a rich white guy in it. I give every entrepreneur who the establishment has left out a step-by-step guide on how to build a business from the ground up. In season two of my podcast, Build a Damn Thing. With a little help from some other builders, founders, and visionaries, I give listeners a shortcut to becoming a successful business owner who's ready to win. 
Brian Aoaeh
So my advice to black startup founders is really simple. Just do it. Just do it. If you're a startup founder and you are black, no matter what you're doing, you're probably playing some sort of pioneering role. And pioneers can't look at statistics and data pioneers are driven by something more basic, something more fundamental, right? It's a problem that takes a hold of you and just won't let go of your instincts and your emotions and your intellect. And so I think you should just do it. Just give it your best and do it with the knowledge that it is going to be incredibly hard, but do it with the knowledge that if you succeed, you will hopefully create something that is really valuable for the world and that a lot of people need. 
Kathryn Finney
Have you ever wanted to start a business but we're too afraid to try? Or maybe you just don't think you have what it takes. I'm here to tell you that you do. All you need is a solid idea, a little intel for me, and to put in the work. Remember, you are your ancestors'. Wildest dreams in this, the first episode of Build The Damn Thing, Season two, I and other business leaders share what it takes to build and how leaning into your purpose while standing on the shoulders of your ancestors will take you farther than you've ever imagined. 
So how am I able to build companies like what makes me so special and so different than everyone else? And it really is. I grew up with the sense that I could do anything. And it came from pa

Episode 2 - How to Mentally Prepare for Entrepreneurship
 
On this episode of Build the Damn Thing, hear what Kathryn and other builders have learned about what it takes to find balance while building your business. They share how to balance the constant conflict between your professional and personal lives, preventing burnout, and how to get your mind right to make it through the entrepreneurial journey. They also discuss the particular toll finding balance takes on WoC founders, who are often burdened with unfair expectations and encouraged not to set boundaries while having to take on everyone else’s issues.



Guests (Email addresses not for publication):
Kendra Bracken Ferguson  |  The Brain Trust 
Geri Stengel  |  Venturerneer  
Danielle Robinson Bell  |  Northwestern University 
Mary Pryor  |  Cannaclusive 
Farah Allen  |  The Labz 
Kellee James  |  Mecaris  
Cheryl Contee  |  Impact Seat 
 
Stay Connected!  
Kathryn Finney
Website: https://www.kathrynfinney.com/ 
Twitter: @KathrynFinney
Instagram: @hiiamkathryn
Facebook: Kathryn Finney
 
Genius Guild
Website: Genius Guild
Twitter: @GeniusGuild
Instagram: @geniusguild
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/genius-guild
 
Subscribe to our podcast + download each episode on Google Podcasts, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.
________
 
Credits:
Produced by Genius Guild Content Studios
Executive Producers:  Kathryn Finney and Darlene Gillard Jones
Post-Production Company: Prosper Digital TV
Post-Production Manager: Joanes Prosper
Post-Production Supervisor: Jason Pierre
Post-Production Sound Editor: Evan Joseph
Co-Music Supervisors: Jason Pierre and Darlene Gillard Jones
Show Music: provided by Prosper Digital TV
Main Show Theme Music: "Self Motivated" Written & Performed by Tamara Bubble
 
Full Transcript
Kendra Bracken Ferguson (00:00):
At the end of the day, as a founder, it ultimately falls on your shoulders, and you ultimately have to be confident in what you're doing, even when it's scary and even when it's fearful. And as an entrepreneur, it's all about honesty with yourself, right? Honesty about your strengths, your weaknesses, um, and making sure that you're very, very clear, very, very clear. It is the utmost important that we continue to support each other, support ourselves, understands what mental health means for each of us. Um, it's hard. There are so many obstacles we face as women, as women of color, and we can't give up. We have to be the voice, the guiding light for the next generation. You know, that's what keeps me going. And I've learned to ask for help. I've learned to raise my hand, um, and I've had to trust people around me to help me carry the vision forward. 
Kathryn Finney (01:00):
Building a business is no walk in the park. There will be sacrifices made and plenty of disappointments, but with all the lows come the highs. And being mentally prepared to handle it all is the first step to becoming a successful entrepreneur. On this episode of Build a Damn Thing here, what I and others have learned about what it takes to find balance while building your business. 
There are times where I will admit, and I, it pains me, and it almost makes me wanna cry when I admit this, that I chose the work over my family. And I have learned that the work will go, but your family's gonna always be there. One of the reasons why I transitioned from digitalundived, it was the work could not take place in my family anymore. And it was, it was always in constant conflict. And the things that you were being asked to do and the things that I assumed, um, you know, black women, we know how to be martyrs. We're taught how to be that at the very early age. It's also why we die before everybody too. So, um, how do we not take on other people's issues? And how do we as leaders create boundaries? And it's really painful, I've noticed, for some people to, um, accept boundaries from, from us as le

Episode 3: How to Build Your Personal Advisory Board
 
A corporate advisory board gives strategic advice on the management of the business. Your personal advisory board gives strategic advice on the management of you. On this episode of the Build The Damn Thing, find out how a strong support system, aka your personal advisory board, can help you create the business you've always wanted.
 
Guests:
Brian Aoaeh   |   ReFashiond
Dr. Lisa DeRoche   |   Roosevelt Institute
Felecia Hatcher   |   Black Ambition
Darlene Gillard   |   Genius Guild / Copper Media Group
Kendra Bracken Ferguson    |   The Brain Trust
____________
 
Stay Connected!  
Kathryn Finney
Website: https://www.kathrynfinney.com/ 
Twitter: @KathrynFinney
Instagram: @hiiamkathryn
Facebook: Kathryn Finney
 
Genius Guild
Website: https://GeniusGuild.co 
Twitter: @GeniusGuild
Instagram: @geniusguild
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/genius-guild
 
Subscribe to our podcast + download each episode on Google Podcasts, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.
________
 
Credits:
Produced by Genius Guild Content Studios
Executive Producers:  Kathryn Finney and Darlene Gillard Jones
Post-Production Company: Prosper Digital TV
Post-Production Manager: Joanes Prosper
Post-Production Supervisor: Jason Pierre
Post-Production Sound Editor: Evan Joseph
Co-Music Supervisors: Jason Pierre and Darlene Gillard Jones
Show Music: provided by Prosper Digital TV
Main Show Theme Music: "Self Motivated" Written & Performed by Tamara Bubble 
 
Full Transcript

Darlene Gillard  (00:00):
Having been an entrepreneur for most of my adult life, one of the things that I've come to understand is that you really need people who you can trust 100% of the time. People who will be giving you advice, guidance, and sometimes help as you continue to grow your business. And that group of people, whether they're your family or friends, mentors, former bosses or colleagues, whoever are going to be critical to the success of your business as well as your personal success, there are a lot of decisions that you'll need to make over the course of your entrepreneurial journey. And it's just nice to have people you can lean on and who care about you for you and not about what you can do for them. 
Kathryn Finney (00:50):
A corporate advisory board gives strategic advice on the management of the business. Your personal advisory board gives strategic advice on the management of you on this episode of the Build a Damn thing. Find out how strong support system, aka your personal advisory board, can help you create the business you've always wanted. 
Kathryn Finney (01:11):
Building a personal advisory board is critical to your success. As you think about building your personal advisory board, think about areas in which you need help and where you have a weakness. They are the people who really give you the advice and direction and sometimes the slap up on the head that you need to be able to really get through this process of building. And for me, I have a lot of people who are in my advisory board, my mother, I have my close friends like Darlene, Gill Jones, Darlene, and I started off working together and then became great friends. She is the godmother to my son. Darlene has a particular talent that I do not have, which is she has the ability to speak cuckoo. I do have very low tolerance for kooky people. Darlene is able to do that, and that's really helpful for me as someone who's very impatient, to have a friend who is patient, who can say, Hey, here's how to approach this. Or even sometimes, You know what? Let me just talk to them. Catherine, you're all in the clouds. You're down the road. We don't need for you to be in this mindset because we need you to be in the clouds. We need you to be building and we don't need you to be distracted. And that has been enormously helpful for me 
Darlene Gillard  (02:32):
With so many things bei

Episode 4: How to Make Sure Your Business Solves a Problem
 
If you want to build a business…..a REAL business, you’ve got to have customers who are willing to pay for your product or service and I don’t mean just friends and family. On this episode of Build The Damn Thing, learn what you need to know to make sure that your business is solving a problem that people are willing to pay for.



Guests: 
Tessa Flippin  ​​ |   Capitalized VC 
Citi Medina   |   Equal Space 
Denise Hamilton   |   Watch Her Work 
Elisa Camahort Page    |    Author
Ellie Bahrmasel   |   Further Faster Ventures 
________
 
Stay Connected!  
Kathryn Finney
Website: https://www.kathrynfinney.com/ 
Twitter: @KathrynFinney
Instagram: @hiiamkathryn
Facebook: Kathryn Finney
 
Genius Guild
Website: https://GeniusGuild.co
Twitter: @GeniusGuild
Instagram: @geniusguild
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/genius-guild
 
Subscribe to our podcast + download each episode on Google Podcasts, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.
________
 
Credits:
Produced by Genius Guild Content Studios
Executive Producers:  Kathryn Finney and Darlene Gillard Jones
Post-Production Company: Prosper Digital TV
Post-Production Manager: Joanes Prosper
Post-Production Supervisor: Jason Pierre
Post-Production Sound Editor: EJ Markland
Co-Music Supervisors: Jason Pierre and Darlene Gillard Jones
Show Music: provided by Prosper Digital TV
Main Show Theme Music: "Self Motivated" Written & Performed by Tamara Bubble
 
Full Transcript
Tessa Flippin (00:00):
Value proposition is extremely important for an early stage company, and it can change over time. But I think within technology, if you have a solution that is solving a real problem, you're going to have competitors. And so you need to understand what is it about your company that will make people choose you. And so I, you know, what comes to mind is social media. So when you think about Facebook versus Instagram versus TikTok, for us as users, all of those are free. And we're choosing to spend our time on one or more of these platforms. And so you need to think about what makes you different. Could, it could be the user experience, it could be the features that you've included in your platform. It could be the network effect when you think about Instagram versus Facebook, maybe all of your friends are on Instagram. And that becomes a value proposition because you're gonna choose to be where your friends are versus be on some other platform somewhere else where nobody, you know is using and you can't easily share things, et cetera. 
Kathryn Finney (01:26):
If you wanna build a business, a real business, you've gotta have customers who are willing to pay for your product or service. And I don't mean just friends and family on this episode of Build a Damn thing. Learn what you need to know to make sure your business is out in the problem, that people are willing to pay for it. 
(02:03):
How do you know if what you're building is really something people will buy and pay for? And it's really four key sort of things to look for. One, ask yourself, is this a problem looking for a solution? Or is this a solution looking for a problem? Meaning is this something that is a real pain point for people? Like, sure, you know, we all may wanna decorate our crocs if you know the plastic shoes, but like, do I really wanna invest my life in like those little like croc little jewelry things? Maybe, maybe not. That might not be a pain point for enough people. 
Citi Medina  (02:44):
Equal space was built on a pain point. I think many people of color create out of obstacles. And so equal space was really the space I wish I had when I started my first company. What I did was find that there were no spaces built for us that celebrated our culture, our identity, and also created the resources and access that we needed, uh, to really battle systemic oppression that we'

Episode 5: How To Turn Your Solution Into a Money Making Business
 
Solving a problem is one thing but how to make money doing it is a WHOLE other animal.  In this episode of Build The Damn Thing, myself and others will guide you through the process of generating income and scaling UP as you build the next big thing!
 
Guests
Hafeezah Muhammad   |   You Me Healthcare 
Cheryl Contee    |    Impact Seat 
Citi Medina    |   Equal Space 
 
________
 
Stay Connected!  
Kathryn Finney
Website: https://www.kathrynfinney.com/ 
Twitter: @KathrynFinney
Instagram: @hiiamkathryn
Facebook: Kathryn Finney
 
Genius Guild
Website: https://GeniusGuild.co
Twitter: @GeniusGuild
Instagram: @geniusguild
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/genius-guild
 
Subscribe to our podcast + download each episode on Google Podcasts, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.
________
 
Credits:
Produced by Genius Guild Content Studios
Executive Producers:  Kathryn Finney and Darlene Gillard Jones
Post-Production Company: Prosper Digital TV
Post-Production Manager: Joanes Prosper
Post-Production Supervisor: Jason Pierre
Post-Production Sound Editor: EJ Markland
Co-Music Supervisors: Jason Pierre and Darlene Gillard Jones
Show Music: provided by Prosper Digital TV
Main Show Theme Music: "Self Motivated" Written & Performed by Tamara Bubble
Special Thanks to CBS This Morning and The Apollo Theatre
 
Full Transcript

Hafeezah Muhammed (00:00):
I started my business because in October of 2020, my son, who was six at the time, came to me and said, mommy, I feel like I wanna kill myself as a mom. I felt like a failure, but I was an executive for a large mental health company with over 2000 therapists and I couldn't find care for my son because he was on federally funded insurance. And at that moment I said, I never want another parent to go through what I did. So I went on, I went ahead and I started Umi Healthcare. I was able to turn the solution into money making business because just like most businesses or services that impact the, uh, minority communities, there's a time where they don't usually pay much attention to the services. When I talk about, I say competitors, so there was, this was a unique opportunity to be able to master a, a service which is called like Medicaid, right? 
For federally funded insurance. And what most people don't know is that Medicaid reimburses a hundred percent for mental health services, um, from underprivileged children and individuals like in around the world from low income communities. And knowing that is that I was able to leverage those skill sets that I had to be able to accept that type of insurance that's federally funded so that kids can have the care that they need. And in a result in, you know, 18 months we are in, we are at like 615 in a r r and a r r is annual recurrent revenue, which is pretty in pretty interesting cuz when you think about the Medicaid, um, or federally funded insurance, most people don't realize that you can make money from that. And for me it's not usually about making money. Um, I'm a capitalist for sure, I will share that, but it's thinking about all the lives that we're saving and the lives the kids that we're helping who would not have been able to find the care that they need. And as a result for our work, that we get revenue, right? So we've been generating revenue from day one. 
Kathryn Finney (02:06):
Sound of the problem is one thing, but how to make money while doing it is a whole other animal. In this episode of Build a Damn Thing, I will guide you to the process of generating income and scaling up as you build the next big thing. 
So the steps that a founder needs to take to turn your solution into a money-making business is actually fairly straightforward. You have to determine how much it costs for you to actually make the product. And the cost is all cost, including labor and especially your labor. A lot of en

Episode 6: How To Build An Amazing Team
 
Having the right team is crucial to any business and its success is dependent on it. Knowing who to hire as well as when to let them go can make or break your company.  In this episode of Build The Damn Thing, learn how to find the right people with the right skill sets to help elevate you and your company.



Guests:
Jeffrey Robinson   |   Rutgers 
Ellie Bahrmasel   |   Further Faster Ventures 
Sharmayne Lueiza Munoz   |   Genius Guild 
Citi Medina    |    Equal Space 
Brian Aoaeh    |    reFashiond Ventures 
Elisa Camahort Page    |   Author 
 
________
 
Stay Connected!  
Kathryn Finney
Website: https://www.kathrynfinney.com/ 
Twitter: @KathrynFinney
Instagram: @hiiamkathryn
Facebook: Kathryn Finney
 
Genius Guild
Website: https://GeniusGuild.co
Twitter: @GeniusGuild
Instagram: @geniusguild
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/genius-guild
 
Subscribe to our podcast + download each episode on Google Podcasts, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts.
________
 
Credits:
Produced by Genius Guild Content Studios
Executive Producers:  Kathryn Finney and Darlene Gillard Jones
Post-Production Company: Prosper Digital TV
Post-Production Manager: Joanes Prosper
Post-Production Supervisor: Jason Pierre
Post-Production Sound Editor: EJ Markland
Co-Music Supervisors: Jason Pierre and Darlene Gillard Jones
Show Music: provided by Prosper Digital TV
Main Show Theme Music: "Self Motivated" Written & Performed by Tamara Bubble
 
Full Transcript
 
Jeffrey Robinson (00:00):
What I, what I like to, like to see often are startup teams, which is in and of itself is a statement. A lot of folks want to be a startup of one. And becau, I don't know why that is. It, it could be because, uh, they think that entrepreneurship is a solo sport. And I'm here to tell you it is not. You need other people. And that the most successful folks are the ones who have teamed up with others, especially with folks who have complimentary skills. Um, you do really great at marketing, but they do really great at operations. Uh, people remember Bill Gates, but don't forget there was Paul Allen, right? And then after that you had Steve Ballmer. So they, you got three people who really shaped Microsoft into what it, what we know of it today. Um, and they have different sets of skills. And I, I, I would, I would say to anybody who's in startup phase, you know, where's your team, uh, whether they're, you know, uh, founders, owners, whether they're employee number 1 25, whatever. Look, you need a team to get going. 
Kathryn Finney (01:12):
Having the right team is crucial to the success of your business. Knowing who to hire as well as when to let them go, can make or break your company. In this episode of Build a Damn Thing, learn how to find the right people with the right skillsets to help you elevate you and your company. 
So with my family, um, my family created a dry cleaning business, um, , uh, that we had no business creating cuz we knew nothing about dry cleaning and hadn't really ran the a business yet. I was the only one in my family that had ran, ran a business, um, at that point. And so we created this dry cleaning business that failed and it failed spectacularly. I mean, it was like TV people coming to my brother's house. I mean, it was like bananas, how much it failed. But there was so many lessons that I learned from that. 
Um, one big lesson was, and this happens to a lot of us, is that we hire all these consultants at the beginning of our business to tell us what our business is. No one can tell you what your business is. You need to find that out for yourself. And hiring expensive ass consultants to tell you is one way to easily fail. You've got to get dirty. You have to go and talk to your potential customer. Instead of spending the tens of thousands of dollars, maybe even more than that on, um, expensive Ask consultants, m