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Tag: Thought Leaders

  • He Lost $100 Million — And Doesn’t Regret It | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    David Meltzer knows what it feels like to lose everything — and come back from the edge.

    “How much money did you lose?” Restaurant Influencers host Shawn Walchef asked on stage at the National Restaurant Association Show.

    “Over $100 million,” Meltzer replied without hesitation.

    “$100 million,” Walchef repeated. “And you’re still here. Better than ever.”

    For most people, that number would be the end of their business story. Meltzer turned it into a platform.

    Related: He Turned Failure Into a Massive Food Truck and Restaurant Operation. Here’s How.

    A bestselling author and keynote speaker, he now teaches entrepreneurs how to amplify their message and align their purpose. That’s why he was at the Restaurant Show — not as a restaurant operator, but as a mentor showing how storytelling can turn a moment into momentum.

    Melzter readily shares the story of how he lost the money in interviews and on social media — but he refuses to call it a sacrifice. To him, it was an investment.

    “My wife doesn’t like me saying this,” Meltzer admits. “I invested $100 million. Without that investment, I wouldn’t be where I am today. So how could I not see it as an investment?”

    That reframing is central to Meltzer’s worldview. Sleep, he says, is his top nonnegotiable because recovery fuels everything else. Activities aren’t divided into work and play, but into investments of time and energy.

    “I don’t believe in sacrifice,” Meltzer says. “That’s a vision of shortage and scarcity. I believe in investing. When you love the earth, it loves you back. When you love your relationships, they love you back. I make that investment.”

    Meltzer’s job now is making sure those lessons live on in a digital age where content outlasts its creator.

    “I’m identified as both the guy who lost everything and the guy who’s successful,” he says. “In all my activities, I’m successful, but I fail at every one of them.”

    Related: Want to Be a Successful Entrepreneur? Fail.

    The Stage Theory

    If Meltzer’s philosophy is about investment, the Restaurant Show was where it came to life.

    He called it the “fishbowl of content.” Cameras circled an open stage on the final day, but the seats were nearly empty. For many speakers, that would be a problem. For Meltzer, it was the point.

    “I don’t care who’s sitting in the chairs,” he says. “I care how many cameras are here and what systems I have to amplify it.”

    Related: This Global Beverage Giant Will Help Market Your Restaurant — For Free. Here Are the Details.

    That is stage theory in practice: Capture content and amplify it. A meetup with two people can turn into millions of views if the story connects. Meltzer proved it when someone asked about the coolest athlete he had ever met. He told a story about Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Dr. J from his days as a 12-year-old ball boy.

    “Two people were in the room when I told it, but that piece of content has over 10 million views,” he says.

    It was a familiar lesson for me. When I opened Cali BBQ in San Diego, I spent 14 years focused on the four walls of my restaurant. Working with Meltzer showed me a bigger opportunity: Build in public, fail in public and share the process.

    “One of the most important things you helped me realize is the power of asking for help,” I told him at the time. “By making podcasts, YouTube videos and doing stage theory, I hope more people get out of their restaurant and see what’s possible.”

    “Business is fun,” Meltzer says. “Life is fun. Activities you get paid for, activities you don’t. But they’re all investments.”

    The audience at the National Restaurant Show may have been quiet, but the cameras were rolling. And that means the conversation we recorded will live on long after the booths are packed up — a perpetual stage where the real audience is the one still to come.

    Related: People Line Up Down the Block to Try This Iconic NYC Pizza. Now, It Could Be Coming to Your City.

    About Restaurant Influencers

    Restaurant Influencers is brought to you by Toast, the powerful restaurant point-of-sale and management system that helps restaurants improve operations, increase sales and create a better guest experience.

    Toast — Powering Successful Restaurants. Learn more about Toast.

    Shawn P. Walchef

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  • Retention Starts on Day One — And It’s on Leaders, Not HR | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Research shows that 70% of new employees decide whether a job is the right fit within their first month, including 29% within the first week. Despite this, the conversation around employee retention in many companies starts far too late.

    It often begins only after people have already disengaged and are considering leaving. At that point, HR may step in to address concerns and offer perks that were previously overlooked, but by then, it’s frequently a last-ditch effort.

    These late-stage actions have their place, but the decision to stay or leave is ultimately driven by the leadership people experience every day. Employees stay when they are led well, when they are hired into teams that work, when they trust the tone and consistency of their leaders and when what the company says matches what they live.

    It is observed that 70% of the variance in team engagement, which defines the employee experience, comes from managers. However, most often, leadership treats culture and retention as HR’s function instead of taking ownership of delegating trust.

    But if you want a team that people want to stay on, leadership has to build it every day from the very first hire.

    Related: This Is the Retention Strategy You’re Probably Overlooking

    Why companies get this wrong

    I’ve worked with countless leaders who want to build great teams. But wanting that and knowing how to do it are two different things. Most of us are never really taught how to create an environment where people choose to stay and do their best work. More often, we figure it out on the fly, after years of trial and error.

    And what ultimately shapes that experience is not a formal culture program. It is the everyday signals leaders send, who they choose to hire, how teams are built and how they respond when things go well and, more importantly, when they don’t.

    These are the cues people watch as they tell them what the company values and whether they can see themselves growing here.

    It took me years of pattern-spotting to see which leadership habits improve retention. Five, in particular, have stayed with me as practical ways to do that work. They might help you as well.

    Related: Your Retention Crisis Won’t End Until You Make This Shift

    Practice 1: How you hire determines who stays

    Hiring still relies too heavily on technical skills, which is the easiest part to measure. But it’s not a lack of skills that drives people out the door; it’s a poor fit for the role or the culture.

    When employees leave, they usually explain that the job was not what they expected or that they could not see a future for themselves. Those are hiring mistakes, not performance problems. The people who last see meaning in the company’s direction and feel the team is a place where they can grow. Skills may open the door, but alignment and motivation make people stay.

    Practice 2: How you shape the team determines how it performs

    Every new hire reshapes the team you already have. The wrong hire, even a skilled one, can weaken trust and make collaboration harder.

    A strong hire can lift the team by bringing balance and energy. The difference is not always visible on day one, but over time, it shows in how the team communicates and performs. That is why, before hiring, it’s important to examine the team’s state and ask whether this person will strengthen or disrupt its rhythm.

    Practice 3: What you allow becomes the culture

    The culture is defined by what you reward and tolerate, not what you say. You can talk about collaboration in any way you want. But if managers reward individual heroics and tolerate siloed behavior, that’s your culture.

    You can include “innovation” in your values. But if people are punished for small failures or if leaders tolerate endless risk-avoidance, the real culture is fear. If you want to build a culture worth staying in, be honest about what you are rewarding and what you are letting slide.

    Related: Don’t Underestimate the Power of Company Culture — It Matters.

    Practice 4: Leadership attention drives retention

    As companies grow, the distance between leaders and the rest of the organization grows with them. If you do not close that gap with intention, trust begins to fade, no matter how strong your culture looks on paper.

    You will not hold alignment with a memo or an all-hands. What matters are the signals where you spend time, and how you show up when pressure is high.

    People watch most closely in uncertain moments and leave when the leadership they experience no longer matches what they were promised.

    Culture is held together less by proximity and more by deliberate presence. It drifts when leaders stop showing up in ways that keep people connected to the mission and one another.

    Practice 5: Your energy sets the tone

    One thing that took me years to fully appreciate is that your energy is contagious as a leader. What you project through tone, attention, body language, and behavior directly shapes how people around you feel and perform.

    Calm steadiness builds confidence, while restless energy spreads just as quickly. The people who carry your culture most strongly are usually the first to feel it. They pick up on your tone, and their reaction influences the rest of the team. When they sense balance and clarity, they magnify it.

    Therefore, before stepping into a room, decide how you want people to feel and bring that energy with you. Your tone matters as much as your decisions in moments of change or pressure. When people feel steadiness from you, they find it in themselves and give more of their best.

    Related: Keep Your Top Talent with These 3 Employee Retention Secrets

    Retention is earned or lost in leadership

    Perks and HR policies play a role, but can’t compensate for weak leadership. Retention is built in leaders’ everyday work, including who they hire, what they reward, where they show up, and the tone they set.

    If you want teams, people want to stay on; lead them in a way that makes staying the natural choice.

    Research shows that 70% of new employees decide whether a job is the right fit within their first month, including 29% within the first week. Despite this, the conversation around employee retention in many companies starts far too late.

    It often begins only after people have already disengaged and are considering leaving. At that point, HR may step in to address concerns and offer perks that were previously overlooked, but by then, it’s frequently a last-ditch effort.

    These late-stage actions have their place, but the decision to stay or leave is ultimately driven by the leadership people experience every day. Employees stay when they are led well, when they are hired into teams that work, when they trust the tone and consistency of their leaders and when what the company says matches what they live.

    The rest of this article is locked.

    Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

    Bidhan Baruah

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  • Why Do Some People Succeed Instantly While Others Take Years? These 3 Things Explain It | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    We all love to hear the stories of individuals who started a business and became overnight successes. You know the narrative. The entrepreneur starts working out of their basement or garage. Creates a great product or service. Gets noticed or catches a lucky break and suddenly is making over seven figures.

    I love to read about these motivated individuals, but I also know that the reality is very different for many business owners. Everyone wants to grow. No one wants to be just a caretaker. But growth is tricky. Do you want to grow quickly? Perhaps sell and move on? Are you in it for the long haul? Want to leave a legacy? There is no right answer, but what you do and how you operate is impacted by your choices. Here are a few things to consider if you want to be an overnight success.

    Related: I Built a $20 Million Company by Age 22 While Still in College. Here’s How I Did It and What I Learned Along the Way.

    1. Plenty of cash

    If you want to grow quickly and be that “overnight success,” you need the cash to scale up all areas of the business. However, one of the key impediments to growth for entrepreneurs is access to capital. Without cash you cannot buy raw materials, machinery or other equipment. You also need people to do the heavy lifting at start-up and then keep a steady work pace once you are past the rush. Even when entrepreneurs have planned for the budget to operate, they often forget about the cost of marketing. Without that you simply cannot get noticed today and grow at a rapid pace. The cost of marketing in a digital world are far more than you expect.

    Over the years, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has said that “small businesses with less than $5 million in annual revenue and net profit margins between 10-12% should allocate around 7-8% of their gross revenue to marketing.” Businesses that want to grow quickly often spend much more.

    When the need for cash goes beyond what the entrepreneur can raise on their own, they look to investors. Shark Tank is full of stories from people who are trying to get noticed and cut a deal so they can grow. While negotiating, many must give up a significant piece of their business. That is common when you go to venture capital or private equity. Of course, the money is just one aspect of it. “Sharks” or other investors also bring treasured knowledge to the entrepreneur to spur growth.

    Entrepreneurs, like me, have a different approach to money. I have preferred to “pay as I go.” In other words, try not to take unnecessary loans and buy equipment as needed, so we get a quick return on the investment. There have been times when we have financed efforts, but have never taken money from an outside investor. Early on, I had “angels” interested in investing. I considered offers but ended up declining. Has that slowed our growth? Probably, but we also have retained control of the business, and for me, that is priceless.

    Related: The Financial Truths No One Tell You in Your First 2 Years of Entrepreneurship

    2. Unquestionable quality

    Making a quality product or delivering a quality service is hard enough under normal circumstances, but when you grow quickly, you must ramp up. Do you have manufacturing capacity? Will your suppliers be able to keep up with a surge in business? Do you have training programs in place? I know that it takes a new hire at my company at least six months to get up to speed, and during that time, we do not let them work solo. Piling work on even seasoned employees can result in mistakes. If you have the systems and people in place to grow and maintain quality, that is great. But when growth is exponential, quality can be compromised.

    On one occasion, I had to make the tough choice not to go after a large piece of business that would have expanded our reach internationally. In fact, the contract would have almost doubled our annual sales that year. I was really tempted. It would have been great to show that kind of success and gain bragging rights for a high-profile job. The reality was that we just did not have the bench strength to take it on, and trying to build the team quickly would have been difficult. We declined to bid for the job. That hurt. But it also prompted me to slowly begin to build up the team. Today we do work internationally and can maintain the quality.

    Here is the lesson. I believe it is better to turn down projects or new clients than risk a bad outcome just for the sake of growth. Good reviews are read and dismissed. Bad reviews linger a lot longer. Today, those reviews are instantaneously on social media, and just as quickly as you soared to the top, you can crash and burn.

    Related: I Made $1 Million in 20 Minutes — Here’s How I Did It and What They Don’t Tell You About ‘Overnight’ Success

    3. Laser focus

    In a recent article, I wrote about how to avoid being distracted by “shiny pennies.” I shared that successful entrepreneurs stick to their core business strategy. Those who experience overnight success take this idea to the highest level. They are laser-focused on products and services but also the speed at which they operate. They set stretch goals and work tirelessly to achieve them. They are focused on opportunities not all the obstacles that others see. When things go wrong, they focus on the solution, not the problem. It is that focus that sets successful entrepreneurs apart. While others see them as an overnight success, it has been a carefully crafted plan that got them where they are.

    It might seem like some businesspeople are lucky. In the right place at the right time. The reality is, like the actor who waited tables for years before getting discovered, it takes a lot of hard work to become an overnight success … and even more to stay at the top. Most of us do not see the years of effort, the struggles and the failures that it took to be successful. We prefer to think that it just happened. I started my business in my basement and worked out of it for several years before I could afford an office. It still amazes me when people think my company was successful quickly. It took much longer than people realized.

    So, the next time you hear a story about an entrepreneur who went from their garage or basement to running a multi-million-dollar enterprise, look for the story behind the story. That entrepreneur had to find cash, offer a consistent quality product and be laser focused. It takes effort to be an overnight success, and it does happen. But, for every individual who makes it, there are countless others who have reclaimed their basement or garage for its original purpose.

    Slow and steady or overnight success. Which will you be?

    We all love to hear the stories of individuals who started a business and became overnight successes. You know the narrative. The entrepreneur starts working out of their basement or garage. Creates a great product or service. Gets noticed or catches a lucky break and suddenly is making over seven figures.

    I love to read about these motivated individuals, but I also know that the reality is very different for many business owners. Everyone wants to grow. No one wants to be just a caretaker. But growth is tricky. Do you want to grow quickly? Perhaps sell and move on? Are you in it for the long haul? Want to leave a legacy? There is no right answer, but what you do and how you operate is impacted by your choices. Here are a few things to consider if you want to be an overnight success.

    Related: I Built a $20 Million Company by Age 22 While Still in College. Here’s How I Did It and What I Learned Along the Way.

    The rest of this article is locked.

    Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

    Cynthia Kay

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  • Turnover Is Costing You More Than You Think — Here’s the Fix | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    When you ask founders where the vast majority of their money goes, what are they going to say? Typically, they will cite some mix of customer acquisition, product development and office upgrades. One area that often goes unmentioned (and is frequently overlooked during lean times) is how businesses treat and invest in their people.

    Benefits, employee development and culture initiatives are often viewed as “nice-to-have” budget add-ons. Still, in reality, they’re some of the most innovative ways a company can optimize its productivity and performance. When strategically applied, perks like peer mentorship, half-day Fridays, and paid conference access can directly boost engagement and retention — not just morale.

    Related: I Transformed My Company With Employee Ownership — Here’s Why You Should Too

    For example, Adobe’s ‘Kickbox’ program, which provides employees with time and resources to test creative ideas, has led to measurable increases in innovation pipeline contributions. This program essentially provides employees with an entrepreneur’s mindset and resources, allowing them to uniquely transform a company from the inside out.

    This isn’t just about perks, it’s about systems. While programs like Adobe’s Kickbox exemplify the power of culture-driven innovation, the real competitive edge comes when culture is treated not as a collection of feel-good initiatives, but as a measurable, strategic system. Culture isn’t effective when it’s aspirational; it’s effective when it’s operational. That’s where many founders miss the mark; they underestimate how much poor culture costs and how much great culture can yield.

    Related: Why Smart Entrepreneurs Are Betting Big on Biohacking

    How a systematic approach to culture boosts profitability

    Before diving into tactics, it’s essential to understand the cost of neglecting culture and how a systematic approach can flip it into a profit center. Labor costs extend far beyond salaries; they are deeply influenced by infrastructure, including benefits, training, leadership development and retention strategies. These components aren’t merely perks mentioned briefly during onboarding; they have a direct impact on your bottom line. In fact, according to SHRM survey data, replacing a single employee can cost anywhere from 50% to 60% of their annual salary.

    Related: How Cultural Understanding and Adaptation Drive Business Success

    For example, if an employee earns $60,000 a year, it might cost the company $30,000–$36,000 just to replace them. This makes high turnover incredibly expensive for the business in the long run, making it one of the strongest financial arguments for investing in culture, retention and internal development. In short, turnover isn’t just an inconvenience; it poses a significant threat to the company’s bottom line.

    Let’s use a concrete example. Chick-fil-A has higher revenues per store than McDonald’s, Starbucks or Subway while maintaining the lowest marketing budget among the three franchises. Business insiders want to know: what is their secret sauce? In all seriousness, Chick-fil-A has shown how a single company can start from the top and systematically redefine its internal culture. This culture consistently demonstrated a high standard of excellence in every step of the process, whether it was training, expectations or leadership development. Culture is not a hidden business trick; it’s a strict, staff-wide policy.

    In essence, culture has to be operational to scale. Values that do not materialize into systems (KPIs, performance feedback, advancement process) become noise and nothing else, as their existence is of no benefit to both present and potential employees. In fact, studies show that organizations with strong employee engagement are 21% more profitable.

    Relying solely on star leaders is risky; a culture that leans heavily into its internal systems, including and supporting its employees in a way that is clearly intentional, achieves a type of success that is easily repeatable. Research from major companies worldwide indicates that organizations tightly aligned in terms of strategy and culture are 2.2 times more likely to outperform their peers in EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) growth.

    When companies operationalize culture into measurable, repeatable systems rather than relying solely on charismatic leaders, they create a scalable framework for sustained performance, profitability and growth.

    Implementing a sustainable culture

    Most founders assess profitability primarily through customer acquisition costs, margins or product-market fit. Yet, intentionally developing a systematic organizational culture can significantly strengthen financial performance by directly reducing employee turnover, improving productivity and ensuring operational consistency. Investing in culture undoubtedly gives businesses a measurable advantage: lower replacement and training expenses, increased productivity from each employee, and predictable processes that enhance long-term scalability and profitability.

    David Royce, founder of Aptive Environmental, offers a compelling example of how cultural infrastructure can drive profitability. Before Aptive scaled to become one of the fastest-growing pest control companies in the U.S., Royce bootstrapped his first business with $300,000 earned between college semesters. That early discipline shaped a founder’s playbook he has followed ever since: start lean, prove the model, reinvest profits and stay independent — avoiding outside capital to maintain long-term control.

    Related: 7 Easy Habits That Will Make Your Business More Sustainable (And Save You Money)

    At Aptive, that playbook included building a culture that could scale. Rather than treating culture as an abstract ideal or motivational add-on, Royce approached it like any other operational system. He invested heavily in elite sales training, gamified performance tracking, and merit-based advancement initiatives that measurably increased productivity and retention. The result: a culture that doesn’t just inspire, it self-replicates. Royce’s insight is clear: like logistics or CRM software, culture must be built, budgeted and operationalized if it’s going to support real growth.

    The bottom line

    A well-integrated company culture reduces churn, boosts productivity, and safeguards your profitability. Building a clearly defined, marketable workplace culture can significantly impact your long-term success. Here’s how you can start immediately:

    1. Quantify your churn costs

    Identify exactly how much turnover is costing your business. Once you have a clear number, directly reinvest a percentage of these savings into structured onboarding, continuous training, and robust retention programs explicitly designed to reduce turnover.

    2. Develop a culture blueprint

    Don’t leave culture to chance or individual management styles. Document your core values, and develop standardized, repeatable processes — including KPIs, recognition frameworks and clear career advancement paths—to ensure your culture is consistently reinforced throughout your organization.

    3. Integrate culture into financial planning

    Treat leadership development, internal communications, and performance measurement as essential, fixed investments — not optional expenditures. By budgeting consistently for these initiatives, you pave the way for streamlined operations, improved scalability, and sustainable growth.

    Remember: Culture compounds when intentionally cultivated. Founders who prioritize culture early set themselves up for sustainable profitability and scalable success.

    John Rampton

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  • Don’t Run From Failure — Run Toward It. Here’s Why. | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    We’re trained to avoid failure like it’s a contagious disease.

    At school, failing wasn’t just about getting a bad grade — it was about getting labeled. If you didn’t pass, you weren’t just “behind,” you were branded. Pulled into extra classes, singled out in front of your peers and whispered about in the hallways. It can feel like public shame dressed up as education.

    When you grow up in that kind of system, what you learn fast is: Don’t mess up. Don’t take risks. Don’t give anyone a reason to think less of you. And the biggest lesson? Stay in your lane.

    The problem is that that mindset doesn’t prepare you for the real world — especially if you want to lead, build or create anything meaningful. Because here’s the truth: If you’re afraid to fail, you’ll never truly succeed.

    Related: Want to Be a Successful Entrepreneur? Fail.

    The fear that holds us back

    Fear of failure isn’t just about the actual mistake — it’s about the imagined fallout.

    • What will people think?
    • Will they see me as incompetent? Reckless? Stupid?
    • Will this cost me my reputation, my relationships, my livelihood?

    And because those fears feel heavy and real, we avoid taking the shot. We stay where it’s “safe,” never realizing that “safe” is just a slow, quiet way to fail anyway.

    As leaders, that fear can be deadly. It keeps us from innovating, from hiring bold talent, from experimenting with new products or ideas. It makes us reactive instead of proactive. And when the market shifts — as it always does — the leaders who’ve been too scared to risk anything are the ones left scrambling.

    How I learned to get comfortable with losing

    The real turning point for me wasn’t some massive success — it was being okay with losing. But that didn’t happen overnight.

    When I started my business, I brought that school-based fear of failure right along with me. I worried about how my decisions would look. I avoided risks that felt “too visible.” I overworked myself trying to make sure nothing went wrong — and when something inevitably did, I beat myself up for weeks.

    But here’s what changed everything: I realized failure without feedback is just a loss. But failure with insight? That’s an investment.

    When you stop seeing failure as a verdict and start treating it as raw material, it becomes the most valuable thing you have.

    Over the last eight years, I’ve:

    • Mismanaged people and learned how to lead better.
    • Made bad hires and learned how to recruit with sharper instincts.
    • Invested in projects that flopped and learned where my market actually is.
    • Lost more money (and time) than I’d like to admit — and learned exactly how to make it back (and more).

    None of those lessons came from the times things went perfectly. Every single one was purchased with the currency of failure.

    Related: 4 Key Strategies to Help Entrepreneurs Cope With Failure

    How school got it wrong

    Part of why this mindset is so hard to adopt is that it’s almost the opposite of what we were trained to believe.

    Our education system rewards perfection and punishes missteps. You’re graded on what you got right, not on how many creative attempts you made. You’re celebrated for the A, not for the questions you dared to ask or the risks you took to get there.

    And that’s fine if your career goal is “ace tests forever.” But in real life, success is about trying, adapting and trying again — fast. It’s about iteration, not immaculate execution on the first go.

    If you’ve ever wondered why so many talented people never reach their potential, this is it. They’ve been conditioned to fear the first step because they’ve been conditioned to fear the stumble.

    The leader’s advantage: Failing faster

    Here’s the mindset shift that’s changed everything for me: Don’t run from failure — run toward it.

    When you take a calculated risk and it doesn’t work out, you gain information your competitors don’t have. You see where the potholes are. You understand the dynamics of your market or your team in a way you simply can’t from the sidelines.

    Failure speeds up your feedback loop. And in business, speed of learning is a competitive advantage.

    When I stopped worrying about how failure looked and started focusing on what it taught, I moved faster. My team moved faster. We became more willing to experiment, to test ideas, to pivot quickly.

    And here’s the irony: The more comfortable I got with failing, the less I actually failed in ways that mattered. Why? Because the lessons compound. The insight you gain from one mistake prevents five more down the line.

    Turning failure into fuel

    If you’re looking for practical ways to reframe failure, here’s what’s worked for me:

    1. Separate the event from your identity. Failing at something doesn’t make you a failure. It makes you a human who’s gathering data.
    2. Ask better post-mortem questions. Instead of “Why did I mess up?” ask “What specifically did I learn, and how will I apply it next time?”
    3. Take the hit, then take the action. Feel the sting, but don’t camp there. Apply the lesson as quickly as possible so it becomes forward motion.
    4. Make it visible for your team. When leaders are open about their own missteps, it gives everyone else permission to try without fear.

    Related: How to Turn Failures Into Wins As an Entrepreneur

    The real goal

    At the end of the day, the point isn’t to fail for failure’s sake. The point is to strip failure of its power over you so you can move without hesitation.

    If there’s one mindset that’s been critical to my success, it’s this: Be okay with failing — because the lesson you learn is worth more than the hit you take.

    The faster you embrace that truth, the faster you’ll grow — not just as a leader, but as a human being who’s willing to show up, take the shot and trust that even if you miss, you’re still moving forward.

    We’re trained to avoid failure like it’s a contagious disease.

    At school, failing wasn’t just about getting a bad grade — it was about getting labeled. If you didn’t pass, you weren’t just “behind,” you were branded. Pulled into extra classes, singled out in front of your peers and whispered about in the hallways. It can feel like public shame dressed up as education.

    When you grow up in that kind of system, what you learn fast is: Don’t mess up. Don’t take risks. Don’t give anyone a reason to think less of you. And the biggest lesson? Stay in your lane.

    The rest of this article is locked.

    Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

    Ginni Saraswati

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  • Why Non-Tech Founders Hold the Advantage in the AI-First Era | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    I’ve spent 15+ years building across multiple tech ventures and cultures — starting in Vietnam, sharpening my craft in Japan and Singapore, then expanding to the U.S., Australia and Europe. Each stop taught me how different ecosystems turn constraints into capability: how to ship products under pressure, build companies from zero, grow talent pipelines and lead teams through the hardest execution challenges.

    Along the way, I co-founded ventures across domains — from cloud content security and AI-driven fraud detection in finance to AI-powered talent vetting and AI-powered graphic design and marketing.

    That journey left me with a simple conviction: AI is fundamentally changing how we build software, how we build companies and how we build the skills to operate at a new level of business innovation. The shift is so deep that non-tech founders, entrepreneurs and SME owners must rethink how they imagine products, platforms and transformation — or risk shipping the right features on the wrong foundations. This is why I’m sharing what I’ve learned about building AI-first products and AI-first companies now.

    Related: AI Is Taking Over Coding at Microsoft, Google, and Meta

    Software’s evolution through the decades

    For most of the last forty years, we’ve lived through clear eras in software. Before the year 2000, the PC and operating system era was defined by “software in a box.” You bought a CD, installed it onto your personal computer and hoped it would work smoothly.

    Updates were rare, often requiring another CD or manual patch and builders operated on a simple model: ship a big release and trust that it would run on as many machines as possible. Microsoft Office is a classic example of this model — self-contained, tied to the machine and static until the next big update.

    In the early 2000s, the world shifted into the Cloud and SaaS era—software delivered through the browser. Suddenly, the constraint of a single device disappeared. You could log in anywhere, at any time and access your tools. Gmail replaced desktop email clients, Salesforce and Shopify scaled into massive business backbones and updates became continuous and invisible.

    The builder’s mindset changed too: the challenge was no longer compatibility with local machines but designing systems for massive scale, elastic infrastructure and recurring subscription revenue. Releases shrank from multi-year cycles to weekly or even daily pushes, as software transformed into a living service rather than a fixed product.

    We are in an AI-first era

    Now, we are entering what can only be described as the AI-first era — a world where the model itself becomes the new runtime. Instead of clicking buttons or typing into form fields, we state our goals in plain language and intelligent agents take on the work of planning steps, calling tools and escalating back to us only when needed.

    The leap here isn’t just convenience; it’s a redefinition of interaction. Everyday examples are already here: a support assistant that drafts responses for you or a finance copilot that reconciles books.

    Related: Here’s How People Are Actually Using ChatGPT, According to OpenAI

    From clicks to conversions

    What’s actually happening under the hood is profound. We are moving from clicks to conversation: where yesterday’s software waited for us to press buttons, today’s systems can understand goals expressed in natural language and translate them into action.

    We are moving from apps to agents: software that doesn’t just sit idle but proactively plans, integrates with CRMs, ERPs or payment systems and delivers back results with an audit trail. And we are moving from “it works” to “it works, is safe and proves it,” layering in guardrails, evaluation metrics and rollback systems so AI not only performs but stays aligned and compliant.

    Even infrastructure itself is shifting — from the brute force of bigger servers to intelligent placement, with some AI running in the cloud while other tasks live at the edge, close to the user, for privacy and instant responsiveness.

    The takeaway for founders is clear: moving from OS to Cloud to Model-as-Runtime is not simply another product cycle — it’s a mindset change. Thinking in yesterday’s categories, whether screens, clicks or tickets, means you’ll end up bolting AI awkwardly on top of an old product.

    Thinking in today’s categories — goals, agents, tools, guardrails and proof — unlocks AI-first products and, more importantly, AI-first companies. The shift matters because it directly affects how organizations will operate and where profit and loss will be shaped.

    Related: How to Turn Your ‘Marketable Passion’ Into Income After Retirement

    The impact on non-technical founders

    Perhaps most importantly, this moment is uniquely suited to non-technical founders and entrepreneurs. For decades, building software required deep technical expertise. But in the AI-first world, domain knowledge becomes the true advantage. If you already know the realities of freight, healthcare clinics, food and beverage, construction or retail finance, you’re in a better position than ever before to turn that expertise into AI-first operations.

    Large enterprises are trying to adapt, too, but their size slows them down. That friction creates opportunity. Even management consultants are admitting that agentic AI demands a reset in the way organizations approach transformation. For smaller founders, the window is open: you can describe outcomes in plain language, wire them to existing tools and keep human oversight where judgment truly matters.

    At DigiEx Group, we built our company on the idea of combining a Tech Talent Hub, an AI Factory and a Startup Studio to meet our region’s needs. This approach has powered everything from self-cleaning catalog systems to risk-detecting logistics agents with multilingual communication.

    The biggest challenge wasn’t the technology, but helping teams shift their mindset — where change management and open communication proved more important than the code.

    Focus on impact

    Another lesson: focus on impact first. Not every workflow benefits from AI. We resisted the temptation to sprinkle automation everywhere and instead prioritized areas where it could make the biggest difference — speed, quality or decision-making power. From there, we scaled what worked. And finally, we learned to automate with intention. If AI didn’t enhance quality, speed things up or improve decisions, we left it out. Discipline turned out to be just as important as imagination.

    That is why this era matters. If the 2000s were about cloud-first design, the 2020s and beyond are about AI-first thinking. This isn’t about slapping new features on top of old software; it’s about adopting a new way of building. The model is the runtime, language is the interface, agents are the services and LLMOps is the new production discipline. Companies that internalize this won’t just ship faster — they’ll operate differently, measuring quality, trust and cost per task with the same seriousness that older generations measured uptime.

    For non-technical founders, small business owners and entrepreneurs with real-world expertise, the door is wide open. You can scale globally from day one, gain tenfold productivity where it hurts the most, and access insights that used to cost consultant-level fees. For the first time in decades, the playing field tilts toward those who understand the problem best, not those who can only write the code.

    I’ve spent 15+ years building across multiple tech ventures and cultures — starting in Vietnam, sharpening my craft in Japan and Singapore, then expanding to the U.S., Australia and Europe. Each stop taught me how different ecosystems turn constraints into capability: how to ship products under pressure, build companies from zero, grow talent pipelines and lead teams through the hardest execution challenges.

    Along the way, I co-founded ventures across domains — from cloud content security and AI-driven fraud detection in finance to AI-powered talent vetting and AI-powered graphic design and marketing.

    That journey left me with a simple conviction: AI is fundamentally changing how we build software, how we build companies and how we build the skills to operate at a new level of business innovation. The shift is so deep that non-tech founders, entrepreneurs and SME owners must rethink how they imagine products, platforms and transformation — or risk shipping the right features on the wrong foundations. This is why I’m sharing what I’ve learned about building AI-first products and AI-first companies now.

    The rest of this article is locked.

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    Johnny LE

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  • Food Trucks Turn Dining Into a Live Reality Show Experience | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Chris Brown doesn’t just run food trucks. He runs a broadcast studio on wheels.

    At World Famous, every truck doubles as a stage, outfitted with cameras, livestreams and even Ring doorbell cameras. Brown, who calls himself “China Man Live” when streaming, oversees five food trucks along with four restaurant locations across Florida and Georgia.

    Customers don’t just line up for food; they put on a show for his cameras. Some dance. Some rap. One woman even played the harmonica. Brown turned those moments into the “Chat with China Man” giveaway, a bracket-style competition where fans compete on camera for a $10,000 prize. The result is part restaurant, part reality show.

    “It’s showtime,” Brown says. “You gotta put on something. People come out because they’ve been hearing about me for so long. The experience has to be there.”

    That experience feels more like an amusement park ride than a quick bite to eat. Fans wait in lines for over an hour, excited for the Championship Egg Roll Food Truck Tour.

    Brown himself compares it to a ride at Disney World. Behind the scenes, he has built the infrastructure to make the magic possible. His trucks carry 4K cameras, BirdDog joysticks and AI-driven meeting cameras that let him virtually appear at any location.

    From his broadcast control center, he merges internet systems and drops into different sites in real time, greeting crowds as if he cloned himself.

    The setup recalls a national news network, except the subject is egg rolls. Customers don’t just order food, they join a live broadcast watched by thousands online. When Brown shows up in person, the energy multiplies. “I’m like Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny everywhere I go,” he laughs, showing off the sparkly grill on his teeth.

    For Brown, selling egg rolls is only half the story. The other half is creating a spectacle big enough to match the name World Famous.

    Related: This Global Beverage Giant Will Help Market Your Restaurant — For Free. Here Are the Details.

    An accidental superpower

    Brown never planned to run a restaurant. His first attempt nearly collapsed.

    When he opened a small takeout spot almost a decade ago, he hired cooks to run the kitchen while he handled the business side. It fell apart. “They were just taking me for a paycheck, taking me for a ride,” he admits. Right before closing the doors, his wife asked what was next. Brown’s answer surprised even himself: He would step into the kitchen.

    What he found there changed everything. “I realized I have a superpower like an X-Man,” he says. That superpower was a sharp palate and a knack for creativity. He experimented with oxtail fat burgers and scratch-made sauces, but knew burgers and wings would only carry him so far. To stand out, he turned to egg rolls.

    Related: He Went from Tech CEO to Dishwasher. Now, He’s Behind 320 Restaurants and $750 Million in Assets.

    His first flavors, including Philly cheesesteak, chicken Philly and his yin-yang sauce, were instant hits. Soon he was competing in food festivals across Florida, beating Italian restaurants at Magic City Casino and winning first place with his Cuban-inspired “croquette roll.” He didn’t just enter competitions; he dominated them.

    Crowds followed. At food truck roundups, Brown’s lines stretched so long that other vendors complained. Rather than back down, he leaned into the demand and created the Championship Egg Roll Food Truck Tour, a traveling circuit that draws thousands each weekend.

    Expansion soon followed with restaurants, commissaries and fleets of trucks across Florida and Georgia. Through it all, Brown has been relentless about consistency. “I’m like [Gordon] Ramsay on steroids in my commissary,” he says. “I just want everything to come out perfect.”

    Now that same obsession fuels his technology. From 4K cameras to AI-driven systems, Brown has turned food trucks into a connected network of kitchens and studios. Every egg roll is made to standard, every interaction is captured on camera, and every customer becomes part of the show. For Brown, food and broadcast are inseparable, and together, they just might make World Famous live up to its name.

    Related: People Line Up Down the Block to Try This Iconic NYC Pizza. Now, It Could Be Coming to Your City.

    About Restaurant Influencers

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    Shawn P. Walchef

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  • Why Meeting Consumer Expectations Won’t Cut It — and What Businesses Should Do Instead | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Consumer behavior has undoubtedly shifted. Research shows that 70% of consumers are willing to pay a premium for ethically sourced products, and 66% expect brands to understand their needs and preferences. Nearly half of all consumers now buy products after seeing them endorsed by people they trust. These statistics clearly show that people want businesses to do better.

    But here’s what the data doesn’t capture: consumer expectations alone cannot drive the fundamental changes our world needs. While businesses scramble to meet these demands, they’re missing a crucial opportunity to lead transformation rather than simply follow it.

    Related: Being ‘Busy’ Isn’t Helping You Be Productive — 5 Tips to Become Truly Efficient at Work

    The limits of consumer-driven change

    Consumer preferences are powerful, but limited. According to McKinsey’s 2025 consumer outlook, 79% of consumers are trading down due to economic pressures, and 49% plan to delay purchases. When people are focused on survival and cost-cutting, their capacity to prioritize broader social issues naturally diminishes.

    More importantly, consumers can only demand what they can imagine. They respond to problems they understand and solutions they can envision. But the most pressing challenges facing businesses and society require innovation that goes beyond current consumer awareness.

    Technology companies didn’t wait for people to demand smartphones before developing them. Steve Jobs famously said that consumers don’t know what they want until you show it to them. Apple created a solution that transformed how we live and work, not because market research indicated demand for touchscreen devices, but because they envisioned possibilities that consumers hadn’t yet imagined.

    We’re seeing the same pattern with Artificial Intelligence today. Companies aren’t implementing AI solutions because consumers are demanding them — most people still have mixed feelings about AI integration. According to recent research, consumers are “AI ambivalent,” yet 85% of Fortune 500 companies are already using AI solutions to transform their operations. These businesses are leading change by recognizing AI’s potential to solve problems and create value, regardless of current consumer sentiment.

    The same principle applies to social impact. Waiting for consumer demand to drive every positive change means limiting ourselves to incremental improvements rather than transformative solutions.

    Why businesses must take the lead

    The business world is transforming continuously, at an unprecedented pace. In my experience building software companies, I’ve seen how tech leaders emerge not by following trends but by anticipating needs and creating new possibilities. That same dynamic applies to social responsibility and positive impact.

    Companies have resources, expertise and scale that individual consumers lack. They can invest in research and development, form strategic partnerships and implement solutions at speeds that consumer movements cannot match. When 95% of organizations have undergone multiple major transformations in just three years, it’s clear that businesses are becoming comfortable with rapid change.

    The question is no longer whether businesses should respond to consumer demands — they absolutely should. The question is whether they’ll stop there or use their capabilities to drive changes that serve the common good and create a truly better world. This means going beyond what consumers haven’t yet realized they need and actively working toward solutions that benefit society as a whole, even when those solutions may not have immediate market appeal.

    What proactive leadership looks like

    Real business leadership in social change goes beyond traditional corporate social responsibility. It involves using core business capabilities to address societal challenges, even when there’s no immediate consumer pressure to do so.

    1. Get ahead of future needs rather than react to current demands. Companies that succeed in creating lasting change identify problems before they become mainstream consumer concerns. They invest in solutions that may not have immediate market demand but address fundamental challenges.

    2. Use technology for social good. With 85% of Fortune 500 companies now using AI solutions and the projected global AI impact reaching $22.3 trillion by 2030, businesses have unprecedented tools to create positive change. The companies making the biggest difference are those using these capabilities proactively rather than reactively.

    3. Build ecosystems of change. Rather than working in isolation, leading companies create networks that amplify their impact. The Rise Ahead Pledge, signed by 24 major corporations, demonstrates how businesses can collaborate to drive social innovation beyond what consumer demand would naturally create.

    Related: How to Keep Up With Customer Expectations

    Beyond consumer expectations

    Social entrepreneurship and innovation are converging in powerful ways, offering a blueprint for traditional businesses. The Global Innovation Index 2024 highlights how social enterprises create transformative solutions by mobilizing diverse stakeholders to effect change at regional and global scales. These organizations succeed not by following consumer preferences but by identifying systemic issues and developing innovative approaches to address them.

    Traditional businesses can learn from this model — instead of waiting for consumer surveys to tell them what people want, they can identify underlying problems and develop solutions that create new markets and possibilities.

    The most successful companies of the next decade may be those that understand that sustainable business success requires creating value for society, not just responding to its expressed demands. This means taking calculated risks, investing in solutions that may not have immediate payoffs and using business capabilities to address challenges that extend beyond traditional market boundaries.

    Consumer expectations will continue to evolve, and businesses must remain responsive to their markets. However, the companies that will truly make a difference — and build lasting competitive advantages — are those that move beyond responsiveness to proactive leadership in creating positive change.

    The time for waiting is over

    We’re at an inflection point where traditional approaches to business and social responsibility are no longer sufficient. Consumer demands provide important signals about market direction, but they cannot drive the scale and speed of change that current global challenges require.

    The businesses that recognize this opportunity and act on it will not only create meaningful social impact but also position themselves as leaders in the next era of commerce. Those who continue to wait for consumer permission to make positive change will find themselves increasingly irrelevant in a world that rewards proactive leadership over reactive adaptation.

    Lead the change you want to see in the world, or spend your time chasing changes that others create. The companies that choose to lead will define the business landscape for decades to come.

    Stefan Grigorov

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  • Most Founders Would Hide a Secret Service Investigation From Customers — Here’s Why I Didn’t (and How It Paid Off) | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    In 2012, just after wrapping up a late-night hackathon with my small team, I received an email that sent my heart leaping into my throat: Our domain was being suspended due to a U.S. Secret Service investigation. At the time, Jotform was still a scrappy startup. We had no legal team, no PR advisor, no crisis plan whatsoever. I had a terrible, sinking feeling that everything we had worked so hard to build was suddenly at risk.

    After the initial shock, my first thought came to me with surprising clarity: We had to alert our users. I quickly typed up a blog post and emailed our customers directly.

    I kept it brief and to the point. “I wish we could provide more details about what happened, but we are also in the dark. We have not been given any information by GoDaddy or the Secret Service, other than our domain being suspended ‘as part of an ongoing law enforcement investigation,’” I wrote, before directing them to the media coverage quickly proliferating across the web.

    What happened next surprised me. Instead of backlash, we saw an outpouring of support. Users stood by us. It turned a crisis into a moment of trust.

    In the age of AI, where decision-making and product experiences are increasingly being handed over to algorithms, transparency matters more than ever. Users want to know what’s happening behind the scenes — and who they’re trusting with their data, time and business. If you want loyalty, transparency isn’t just a good habit: It’s your most powerful PR tool. Here’s why.

    Related: Full Transparency Is More Than a Morale Booster — It’s a Critical Growth Driver. Here’s How to Embrace It.

    Transparency vs. oversharing

    We never actually figured out exactly why our domain was being investigated — my best guess is that our forms were used in a phishing scheme. It wasn’t a big scandal, which certainly made being honest easier than, say, a self-inflicted crisis a la the Cambridge Analytica debacle.

    I’d always believed in transparency, and this episode only reaffirmed its importance. But as leaders, when and how to be open isn’t always immediately obvious. As the author Simon Sinek put it, “Transparency isn’t sharing every detail. Transparency means providing the context for the decisions we make.”

    According to research from McKinsey, there’s a dark side to too much transparency: “Excessive sharing of information creates problems of information overload and can legitimize endless debate and second-guessing of senior executive decisions,” the authors write.

    So how should leaders balance being open without going over the top? Start by asking: What does my team or customer need to understand in order to trust our decisions? Transparency isn’t about dumping every internal memo or half-formed idea into the public sphere. In the case of Jotform’s Secret Service investigation, our forms were down and our customers deserved to know why. Sharing the truth simply made more sense than trying to cover it up.

    A good transparency policy means sharing what matters — what happened, what’s being done about it and how it impacts those who rely on you. Anything more is noise. Anything less can be perceived as evasive.

    Transparency in the age of AI

    Jotform’s Secret Service snafu happened long before AI entered the scene. But the lesson it taught me — that users respond to honesty, not perfection — feels even more relevant now.

    AI is increasingly embedded in the tools we use every day, from hiring platforms to productivity apps, meaning the stakes around transparency have never been higher. Users are deciding whether to trust algorithms to make decisions that affect their work, finances, and even their safety. One survey by YouGov found that nearly half (49%) of U.S. respondents admitted to feeling concerned about AI, while 22% said they were outright scared.

    Already, stories of AI misuse abound. The Chicago Sun-Times, for example, recently had to issue an apology after it published a summer reading list filled with AI-generated book recommendations — many of which didn’t even exist. It’s a blight that’s going to follow the paper around for a long time, having damaged its readers’ trust in ways that will be difficult, if not impossible, to repair.

    Related: Why Every Entrepreneur Must Prioritize Ethical AI — Now

    In general, AI transparency means “being honest about what a system is intended to do, where it fits with the organization’s overall strategy, which benefits and pitfalls it brings and how it is likely to impact people,” writes EY’s Raj Sharma for the World Economic Forum. Unfortunately, a lot of AI today is implemented behind a shroud of secrecy, “with powerful solutions developed behind closed doors by a small number of stakeholders.”

    When users don’t understand how a system works — or worse, discover later that they were misled — they feel deceived. As leaders, we can’t afford to treat transparency as an afterthought. It needs to be built into the product from the start. That means clearly communicating how your AI tools function, what data they rely on, what limitations exist and how you’re safeguarding against bias or misuse. Transparency doesn’t mean revealing your entire codebase — it means treating your users like the stakeholders that they are.

    Trust is fragile, and once broken, it can’t always be fixed. When you keep your users in the know, it doesn’t just build loyalty — it bolsters your reputation in the long term.

    In 2012, just after wrapping up a late-night hackathon with my small team, I received an email that sent my heart leaping into my throat: Our domain was being suspended due to a U.S. Secret Service investigation. At the time, Jotform was still a scrappy startup. We had no legal team, no PR advisor, no crisis plan whatsoever. I had a terrible, sinking feeling that everything we had worked so hard to build was suddenly at risk.

    After the initial shock, my first thought came to me with surprising clarity: We had to alert our users. I quickly typed up a blog post and emailed our customers directly.

    I kept it brief and to the point. “I wish we could provide more details about what happened, but we are also in the dark. We have not been given any information by GoDaddy or the Secret Service, other than our domain being suspended ‘as part of an ongoing law enforcement investigation,’” I wrote, before directing them to the media coverage quickly proliferating across the web.

    The rest of this article is locked.

    Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

    Aytekin Tank

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  • Don’t Just Disrupt Your Industry — Transform It | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    More than a decade ago, business gurus were quick to label any idea or development that was mildly novel as “disruptive innovation.” Originally coined by American academic and business consultant Clayton Christensen in his 1997 book The Innovator’s Dilemma, it was used largely to describe how small businesses could challenge larger players within a market, often entering at the low end and moving upmarket and disrupting established competitors’ core business.

    But in the mid-2010s, gone were the days of the so-called disruptors, as critics began noting how the term had become a business buzzword rather than a term that was describing meaningful change. Jill Lepore, a professor of history at Harvard, wrote an article for The New Yorker about how “disruptive innovation” is being used inaccurately in the business world, stating that many companies described as “disruptive” never succeeded in displacing incumbents. Her critique sparked a major rethinking in business circles, which made way for terms like “transformative innovation” in the 2020s.

    Furthermore, when compared with “disruptive,” the word “transformational” helps you visualize positive systemic change. The effects caused by transformational innovation are incremental and long-lasting, and frankly, quite relevant in the age of systemic shifts, such as climate change, ESG and sustainability factors, AI technologies and other major global innovations. Here are five reasons why entrepreneurs today need to focus on transformational innovation instead.

    Related: To Achieve Sustainable Success, You Need to Stop Focusing on Disruption. Here’s Why — and What You Must Focus on Instead.

    1. This is where technology creates social impact

    Entrepreneurs can be transformational innovators who creatively use technological solutions to create meaningful change, which leads to increased economic impact, which in turn creates lasting social impact. This is an area of entrepreneurship that focuses on the “grand challenges” that societies need to address, from poverty reduction to environmental action to good health and well-being, as listed under the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals for 2030. High-growth technology entrepreneurs in particular have the potential to leverage unique opportunities to create social value, for instance by utilising open-source collaboration for problem solving, using social media platforms for advocacy campaigns and activism and unlocking data analytics to personalise lifestyle changes and improve healthcare solutions. It is generally understood that technology is the lifeblood of transformational innovation.

    2. It’s people-focused

    You must first understand consumer behaviour before you try and change it for the better. Therefore, transformational innovation is an exercise of using people’s adaptability to drive significant and lasting change. To innovate this way, one needs to be accepted by the wider population, and this often requires entrepreneurs to understand diverse groups of people instead of having a silo mentality. For your venture to succeed, you need people to trust what you do and commit to your process to derive value.

    3. It is driven by the $8 trillion global longevity market

    In its July 2025 report, Swiss banking giant UBS announced that transformational innovation is where investors should expect attractive returns from in the years ahead, and that longevity is one of the leading industries driving valuable growth in this space, next to AI, power and resources.

    The longevity market is expected to grow from $5.3 trillion in 2023 to $8 trillion by 2030, which will surpass AI industries which are only estimated to reach $1.16 trillion by 2027. The longevity market is transforming the global economy, according to UBS, which says that the change is being fuelled by increasing life expectancy and ageing populations worldwide.

    4. Transformational innovation industries are stable

    Innovation is a key driver of long-term equity performance. According to UBS, transformational innovation industries offer “durable, secular growth” that the bank believes can withstand short-term market volatility. The Swiss bank also suggests that if there are potential market dips in these industries, they are likely to be short-term and would act as useful entry points for long-term investors.

    Related: The Surprising Strategy Smart Leaders Use to Outpace Disruption

    5. It’s a brave new world

    While disruptive innovation is largely about creating cheaper alternatives, transformative innovation is about creating whole new market spaces with completely different frameworks to what already exists. For entrepreneurs, working within these industries can help them experiment with newer and better business models. It’s all about exploring the untapped potential.

    All in all, to embrace transformational innovation, an entrepreneur must be prepared to embrace change. It requires one to be proactive and have the ability to anticipate future trends that will come with it. To remain at the forefront of this entrepreneurial revolution, entrepreneurs must develop a multi-pronged innovation strategy through planning and in-depth research.

    Most importantly, entrepreneurs should develop a culture of innovation in their businesses, where entrepreneurs, managers, CEOs, employees, consumers and clients all collaborate to form a cohesive creative force. Leaders should inspire others to be bold, intellectually brave and challenge existing paradigms. Entrepreneurs should have a vision, forge strategic partnerships and create meaningful industry-level changes, even if they own a small business with limited resources. To remain competitive and to lead industry trends, entrepreneurs today must engage with the concept of transformational innovation.

    We are now in the year 2025 — it’s time to change the game.

    More than a decade ago, business gurus were quick to label any idea or development that was mildly novel as “disruptive innovation.” Originally coined by American academic and business consultant Clayton Christensen in his 1997 book The Innovator’s Dilemma, it was used largely to describe how small businesses could challenge larger players within a market, often entering at the low end and moving upmarket and disrupting established competitors’ core business.

    But in the mid-2010s, gone were the days of the so-called disruptors, as critics began noting how the term had become a business buzzword rather than a term that was describing meaningful change. Jill Lepore, a professor of history at Harvard, wrote an article for The New Yorker about how “disruptive innovation” is being used inaccurately in the business world, stating that many companies described as “disruptive” never succeeded in displacing incumbents. Her critique sparked a major rethinking in business circles, which made way for terms like “transformative innovation” in the 2020s.

    Furthermore, when compared with “disruptive,” the word “transformational” helps you visualize positive systemic change. The effects caused by transformational innovation are incremental and long-lasting, and frankly, quite relevant in the age of systemic shifts, such as climate change, ESG and sustainability factors, AI technologies and other major global innovations. Here are five reasons why entrepreneurs today need to focus on transformational innovation instead.

    The rest of this article is locked.

    Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

    Allen Law

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  • Walking Away From My Co-founder Was the Best Business Decision I’ve Made — Here’s Why | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    On a recent work trip and unable to sleep, I was flipping through the channels when I stumbled upon Late Night with Seth Meyers, who happened that night to be interviewing the show’s former host, the legendary Conan O’Brien. As a fan of the tall, goofy comedian, I paused my channel surfing just in time to hear him share with Meyers the philosophy that guided him throughout his incredibly long and successful career:

    “There’s a giant orchestra, there’s a lot of noise and I’m just banging my triangle. Is anyone even hearing me?” says O’Brien. “And this sounds crazy, it’s like, some Buddhist idea. But if you just stay true to what you believe in, and you keep doing it with purpose, eventually, they’ll only hear the triangle.”

    Hearing this, I was immediately cast back to the early days of starting my company, Jotform.

    I’m a proud solo founder now, but that wasn’t always the plan. In fact, for years I’d intended to start a business with a close friend. He was 10 years older than me, he was more experienced and we had talked endlessly about launching a company together. We had a verbal agreement: 50/50 partners. No egos — just mutual trust and a shared dream.

    But when the time finally came to take the leap, everything changed. He told me that someone had advised him to take 51%. That one person always needed to be “in charge.” It wasn’t a suggestion — it was an ultimatum.

    I didn’t even hesitate. I walked away.

    It was one of the hardest decisions I’ve made as an entrepreneur. But it was also the best one. Here’s why.

    Related: The Professional Breakup — How to Oust a Co-founder Legally and Smoothly

    The power of sticking to your principles

    Walking away from that partnership was tough — not just as an entrepreneur, but as a person. It wasn’t merely a business split; it was the unraveling of a shared vision, years in the making. I was suddenly on my own, without a partner to lean on and no one to share the weight of what I was about to build.

    Conventional wisdom holds that co-founders are necessary for a startup’s survival. Founding a company solo is a “vote of no confidence,” the computer scientist and entrepreneur Paul Graham wrote in 2006. “It probably means the founder couldn’t talk any of his friends into starting the company with him,” he said. “That’s pretty alarming, because his friends are the ones who know him best.”

    Yikes. I don’t actually think that advice ever held much water, and with the rise of automation and AI, I firmly believe you need a cofounder less than ever. Still, the fact remains that startups test your resolve in a thousand little ways, and the boundaries you set in those early days become your foundation. If that foundation is cracked, the pressure will only make it worse.

    That decision also taught me something essential: Sticking to your principles doesn’t always feel like a win in the moment. In fact, it often feels like a loss of opportunity, momentum and connection. But over time, the cost of compromising what you want is far greater.

    Related: The 9 Leadership Principles That Carried Me From the Sidelines to the Suite

    Identify your values early

    The split in partnership wasn’t the only disagreement my co-founder and I had. We also didn’t see eye to eye on the direction the company would take. In the course of planning our business, it became evident that we had developed different visions — he wanted to consult for other companies; I wanted to build something new. His vision didn’t excite me, and mine didn’t excite him. One of us would ultimately have had to make compromises we didn’t like.

    So, as depressed as I was at the dissolution of our plan, I also felt a sense of relief. When you’re starting a company, there are so many forces that threaten to derail your vision. That’s why it’s so helpful to define your values early — the non-negotiables that form the bedrock of your business and your motivation for building it. I like the advice offered by career coach Irina Cozma, who writes in Harvard Business Review that clarifying your values takes both conscious effort and time.

    “Depending on your journey, your values might stay constant over time or might change based on new events and information,” wrote Cozma. Check in with yourself each year to ensure that what was once important to you still is. And if it isn’t, don’t be afraid to re-evaluate.

    Knowing my values has guided me through some of my most confounding challenges, like how to grow, when to hire and what products to build. They’ve kept me on track and away from the lure of outside investments or opportunities that ultimately wouldn’t serve the company. Splitting with my cofounder gave me a chance to establish what mattered early on, and became the blueprint for how I built the company I have today.

    When you know what you stand for, decision-making gets a lot easier. You may still be banging your triangle in a noisy orchestra — but you’re doing it with clarity, purpose and the confidence that eventually, your sound will cut through.

    On a recent work trip and unable to sleep, I was flipping through the channels when I stumbled upon Late Night with Seth Meyers, who happened that night to be interviewing the show’s former host, the legendary Conan O’Brien. As a fan of the tall, goofy comedian, I paused my channel surfing just in time to hear him share with Meyers the philosophy that guided him throughout his incredibly long and successful career:

    “There’s a giant orchestra, there’s a lot of noise and I’m just banging my triangle. Is anyone even hearing me?” says O’Brien. “And this sounds crazy, it’s like, some Buddhist idea. But if you just stay true to what you believe in, and you keep doing it with purpose, eventually, they’ll only hear the triangle.”

    Hearing this, I was immediately cast back to the early days of starting my company, Jotform.

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    Aytekin Tank

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  • This Is the Leadership Trick That Even Top CEOs Swear By | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Most leaders travel alone for business. But how many leaders have intentionally taken a true solo vacation? No family, no work, no obligations. Just you, alone, facing your inner world and expanding your leadership potential.

    I recently did exactly that, spending two weeks solo in Peru and Ecuador. The impact was profound, reshaping how I approach leadership, decision-making and strategic thinking at StoneAge, the employee-owned company I run. Here’s why I believe every leader should take a solo vacation and how doing so will make you more effective and impactful.

    Solitude creates strategic clarity

    Leadership is fundamentally about making clear decisions. But how can you make smart, strategic choices if meetings, emails and daily demands constantly clutter your mind?

    Hal Gregersen wrote in a recent Harvard Business Review article, “Cultivating silence increases your chances of encountering novel ideas and information and discerning weak signals.” When you take a solo vacation, you find yourself sitting in silence, often with room to think and ideate. Bill Gates credits his famous twice-yearly “think weeks,” which are periods of intense solitude and reflection, with inspiring some of Microsoft’s most groundbreaking innovations.

    During my solo adventure, without work emails or meetings, I finally had the mental space to outline my next book, clarify my vision for StoneAge and develop new leadership frameworks. The solitude sharpened my strategic clarity and renewed my focus in ways impossible to achieve amid daily distractions.

    Related: How Taking Solo Retreats Away from Work Benefits You and Your Business

    Breaking routine enhances cognitive flexibility

    Routine is comfortable, but comfort rarely breeds innovation. Leaders often underestimate how rigid routines stifle creative thinking and limit growth.

    According to a study published in the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, exposure to novel and diverse experiences enhances cognitive flexibility — a crucial skill for innovative and agile leadership. During my solo trip, navigating unfamiliar places, cultures and languages forced my brain out of autopilot mode, dramatically enhancing my creative problem-solving abilities. I returned home able to view business challenges more clearly and approach them with fresh, innovative perspectives.

    Being alone strengthens self-leadership and emotional resilience

    As leaders, our external effectiveness hinges on internal strength. Self-leadership — how effectively we manage our emotions, behaviors and decisions — is the cornerstone of successful leadership.

    Traveling solo tests and develops self-leadership. When a canceled flight threatened my meticulously planned itinerary, I had to trust my instincts, solve problems quickly and stay emotionally regulated. I leaned into discomfort, managing loneliness and vulnerability without distractions. Each challenge enhanced my self-trust, emotional intelligence and resilience, qualities directly beneficial to leading my team through uncertainty and stress.

    Presence creates authentic connection

    Presence is a leader’s greatest currency. Yet, constant connectivity ironically often leaves us disconnected from those around us.

    My solo trip forced me to be present in the moment. Without phone service, I engaged fully with strangers on trains, at restaurants, in markets and had deep, authentic conversations. Each interaction reminded me of the power of presence in building genuine connections. Practicing authentic presence with strangers strengthened my ability to be more fully present with my team at StoneAge, creating deeper trust, empathy and effectiveness as a leader.

    Stillness generates breakthrough ideas

    We’ve glorified hustle culture, but true leadership insights rarely come from constant activity. Instead, they arise from stillness and quiet reflection.

    During my trip, moments of boredom and solitude gave rise to some of my most innovative ideas. Research supports this; cognitive scientists have found that boredom and stillness are crucial for creativity and innovative thinking. Leaders who embrace quiet moments cultivate deeper, more impactful insights.

    How leaders can maximize a solo vacation for strategic advantage

    1. Choose a destination that challenges you: Go somewhere that is culturally, physically or spiritually challenging. Stretching yourself boosts your cognitive flexibility and innovation capabilities.
    2. Fully disconnect from work: No emails, no meetings. Disconnecting entirely allows your brain to relax, fostering deeper strategic insights.
    3. Schedule intentional reflection: Allocate time specifically for journaling, meditation and quiet reflection. Structured reflection cultivates strategic clarity and emotional awareness.
    4. Engage with strangers to build presence: Talk to people you meet. Engaging authentically with strangers develops your emotional intelligence, presence and interpersonal skills.
    5. Observe and reflect on your inner experiences: Notice when you feel lonely, bored or uncomfortable. Reflecting on these feelings enhances self-leadership, emotional resilience and decision-making skills.

    Related: How to Start (and Run) a 7-Figure Business While Traveling the World

    Final leadership insights:

    • Solitude isn’t a luxury; it’s a strategic leadership advantage.
    • Breaking routine fuels innovation and creative thinking.
    • Effective leadership starts with deep self-awareness and emotional resilience.
    • Authentic presence strengthens your connections with your team.
    • True leadership breakthroughs come from stillness and reflection, not relentless hustle.

    I returned from my solo trip not only refreshed but fundamentally changed. The clarity, confidence and creativity I gained now directly enhance how I lead StoneAge and engage with my employees. A solo vacation isn’t just good for your soul; it’s a strategic imperative for effective, innovative leadership.

    Book your solo trip. Your team, your company and your future self will thank you.

    Most leaders travel alone for business. But how many leaders have intentionally taken a true solo vacation? No family, no work, no obligations. Just you, alone, facing your inner world and expanding your leadership potential.

    I recently did exactly that, spending two weeks solo in Peru and Ecuador. The impact was profound, reshaping how I approach leadership, decision-making and strategic thinking at StoneAge, the employee-owned company I run. Here’s why I believe every leader should take a solo vacation and how doing so will make you more effective and impactful.

    Solitude creates strategic clarity

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    Kerry Siggins

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  • I Blew an Audition with Robert De Niro — But the Surprising Lesson Now Helps Me Crush Every High-Stakes Moment | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    I’ll never forget the moment I got the call: an audition for a movie with Robert De Niro.

    My brain short-circuited as soon as I heard his name. De Niro. The Godfather. Heat. Goodfellas. How could I not get distracted?

    As the big day drew near, I spiraled. This wasn’t just another audition. This was the audition.

    • What if this is my big break? What if I blow it?
    • What should I wear? Do I look the part?
    • What if I forget my lines? What if I forget how to speak?
    • Maybe I’m not ready. Maybe I’m not good enough.
    • But what if I am?

    The pressure was electric. Hope and fear did a wild dance in my chest and no matter how hard I tried, my imagination kept racing ahead.

    This was the moment that could change the trajectory of my life and career — and I blew it.

    But the lessons I took from that failed audition turned out to be more valuable than any role. They completely reframed how I walk into a room, command a stage and coach others to show up with presence and power in their own high-stakes moments.

    Here’s what that moment taught me — and how you can use it to pitch, present or perform with confidence and clarity.

    Related: 10 Ways to Build Your Entrepreneurial Confidence

    1. Mindset shapes everything

    My first mistake happened before I even entered the room. In my head, the stakes were massive: This is life-changing. Don’t mess this up. You have to nail it.

    I had already lost. I wasn’t grounded or focused. I was spiraling. What I didn’t know then — but now teach every client — is this: your mindset is your foundation. Walk into any room thinking, I’ve earned this. That shift alone changes how you speak and how others respond.

    2. Focus on the moment, not the outcome

    The second I started fantasizing about starring in a De Niro film, I stopped being present. I was thinking about my future, not the two pages of script in front of me.

    When you obsess over the outcome — the deal, the yes, the applause — you miss the only thing that matters: this moment. Ask yourself: What does this person need from me right now? Then deliver.

    3. Take it one step at a time

    I was so focused on the future, I skipped the first step: the first impression.

    In auditions, pitches and presentations, there’s no warm-up act. The first 10 seconds — how you walk in, how you greet, how you connect — set the tone for everything else. You don’t always get a second chance. Nail the first one.

    4. Walk in like you belong

    I came in with what I now call “please pick me” energy. Instead of owning the space, I shrank into it — grateful but almost apologetic for being there. Gratitude is powerful. But not when it makes you small.

    If you were invited into the room, you’re there for a reason. Don’t ask for permission to take up space. Stand in your value.

    5. Stop trying to impress — start trying to connect

    I overperformed. I tried so hard to be impressive that I tripped over my words and cluttered my delivery. More isn’t better. It’s just more.

    What makes your message land is simplicity, emotional truth and connection. Ask: If this were my last chance to speak, what do I want them to feel?

    6. Prepare like a performer

    I knew my lines. But I didn’t rehearse. I didn’t ground myself or prepare my body for the moment. Clients often tell me they’ve “practiced” — but what they really mean is they edited their slides or memorized content.

    But presence is physical. Stand up. Breathe. Visualize the room. Your voice, posture, and energy are part of your message. Rehearse with them, not around them.

    Related: How to Turn Self-Doubt Into Success and Build Your Confidence in 3 Steps

    7. Learn to reset in real time

    I knew it wasn’t going well, but I didn’t know how to recover. I was stuck in my head. Now, I teach people to build an internal reset button. A breath. A pause. A shift in stance. Anything that brings you back to center.

    Things go off-script all the time. Power doesn’t come from being flawless. It comes from knowing how to find your footing again.

    8. Don’t stay stuck in the past

    The car ride home was brutal. I replayed the audition on a loop — every fumble, every flub. Reflection is important. But wallowing isn’t. Take the lesson. Leave the rest.

    You might never audition for a De Niro film, but you will have high-stakes moments — on a stage, in a boardroom, across from someone who could change the trajectory of your business or life.

    When you get there, remember: the secret to owning the room isn’t being perfect. It’s being present, prepared and fully yourself.

    That’s what people remember. That’s what wins the room.

    I’ll never forget the moment I got the call: an audition for a movie with Robert De Niro.

    My brain short-circuited as soon as I heard his name. De Niro. The Godfather. Heat. Goodfellas. How could I not get distracted?

    As the big day drew near, I spiraled. This wasn’t just another audition. This was the audition.

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    LaQuita Cleare

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  • The 5 Leadership Habits That Quietly Kill Trust in a Team | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    In times of crisis, employees pay great attention to what their leader is like. It is in these moments that trust shifts from a “soft value” to a strategic asset that directly affects motivation, retention and even financial results.

    Companies with high levels of trust outperform competitors in efficiency by up to 400%, and 93% of business leaders believe that trust directly impacts financial performance.

    Yet, the reality is not that great. According to Gallup, only 20% of employees say they trust their leader. Edelman reports that just 19% believe CEOs are honest, while 68% think leaders intentionally mislead them.

    Missteps during turbulent times don’t just dent a leader’s reputation — they shake the very foundations of the business. In this article, I reflect on five common mistakes leaders make during difficult times and offer guidance on how to avoid them.

    1. Micromanaging

    Leaders often believe that being across everything is about quality-checking; in reality, it’s more about a lack of trust in the team.

    In a survey of 14,000 employees for Jacob Morgan’s book, Leading with Vulnerability (2023), only 16% reported ever having faced a leader who showed vulnerability, asked for help, or acknowledged mistakes. That leaves the majority feeling undervalued and with no motivation.

    Under Bob Chapek, Disney’s leadership became known for excessive oversight. Staff felt that their creativity was being stifled, as leadership was unwilling to delegate. There was also a significant amount of instability and mistrust stemming from internal tension and declining morale among employees.

    Empower your team to lead on their responsibilities. Effective delegation enables leaders to focus on broader goals and provides employees with the space to grow.

    2. Wearing the “Superman” mask

    The instinct to appear unshakable is understandable. Yet it often comes with a risk of emotional burnout, and, ironically, disconnection from the teams. There’s no trust with no authenticity attached. Teams that see a more empathetic leader are more likely to collaborate openly, share ideas and remain engaged.

    It’s essential to remind yourself that vulnerability is not a sign of weakness. When Hubert Joly took the helm at Best Buy, he faced lots of challenges from digital competitors. Instead of hiding his doubts, he openly sought advice across the team to co-create solutions. The result was not only a successful turnaround but also deeper trust between leadership and staff.

    Leaders do not have to be flawless superheroes. They need to be authentic humans.

    3. Lack of flexibility

    Everything changes, and leaders now face an average of 3.2 major changes simultaneously. Before 2020, most organisations encountered only two significant shifts per year; today, that number is closer to nine. Yet only 10 % of organizations believe they respond well to such dynamics. A common mistake is clinging to outdated models and processes, even when market signals indicate a shift. Employees quickly lose trust when they see their leader ignoring reality.

    When Starbucks experienced slowing sales, they turned to a new CEO, Brian Niccol. He launched a “Bold New Chapter” strategy: simplifying menus, removing extra charges for plant-based milk and re-emphasising Starbucks as a “third place” for connection. As a result, pilot cafes already show improved sales and customer satisfaction.

    4. Overlooking small wins

    In crises, leaders often focus so intensely on problems that they forget to celebrate progress. Ignoring small wins leaves employees feeling that their efforts go unnoticed, which weakens motivation and trust. A 2025 study revealed that only 19% of employees receive recognition weekly, even though frequent and meaningful praise significantly boosts engagement and productivity.

    Be specific, timely, and personal in your praise. It can be as simple as a message in Slack or Teams or a comment in a meeting. Leaders who pay attention to achievements create a culture where people feel valued and motivated.

    5. Burning out

    According to Vistage, 71% of CEOs regularly face burnout, with a third experiencing it almost daily. Leaders need to prioritize recovery, activities and proper sleep. As the Financial Times noted in 2024, many CEOs now treat rest not as weakness but as a strategy. There are two types of entrepreneurs. Some proudly claim success came from working “day and night without pause”. Others learn to delegate, protect their health and focus on strategy. Both can succeed, but only one builds a sustainable organisation.

    A good leader knows that trust of the team is not a “nice to have”. It’s the foundation of performance, especially when the storm hits. The leaders who succeed are not those who strive for perfection, but rather those who are authentic, adaptable and empathetic. They delegate, acknowledge both challenges and wins and care for their own well-being, thus inspiring their teams.

    In times of crisis, employees pay great attention to what their leader is like. It is in these moments that trust shifts from a “soft value” to a strategic asset that directly affects motivation, retention and even financial results.

    Companies with high levels of trust outperform competitors in efficiency by up to 400%, and 93% of business leaders believe that trust directly impacts financial performance.

    Yet, the reality is not that great. According to Gallup, only 20% of employees say they trust their leader. Edelman reports that just 19% believe CEOs are honest, while 68% think leaders intentionally mislead them.

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    Slava Bogdan

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  • Starting a Business? You Need Founder Friends — Here’s Why | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Starting a business can be a lonely endeavor. No matter how confident you are in your product and in yourself, there will always be times when doubt creeps in — usually just as you’re trying to fall asleep.

    These crises of confidence can be fatal to your vision, but they don’t have to be. And one way to stave off the startup scaries is by having other founders in your life to lean on.

    Back when Jotform was a company of one (me), I had a close friend who was also a fellow early-stage founder. His idea — selling beauty products online — was conceptually completely different from mine, but that didn’t matter. We were facing the same struggles, the same uncertainties and many of the same difficult decisions.

    Each week, we’d spend hours walking through New York, hashing out our ideas as we traversed the cobbled streets of SoHo to the tree-lined walking paths of Brooklyn Heights. We’d exchange marketing and SEO ideas, workshopping products and sales strategies. We celebrated each other’s small wins — like landing a new customer or finally fixing a stubborn bug — and vented about the setbacks. Those conversations didn’t just make me feel less alone; they sharpened my thinking and kept me accountable. In a phase of life where so much felt uncertain, that kind of camaraderie was invaluable.

    For founders, especially solo founders, having someone who understands the unique pressure of building something from scratch can make all the difference. Here’s why.

    Related: You Can’t Succeed Alone — Why Small Businesses Must Work Together

    The power of peers vs. mentors

    I believe strongly in the power of mentors, and think everyone should have one. Mentors have been in your shoes and can offer sage advice that comes from experience and hindsight. But while mentors are indispensable, peers bring something different — and equally essential — to the table.

    A mentor can tell you how they handled a particular situation five or 10 years ago. A peer, on the other hand, can tell you what they did last week — and whether it worked. The advice is current, and the exchange goes both ways. You’re not just receiving guidance, you’re collaborating.

    Peers also provide something mentors can’t always offer: emotional resonance. They’re in the trenches with you, facing the same economic climate, technological changes and customer expectations. There’s no need to explain why a poorly executed launch or bad hire feels devastating. They already know. That shared understanding builds trust fast, and trust leads to lasting bonds.

    In those early walks with my founder friend, we weren’t pretending to have it all figured out. We were troubleshooting in real time, riffing on ideas, asking questions and giving each other the push we needed to keep going. It didn’t matter that our products were different — what mattered was that our challenges were the same. I also found that working through his business issues gave my brain a needed break from focusing on my own. Oftentimes, I’d return to my desk afterwards with fresh insights I would never have had if I’d kept spiraling on my own bumps in the road.

    Related: I Mentor First-Time Entrepreneurs — These Are the 4 Unseen Benefits I Gained By Giving Back

    Where to find founder friends

    These days, most of my close friends are also fellow founders. Running a business is pretty consuming, but we don’t just talk strategy — our conversation drifts equally around the people we hire, our company cultures and how to be motivational leaders. I’ve learned so much during our hangouts over coffee or beer that no book or YouTube video could ever have taught me.

    If you’re launching a business but don’t yet have a built-in founder community, don’t despair. These days, there are tons of resources for connecting with like-minded people. Subreddits like r/Entrepreneur and communities like Indie Hackers are great starting points, but don’t just stop at making online connections. Check your city for tech meetups — with startups more geographically dispersed than ever, you don’t need to live in New York or the Bay Area to find one near you. And as with most things, your existing network is one of your most powerful resources. Make it known you’re looking to build up your community of fellow founders. In all likelihood, you know someone who knows someone doing the same.

    If you’re an introvert like me, you may find all this intimidating. But the truth is, so much of running a business is relationship-building. And remember, these early meetups don’t have to be formal. A 20-minute coffee chat can lead to years of camaraderie.

    Once you’ve made a connection, carve out space for it. My friend and I had our weekly walks in New York. You might have a 30-minute Zoom every other Friday, or a WhatsApp thread where you trade updates and cheer each other on. Consistency is key. These conversations are most powerful when they become habitual, rather than a one-off.

    And finally — be honest. This isn’t an interview. You don’t need to posture or pretend. Talk about the idea that fizzled. Be real about your scaling woes. Vulnerability is what makes relationships meaningful. It’s also what makes them useful. Because the goal isn’t to impress, it’s to grow.

    Building a business will always come with moments of doubt. But having people around you who truly understand what you’re going through can make the path feel a lot less lonely.

    Starting a business can be a lonely endeavor. No matter how confident you are in your product and in yourself, there will always be times when doubt creeps in — usually just as you’re trying to fall asleep.

    These crises of confidence can be fatal to your vision, but they don’t have to be. And one way to stave off the startup scaries is by having other founders in your life to lean on.

    Back when Jotform was a company of one (me), I had a close friend who was also a fellow early-stage founder. His idea — selling beauty products online — was conceptually completely different from mine, but that didn’t matter. We were facing the same struggles, the same uncertainties and many of the same difficult decisions.

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    Aytekin Tank

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  • I Turned My Hobby Into a Global Startup for Writers — Here’s the Playbook | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Since childhood, I’ve been a bookworm. My all-time favorite books include a mix of non-fiction and finance. However, this didn’t stop me from transforming my biggest hobby into My Passion, the top-2 e-book platform globally.

    The platform already has over 1,000 books, and every two weeks we release another 2–3 bestsellers. For entrepreneurs wondering if their passion could become their next startup, here’s exactly how I did it — and the framework that can work for you too.

    Related: AI Won’t Wait for Your Strategy — Why Should Your Leadership?

    Define your ‘Why’

    86% of people who started a hobby-based business report higher job satisfaction. But here’s what they don’t tell you: satisfaction doesn’t equal success, and most hobby businesses never scale beyond side hustles.

    Don’t quit your job just because you read how Zuckerberg started Facebook as a hobby project for Harvard students, or how Boeing turned his love of aircraft into a billion-dollar company. Instead, consider WHY you truly desire to launch your startup.

    Here’s how I discovered mine.

    For me, reading was more than just entertainment. This is what shaped my worldview.

    Books showed me the world beyond survival — I read about Van Gogh, artists and creators who transcended their environment. This sparked the belief that my background doesn’t define me — a mantra I carry to this day.

    I didn’t just want to open a bookstore, launch an app or write a book for money. My goal was to empower writers globally. Ultimately, storytelling became the DNA of my startup, Holywater, which unlocks people’s potential by combining their imagination with AI capabilities, from books to streaming and AI-powered series.

    Now, writers worldwide share stories and gain recognition through My Passion. Moreover, books evolve into My Drama’s vertical series with a global reach. We are also developing the PYSHY (WRITE) contest with Vivat Publishing, which creates real earning opportunities for writers.

    We got 444 submissions, 3 were picked for publication and 1 was adapted for a top-performing vertical series.

    You can simply monetize your hobby, for example, by selling your books, paintings or clay crafts. Or you can turn it into a global startup. Your why and scale make all the difference.

    Connect your passion with a real-world solution

    Your passion must translate into value for others, not just personal satisfaction. The reason 42% of startups fail is misreading market demand. Simply put, founders spent money and time launching a product that no one needed.

    Identify what other people’s problems or needs you can solve by turning your hobby into a startup. Consider how successful founders made this connection. Etsy transformed the love of handmade crafts into a global marketplace for unique goods. AeroPress turned one coffee enthusiast’s quest for the perfect brew into a portable solution for coffee lovers worldwide. These founders connected their passions with unmet market needs, creating products that solved real problems and resonated with millions.

    Through my reading journey, I realized a fundamental gap: people love stories, but they lack the tools and support to tell them well. Writer’s block, pacing issues and structural gaps limit creativity, and working on a book alone is exhausting. After all, professional storytellers have entire teams of editors, plot consultants and visual artists.

    Launching My Passion together with Anatolii Kasianov, we applied AI to democratize storytelling support, giving every writer access to plot development, visual elements, structure recommendations and pacing advice. Support that was previously only available to well-known authors is now available to all creators.

    Start with a small community

    Ask yourself: Is this hobby large enough to involve other people? Your passion requires a community to become a sustainable business.

    Many great businesses started as small communities that later scaled. For instance, Reddit began as a platform for niche interests and grew into a global discussion hub, and Duolingo was a small beta community of language learners testing early lessons. Nowadays, you can easily build a community on social media and get feedback there. It’s a great chance to get like-minded people together and test out your idea.

    The beauty of starting small is that it allows you to validate demand without massive investment. You can quickly discover whether others share your passion and face similar challenges.

    Related: How a Side Hustle Led to a $1 Million+ Passive Income Stream

    Don’t let your passion turn into a nightmare

    Understand the stakes and pressure that come with monetising your hobby. When your livelihood depends on what once brought you pure joy, the dynamic changes completely. Deadlines replace spontaneity. Market demands can override creative instincts. Financial pressure can drain the original magic. The result: burnout, which affects more than half of founders.

    What keeps me going? Again, books. Not for market research, but for myself. Besides, I have other passions. For example, I meditate every day and share insights on LinkedIn. It is extremely important for startup founders not to get stuck only in work, especially if their hobby and startup are now combined.

    The line between hobby and business disappears when your work helps others experience the same transformation that once changed you. When writers tell us our platform helped them overcome creative blocks they’d struggled with for years, I know we’ve moved beyond monetizing a hobby — we’re scaling transformation.

    Your greatest obsession might just be your greatest business opportunity, but only if you can preserve what made you fall in love with it in the first place.

    Bogdan Nesvit

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  • I Work With My Spouse — Here’s How We Do It Successfully | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Working with your spouse might sound like a dream come true — or a complete nightmare — depending on who you ask. For my husband Derek and me, it’s been an incredible adventure. Over the years, we’ve teamed up to build multiple businesses, and while it’s had its challenges, it’s also brought us closer together in ways I never imagined. Along the way, we’ve learned a ton about navigating entrepreneurship as spouses, and today, I’m sharing what’s worked for us to make it not just functional but rewarding.

    Whether you’re thinking about starting a business with your spouse or trying to fine-tune your existing setup, here’s why working with your partner can be amazing and how to make it work and make it fun.

    1. Shared goals strengthen your bond

    When Derek and I first started working together, we quickly realized how powerful it is to share a vision. We’re not just working toward financial success; we’re creating something that reflects both of us, giving us a shared sense of purpose.

    For example, our first business hit a snag early on, and instead of panicking, we leaned on our collective goal: creating a strong foundation for our family. That shared mindset gave us the focus to come up with solutions together. It’s like building a house brick by brick — you’re both invested in the outcome, which strengthens your partnership in and out of the office.

    Related: The Truth About Being in Business With Your Spouse — How to Navigate Work and Life Together

    2. Built-in trust and understanding

    Running businesses requires trust, and who better to trust than your spouse? We know each other’s strengths and quirks inside and out, which makes decision-making more efficient. If I’m uncertain about something, I know I can count on his perspective and vice versa.

    For example, we once had to negotiate a risky deal to renovate and take over a nightclub. Because we trust each other’s judgment implicitly, we were able to approach it with confidence. Knowing someone has your back makes all the difference when you’re taking big risks.

    3. Complementary strengths double your capabilities

    One of the best parts of our partnership is playing to each other’s strengths. I’m all about seeing the big picture and creative strategies, while Derek excels at managing details and logistics.

    We divide tasks accordingly. For example, in one of our retail ventures, I focus on marketing and brand development while Derek crushes it with inventory management and finances. This synergy means we cover more ground and we’re not stepping on each other’s toes.

    4. Celebrating wins feels even sweeter

    There’s something extra special about celebrating achievements when you’ve worked together to make them happen. Whether it’s launching something new, hitting a sales milestone or tackling a big challenge, every victory feels more meaningful.

    I’ll never forget the time we opened a second location for one of our businesses. It was an amazing feeling. These shared moments make all the hard work worth it.

    Related: The Pros and Cons of Working With Your Spouse

    5 tips for making it work

    While the benefits of working with your spouse are plenty, it’s not always smooth sailing. Here are the strategies Derek and I use to keep our personal and professional worlds in sync.

    1. Define roles clearly

    One of the easiest ways to run into trouble is by not being clear on who does what. To avoid overlap and conflicts, Derek and I divide responsibilities based on our strengths and agree on who takes the lead in specific areas.

    For example, I oversee branding and customer engagement while Derek handles operations and finance. This ensures we both have ownership in different areas, which eliminates unnecessary debates and increases efficiency.

    2. Create boundaries between work and personal life

    When your business partner is also your spouse, it’s easy for work to take over every conversation — even dinner. To protect our personal time, we set boundaries.

    Sundays (sometimes) are strictly no-work zones. These boundaries give us the freedom to reconnect as a couple, separate from our business lives.

    3. Communicate openly and often

    Communication is key for any business partnership and when you’re working with your spouse, it becomes even more important. We schedule regular discussions about work projects, goals and challenges to stay aligned.

    That said, we’ve learned to tackle the tough conversations, too. At one point, I felt overwhelmed by juggling business demands and home responsibilities. By sharing how I felt, we were able to redistribute our workload and bring in extra help where needed. Being open about issues early prevents misunderstandings from brewing.

    4. Celebrate milestones — big and small

    It’s important to pause and recognize your achievements, even the small ones. Try to find ways to celebrate, whether it’s a dinner date after closing a big deal or a simple toast at home when you hit a new monthly goal.

    These little moments of joy make all the hard work feel worthwhile and they will keep you motivated for the road ahead.

    5. Don’t shoulder everything alone

    Just because we’re a team doesn’t mean we don’t rely on outside help. From hiring employees to outsourcing specialized tasks, we’ve learned the value of delegating.

    For example, after bringing on a great bookkeeper, Derek was able to free up time for strategic planning — a mutually beneficial move. Knowing when and where to ask for help keeps us focused on what we do best.

    Related: I Run a Business With My Husband. Here’s How We Make It Work (and How You Can, Too).

    Final thoughts

    Working with your spouse brings its fair share of challenges, but when done right, it can strengthen your relationship and create opportunities you never imagined. Derek and I have grown not just as entrepreneurs but as partners, learning to lean on each other’s strengths, celebrate victories and tackle challenges head-on.

    If you’re thinking about starting a venture with your spouse, go for it! With clear communication, defined roles and a shared sense of purpose, you can build something incredible together and have a lot of fun along the way.

    Working with your spouse might sound like a dream come true — or a complete nightmare — depending on who you ask. For my husband Derek and me, it’s been an incredible adventure. Over the years, we’ve teamed up to build multiple businesses, and while it’s had its challenges, it’s also brought us closer together in ways I never imagined. Along the way, we’ve learned a ton about navigating entrepreneurship as spouses, and today, I’m sharing what’s worked for us to make it not just functional but rewarding.

    Whether you’re thinking about starting a business with your spouse or trying to fine-tune your existing setup, here’s why working with your partner can be amazing and how to make it work and make it fun.

    1. Shared goals strengthen your bond

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    Tonia Ryan

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  • Why In-Person Events Are Still a Business Superpower in 2025 | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Even with all the ways technology has changed how we work and connect, there’s still something powerful about being in the same room with people. In-person events — whether it’s a roundtable, a workshop, a conference, a product roadshow or a community gathering — create opportunities for connection, trust and collaboration that digital tools can’t quite replace.

    For entrepreneurs, that face-to-face time matters more than ever in 2025. Showing up fully, adding real value to the conversation and taking the time to follow up can turn a simple interaction into a lasting business advantage.

    Related: Why This Sports Festival Might Be the Most Ambitious Live Event in America

    Benefits of live events

    We are wired to connect. Even in a world that embraces remote work, most of us still crave face-to-face interaction. That’s why live events matter. They’re not just gatherings, they’re growth engines. They offer the chance to meet up with colleagues old and new, prospects, industry partners and other contacts.

    They’re your chance to understand customer pain points, build trust and lay the groundwork for future sales. At their core, events are about relationships, and relationships are how businesses grow.

    In-person events play a key role in shaping executive visibility and thought leadership, too. Keynotes, speaking sessions, breakouts and panels remain key ways to get your company and spokespeople in front of targeted audiences. And now that events are gaining halo ecosystems of their own, there are even more opportunities for podcasts, fireside chats and “birds of a feather” sessions at offsite partner dinners, breakfast seminars and customer happy hours after the expo hall closes.

    What to look for in potential events

    Post-pandemic, audience expectations for in-person engagement have shifted. Today’s attendees want more from events, including more networking, more meaningful customer meetings, partner meetings and clearer return-on-investment. Events become a way to capitalize on your industry’s collective physical presence in a way that hybrid/remote work and interactions aren’t able to deliver as consistently.

    But not all events are equal. How can you decide which will be best for you? 

    • Conduct online research for events in your industry. When you find promising events, look at those event websites for more information.  
    • If the event has booths or exhibits, contact event managers to get prior event stats like the number of attendees, lists of previous years’ exhibitors and demographics.
    • Do some digging to discover which events your competitors show up for.
    • Ask your network which events have done well for them and why.

    Related: How to Turn Your Event Into a Must-Attend Experience With PR

    What meaningful participation looks like

    Showing up doesn’t guarantee you’ll get noticed. One practical, effective strategy is for all event team members to wear a consistent branded look (e.g., logo shirt and black pants). Research shows that such “uniforms” boost brand recognition, making your team more visible, approachable and memorable in a crowded event space. 

    A second strategy is to think about alternative (even “guerrilla”) marketing activities. You may want to upset the apple cart and get free publicity. What’s a pain point you can capitalize on, for instance? How is your offering different? You can learn a lot and get inspired by the famous WePay stunt.

    Snacks are a perennial hit, venue permitting. Stock up on bite-sized items to help fuel attendees and conversations. People expect video, too, so create a short, high-quality video that draws the eye and informs.

    If the event has booths, you want yours to be the talk of the show. It should be eye-catching and maybe even fun. I’ve seen recent booths that featured a miniature race track, puppies and even baby goats. While attention-grabbing gimmicks can draw a crowd, the real win is creating a space that facilitates conversation and is easy to navigate. And don’t forget the importance of comfortable chairs!

    Don’t neglect training for your booth team, either. Visitors need to feel welcome and comfortable. The team should comprise smart, energetic people who don’t pounce on visitors and immediately start selling. Walk them through a variety of possible scenarios ahead of time so they’re knowledgeable and prepared. A re-usable event training handbook is a good idea.

    If your main objective at an event is to gather leads, dust off your interaction skills and connect with prospects at every opportunity. Attend receptions, dinners and other networking functions. Be personable and authentic, and listen — these are the ingredients that build trust. You also want to be intentional about meeting up with key contacts and prospects.

    Related: How to Bridge The Gap Between In-Person and Remote Meetings

    Events as part of the bigger PR picture

    PR and marketing teams must integrate events into a broader comms strategy. Events shouldn’t be one-offs; they should amplify and align with ongoing campaigns. Start by defining clear goals: media coverage, thought leadership, lead generation or brand visibility.

    Before the event, build anticipation with press outreach, email campaigns and social posts. Secure speaking slots and pre-schedule media or analyst briefings.

    During the event, share real-time content, engage on social, and collect assets, such as photos, quotes and customer insights, for future use. Afterward, repurpose key takeaways into blog posts or thought leadership pieces. Follow up with leads, media contacts, and analysts. Use event insights to inform future messaging and campaign direction.

    When integrated well, events become high-impact moments that feed your content pipeline and strengthen market positioning.

    Make a lasting impact

    In-person events are a great way to connect with customers and contacts while meeting experts and prospects. With so much “noise” at these gatherings, you need strategies for rising above the crowd in meaningful ways. Whether you’re at an industry mixer or a huge event with exhibitors, preparation, creativity, and authenticity will win the day.

    Refer to the recommendations mentioned above to make sure the time and expense of live events are maximized to meet your business goals.

    Cara Sloman

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  • ‘What Hoop Did I Not Jump Through to Get That Title?’: How Olympian Shaun White Disrupted Winter Sports By Spotting What Everyone Else Missed | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    Shaun White, five-time Olympian and three-time Olympic gold medalist in half-pipe snowboarding, is more than familiar with winter sports. He’s lived and breathed it for years. But there was always one thing missing: No one was organizing or governing them.

    That’s where White’s latest venture, THE SNOW LEAGUE, has been a game-changer for winter sports athletes. With a mission to bring structure and excitement to skiing and snowboarding, he successfully completed his inaugural event in Aspen.

    White’s entrepreneurial mindset came from years as the best snowboarder in the world, observing the benefits and problems with how extreme sports are organized. White’s business acumen was forged on the half-pipe as well as by athlete-entrepreneurs like Jake Burton and Tony Hawk. What they brought to the tools of his trade, White would bring to events.

    Related: 4 Insanely Easy but Overlooked Tactics to Advance Your Entrepreneurial Career

    The entrepreneur was always there

    From his early days of living in a van with his family to make ends meet, White reflected on how that experience shaped his view of success.

    “But honestly, I look back and those were some of the most exciting times. I think those experiences gave me a deeper appreciation for where I am now,” says White. “If I’d had the best gear and all the resources from day one, it probably wouldn’t have meant as much to me.”

    As he gained skill and then started competing with the best snowboarders in the world, he listened to the more experienced athletes and heard about what made them successful as well as their struggles. Many of them had contracts with brands but were always concerned about not being renewed. He also noticed that the only person not concerned was Jake Burton, who owned his own brand.

    Another influence was Tony Hawk, the world-famous skateboarder and owner of Birdhouse Skateboards. White recalled all of the best skateboarders wanting to be associated with Hawk’s brand, considered the best in the world. But Hawk told White not to emulate someone else, and instead build something himself that others would want to emulate.

    Related: 3 Things That’ll Make You a Master of Forming — and Keeping — Great Habits

    Image Credit: Mike Dawson

    The problem others missed

    Many of the best entrepreneurs look for gaps in a market, and White is no exception. He saw that there was no governing body to organize the sport like an NHL, an F1 or a UFC. The snowboarding landscape was made up of random events scattered throughout the season. The events that paid the most might not qualify an athlete for the Olympics, but they needed those for the money that could sustain their careers. Lucrative events often required expensive travel, while other events that didn’t pay much actually could qualify you for the Olympics, or meant more to sponsors than to athletes because of TV viewership.

    This fragmented nature meant that the sport’s accolades didn’t coincide with an athlete’s achievements. White experienced this when he had an undefeated season.

    “And I got to the end of the season and they’re (reporters) like, ‘Amazing accomplishment, way to go! No one’s ever done that before!’ and I’m so happy with myself, ‘…but how does it feel to not be the world champion?’ I was like, what hoop did I not jump through to get that title?”

    White’s answer to these problems is THE SNOW LEAGUE. He created a framework that included a qualifying and ranking system, competitive scheduling and the highest prize purses ever offered in the sport.

    White’s credibility made it possible. He had the same frustrations they experienced, and because of that result, the project was met with a positive response from athletes as well as people in the industry.

    Related: 7 Things to Add to Make Your Morning Routine More Productive

    Building and executing

    Since starting THE SNOW LEAGUE, White has achieved some significant milestones like securing NBC as the league’s broadcast partner. Another was signing Eileen Gu as the league’s global ambassador. Gu was the first freestyle skier to win three gold medals in a single Winter Olympics as well as being a multi-gold medal winner in the X Games.

    Assembling the right team was the next step. White works closely with two main team members, Ian Warda and Omer Atesman, who are critical to achieving the league’s vision. White describes the insider knowledge Warda brings to the team.

    “He’s run the Burton U.S. opens and things like that for years and years and years. So he really knows the ins and outs of how to run a snowboarding competition. He gets the culture,” says White. Atesman, the CEO, came with previously existing investor relationships and leadership experience.

    A cultural innovation White brought into the league was equal pay for all athletes. White feels both men and women skiers and snowboarders take the same risks and achieve the same results, and should therefore get the same compensation. The policy also helps deepen the field of female athletes in the league.

    The entrepreneurial philosophy

    White uses several factors to decide whether an opportunity is worth pursuing. First, he looks at the product itself and decides if he likes it and if it’s authentic to him, seeing if it appeals to the humorous, serious or competitive side of his nature.

    He looks at other ventures through the lens of how involved he wants to be in the project. High Cascade Snowboarding Camp in Mt. Hood, Oregon, a park where White attended snowboard camps as a child, inspired him to become an investor in the camp’s parent company.

    White also uses the backcountry as other executives use the golf course. He takes potential investors on a skiing or snowboarding trip to show them his world, and they get to experience a departure from the typical 18-hole business negotiation.

    Nowadays, White does his best to give back. He recently appeared on the SoFi podcast Richer Lives to talk about building businesses, negotiating contracts and more.

    For aspiring snowboarders, White has advice drawn from both a successful snowboarding and business career.

    “Wear your helmet. That’s always the first thing I say. And then — learn as much as you can, especially about your finances. Don’t just hand it off to someone else and hope they handle it right,” says White. “Take the time to understand where your money’s going, how it’s working for you. The more you know, the better off you’ll be in the long run.”

    White has transitioned his measurement of personal success from medals to intangibles. “Today I measure most of my success within what’s happening in my personal life, with friends, with family. The things that riches don’t really buy you.”

    But he also understands that an eye needs to be focused on business success as well. “I feel like as long as there’s just steady growth, are we learning from mistakes? Are we making the same mistakes as before? As long as we’re learning and moving forward and growing, then I’m pretty happy with everything.”

    On the horizon

    White has plans to increase the number of events in THE SNOW LEAGUE with the addition of freestyle snowboarding. With a successful Aspen event completed and a second scheduled for the end of 2025, there are LEAGUE events scheduled in both China and Switzerland for 2026. After that, White has plans to expand to the southern hemisphere with events in South America, New Zealand and Australia to make THE SNOW LEAGUE a truly global tour.

    Shaun White, five-time Olympian and three-time Olympic gold medalist in half-pipe snowboarding, is more than familiar with winter sports. He’s lived and breathed it for years. But there was always one thing missing: No one was organizing or governing them.

    That’s where White’s latest venture, THE SNOW LEAGUE, has been a game-changer for winter sports athletes. With a mission to bring structure and excitement to skiing and snowboarding, he successfully completed his inaugural event in Aspen.

    White’s entrepreneurial mindset came from years as the best snowboarder in the world, observing the benefits and problems with how extreme sports are organized. White’s business acumen was forged on the half-pipe as well as by athlete-entrepreneurs like Jake Burton and Tony Hawk. What they brought to the tools of his trade, White would bring to events.

    The rest of this article is locked.

    Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

    John Boitnott

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  • Closer or Colder? How AI Shapes Your Customer Relationships | Entrepreneur

    Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

    I’m not going to lie, the latest generation of AI, especially large language models and agentic AI, is nothing short of impressive. At Human Cloud, we used tools like Claude and Windsurf to accomplish in 5 minutes what had previously taken us 5 years.

    On the surface, it’s a story of overnight magic. But dig deeper and you’ll find that the real magic wasn’t the AI itself; it was the five years of groundwork that came before. We spent that time using spreadsheets, Canva graphics, CRM automations and hacky off-the-shelf tools to create the right sales and delivery motion, and validate our customers’ needs.

    Only then did the AI become a true accelerator, as we used Claude, Windsurf and AWS to create the Human Cloud Platform in less than 5 minutes.

    This brings up a crucial point. AI can easily be a distraction, prioritizing hype and buzz over real revenue and profitability. Why? Because the fundamental principle of business remains unchanged: every breakthrough starts with a deep understanding of what your customers need.

    Before you invest another dollar in AI, ask yourself one question: Is this technology making us closer to our customers, or pulling us further away?

    Here are five steps to ensure AI helps you get closer.

    1. Manually implement before automating

    “Do things that don’t scale” is a famous startup moniker brought up by Paul Graham, co-founder of Y Combinator, in his essay in 2013. As a 4x founder myself, this ethos has always run true.

    In the case of AI, in every scenario, ask yourself if there is a manual alternative. If there is, try that first, then automate based on customer demand.

    Related: LinkedIn’s Reid Hoffman: To Scale, Do Things That Don’t Scale

    2: Capture enough manual feedback

    Step 1 is only half the story. The other half is ensuring you have enough of the right type of feedback to automate what really works. My strongest recommendation is to capture feedback that’s closest to customers actually paying, engaging and sharing.

    I learned this the hard way in a former startup. We spent 3 months listening and iterating on prototypes based on feedback. We were maniacal in the level of detail we captured, from the user experience to the design. Then we launched, and less than 5% of these users actually paid. Instead, we shouldn’t have listened to what they said, but instead prioritized what they did.

    If you want a book to help you capture the right type of feedback, check out The Mom Test.

    Related: How the ‘Mom Test’ Can Help You Cut Through B.S. and Find Important Answers

    3: Make AI accessible for everyone, not just AI experts

    Rather than investing in an AI team or hiring AI experts, give everyone an opportunity to apply AI across their team and their work.

    Preston Mossman, Senior Director of AI Consulting for Galaxy Square, told me, “learning to use AI is a muscle you have to build. A lot of people self-select out because they can’t use AI today to help them, but the first step is to accelerate their comfort and understanding in a way that feels valuable to them.”

    When asking Preston about ways companies have helped their leaders get comfortable with it, he brought up investing in AI-related tools for interested individuals.

    In his words, “if your mechanic told you about a $50 wrench that could get your job done just as well for half the cost, you would buy it for them or find a new mechanic (with the $50 wrench).”

    Leaders not using AI in 5 years will be like leaders not using a computer today.

    Related: Why Your AI Strategy Will Fail Without the Right Talent in Place

    4: Hire independent experts first

    Telling someone to use AI with no support is like telling someone to jump out of a plane without a parachute.

    Obviously, hiring AI experts as full-time employees would be expensive and out of reach for most of us. Likewise, AI trainings take time, might be expensive, and rarely has direct applicability from training to application.

    But a shortcut is hiring individuals who already use AI, as 65% of independent experts were already using AI as far back as 2024, and 95% of independent experts stated that AI makes them more competitive.

    This brings up step 4: to hire flexible talent first, with flexible talent defined as independent, freelance, and fractional experts.

    The data is clear that flexible talent upskills faster than full-time employees and is ahead of the curve in AI adoption and effectiveness. It’s not just AI, Deloitte research shows that the independent workforce upskills faster than their full-time peers.

    There are also four massive benefits of flexible talent compared to full-time. You can control cost. You have a quicker time to effectiveness. You learn by seeing their expertise. And the most important benefit is that this is the future workforce.

    To get started, look for a flexible talent platform that is specialized in your region, industry, and the application you need AI for. There are over 800 of these specialized solutions.

    Related: Solopreneurship and Freelancing Is Here to Stay — Are You Ready?

    5: Scale like the cloud

    We take for granted how transformational cloud computing has been for us entrepreneurs. Without getting too geeky, what it really did was enable us to scale in line with customer demand rather than taking big bets because of large fixed costs.

    Apply this same mindset to AI.

    Do you think your AI idea is the next big breakthrough that will transform your company, your industry, and the world? That’s great. Now go through steps 1-4 before you bet the farm.

    I’m not going to lie, the latest generation of AI, especially large language models and agentic AI, is nothing short of impressive. At Human Cloud, we used tools like Claude and Windsurf to accomplish in 5 minutes what had previously taken us 5 years.

    On the surface, it’s a story of overnight magic. But dig deeper and you’ll find that the real magic wasn’t the AI itself; it was the five years of groundwork that came before. We spent that time using spreadsheets, Canva graphics, CRM automations and hacky off-the-shelf tools to create the right sales and delivery motion, and validate our customers’ needs.

    Only then did the AI become a true accelerator, as we used Claude, Windsurf and AWS to create the Human Cloud Platform in less than 5 minutes.

    The rest of this article is locked.

    Join Entrepreneur+ today for access.

    Matthew Mottola

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