Secret Academy Episode - Ryan BlairAbout:
Ryan Blair found himself without a father figure at the young age of six when his veteran and engineer father left the family. Constantly searching for guidance and acceptance, he got eventually wound up in a gang. Finding valuable mentors helped him get on the right track, and Ryan started his first business called 24/7 Tech at 21-years-old. Throughout the years, he has been involved in numerous companies, most notably becoming CEO of ViSalus and bringing their revenue from $39 million to over $1 billion. Ryan also found a passion for teaching and writing and has authored NY Times best-seller "Nothing to Lose, Everything to Gain" and "Rock Bottom to Rock Star."
Lesson's in Today's Interview:
- How he wound up in a gang, and how that was the first step towards entrepreneurship
- His first lesson in venture capitalism
- Purchasing a company for $15k and selling it for $25M
- What is challenge marketing
- Using the "3 for free" program for his MLM company
- What he looks for when considering investing in a company
- In the supplement industry you have to keep innovating because of the lower barriers of entry and constant changes
- Don't believe in your own hype
- Turning something around is a lot harder than starting something from scratch
- You learn more from a person's mistakes than their successes
- Play to your strengths and accept your weaknesses
- Spend 80% on your strengths and 20% on improving your weaknesses
Full Episode, Downloadable Podcast, and Other Episode Resources Available for Members Only:
