Chris Stoikos is the archetypal “mover and shaker” with several entrepreneurial credits to his name. His true genius lies in the ability to creatively market and commercialize products, and build and maintain teams of experts to run businesses independently. Stoikos started off like any other consumer dealing with over-priced mediocre products that simply were not up to par with his needs. Having an unruly beard but not wanting to use beard oils with chemicals and preservatives allowed him to innovate the market by coming up with an affordable and higher quality product than anything he could find on the market. A subscription model combined with creative and “outside the box” advertising resulted in tremendous growth and success. Featured in multiple magazines, “Obsessed with making things work better, it’s what makes him tick,” according to Inc.
Secret Academy Episode – Joshua Spodek
Joshua Spodek decided to major in Physics after nearly giving up his love of science and math due to bullying through high school. After earning his PhD, he felt as if the more education one received, the less career options became available. He realized the corporate lifestyle and working under someone else wasn’t for him. His first business venture was a Zoetrope-based idea for advertising in subways that started with him and a friend working out of his friend’s grandfathers garage. This success gave him an independence and freedom to realize that he could make anything happen. With five Ivy League degrees under his belt, Spodek wanted to continue creating businesses but didn’t want to be constrained by my own lack of knowledge and experiences so he went back and received his MBA. Spodek’s awareness and self-awareness changed and he soon began speaking, writing and teaching. Among many other accomplishments, Spodek’s work has earned him high-profile recognition from the likes of Esquire Magazine’s Genius Issue, where he was named “Best and Brightest,” and NBC, which praised him as an “Astrophysicist turned new media whiz.” Both Forbes and ABC News have also acknowledged his accomplishments, praising his work as a rocket scientist.
Secret Academy Episode – Dave Baggett
Dave Baggett was one of the creators and programmers of the iconic video game character, Crash Bandicoot. Having computer science degrees from UMD, College Park and MIT, he contributed to the game using his coding abilities. After the success of that game by Naughty Dog, he went on to co-found ITA Software, a search provider for air travel. Dave eventually grew the company to 500 employees, and in 2011 ITA Software was acquired by Google for $700M. Today, Dave is active in his new startup called Inky, which is a secure email encryption platform.
5 Signs It’s Time to Close Your Business (And How to Do it the Right Way)
You’ve put your time, blood, sweat, and tears into your business. You’ve had your good moments and some immensely challenging ones. Now, you find yourself wondering, “Is it still worth it?” We all become emotionally attached to our businesses. I understand why entrepreneurs don’t find it easy to admit when they might be better off without their companies. So, how…
6 Rules to Building a Formidable Team
Time and time again, life has taught us that to get things done in a sustainable way, to create more impact, to “change the world” we need a good team. There really is no lone ranger if you look at it objectively. We all need something to be in place for us to achieve some of our goals. And things…
I Want Your MONEY!
This morning I had a business breakthrough. I am so excited to share this with you that I interrupted my Sunday morning routine and came right to my computer. Are you ready? All emails that most of us are currently sending to our customers and prospects should start with the title above – I WANT YOUR MONEY. Wait – don’t…
End Of The Year Is Near – Should You Incorporate Now Or Wait?
Maybe running your company as a sole proprietorship was perfectly fine in the past, but if your business has been steadily adding more clients, working with more vendors, or expanding in some other way, it might be time to change your business structure. By either forming an LLC or incorporating your business, you’ll help protect your personal assets from your…