Okay so I will start off by apologizing because this is late. I had an evening appointment then went to help a friend and learn some things and I completely forgot that I had not written my blog yet!
Anyway today after waking up at 4:37 am (who knows why) I spent most of the morning working on a power point presentation for the Export Broker in Florida. It was only five pages but I agonize over the details on things like that wanting to get them just right. He seemed pretty impressed by it and I also made a copy for the Distillery salesman to use as well. It will be a useful tool for Distributor inquiries. Later I had a phone meeting with a fellow Shark Tank pal and we discussed an upcoming project that I am super excited about but, I cannot quite share yet. It has to do with our Moonshine line and the distillery but, you will have to stay tuned for more information on that.
After spending the afternoon with my lovely bride watching one of our current shows on Netflix I scurried off to another meeting. Last week I was contacted by an acquaintance of one of my kids asking if we could meet and talk some business. I vaguely remember this kid but to be honest not too much. I sent a text my son and he told me that he was a good guy so I took the meeting. He said he wanted to pick my brain a little so we decided to meet tonight.
This is not an uncommon occurrence for the entrepreneur. Any one who is in business knows the value of networking and that building relationships with like minded people is a very valuable skill. I am often reminded that networking is a two way street , because if you are at it long enough, someone will want some knowledge from you and you have to be willing to share. Even though I was the one sharing tonight, as I was listening to this young man’s questions I was notably impressed. He was articulate and focused. He had an agenda and specific questions and was respectful of my time and listened. He has a very good skill of actually listening and not trying to think of the next thing to say.
He was asking about all of my projects but specifically Eve’s Apple Pie Moonshine. He is looking into perhaps starting a distillery or finding a partner and trying to take his product to market. He also shared a couple other things he was working on including a new app for smart phones. I was very impressed and a bit jealous at the same time. This is a young man who I believe is around 22 years old and is already way ahead of where I was at his age. Yes, I had businesses at that age, but I believe that with today’s technology and access to information it is so much easier to start something new. We talked for about 1 1/2 hours and he asked me two things that really stick out. First he asked I had ever attended college. My answer was no. Other than the University of Hard Knocks I have no formal business education. Trust me when I tell you I have spent just as much and probably learned twice as much. The biggest problem with Hard Knocks U is that you never graduate. My business is my classroom and the only thing that is close to graduation is retirement. Even when I am on the beaches of Belize I am sure there will be something for me to do! The second question was, If there was anything about Eve’s that I could do different what would it be? Now Eve’s Apple Pie has only been on the shelves for 2 1/2 months and we are already operating in the black. We have made back the initial investment and I am actually taking a commission based salary. I am proud of that. It is really to early still for me to say if I would do anything different so as of now I told him I would change nothing, but ask me again in a year! Honestly anything that I could change I probably still wouldn’t because that is how we learn in business. That is the curriculum of Hard Knocks University.
I really enjoyed sharing stories and advice with him and we agreed to keep in touch. I think the kid is going to do really well and I am happy that he has invited me to be a pert of it. My friend Ron did the same for me several years ago and I am just paying it back. I believe if you want to be successful, you have to help other people and to do that, sometimes you have to give it away.
365 Days To My First Million. 