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The only podcast you need to listen to sharpen your business acumen. Learn the ways of massive value creation: Grow beyond measure, make more money and lead a meaningful life.

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SEO Secrets for Small Businesses
shiv gupta

Shiv Gupta

LinkedInWebsite

a Digital Marketer & SEO Specialist by profession and an entrepreneur from heart. Every brand has stories to tell—stories that will not only engage, inform, surprise, and impact their audience, but that will also deliver on measurable business goals. Shiv is the conduit between brand and consumer. His tech-enabled SEO & Marketing Services help businesses grow by getting more online leads, calls, and revenue. He helps clients find the subject and medium that best fits their unique identity, and then I produce results that meet their objectives.

Serving the client is my main focus
In this episode, you'll discover:
  • How to implement SEO strategy that works for small businesses and make them stand out
  • Unique client retention techniques that will help you work around premium subscriptions
  • Organic transition from a field expert to a digital marketing agency owner
Resources Mentioned:
  • Clutch - customer reviews platform
  • G2 - b2b business reviews platform
  • “Dotcom secrets” by Russel Brunson
  • “Sell like crazy” by Sabri Suby
How a former Federal Reserves Economist breaks into the mobile game making
toby madden

Toby and Chris Madden

LinkedInWebsite

Toby and Chris Madden are a father and a son duo, bringing educational video games and social media accounts to market through their Good Future LLC venture

In this episode, you'll discover:
  • How to use customers' feedback to test out your product before launch
  • How supply, demand, profit, margins and other economy concepts can be taught through a game
  • Selling to your existing network and also reaching out to new networks like Chris is doing with his entrepreneurial game and linking to "All-In with Chamath, Jason, Sacks & Friedberg"
  • How knowing and talking to your target customer can guarantee your results
  • Leveraging social media niches like intellectual content on TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@anar.kay?
Resources Mentioned:
Be happier at work with a career success coach
Terry McDougall

Terry McDougall

LinkedInWebsite

Terry McDougall, PCC, MBA is an executive and career success coach with a marketing background. Author of "Winning the game of work: career happiness and success on your terms. She led marketing functions at financial organizations like Wachovia, BMO Financial Group, etc. Now she is the owner of "Terry D. McDougall" coaching and consulting company.

To go someplace where people value you, sometimes that is what's required
In this episode, you'll discover:
  • How dissatisfaction with your current work can lead you to a new business or new career opportunity
  • Why high performing managers who hit their ceiling in their careers consult with Terry
  • How career coaches can become your mirror into your behaviour, thus creating awareness as an impulse for change
  • How to create multiple streams of income as a solopreneur


Resources Mentioned:
  • "Winning the game of work: career happiness and success on your terms." by Terry McDougall
GW student unleashes the power of short content to make social impact
Ashwath narayan

Ashwath Narayanan

LinkedInWebsite

Ashwath Narayanan is the Founder & CEO of Social Currant, a DC based creative studio that works with nonprofits and social impact organizations to help them tackle emerging media platforms like TikTok, Reels & Influencer Marketing. Social Currant has worked with numerous clients, from the first Chief HR Officer at LinkedIn to large national nonprofits. Ashwath is also a Senior Advisor to DC Arch Angels, an angel investing group in DC. Ashwath was also named on the 25 Under 25 DC Class of 2021 Inno list, was a Forbes 30 Under 30 Fellow in 2019, & is a Senior majoring in Journalism at The George Washington University's School of Media & Public Affairs.

I wanted to build something that is beyond myself
In this episode, you'll discover:
  • How to bootstrap a startup while in college
  • What inspired Ashwath to develop this idea into a venture
  • Using power of micro influencers for your business or charity project  
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Resources Mentioned:
  • The Mom Test
  • Business Lean Canvas
Bootstrap a startup, reimagining recruiting
Qaid Jivan

Qaid Jivan

LinkedInWebsite

Qaid Jivan runs a company called TalentMarketplace. They help IT leaders do more of what they love - deliver great projects for their clients with great people. We do this by replacing their side-of-the-desk recruitment activities (writing job descriptions, reviewing resumes, interviewing people who aren't a fit, etc.) with a blend of automation and the human touch. For fun, he builds and continues to manage a large music festival camp which has hundreds of members hailing from Vancouver, Seattle, New York, Toronto, Perth, and San Francisco. Also for fun, he helps people turn their bitcoin into fiat.

In this episode, you'll discover:
  • How to bootstrap a start-up, choose your startup co-founders
  • About challenges of recruiting, especially in a post-pandemic scenario
  • Solving disagreements with your teammates
Resources Mentioned:
From a Lawyer to a Yoga Studio Owner
Sara Vandergoot

Sara Vandergoot

LinkedInWebsite

Sara VanderGoot, CMT, e-RYT 200, e-RYT 500, RPYT co-founded Mind the Mat Pilates and Yoga. She studied Interdisciplinary Yoga with Don and Amba Stapleton in Nosara, Costa Rica and at Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health in Stockbridge, Massachusetts. Sara completed her Prenatal Yoga Training at Blooma in Minneapolis. Sara is registered through internationally recognized Yoga Alliance as a e-RYT 200, e-RYT 500 and RPYT. Sara is Nationally Certified in Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork, and licensed by the Virginia Board of Nursing. She specializes in working with moms during and after pregnancy and attends births as a doula. She completed her doula training with experienced midwives in Colombia, South America and is knowledgeable about modern birth practices as well as ancestral birth practices and plant medicines. Sara has been practicing massage therapy, including specialties in Prenatal Massage, Post-pregnancy Massage, Deep Tissue Massage and Thai Yoga Massage, in Alexandria for 20 years and has been a yoga instructor for 10 years. At Mind the Mat she specializes in Prenatal Yoga, Post-pregnancy Core Yoga, Mommy & Me Core Yoga, Flow Yoga, Hot Flow Yoga and Deep Stretch. One of Sara's favorite things is teaching in the 200 & 300 Hour Mind the Mat Yoga Teacher Training programs, which she began developing in 2013. Before becoming a massage therapist and yoga instructor, Sara earned her Juris Doctorate from William and Mary Law School and was a lawyer in the Washington D.C. area. She found that the healing practices of massage and yoga brought a balance to her life that she had long been searching for. Sara also has a B.A. in English Literature from University of Michigan and an M.A. in Creative Writing from Johns Hopkins.

I realized that the Yoga studio couldn't grow if I didn't choose where to put my energy.
In this episode, you'll discover:
  • Organic way of career transition
  • Working in partnership while building a new business
  • Picking one business when you have multiple
Resources Mentioned:
Gift Pocket App: teenage dream becomes a reality
Brooke Yoakam

Brooke Yoakam

LinkedInWebsite

Brooke Yoakam is founder of GiftPocket, the award-winning digital wallet app that allows users to manage all of their gift cards from their phone, pay with their gift cards in stores or online, exchange unwanted gift cards for gift cards they want, and send gift cards to people. Brooke Yoakam founded GiftPocket when she was 12 years old, after receiving a bunch of unwanted gift cards from elder relatives and knew there was a gap in the digital wallet space. GiftPocket and its namesake currency GP Points™, is focused on young adults, who predominantly use gift cards as their main form of currency, but is available to all ages. The app, as a digital wallet, seamlessly helps manage the cards for use in person and online. She is currently a student at Boston College, and originally from Columbus, Ohio. The GiftPocket app is available on both iOS and Android platforms, with more information available at www.GiftPocket.com.

I like to think big and outside of the box. I don't like when people hold me back.
In this episode, you'll discover:
  • How to start your own business at 12
  • How to prepare for the pitch competitions
  • What qualities you need to nurture to become a successful entrepreneur
Resources Mentioned:
Make your start-up successful through leadership
Thomas Kerezsti

Thomas Kereszti

LinkedInWebsite

Thomas Kereszti is an industry influencer, author, coach, speaker, educator, and mentor. His approach to leadership comes from a lifetime of international experience. His servant leadership principles are time proven and based on biblical foundations. He is down to earth and able to strike a balance between business challenges and common-sense solutions. His motivational and engaging style will leave you with practical and applicable solutions that you can put into practice.

In this episode, you'll discover:
  • How to attract and hire the right talent into your start-up
  • How to choose the business you will be successful in
  • How to make profit before incurring any costs
Resources Mentioned:
From Reports to Reps: A Transition from Corporate Life to Fitpreneur
kareemah woodard

Kareemah Weans Woodard

LinkedInWebsite

Amazing story of finding true authentic calling and executing it with accountant's pragmatism. Kareemah Woodard, an auditor with over 15 years of experience shares her story of starting a fitness business. Her "The Well Fit Pro" company now focuses on delivering fitness, nutrition and wellness to their clients.

"You have to take discipline as a key to your freedom!"
In this episode, you'll discover:

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  • Ways to find your calling by balancing skills, values, interests
  • Discipline as a driving force of keeping your business alive
  • How to take advantage of new market niches and opportunities
Resources Mentioned:
  • https://acd.iupui.edu/explore/choose-your-major/vips/index.html
Build an easy to sell business with an exit strategist Marvin Storm

Marvin L. Storm has founded, acquired, scaled, and exited businesses during his career. After exiting his last business, he planned to enjoy life, but after a brief stint in the slow lane he realized that sitting on the sidelines wasn’t his style. After considering his options, he felt that leveraging his decades of startup, operational, and C-suite experience could help entrepreneurs launch, scale their business, create enterprise value, and then execute a successful and profitable business exit. He has developed strategies entrepreneurs can use to substantially increase their business enterprise value and profitably exit their business. Also, he will be publishing a publishing a book next year titled: Pack Your Parachute – How to Double the Amount of Money You Put in Your Pocket When You Sell Your Business

In this episode, you'll discover:
  • Different types of buyers and how they evaluate your business
  • What you should do in order to have a sellable business and be able to retire when you want
  • Ways to attract buyers and figure out the "fair" price for your enterprise
Resources Mentioned:
  • Build to Sell by J. Warrilow

Your host

Anar Umurzak

I'm a curious mind whose favorite thing in the world is to ask questions that help me fully understand. With each episode we will uncover trends that you can use to build an algorithm to your own success.
Anar Umurzakova

Open School of Business.