The Founder's Mind

Dawn Dickson-Akpoghene is a serial entrepreneur and coach who is tired of the negative narrative in the media that does not acknowledge the successes of Black women entrepreneurs. She is our guest this week on The Founder’s Mind and had a wide-ranging conversation with Adam touching on race and gender in the tech industry, the future of crowdfunding, and the importance of perseverance and legacy. After not achieving the funding she wanted in the realm of VC funding, Dawn set her sights on...

Rodney Williams is a serial entrepreneur because he’s an explorer. It wasn’t enough to change the game with his first company, LISNR. He is now disrupting the lending industry with his latest company, SoLo Funds. Rodney is our guest this week on The Founder’s Mind and shares his thoughts on the evolution of his leadership style and interests. Listen to the episode as Rodney discusses his definition of winning, what it’s like being a Black founder, why he approaches problems with an...

Our culture has internalized the idea that art is a career choice in which poverty is the standard. Reggie Black is an artist pushing back against this narrative using his art to call out companies that devalue artists and their work. In this wide-ranging conversation, Reggie and Adam engage in a dialog of understanding regarding the intersection of trauma and mental health for Black people in America. Reggie also breaks down the business of art and discusses how institutions and lack of...

COVID-19 has pushed businesses to go digital fast. This has opened up new opportunities for Vanja Bannan, Founder of BannComm, as she’s overseeing an entirely new arm of the company she never thought possible. Despite those gains, Vanja still believes in old fashioned networking and referrals. This week on The Founder’s Mind, Adam talks to Vanja about the importance of loving your job, why educating clients and employees is key, and why you must always remember to prioritize work and...

Black women have to work harder to earn less, and as if that wasn’t enough, have to spend anywhere from 5-8 hours to get their hair done in ways society deems “professional.” Dawn Myers is the founder of The Most, a tool to make hair care easier for Black women. She is our guest this week on The Founder’s Mind and talks about her experience as a founder from an underrepresented, marginalized group. Dawn shares how advocacy is at the core of her passions through her work with The Vinetta...

1871 is a hub of technology and entrepreneurship in Chicago. This is a place where founders from all industries gather to support each other. This week on The Founder’s Mind, we’re trying something a little different. Before the COVID craziness started, Adam found himself with an extra day in Chicago. He put out a call to any founders at 1871 to come to the recording studio and chat. Aaron Filous, David Pawlan, and Dana Todd answered the call. Today, we’re sharing three conversations with...

Charles Ashley III has given up dream jobs because he has a fire in his belly to help as many people as he can. His company, Cultivating Coders, seeks to bring coding camps to people who don’t usually have easy access to digital tools we take for granted – those living in poverty, as well as people of color. But what do you do when you have an in-person business model and a pandemic hits? This week on The Founder’s Mind, we’re talking to Charles about how he successfully migrated his...

Whether your business has been around for years or you just got in the game, no one could have anticipated the COVID-19 pandemic to effectively wipe out business revenues by 50% or more overnight. But that’s the situation we’re in right now - our new normal - and it’s time for you to take a step back to figure out what routines to put in place and what decisions need to be made to keep your company afloat. This week on The Founder’s Mind, Adam talked to Scott Case, Founder of Upside Travel...

People always think that startups do just that: start right up. But in reality, it can take years of planning and prep work before a business is truly up and running. Such was the case for Civic Eagle, an app that helps policymakers easily track legislation. Civic Eagle co-founder Yemi Adewunmi joined Adam to discuss what it’s like as a founder of color, how to foster a business culture with a remote team, and how much planning it took before they raised millions in funding. Yemi is an avid...

Cubii is an exercise machine for beginners and those with limited mobility. But when they first launched, the team thought their target demographic was busy professionals. Arnav Dalmia, co-founder and CEO of Cubii, joined Adam this week for a discussion on the importance of not only listening to customer feedback, but also making it a central part of your marketing strategy. Arnav talks about the lessons and challenges he’s faced developing a brand-new market. He also recounts a fateful...

This episode features Paige McPheely Founder and CEO of Base a platform that is modernizing the way executive assistants work. Listen in as Paige sheds light on her journey in founding and growing Base, the work that goes into intentionally hiring a diverse team, and beyond. Links https://basehq.com/ More from The Founder's Mind https://upside.com/tfmgo here★ Support this podcast by donating ★

In this episode Amira Valliani Co-Founder and CEO of Glow.fm a platform enabling creators to monetize their work joins us and discusses her journey from idea to product through the iterations, finding and building a co-founder relationship, and raising a 2.3 million dollar seed round of capital. Links http://glow.fm/ More from The Founder's Mind https://upside.com/tfmgo here★ Support this podcast by donating ★

A bit about what Greg shares episode: From brutally honest answers in job interviews early on his career to creating read.me and growing a SaaS business. Greg covered a lot of ground. Timeline [00:39] Intro - Making startup culture cool again [02:11] About Read.me and API [04:39] from Idea to action - took greg 5 years to start his venture. Great ideas come back [09:30] Greg’s experience with being an employee with a bigger vision [15:59] From upstate New York to San Francisco -...

Alex McCrery (Chef turned designer) and Jenny Goodman (FOH turned COO) founded Tilit with two chef aprons designs, one pair of pants and a chef-shirt. The line started small, but the plans were big. On the episode, They share their thoughts about scaling a business, about DIY funding and ways to really value your time and your product, and talk about the amazing lessons that led them from closing one business to having a new company with more than 5,000 clients In this interview, They...

Listen in as Spike & Jonah talk all things plant-based eating, the history of Spikes Chef and Entrepreneurial journey, and a little bit of food policy and advocacy. Timeline: [01:10] About Spike [08:09] Getting a good apprenticeship - The power of persistence [15:46] From working as a chef to owning a lot of places [21:17] Having a bigger mission [26:25] PLNT Burger From idea to action [34:50] The process of making it...

Listen in as Tessa & Tony talk all things starting a family business, growing from one to three DIFFERENT businesses, and why it's so important to create real community. Links: https://bakedandwired.com/ https://abakedjoint.com/ https://la-betty.com/ https://www.instagram.com/tessita/ More from The Founder's Mind https://upside.com/tfmgo here★ Support this podcast by donating ★

Peter Trevisani A graduate of Boston College, and Columbia University, Peter Trevisani is the first Club President, CEO and majority owner of New Mexico United. He is motivated by a commitment to community, a love of competition, and a concrete belief that soccer can pave the path to meaningful growth in the state of New Mexico. “if it doesn't feel right, it's probably not right for you” In this episode, Peter and Adam talk about: [01:41] Peter’s story [07:26] The leap- leaving a very...

Helen is passionate about caregiving and the impact that the right caregiver can have on families. As an educator and workplace trainer, she has had a career in driving outcomes for adult learners and finding meaningful ways for them to engage in learning. In this episode of The Founder's Mind Helen & Adam dig into building a company, the unexpected turns that come with time, and the power of real hustle. They also briefly discuss the late Bernard Tyson and his impact on their perspectives...

Barbara Bickham Managing Director, CTO, and Technical Advisor - Barbara has extensive experience in Technology, Monetization, and Entrepreneurship for companies in industries: FinTech, Fashion, Wearables, Wireless, Security, Media & Entertainment, Artificial Intelligence, and Blockchain. Barbara is leveraging her background to propel rising entrepreneurs and companies forward through her Women’s Innovation Fund Accelerator [WIF AX] Barbara incorporates values of equality and equity in her...

Zvi Band Zvi Band is the co-founder & CEO of Contactually [acquired by Compass Realty in 2019], the top CRM which empowers professionals in real estate, consulting, and other professional industries to build authentic relationships. Having founded Contactually in 2011, Zvi has led Contactually to $12M in venture backing, 75 employees, and tens of thousands of customers, including 8 of the top 20 real estate brokerages in the country. In the episode, Adam and Zvi discuss building a team,...