This week’s Misfit Entrepreneur is Amber Lilysetrom. Amber has a unique gift. She has a very innate ability to help people figure out exactly what they want in life and then help them with the actions needed to turn their dreams into reality.
She didn’t start with this ability though. She found it through a very traumatic experience in which she came very close to death. As she says, the moment awakened her to the realization that she could no longer hide from herself and what she was truly meant for. In less than a year, she made it all happen.
Today Amber is a transformational branding & business strategist, writer and speaker. She has been featured in Entrepreneur and Working Mother Magazine, is the host of The Amber Lilyestrom Show podcast and helps entrepreneurs turn their passions in to heart-centered brands and thriving businesses.
While Amber’s journey to find herself and her true calling is hers, what she has learned about how to help others do the same is universal and that is what she shares in this episode.
www.AmberLilyestrom.com
Amber was working in her corporate career in athletics in marketing and branding when she has near death, or more honestly, a death experience. During an emergency C-section giving birth to her daughter, she stopped breathing on the operating table as a result of high spinal tap. She had what she called a beautiful spiritual experience that gave terrifying clarity that she was not doing what she knew she was put on the earth to be doing – which was serving a bigger way to help people find their courage to be who they were truly meant to be.
She talks about the out of body experience she encountered and the fact that she had this moment of complete surrender where the switch had flipped and she came back, could breath, and was awake again.
As she says, she was a different person leaving the operating room.
At the 7 min mark, Amber explains what it feels like to truly know who you are and find your calling.
How do you take things from dream a reality?
Dave and Amber have a great conversation on the power of consistency.
At the 21 min mark, Amber talks about the power of focusing, discipline, and delegation - and why it is so important to success.
At the 24 min mark, Amber walks through her business and how she does things.
What does someone have to do to get their center and find out what they are truly meant to do?
Once you’ve found the “why,” what does someone do next?
At the 35 min mark, Amber talks about how to find the sweet spot in going after your dreams while keeping your relationship with your spouse or significant other at the highest levels.
Biggest lesson from sport that has helped you in success?
No one is going to do the work for you. If you want to be the best, you have to show up and do the work.
Best advice for an entrepreneur starting out today?
Have the courage to dream really big and find the help you need on your journey
Best lesson you’ve learned on my journey?
You have the biggest impact when you allow yourself to be yourself
Final thought? We can learn a lot from each other across genders that give awareness and impact to grow in better, larger ways because we have great traits that are transferable.
Best Quote: “Be where your feet are..stay present and focused.”
Amber's Misfit 3:
This week’s Misfit Entrepreneur is Darren Moorman. Darren is a founder and partner at Reserve Entertainment. A firm specializing in feature film and TV. Darren knows what it is like and what it takes to have a dream and work tirelessly to make it a reality. He grew up passionate about film and media and began acting at age 19. Over the years, he found his calling as a producer and ventured out to LA to pursue his dreams. He found some success and worked on different projects with people like Denzel Washington, Chevy Chase, and others, but he had one main dream which took over 10 years to bring to fruition.
That dream releases in theaters the week this episode is releasing (October 2017) in the form of an amazing film called “Same Kind of Different As Me” featuring an all start cast including Greg Kinnear, Renee Zellweger, Djimon Hounsou, and John Voit – all academy award winners or nominees.
Dave and Darren talk about the film and its message, but just as importantly, they talk about the 10 year journey, the twists, turns, and ups and downs that it took to make it a reality.
www.SameKindofDifferentAsMeMovie.com
Darren’s story starts over 20 years ago when Darren started his first career as a coach and teacher at an all-boys prep school. While there, Darren noticed something unique. When taught kids using the form of a story, they were much more attentive and learned more. They understood things more clearly. It was here where Darren leaned that stories really connect with people. So, Darren, who had some past experience in acting and film, decided to make the journey to LA to become a film maker.
Darren didn’t have instant success, but was a good networker and relationship builder and was able to create some great connections early on for mentors that had been there and done that in the industry. He credits this with getting him going helping his first successes. Now those mentors are business partners of his – after he paid his dues and proved he had staying power.
At the 8 min mark, Dave and Darren talk about simple, but two very important principle for success and that Darren credits with helping him get ahead: Asking for what you want and making it about them and not you.
At the 11 min mark, Darren talks about why he had to tell the story of Same Kind of Different As Me. He talks about how reading the book, a true story, over 10 years ago changed his life and showed him the power of hope, forgiveness, healing, and reconciliation.
At the 14 min mark, Darren talks about the 10 year journey it took to make this movie, how he lost the rights to it twice (including one time to Disney, and finally seized a chance opportunity to make it a reality. He talks about the mistakes he made and how even a chance meeting on a plane ride was needed to turn this dream into a reality.
Darren says the most important thing he did happened 5 years ago where he had a “Jerry Maguire moment” and wrote a manifesto and wrote the vision for his career and the stories that he is supposed to be telling to the world. The story at the top of the list was Same Kind of Different as Me – even though he didn’t have the rights to it. But, when the time came where he could get it, he was focused, ready, and had everything in place to go lock it up. And once he had it, everything came into focus and in-line including the all-star cast and a deal to help distribute it worldwide with Paramount. The latter because of a relationship and connection he had made many years ago showing the power of what relationships can do over time.
What does it mean to have a dream and vision and devote yourself to it for years on end not knowing if it will truly manifest? How do you keep going and stay prepared?
At the 26 min mark, Darren talks about the impact the story has had on his life and the impact he wants for it to have on you and the world. Hint: It comes down to a simple act of kindness.
What has this experience of this film and meeting the real life people of the story taught you about life?
TIME SENSATIVE ITEM: On October 18th, the day this episode if released, there are a 150 red carpet screenings at rescue missions around the US that will show the film to their donors, sponsors, and benefactors to create awareness and show how much impact they can have in their communities. If you are interested in participating, go to
http://www.samekindofdifferentasmemovie.com/group-tickets.php
What does it take to be successful as an entrepreneur?
You have to continue to have more dreams. Once you accomplish one, you have to have what’s next. You cannot settle for accomplishing one dream. You have a lifetime of dreams to accomplish. The key is to be consistent and stay true to your core, but don’t stop…the best is always ahead of you.
What advice for people aspiring to make it in Hollywood or film?
At the 38 min mark, Darren talks about how important the name of his company, Reserve Entertainment is to his mission.
Best Quote: “At moments you question your sanity and what you are doing…then it happens and it’s beautiful. Even if it takes 10 years, you know you are not crazy and meant for it.”
Darren's Misfit 3:
This week’s Misfit Entrepreneur is Matt Miller. Matt is a former Air Force Pilot turned entrepreneur. Like many guests on the show, Matt followed a Misfit path. When he left the Air Force after almost 10 years, he entered the corporate world and did well…
But there was something that kept eating at him and it was a desire to create his own business and go after his dreams. His challenge was where to start. Then, one day as he was talking to a good friend, they mentioned the gumball vending machines that he and his young daughters owned. This conversation began a 10 year journey that resulted in the creation and massive growth of School Spirit Vending.
The vending machine business is not new by any means, but it is ripe for innovation and that is exactly how Matt has created success with SSV – by thinking differently and taking a new approach.
It’s this way of thinking and way of looking at opportunities differently to create success that Dave and Matt share you in this episode.
If you are interest in Matt's course, "Vending Secrets for Passive Income," go to www.VendingSecrets.net
Matt went to Air Force Academy and then was a fighter pilot for almost a decade. He then went into the corporate world in sales and in the direct mail world. But, he was at the mercy of working for big corporations and when one made a decision that drastically hurt his income potential, he started to look at ways to create income. He did everything from collect aluminum cans to selling books on Amazon. He had success and created income from all the things he did, but he wanted to create passive income.
He could not even afford to own his own home, but met a friend who was in vending. So he tried it with a used gumball machine he bought on Ebay. He hustled and figured out how to get into locations and after 18 months, he had over 125 locations with his vending machines, and was making more in his part-time vending business than he was in his job. But, then 2007-2008 hit and sales went down…
It was at this time that some kids came to his door fundraising and gave him the idea for School Spirit Vending (SSV). And today, they are in over 40 states, have over 115 franchisees, and are in over 3500 schools around the nation. At the 8:40 mark, Matt talks about how he had to learn to be an entrepreneur as he started with no background.
The keys for him were learning to change his mindset, a good personal growth routine, and a willingness to get out fail and learn as he went.
To make it grow faster, Matt was working, doing his vendor routes, and delivering pizzas 20 hours per week. He practiced “chicken entrepreneurship” in that he worked his jobs to pay the bills while building and investing in his business.
At the 15 min mark, Matt talks about the fact that what you think will sell well or that is the hot item is not always the best thing to sell. It’s the things that are unique, different, and quirky that sell well and offer better margins in places like vending or Amazon.
At the 19 min mark, Matt talks about how he created SSV and his philosophies on business:
At the 27 min mark, Matt talks about the unique way he used a podcast to communicate with his franchisees to help them and how with just over 100 listeners, the impact it has had on his business and the businesses of those involved is priceless.
He also does regional masterminds and weekly webinars which help to further the community, foster success, and share success stories from the field.
Principles and Lessons?
Lessons from the cockpit that translate well to business?
At the 43 minute mark, Matt and Dave discuss what really matters and “success to significance.”
Other advice?
Best Quote: “I needed to make money tomorrow, not 2-3 years from now. With vending – you put a machine out there and a month later you have income. It’s not sexy or flashing, but it’s tried and true. Sometimes, it pays to go against the herd.”
Matt's Misfit 3:
This week’s Misfit Entrepreneur is Isaac Morehouse. Isaac is creator and founder of Praxis, a really unique startup that has created a solution for the new world of an old and tried and true path to success - apprenticeship. Praxis connects potential employers with people to apprentice with them starting their careers and getting them a full time job in 12 months or less with no degree required.
In the information age, the old advice of go to college, get good grades, find a safe-secure job, and work for 40 years just doesn’t fly any more. We are in the age of the entrepreneur and being an apprentice is one of the best ways to learn the systems and path to success where you can eventually go out on your own. For me and probably you, the word apprentice conjures up visions of blacksmiths and bricklayers with their apprentice in tow, but in reality, they are mentorships, a sort of one of one mastermind.
And in today’s world, it’s not blacksmiths anymore, it’s is building businesses and systems online, creating new solutions, apps, and a host of other things.
And that is why Dave wanted to have Isaac on the show. Praxis is bypassing college as the best way to get from student to career. They train young people with an intensive 6-month professional bootcamp, then place them in startups for a 6-month paid apprenticeship.
Praxis grads have a 98% employment rate out of the program, with average pay over $50k. And most of them do not have degrees entry level roles like sales, marketing, and operations.
It started for Isaac while he was in college. Isaac worked for a telecommunications company installing cable 3 days a week while going to school. And while in school he was hit with a realization. He was making good money in his work and turning around and spending it all on school to get a piece of paper that basically says because you have it, you are statistically better than someone without it to higher. You can get all of the things that go into the piece of paper for free – just not the paper. He thought, there has to be a way to be able to do the same thing without the cost of getting the piece of paper and that is how the idea for Praxis was born. Over the next decade, he brought it to fruition.
At the 7 min mark, Isaac talks about the mental journey and the winding random road that weaves through the way to creating and bringing an idea to reality. He goes into the way the subconscious helps us to achieve the goals we give it.
Isaac goes on to talk about learning and makes some good points:
What should people know about apprenticeships today?
Isaac finds that young, raw talent is the best fit. He uses the “sleep in your car” test. If you are willing to sleep in your car and do what it takes to get what you want in life, you are the type of person that is most successful in an apprenticeship role.
At the 27 min mark Isaac and Dave talk about the shift happening with the way jobs are viewed and how we approach work.
What have you learned about taking effective action and overcome fear and inertia?
Thoughts on Entrepreneurship
Lesson Learned?
Don’t do stuff you hate. Period. And there is a difference between hate and hard. Don’t be afraid of hard work or things you want to do. The things you truly hates drain your energy and stifle your growth. Removing them forces you to find things or people to better fill the gaps and take on the areas that you are not fond of. This allows you to focus better and maximize your talents.
At the 44 minute mark, Isaac talks about overcoming the challenge of going a different direction than people think you should go.
Book Recommendation: The Act of Creation by Arthur Koestler
Best Quote: “Don't mistake hate for hard...Don't do what you hate, but do what you love, even it is hard.”
Isaac's Misfit 3: