No one is perfect. Everyone lives in a world of filters. Everyone knows it, but no one talks about it. If you've ever made a mistake and never told someone about it - this podcast is for you. Stop letting mistakes prevent you from doing something great.
Episodes
Tuesday Aug 31, 2021
Tuesday Aug 31, 2021
Having seen firsthand the dark side of the patent system, Russ spent most of his time learning the ropes of patent law and “reverse engineer” the process. As he is now recognized as one of the world’s leading patent strategists, the $5,000 he lost on a worthless patent search in the early days of his career has turned out to be the best investment he has ever made.
His mantra
- Show up and do the next right thing
In today’s edition of the Knucklehead Podcast, Russ Krajec will talk about how his experiences and mistakes in the past led him to become one of the world’s top intellectual property strategists today. He will also discuss the best way to develop a business plan and when is the right time to patent a business idea.
Russ Krajec is the CEO of BlueIron, a patent finance company that makes $50-100K investments in pre-revenue startups and $2-5M loans using the startup’s patents as collateral. An author of more than 800 patent applications and inventor of over 30 US patents, Russ is a leading expert in intellectual property and one of IAM’s Top 300 Patent Strategists.
In This Episode
2:50 - The biggest mistake most start-up businesses make
4:02 - Russ' approach to creating the best business plan
6:04 - When and how Russ gets a patent for a business idea
8:38 - What it takes to land a successful career or business
15:58 - Russ' motivation for becoming a patent attorney
22:21 - How he gets over the plans that never work out
25:03 - How to get in touch with Russ Krajec
27:36 - What he discovered about the legal industry
31:38 - His mindset about mistakes or screw-ups
Favorite Quotes
"There's a point where the most important thing you can do is ANYTHING. There's a point where you just need to move the needle. If I didn't take the action, I'd still be sitting there on the sidelines going, ugghh, you know, 'Should I do it?" - Russ Krajec
"I talked to a lot of startup companies and they have a grand vision of where their product is going. The biggest mistake they make is to run out to a patent attorney and get a patent on this grand business idea and they do it at a time when it's untested." - Russ Krajec
“I don't finance the original idea. I want to capture the value after you've been through the process, after you've built a prototype, after you've tried to sell this, after you've got the response from the market, after you've honed this thing. Whatever you start at the beginning, is just a framework." - Russ Krajec
"Opportunity is going to show up somewhere. Sometime in your life, opportunities going to show up, may show up once, may show up multiple times. But be ready to take it. Be ready to jump on it when it comes." - Russ Krajec
"It doesn't mean every investment is going to turn out to be a unicorn. But an opportunity will come by every once in a while." - Russ Krajec
"If you're going to do something, show up. Put your back into it. Do the best job you can and make it account." - Russ Krajec
Engage with Russ Krajec
BlueIron IP’s Patent Myth Podcast
Reach out to Justin Szerletich to get in touch with Knucklehead Media Group
Knucklehead Podcast is brought to you by Manscaped- Use the Promo Code: KNUCKLEHEAD for 20% Off
Grab your COVID 19 survivor T-shirt HERE
Connect with Knucklehead Media Group
- Knucklehead Media Group is your “push button” for podcasts. We help companies and organizations tell their story using podcasts and best practices for content distribution. Home to some of the top podcasts across multiple categories, captivating coursework on gaining traction with your show, and consulting to those companies BOLD enough to get some wins. We believe your mistakes set the foundation for your success, those stories help customers beat a pathway to your doorstep, and the myths from bringing business online shouldn't hold you back from getting yours.
Click here for more episodes of the Knucklehead Podcast
Monday Aug 23, 2021
Monday Aug 23, 2021
With air and space as his training ground, Wes knows what it means to pay attention and stay focused. While these military skills are synonymous in the business world, knowing how to focus your attention on what you need to be paying attention to is the key to achieving your business goals.
How to stay focused on achieving your goals:
- Start from the target and work backward
In today’s edition of the Knucklehead Podcast, our guest, Wes Woodhouse will discuss how skills learned in the military are applicable to almost every aspect of life. Furthermore, he will present one of the unique perspectives that lead businesses to success - the ability to focus your attention to where it is needed.
Wes Woodhouse is a husband, father, marathon runner, and fighter pilot. He pilots the F-15E Strike Eagle which is a multi-role fighter aircraft currently in the USAF inventory.
Knowing the skills he learned in the military are the perfect foundation for business, he founded Vector Mastermind to help build up the next generation of leaders, armed to take on the dynamic challenges of the 21st Century.
Enjoy!
In This Episode
1:12 - What motivates Wes to get up so early in the morning
2:21 - Backstory of Wes Woodhouse
6:54 - His journey to Michigan Technological University
8:20 - Wes' perspective on education
10:18 - How his skills as a pilot can be used in any area of life
12:33 - What led him to use his military skills in business
16:17 - How a scene from the movie Top Gun can be applied to business
24:04 - A few of the screw-ups he made in his mastermind group
Favorite Quotes
"When you wake up in the morning and you're sitting down and you're thinking about what you're going to do for the rest of the day, where do you need to put your attention today? What do you need to put your attention on today that's going to make you successful as you carry on towards your goals?" - Wes Woodhouse
"In the studying of people who are successful, I've found that invariably, they work hard. And many times working hard means you got to get up a little bit earlier than most of the people and hit it." - Wes Woodhouse
"The reality is, you can do almost anything without having to go to college. With the internet and the opportunity for entrepreneurial pursuits, I think giving them life experiences and giving them an understanding of, 'Yes, you can envision something and then build it and then make it happen', is going to be more valuable." - Wes Woodhouse
"The military does a great job of building up leaders who can be strategic thinkers but then can execute at a tactical level." - Wes Woodhouse
"If you put your attention in the right spot, you’re going to be thinking about the right things and you're going to be able to make the appropriate decision." - Wes Woodhouse
"Business is always moving. It never stops. Regardless COVID happens, that's just a giant roadblock. The business is still going and you still have to keep it afloat." - Wes Woodhouse
Engage with Wes Woodhouse
Reach out to Justin Szerletich to get in touch with Knucklehead Media Group
Knucklehead Podcast is brought to you by Manscaped- Use the Promo Code: KNUCKLEHEAD for 20% Off
Grab your COVID 19 survivor T-shirt HERE
Connect with Knucklehead Media Group
- Knucklehead Media Group is your “push button” for podcasts. We help companies and organizations tell their story using podcasts and best practices for content distribution. Home to some of the top podcasts across multiple categories, captivating coursework on gaining traction with your show, and consulting to those companies BOLD enough to get some wins. We believe your mistakes set the foundation for your success, those stories help customers beat a pathway to your doorstep, and the myths from bringing business online shouldn't hold you back from getting yours.
Click here to more episodes of the Knucklehead Podcast
Monday Aug 02, 2021
Monday Aug 02, 2021
Having the lack of faith in handing over necessary things to his people, Cory lost half a million dollars in his business. After finding himself with the wrong priority, he has now centered his efforts on the value of leadership and how to empower leaders so they can empower their teams.
The most valuable lesson about leadership:
- Leadership isn't about you. It's about the willingness to serve and add value to people.
In today’s edition of the Knucklehead Podcast, our guest, Cory Lee will talk about the
leadership lesson he finds the most valuable. He will also share his story on what made him embrace the leadership values, how high-performing individuals or teams respond to problems, and why evaluated experiences provide the most effective learning opportunities. In this episode, you will also be surprised to find out how your relationship with your spouse contributes to the success of your business.
Cory Lee is a Leadership Consultant and an experienced entrepreneur with a demonstrated history in developing businesses and developing leaders. He provides business consulting and leadership development training for businesses and entrepreneurs, so they can reach their full potential and maximize their relationships, results, and revenue.
Enjoy!
In This Episode
2:02 - Backstory of Cory Lee
3:52 - The reason he decided to sell his businesses
4:51 - His turning point in embracing the leadership value
9:08 - How Cory overcame his overly controlling nature
10:55 - How high-performing individuals respond to problems
13:13 - How Cory applies leadership and personal relationships to his business
15:36 - The leadership lesson he finds the most valuable
20:06 - What makes him include a spousal survey on his business landing page
22:32 - Why evaluating your mistakes is one of the most effective ways to learn
26:41 - The biggest business screw-ups he ever made
Favorite Quote
"I was trying to do our billing and I was trying to do it all. We were losing half a million dollars because I just didn't have the time to dig back through medical billing and those kinds of things. And because I was holding on to it, I was holding our business back." - Cory Lee
"When we were growing, one of the scariest moments for me was that moment when we hired our first team member because I realized that the decisions I made didn't just affect me and my family. They affected somebody else's family." - Cory Lee
"The whole reason we bring people onto our teams is that they have gifts and talents and abilities. For them to use those things, we have to empower them." - Cory Lee
"Some of the highest performing teams and highest performing individuals that I see, they are really intentional about taking time to reflect and get out of the situation just a little bit." - Cory Lee
"I truly enjoyed working alongside my wife day in and day out and really made a good team because our personalities are different and our strengths are different as well." - Cory Lee
"Leadership isn't about you. The best leaders I've found are the ones that are willing to serve and add value to people." - Cory Lee
"Most people say that experience is the greatest teacher, but it's really evaluated experience is the greatest teacher." - Cory Lee
How to get connected with Cory Lee
Reach out to Justin Szerletich to get in touch with Knucklehead Media Group
Knucklehead Podcast is brought to you by Manscaped- Use the Promo Code: KNUCKLEHEAD for 20% Off
Grab your COVID 19 survivor T-shirt HERE
Connect with Knucklehead Media Group
- Knucklehead Media Group is your “push button” for podcasts. We help companies and organizations tell their story using podcasts and best practices for content distribution. Home to some of the top podcasts across multiple categories, captivating coursework on gaining traction with your show, and consulting to those companies BOLD enough to get some wins. We believe your mistakes set the foundation for your success, those stories help customers beat a pathway to your doorstep, and the myths from bringing business online shouldn't hold you back from getting yours.
Click here to more episodes of the Knucklehead Podcast
Tuesday Jul 13, 2021
Tuesday Jul 13, 2021
With today's emerging technologies and the way people are being presented with opportunities, there is no doubt that “change” is the only thing constant.
Despite the belief that hustle and grind are the keys to moving forward, there are simple principles that, when given attention, will be a game changer to thrive and survive.
Principles that are helpful in business or in personal life
- Adapt to changes
- Be consistent
- Know when to stop
In today’s edition of the Knucklehead Podcast, our host, Stephen will discuss principles that can be helpful both in business and in personal life. Having gone through his own set of losses and struggles, Stephen has learned to adapt to change and stop whenever necessary.
Stephen Colon is the Founder and Chief Knucklehead at Knucklehead Media Group. He is regarded as one of the most dangerous people in podcasting. He’s committed to helping businesses leverage the power of their voice to bring dead leads to life. Built with over 13 years of professional leadership and sales development, and 8+ years of small business ownership working with companies on change management, engagement, and strategic alignment to business objectives, Knucklehead leverages a process for internal teams to follow and companies to use.
Enjoy!
This episode is brought to you by Vouris –
We’re Vouris – we’ve developed a powerful framework that allows early-stage startup companies to build stronger sales teams and hit their revenue targets.
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In This Episode
1:53 - A quick shout out to a good old friend and a look at some client milestones
5:11 - How Stephen adapted to the way the pandemic affected business
9:48 - How consistency can determine your success rate
12:59 - Why stopping is an underestimated principle in business and in personal life
Favorite Quote
"Irregardless of change or what's happening in technology and what's happening within the business world around your organization, how loyal are you to the folks that work for you? And then in turn, what kind of reasons do you give them to be loyal to you?" - Stephen Colon
"Even if you're having difficulty with your priorities, you've got to communicate that to folks who have a vested interest in the success in your life." - Stephen Colon
"If you can consistently try to get better today than what you were yesterday, it would reveal how important or what progress you made towards your consistent mid-term goals and how that plays a role in truly what's important." - Stephen Colon
"Getting consistency throughout the process gives you clarity on when you need to stop." - Stephen Colon
"The value of stopping is a severely underestimated principle in my opinion. Stopping in and reviewing gives you perspective and the value of what those things are." - Stephen Colon
Engage with Stephen Colon
Reach out to Justin Szerletich to get in touch with Knucklehead Media Group
Knucklehead Podcast is brought to you by Manscaped- Use the Promo Code: KNUCKLEHEAD for 20% Off
Grab your COVID 19 survivor T-shirt HERE
Connect with Knucklehead Media Group
- Knucklehead Media Group is your “push button” for podcasts. We help companies and organizations tell their story using podcasts and best practices for content distribution. Home to some of the top podcasts across multiple categories, captivating coursework on gaining traction with your show, and consulting to those companies BOLD enough to get some wins. We believe your mistakes set the foundation for your success, those stories help customers beat a pathway to your doorstep, and the myths from bringing business online shouldn't hold you back from getting yours.
Click here to more episodes of the Knucklehead Podcast
Monday May 17, 2021
Monday May 17, 2021
Growing up from a difficult childhood in Montana, Davin capitalized on his life experiences, reclaimed himself, and emerged victorious. Combining the discipline he learned in the military and the constant refinement of his skill set through education and networking, he is now part of the leadership team of the world's leading provider of electronic forms management, automation, and workflow.
In today's edition of the Knucklehead Podcast, our guest, Davin Marceau will talk about his military experience, his upbringing, and his deep appreciation for hard work. He will also share some great advice on how to succeed in business and life in general.
What makes people successful in business and in life:
- The ability to have more than one plan
Davin Marceau served the US Army Ranger for more than a decade gaining combat experience in multiple deployments. He is the Chief Operations Officer at ACCESS Enterprise Forms Management, a servant leader, and the co-host of the Upward Spiral Podcast. His comprehensive background in leadership, strategic planning, risk management, and business development made him a great asset in the business world.
Enjoy!
This episode is brought to you by: Vouris.com
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In This Episode
00:29 - Life of Davin Marceau as a kid
2:02 - His most unforgettable job experience
5:21 - Davin's inspiration for becoming an Army Ranger
7:39 - His perspective on what makes people successful in business and in life
9:48 - How his military experience benefits his corporate career
13:09 - His thoughts about people who wear their titles as a badge of honor
14:55 -The story of how he learned the skill of negotiation in business and in life
Favorite Quotes
"And that's really what I think makes people successful in business and in life is the ability to have more than one plan because everybody listening to this or watching this or heard of this, everybody's got a plan 'till they get punched in the face." - Davin Marceau
"I also had the ability going into business and back-filling that leadership domain and that real life domain with post-secondary education that I knew that it was never going to play itself out like I wanted to. So I have the ability to have multiple plans." - Davin Marceau
"When that plan did fail is not to dwell on it and not to let it drag me down. You just pivot real fast and move on. The ability to take and apply that from that to other elements of business, especially inside of organization has really helped ACCESS become a more agile, quickly pivoting, entrepreneurial driven organization."
"Situational variables come into play. If you don't have the ability to inject common sense and experience into that situation, you're going to fail miserably."
How to get in touch with Davin Marceau
Call (469) 668 8686
Knucklehead Podcast is brought to you by Manscaped- Use the Promo Code: KNUCKLEHEAD for 20% Off
Grab your COVID 19 survivor T-shirt HERE
Connect with Knucklehead Media Group
Website https://knucklehead.agency/
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/knuckleheadmg
Twitter https://twitter.com/knuckleheadmg
Tuesday Apr 06, 2021
Tuesday Apr 06, 2021
Feeling emotionally devastated for not getting into his dream film school, Justin capitalized on his love for numbers to gain valuable business fundamentals from executives and CEOs of Fortune 100 companies. Though he never foreseen these turn of events, the leadership and financial lessons he learned have enabled him to launch his own digital creative agency that leans toward great financial forecasts.
His advice:
- Don't be afraid to fail. Consider every business as an experiment. That way, if it fails, you know it was just an experiment.
In today’s edition of the Knucklehead Podcast, our guest, Justin Kelsey will talk about how his rejection from entering his dream film school has brought him into the financial world and now as a founder and CEO of a digital creative agency. He will also share a great community where you can network and collaborate with successful people rooting for you and your success.
Justin Kelsey is the Founder and CEO of VAXA Digital, a digital strategy and creative agency specializing in all aspects of scroll-stopping content creation, strategy, and advertising for e-commerce brands and agencies. They provide a wide array of both custom-tailored and pre-packaged solutions to ensure growth for e-commerce brands of all sizes.
In This Episode
1:39 - Justin Kelsey's digital agency
2:55 - How privacy changes from big tech companies impacted their business
7:14 - Backstory of Justin Kelsey
9:46 - List of companies he started as a kid
16:29 - How his rejection from his dream school turned him into a seasoned entrepreneur
19:22 - How he maintains a balance between serving mature businesses and developing a team
24:37 - How he discovered TRENDS and what attracted him to take action with them
Favorite Quotes
"I had my heart broken a little bit when I applied to FSU film school and did not get in. Like that was my dream of going to film school and I had no idea that that was really probably the reason I am where I am today." - Justin Kelsey
"The beautiful thing about creative is you can run it on Facebook, you can take that on YouTube, Google ads, Tik TOK or Snapchat." - Justin Kelsey
"I love the modelling side and the business side of things. That allowed me to build a nest egg. I learned a lot of really valuable business fundamentals by doing consulting for 500 companies and working with their executives and CEOs of these massive companies." - Justin Kelsey
"Most creative agencies are so ingrained in Facebook, but they're not ingrained in their own financials. They're not doing margin calculations. They're not doing forecasting for two to three years out versus that just kind of comes natural now because I was doing that all the time when I was in consulting." - Justin Kelsey
"I think that the screw ups are how you learn and those scripts should be happening every single day when you're in the stage of a new business." - Justin Kelsey
"If you can make a significant 1% improvement every day, to the previous day in terms of how your process is structured, you're going to be improving." - Justin Kelsey
"You have to have those screw ups to realize where you can improve. From there, make sure you're taking action on those. Make sure you're building something into your process. Make sure you have a process." - Justin Kelsey
"When you do make those screw ups, figure out how you can take those and turn them into some part of your process. And if you don't have a process, definitely make one because that's probably what caused that screw up in the first place." - Justin Kelsey
How to get in touch with Justin Kelsey
Linktree vaxa.digital/justin
Website vaxadigital.com
Knucklehead Podcast is brought to you by Manscaped- Use the Promo Code: KNUCKLEHEAD for 20% Off
Grab your COVID 19 survivor T-shirt HERE
Connect with Knucklehead Media Group
Website https://knucklehead.agency/
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/knuckleheadmg
Twitter https://twitter.com/knuckleheadmg
Tuesday Mar 30, 2021
Tuesday Mar 30, 2021
In today’s edition of Knucklehead Podcast, our guest, Jonny Price discusses Kiva, Wefunder, alligator infested rivers in Africa and his move from England to the States to be court his now spouse. We discuss San Francisco, his decision to leave the Bay Area and move to Nashville, as well as various other topics concerning mistakes he has made along the way, his time in Africa, fundraising and his transition from Kiva to Wefunder!
Jonny Price is the VP of Fundraising at Wefunder. He leads the fundraising team at Wefunder and makes it easier for founders to raise up to $5M in capital. Before Wefunder, he founded the U.S. team at Kiva.org, and led that for 7 years. He’s an expert in social enterprise and fintech, as well as Regulation Crowdfunding!
Wefunder is a PBC and B Corp on a mission to save the American Dream. If you're a founder looking at raising capital from your fans, as well as rich people, find them below.
Enjoy!
Get in touch with Jonny Price
Knucklehead Podcast is brought to you by Manscaped- Use the Promo Code: KNUCKLEHEAD for 20% Off
Grab your COVID 19 survivor T-shirt HERE
Connect with Knucklehead Media Group
Website https://knucklehead.agency/
Monday Mar 22, 2021
Monday Mar 22, 2021
Finding the success in the failures, Amy has taken the massive losses in the family business as a springboard to propel her into the future. Rather than using her mistakes as an excuse, she finds herself digging deeper to figure out how she can get better, do better, and recover.
In today’s edition of the Knucklehead Podcast, our guest, Amy Johannesen will tell her story of how losing $2 million of company finances and a debt of $7 million led her to become an expert in solving business problems, building teams, and serving the community. As a committed mother of five, sheSolving will also share her dedication to bringing a fresh perspective to the educational system at Rockwall ISD.
Amy Johannesen is a seasoned business owner and a Facilitator at Lynskey Management Services, specializing in helping entrepreneurs grow faster and smarter. With her 20 years of business ownership, she helps entrepreneurs solve business problems through experience and group accountability.
Enjoy!
In This Episode
4:16 - Backstory of Amy Johannesen
7:26 - How she handled the challenges of running a family business
12:42 - How Amy serves her local community
15:22 - Her perspective of what makes good school board
20:21 – Bad hiring decisions that led to $7 million debt and $2 million losses in 2011
22:15 - How they overcame the huge loss in their business finances
26:10 - The path to where her business and passion are going forward
32:52 - Her insight on dealing with failures
Favorite Quotes
"I ended up hiring a very close friend of mine to take over our finances. And so I brought her in as a trusted advisor in a high ranking member of our staff. And she took advantage of my personal relationship and the access that she had to our finances. And she ended up in embezzling nearly $300,000. That was gut-wrenching."
"The motivation behind it for me is there are things that happen in life. And so situations that you're encountered with and sometimes they don't go the way you planned. You can use that as your excuse or you can use that as your motivation to get better and to do better the next time."
"We had a commitment to our employees and staff and the decisions that you make when you're in a leadership position trickles down and affects everyone. You're responsible for your family and your livelihood but the family of everyone that you've employed as well."
"When people would ask me what I did or what was my job description, I always said I was the chief firefighter. Because when you're in an operations role, it's whack-a-mole. You're constantly just putting out fires. And that's what I did, putting out fires and removing obstacles so that we could be the best team that we could."
"My husband and I volunteer in a number of capacities within our local community, professional organizations and charitable organizations. This was just an opportunity for me to put all of my passions together, solving business problems and building teams. And obviously I care about my children because I'm a committed mother and I could put all of those passions together into the same focus and attention."
"All good teams should be made up of people from several different perspectives, different experiences that can bring all of that together for the collective good."
"Growth and progress comes from change. You can't just keep doing what you've always done and expect a different result. I think you really have to get out of your comfort zone some time and friction puts out the best possible outcome."
"As a small business owner, you know how hard it is when you're just keeping your head above water and you can get really overwhelmed when you carry the weight of the world like that. And so it's a great community to be able to bring people together and provide that for them."
"The struggle that we have with our company, as low as we were, we were able to turn that around in two years through a lot of grit and perseverance and hard work."
Get in touch with Amy Johannesen
Lynskey Management Services Website
Amy Johannesen for Local School Board
Knucklehead Podcast is brought to you by Manscaped- Use the Promo Code: KNUCKLEHEAD for 20% Off
Grab your COVID 19 survivor T-shirt HERE
Connect with Knucklehead Media Group
Website https://knucklehead.agency/
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/knuckleheadmg
Twitter https://twitter.com/knuckleheadmg
Tuesday Mar 09, 2021
Tuesday Mar 09, 2021
Hardwired with the desire to protect others, Mark has been involved with different institutions to protect and serve people. Capitalizing on the expertise he gained, he has now developed a system that provides solutions to safety needs including emergency response, executive protection, and asset protection.
His advice on how to conduct business with someone from outside your country:
- Have a retainer and contract written by an attorney according to state law
- Report your taxes
In today’s edition of Knucklehead Podcast, our guest, Mark Ledlow will discuss topics concerning teenage psychology, the ropes of the security business, and his screw-up that cost him thousands of dollars. He will also share best practices and valuable advice about dealing business in the security industry.
Mark Ledlow is a Marine Corps Veteran and Owner at Ledlow Security Group. His executive protection experience includes working with dignitaries and royal families. Ledlow Security Group offers threat assessment /risk assessment services to provide solutions to safety needs. They are a group of professionals with law enforcement and military backgrounds.
Enjoy!
In This Episode
5:17 - Backstory of Mark Ledlow
9:06 - The psychology of adolescents
10:06 - The relationship between juvenile corrections and security business
11:45 - A sample scenario where people ask for security services
13:26 - What motivates him to venture into the business of security services
16:08 - A mistake that cost thousands of dollars in losses
18:27 - The biggest lesson he learned from his screw-up
21:52 - His mindset about failures and screw-ups
23:23 - Why people need to listen to his podcast
24:37 - His advice and best practices for running a security business
Favorite Quotes
"We're working for a Middle East Royal family in Beverly Hills and we have American culture while they have Sri Lankan culture. And that's the two different cultures that a lot of security agents, execs protection agents really struggle with. I was just being friendly. And two days later I got fired because I was being too nosy in his custom. That mistake cost me $20,000 for that month of work."
"My DNA has always been wired to protect. From firefighting and to law enforcement corrections, always protecting the public interest."
"What you're dealing with is the psychology of those adolescents. They live in chaos. The minute you give them structure and organization and the detention center give them routine, they snap because in their role, they come from chaos."
"The biggest problem I see in the security industry is the handshake and verbal. You can lose hundreds of thousand dollars just over that. The verbal agreement or the handshake means nothing in court of law."
Get in touch with Mark Ledlow
Knucklehead Podcast is brought to you by Manscaped- Use the Promo Code: KNUCKLEHEAD for 20% Off
Grab your COVID 19 survivor T-shirt HERE
Connect with Knucklehead Media Group
Website https://knucklehead.agency/
Monday Jan 25, 2021
Monday Jan 25, 2021
Realizing the broken system in how the society operates in terms of education, race, and business opportunities, “Iron” Mike has designed an ecosystem of boxing and entrepreneurship as a way to uplift young men and women of color in Newark. His goal of creating champions both inside and outside of the ring not just built an opportunity to generate income with the brand through their corporate wellness offerings but also provided entrepreneurial education to inner-city youth and young adults across the country.
Today’s edition of the Knucklehead Podcast, Stephen will have a transparent conversation with today’s guest, “IRON” Mike Steadman. Seeing the gap between boxing and the opportunities that come with it, Mike will share his process about how he uses boxing to make a positive impact and uplift the lives of the people in poor communities.
“IRON” Mike Steadman is the CEO and Founder of IRONBOUND Boxing and oversees all aspects of their corporate and community activities. Mike is a three-time National Collegiate Boxing Champion from the United States Naval Academy and was a Marine Corps Infantry Officer, with deployments to Afghanistan and Japan/Philippines.
IRONBOUND Boxing is a health and wellness company in the NYC Metro Area. They connect companies, organizations, and communities with on-site boxing instructors. Their goal is to use the transformative powers of boxing to create champions both inside and outside of the ring. As an organization, they’re committed to providing free amateur boxing training, entrepreneurial education, and employment opportunities to inner-city youth & young adults.
Enjoy!
In This Episode
3:20 - Backstory of “IRON” Mike Steadman
6:51 - Some of the mistakes he made during the early phase of corporate boxing
9:21 - Why Mike felt that boxing was the way to connect with his audience
12:23 - His opinion on why we tend to hear about what makes us different rather than what we share in common
16:40 - The beauty of boxing gym in the inner city
18:36 - The difference between somebody who wins and someone who always wins
22:42 - Instances where problems cannot be solved because they originated from the system itself
28:30 - One of the core values of Ironbound Boxing
31:30 - Mike's biggest screw up
Favorite Quotes
"I wasted so much time, energy on the negative self-talk telling myself I'm not a systems guy and all this kind of stuff. And then finally just having a peer group that supports you, and then you're like, man I could have been doing this all along." - Mike
"Our goal is not to create champions just in the ring, we want to carry them out of the ring as well." - Mike
"One of the mistakes I made early on with corporate boxing was I didn't validate the business model. A lot of times we try to force stuff on the marketplace. But before we commit to it and build a business around it, can you validate that someone is willing to pay you for that product or service before you launch. I didn't do that with corporate boxing." - Mike
"I found that boxing was my community. I go into a boxing gym, there's a bunch of people that look like me. We have this amazing sport that's touching youth in the poorest of poor communities all across the country." - Mike
"Boxing is a grimy, gritty sport in the hood. But we can be entrepreneurs, we can go to college, and we can do whatever we want." - Mike
"On the other side of that pain and struggle is typically something significantly, more valuable than you trying to avoid whatever pain or struggle you were going through before." - Stephen
"I love how you kind of systematized how boxing leads to a more robust or versatile context, switching opportunities for folks who come from relatively low income areas. And I admire that you're doing that for kids and you recognize it as an opportunity to actually instill entrepreneurial values or individual responsibility by teaching them something like boxing because it's gritty." - Stephen
"I think a lot of times, we're trying to force this stuff, the tutoring program and all this stuff. But at the end of the day, kids are human beings too. They're trying to survive and thrive. Box and teach them how to defend themselves, protect themselves, survivors thrive." - Mike
"Boxing is part of my core and it just allows me to be innovative." - Mike
"Solving the problem isn't necessarily oriented through the lens of race in my opinion. It's the approach of looking at people as they’re people and recognizing the environment. Meet people where they're at." - Stephen
"It's the rehabilitation process of helping somebody escape that mindset and getting into this individual responsibility mindset. That's the problem that we're trying to solve." - Stephen
"One thing we've got to realize too is I think a lot of times you can't solve problems with the solutions and the systems that created them in the first place." - Mike
"The reality is, different cultures have different needs." - Mike
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