The Unconventional Path: Entrepreneurship and Innovation Stories and Ideas.

We did it, we hit 100 podcasts! It took a bit over two years to get here and it's been a blast. Getting to 100 is a significant milestone in the podcasting world. In this episode, we reflect a bit on things we have learned and make a few observations. We then discuss taking the podcast through a pivot and changing things up for the future. As always, we love to hear from our listeners, send us your questions, comments, and suggestions at bela.and.mike@gmail.com. Thanks for listening, Bela and Mike

Today we are going to do something different. Mike and I are going to interview each other. We thought it would be a bit of fun for each of us to share some of our background and history with you, our listeners. Hope you enjoy it! We love to hear from our listeners, send us your questions, comments, and suggestions at bela.and.mike@gmail.com - we will answer your questions in a future episode. Thanks for listening, Bela and Mike

What happens when best friends start a business, with little preparation, scarce resources, but a lot of big ideas and energy? It is not always smooth sailing, but according to our guest this week, that's all part of the fun of entrepreneurship. This week's guest is Doug Weisz. Doug is Owner/General Manager of Evergreen Subaru, in Auburn Maine, and, not coincidentally, Mike's best friend for 40 years. We discuss several keys to making a career pivot, and managing through the stress and uncertainty of a startup. Doug talks about the pros and cons of getting into business with friends, and talks about the need to develop healthy habits for stress reduction. He also gives us some great insights into the challenges of managing a retail business amid the coronavirus pandemic. You can take a look at Doug's business at www.evergreensubaru.com We love to hear from our listeners, send us your questions, comments, and suggestions at bela.and.mike@gmail.com - we will answer your questions in a future episode. Thanks for listening, Bela and Mike

This week's guest is Dean Iacovetti. Dean is the founder of Vanta Partners. His company finds talent for other small to medium size companies. He started his career as a recruiter in larger companies and then took the big step of starting his own business. We discuss how finding talent is a skill. If you are the CEO of a business, focus on your business, let a recruiter find talent for you. The recruiter can sort through the big pile of resumes and present to you the top-5, then you can interview and select which one fits the best We discuss how talent is one of the most important resources you have in your business and how good recruiters can help you figure out what you need and when. We love to hear from our listeners, send us your questions, comments, and suggestions at bela.and.mike@gmail.com - we will answer your questions in a future episode. Thanks for listening, Bela and Mike

Today we are excited to be joined by Stephen Halasnik. Stephen is Managing Partner of Financing Solutions, which provides financing to small businesses. He is also a serial entrepreneur, podcast host, and author of the book CRASH and LEARN: Lessons in Business. You can find Financing Solutions here: https://financingsolutionsnow.com/ We love to hear from our listeners, send us your questions, comments, and suggestions at bela.and.mike@gmail.com - we will answer your questions in a future episode. Thanks for listening, Bela and Mike

Today we are excited to be joined by Mike Saccocio. Mike is Executive Director at the City Mission of Schenectady, New York. This was maybe our favorite interview that we have ever done. It was fascinating how Mike turned a negative into a positive with the downtown ambassador program. Just pure genius. A complete win-win. When we look at the social unrest in the US, and the wide range of causes of the social problems that we see throughout the US, this kind of innovation needs to be multiplied in every city and town across the country. Put down your phone and help be part of the solutions. Not just in terms of the homeless, but so many issues related to prejudice, addiction, health and nutrition, education, and domestic violence. There are so many complex problems. The world needs more people to think and act like Mike. We love to hear from our listeners, send us your questions, comments, and suggestions at bela.and.mike@gmail.com - we will answer your questions in a future episode. Thanks for listening, Bela and Mike

Today we are excited to be joined by Janis Milham. Janis is the Senior Vice President and Global Brand Leader at Marriott. She is responsible for several of Marriott's major brands including Courtyard, Fairfield, Four Points, Residence Inn, and several others. We had a great conversation about the importance of building your brand and how successful brands maintain customer loyalty. We love to hear from our listeners, send us your questions, comments, and suggestions at bela.and.mike@gmail.com - we will answer your questions in a future episode. Thanks for listening, Bela and Mike

Today we are excited to be joined by Franz Amussen. Franz is an entrepreneur, a financial advisor, an avid podcaster, and a sailor. Franz is a co-founder of Amussen Hunsaker & Associates, Inc., now called Iron Gate Global Advisors, based in Salt Lake City, Utah. He is also an active angel investor and produces several podcasts including one of my favorite sailing podcasts titled Sailing the Mediterranean and Beyond Here is a link to his Sailing Podcast: https://www.medsailor.com/ This is a list of Franz's Podcasts: Sailing in the Mediterranean and Beyond Podcast Series 7 Podcast SIE Podcast (Securities Industry Essentials Podcast) REexamPodcast.com Insurance Exam podcast FilmFestPodcast We love to hear from our listeners, send us your questions, comments, and suggestions at bela.and.mike@gmail.com - we will answer your questions in a future episode. Thanks for listening, Bela and Mike

Today we are excited to be joined by Henry Daas. Henry is a serial entrepreneur, author, and coach for entrepreneurs. His approach to coaching is one that is customized to each client. His book is called FQ: Financial Intelligence. Check out Henry's web page and his book here: http://henrydaas.com/ We love to hear from our listeners, send us your questions, comments, and suggestions at bela.and.mike@gmail.com - we will answer your questions in a future episode. Thanks for listening, Bela & Mike

Today we are excited to be joined by Magda (Khelifa) Khalifa. Magda is the founder of a line of fragrances called Triangle Fragrance. But, her path to becoming an entrepreneur was definitely unconventional. Magda founded her business after serving in the US military, and authored the book American DREAM: Discipline, Resilience, Endurance, Adaptability, and Mentorship to Succeed and Win in Life. Check out Triangle Fragrance's web page here: https://trianglefragrance.com/ Check out Magda's book here: https://www.amazon.com/American-DREAM-Discipline-Resilience-Adaptability-ebook/dp/B07YVPV24P We love to hear from our listeners, send us your questions, comments, and suggestions at bela.and.mike@gmail.com - we will answer your questions in a future episode. Thanks for listening, Bela and Mike