Faith Driven Entrepreneur

Last year, on a single porn site alone, people watched 4.6 billion hours worth of pornographic videos. That’s around 5,000 centuries worth of time.Clearly, sexual Brokenness is a problem. But that’s not new. What is new is how Jay Stringer, author of Unwanted: How Sexual Brokenness Reveals Our Way to Healing, is helping us understand this subject. Instead of looking for new techniques of “lust management,” Jay is working to encourage people to address their sexual brokenness and the core issues surrounding it.Jay has found that facing what is difficult in our own lives helps us move down the path of healing. And if you’re an entrepreneur who wants to better handle difficulties in your professional life, you have to deal with the difficulties in your personal life. Even if sexual brokenness doesn’t sound like a primary struggle for you, the statistics Jay shares will make it clear that if you have more than one employee, odds are you know someone who is dealing with this issue. And that’s why we wanted to talk about this.We hope this conversation helps you open the door to address the things you’re struggling with, and also to have conversations with those around you. We are firm believers that, as Jay says, “When God sees us, He moves in toward human brokenness, He doesn’t remove Himself from it.” We want to be people who do the same. Thanks for listening and for being on this journey with us.Useful Links:Jay Stringer’s Personal WebsiteConfronting Unwanted Sexual Behavior: The Spiritually Healthy LeaderThe Heart of Man Journey

Casey Crawford, a Super Bowl champion and CEO of Movement Mortgage, dives deep into the uncomfortable realities of entrepreneurial life intertwined with faith. He challenges the notion that Christians are called to comfort, reflecting on the struggles faced by biblical figures. Topics like ethical business practices, the transformative potential of financial services, and maintaining a strong organizational culture are explored passionately. Crawford’s insights aim to inspire believers to prioritize God's kingdom and cultivate genuine care in the workplace.

On today’s episode, we invited Max Anderson to come in and help us tackle a difficult yet important topic—depression among entrepreneurs. Max is an entrepreneur and a writer. Each week, he writes something called The Weekend Reader, where he explores one big idea from culture with a handful of suggested articles. Recently, he dove into how depression affects entrepreneurs, and what he found was staggering—entrepreneurs are anywhere from 2-10x more likely to suffer from mental challenges. It’s a topic that’s extremely important, yet remarkably under-discussed, so we thought that with Max’s help we’d push the conversation forward today... Our hope in bringing this topic to light is that if you, or someone you know, is suffering from depression, that you could take the necessary steps to get help. We know this isn’t easy, and we also know that it’s not necessarily a fun topic to talk about. But it matters. And we’re grateful to Max for bringing this topic to our attention and for also helping us talk about it We follow a God who cares deeply about His Creation, and that includes you! While much of this podcast is dedicated to stories of success, failure, and everything in between, we hope this episode meets you where you’re at and gives you some encouragement along the way. As always, thanks for listening. Useful Links: The Weekend Reader Entrepreneurship and Depression WSJ - Beyond the Confetti: The Darkside of Startup Success

Our friend Frank Chen is the final guest in this 4-part series on the Faith Driven Investor. And he stopped by to talk about how he’s helping entrepreneurs change the World at the Silicon Valley Venture powerhouse of Andreessen Horowitz. As Frank describes it they are “helping entrepreneurs build software companies that are eating the world” (he’ll give you a little more info about what that means in our interview). Frank Chen is a self proclaimed former product and user experience design junkie with specialties in venture capital, artificial intelligence/machine learning, fund raising, product planning, product launches, product development process, enterprise software, UX design, Web hosting, and managed services. With a breadth of expertise like that, you can see why we were excited to have him on the show! But even after all of that, Frank let us in on what his heart as an investor looks like. He pulled aside the curtain a bit and let us see that investors aren’t so much the terrifying titans up on the hill as they are servant leaders who want to help others be successful. It was a fun, enlightening and engaging conversation. We hope you enjoy it, and as always, thanks for listening. Useful Links: Marc Andreessen on Why Software is Eating the World GDP/Capita over the last 2000 Years Frank Chen LinkedIn

We’ve got a good one for you today. Nathan Sheets is CEO of Nature Nate’s Honey, and he was also involved with I Am Second,and E3, and you’ll hear a bit of all of those stories. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. When we sat down to talk to Nathan, we had no idea how deep he was going to take us. Right away, he opened up about the ups and downs he has gone through with a level of candor that we couldn’t even believe. If you’re looking for what life as an entrepreneur looks like—and we mean, really looks like—Nathan Sheets has a no holds barred take on the entrepreneurial journey. Image management is a struggle that everyone faces, but it’s one that we rarely address. And for entrepreneurs, this issue is especially acute. Because as an entrepreneur, you have to look like you have it all together, right? You’ve got employees and shareholders relying on you—the leader. That type of pressure creates a situation where it’s all too easy to want to hide behind a manufactured version of ourselves. And Nathan Sheets told us exactly what that pressure looks like and exactly where it can take you. We’re so grateful that he was willing to open up and be completely honest with us, and we hope his story about the pitfalls of struggling alone—and the need for real, true community—will serve as both a warning sign and an encouragement to you on your journey. As always, thanks for listening. Useful Links How to Turn Honey into Liquid Gold Sweet Second Chances - Bonton Honey Nathan Sheets: Entrepreneur of the Year 2017 Award Finalist Turning a Honey Hobby into a Business

Faith-Based Employee Resource Groups. This term may be new to you, or it may be something you’re already participating in. Either way, this episode is for you. Christeen Rico is leading the conversation around ERGs, and what she shared in our conversation was both informative and insightful. If you don’t know, ERGs are groups within companies that foster community and conversation among like-minded people. Companies like Apple, Google, Facebook, Toyota, and many more are creating these types of groups, so we’re grateful that Christeen dropped by to give us the inside scoop. If you’re an entrepreneur looking for ways to foster faith-based conversations within your business, Christeen will tell you exactly what it takes to form these groups. Or, if you’re an investor looking to get involved with companies that already have ERGs, Christeen will help you understand why these groups are important and how they add value. Apart from that, Christeen was also a fun person to spend time with, and we think you’ll find this episode one worth listening to. Enjoy! Useful Links: Christeen Rico LinkedIn Companies with Employee Resource Groups Work and Faith Workshop Faith and Work Movement

Imagine you’re walking into a car dealership to buy a new car. Now, most people don’t associate that thought with a pleasant experience—there’s negotiation, uncertainty, and the inevitability of a big purchase. But Don Flow and Flow Automotive set out to change this idea, and in doing so, they created a business founded on values and principles that manifest themselves in these words: exercise faith, live love, and bring hope. That sounds better! In this episode, Don Flow opened up a fire hydrant of business wisdom and counsel ranging from what it means to create a covenant with your customers, how you can be the type of business that causes others to rejoice at your success, and why you should show respect before you earn respect. We could go on and on about the things we loved from this conversation, but we think it’s best you listen for yourself. Enjoy! Useful Links: Driving Trust: Don Flow Video Story 2017 Distinguished Alumni Award: Don Flow In Search of Excellence Book

Today’s episode takes us to Silicon Valley to connect with Trae Stephens. You may have seen Trae on CNBC, or you may know him as one of the Partners at Founders Fund. It was an honor to have Trae on to share about his experiences—everything from his time in politics working for Congressmen and in Embassies to now working alongside Peter Thiel. Trae also shares about his life as a Christ-Follower and how it shapes his view of the investing world. In particular, Trae outlines what it means for an entrepreneur to be an outlier. He describes the difference between business ideas that fit into a certain pre-existing category and those that break every mold out there. He also shares cautionary advice about what not to do as an entrepreneur. His perspective as a venture capitalist is helpful to listen to for both investors and entrepreneurs alike. But this podcast doesn’t stop there. As you know, we’re always approaching the conversation of entrepreneurship and investing from a faith-driven perspective. Trae is no exception. In this podcast, he talks about the different areas of theology and philosophy that inform his worldview. Specifically, he goes into detail about the innate tendency of all human beings to imitate something or someone. Here, he reminds us specifically of Ephesians 5:1, “Be imitators of God…” When Trae talks about his relationship with God, you’ll hear both his personal faith journey—what it means to imitate Christ as a venture capitalist and how Silicon Valley opens the door for him to share his faith—and what he thinks about the global Christian movement. He invites listeners to consider what it would look like to be co-creators alongside God, with references to how God and Adam interacted in the Garden of Eden. Our team had a blast catching up with Trae, as it felt like he covered dozens of topics with the fluency of an expert. His intellect and skill are on full display in this interview, but so is his spirit and heart behind what it means to be a faith driven entrepreneur and what faith driven investors can do to create value, not only for themselves, but for the world. We hope you enjoy this episode and pray that it encourages you on your journey! Useful Links: Rene Girard Explains Mimetic Desires Founders Fund Trae Stephens Interview with Fortune

Today’s guest, Sanyin Siang, is the executive director for the Coach K Center on Leadership & Ethics (COLE) at Duke University's Fuqua School of Business and a professor with its Pratt School of Engineer. She is an advisor for Google Ventures (GV), Sports Innovation Labs, Duke Corporate Education and author of The Launch Book: Motivational Stories to Launch Your Idea, Business, or Next Career. If that list isn’t enough to get you to press play on this episode, you should also know that she has over 1 million followers on LinkedIn. Yet, while that is something we felt eager to point out, she shared how she has had to learn to hold on loosely to that following, which was some advice all of us in this busy social-media-driven world needed to hear. In our conversation, she shared why she recently took some time to write her own obituary. Turns out she realized that what she wants to be remembered for isn’t her professional success, or even her number of followers—it’s something bigger and more important than both of these... Listen in to hear the difference between enabling and chasing greatness, what Coach K does to inspire both 19-year-old college athletes and the superstar NBA players on Team USA, and why planning your life with the end in mind might give you some clarity you didn’t even know you needed. Happy listening! Useful Links: How Coach K Wins Consistently 3 Lessons From Sports for Effective Storytelling LinkedIn

When we first learned about Apartment Life it sounded too good to be true. The work they do in apartment complexes improves their overall financial performance, grows their online reputation, and strengthens their resident retention rates. With benefits like these, it’s no surprise that they’re taking off, now serving over 3 million residents from coast to coast. In this episode, Pete Kelly explains just how they do it. We believe this podcast is especially valuable to you for two reasons. One, you get to hear about an incredible business venture in Apartment Life. There’s no doubt you’ll be hearing more about them in the future, and we’re glad we get to share about them early on in this podcast. And two, you get to hear the heart behind the business. Pete Kelly is one of those business leaders who puts his heart into what he’s doing, and it shows in this interview. We’re excited for you to hear about Apartment Life and the potential they have in the real estate market. But even more so, this podcast gives you the opportunity to hear from a business leader about how his values affect his business and how everything he does serves other people. Tune in and enjoy! Useful Links: Apartment Life Best Resources for Real Estate Investing Interview with Pete Kelly Neighborliness on Faith Driven Investor