Ambition Today, Startup Stories with Kevin Siskar

In the fall we sat down with one of the godfathers of Venture Capital, Jordan Levy, who shares his very inspiring founder story and how that led to his career as an investor.

Jordan co-founded Software Distribution Services which was acquired by Ingram Micro, before going on to be a Partner on the early-stage investing team at SoftBank Capital (SBNY) for 16 years.

Jordan has served on the boards of BuzzFeed, TalkSpace, Work Market, ACV Auctions, and many others. Using his upbringing and religion to pay it forward (Tzedakah) to the community that he grew up in, in Buffalo, New York. Jordy also co-founded Z80 Labs, a startup incubator in Buffalo, and 43North, an accelerator that hosts an annual startup competition, investing $5M per year in Buffalo, NY. We cover a lot of ground in this episode, including:

Topics Discussed:

• Building Software Distribution Services in the early days of venture capital.

• How to think about the private vs public markets.

• The intricacies of SPACs vs the IPO.

• Lessons learned from decades of investments.

• Betting on the first days of the internet and what has changed since.

• Investing through the dot com boom and bust.

• How ACV Auctions re-defined the auto market.

• The importance of investing in people over markets, trends, and other aspects of the business.

Quote of the Episode:

“You invest in the people and I will always believe that” and “if you don’t think someone can take this company to the promised land, then don’t invest in them.”

The Greatest Piece of Advice:

As his grandmother passed down to him, “never go to bed angry with your wife.”

Links & show notes from this episode:

• Jordan Levy’s Bio

• Jordan Levy on LinkedIn

• Jordan Levy on Twitter

• Finta

• 43North

Follow Kevin Siskar on Twitter: ​twitter.com/TheSiskar

Follow Kevin Siskar on Instagram: instagram.com/thesiskar

Follow Kevin Siskar on Facebook: facebook.com/kevin.siskar

Add Kevin Siskar on Snapchat: snapchat.com/add/krsiskar

Kevin Siskar brings you ambitious entrepreneurs inspired by Tim Ferriss Show, How I Built This with Guy Raz, Residual Income, Entrepreneur on Fire, NPR, HBR, TED Radio Hour, the StartUp podcast with Alex Blumberg by Gimlet Media, Pat Flynn, Tony Robbins, The Uncertain Hour, Bigger Pockets, Art of Charm, Dave Ramsey, Planet Money, Jocko Podcast, EntreLeadership, Zigler, APM Marketplace, This Week In Startups with Jason Calacanis, Mixergy, Seth Godin, Joe Rogan Experience, GaryVee, James Altucher, Monocle 24, How to Start a Startup, Crooked Media, and The $100 MBA Show with Omar Zenhom, and Casey Neistat.

Be sure to listen and subscribe to Ambition Today in the iTunes Store for iOS (apple.co/1NRRPzL), on Google Play Music (goo.gl/LmmciJ), or on Stitcher for Android (bit.ly/1Rn01dy).

Scott Wayman's shares his epically inspiring founder story. His passion for Kangarootime is next level and the company is currently focused on winning the childcare management software space for daycares and preschools. With plans to expand to the larger “care economy” which includes not only early education & childcare but also elder & senior care. A $648B TAM in the U.S. Alone according to Melinda Gate's Pivotal Ventures.

The Kangarootime team brilliantly positioned themselves throughout COVID19 as leaders in the space, by taking time to host educational sessions about how their customers can best adapt their centers, as well as quickly shipping new features such as contactless check-in/out, health checks, and more. I have personally watched Scott relentlessly grow this company from their early days at Founder Institute, through several investments from 43North, and was very excited to sit down with him for this episode.

==========
Visit Ambition Today on the Web: ​www.siskar.co/ambitiontoday Follow Kevin Siskar on Twitter: ​twitter.com/TheSiskar
Follow Kevin Siskar on Instagram: instagram.com/thesiskar Follow Kevin Siskar on Facebook: facebook.com/kevin.siskar Add Kevin Siskar on Snapchat: snapchat.com/add/krsiskar

Kevin Siskar brings you ambitious entrepreneurs inspired by Tim Ferriss Show, How I Built This with Guy Raz, Residual Income, Entrepreneur on Fire, NPR, HBR, TED Radio Hour, the StartUp podcast with Alex Blumberg by Gimlet Media, Pat Flynn, Tony Robbins, The Uncertain Hour, Bigger Pockets, Art of Charm, Dave Ramsey, Planet Money, Jocko Podcast, EntreLeadership, Zigler, APM Marketplace, This Week In Startups with Jason Calacanis, Mixergy, Seth Godin, Joe Rogan Experience, GaryVee, James Altucher, Monocle 24, How to Start a Startup, Crooked Media, and The $100 MBA Show with Omar Zenhom, and Casey Neistat.

Be sure to listen and subscribe to Ambition Today in the iTunes Store for iOS (apple.co/1NRRPzL), on Google Play Music (goo.gl/LmmciJ), or on Stitcher for Android (bit.ly/1Rn01dy).

Pete Kazanjy is Ambition Today’s new guest from Southern California. He is sitting in San Francisco, CA right now as we speak, enjoying Alamo Square.

He is a serial founder and seasoned early stage Saas executive, advisor, and investor. Pete has cofounded many companies including TalentBin, Modern Sales, and Atrium. He is also an author of “Founding Sales”.

He went to Stanford where he learned English and Philosophy.

Pete is still going strong and has a lot to offer his clients, be sure to read his book “Founding Sales”, a Startup Sales Handbook.

Topics Discussed:

• Branding and Design

• Go-to-Market and Marketing Strategies

• Product Development

• Hiring and On-Boarding

• Sales, Revenue, and Accounting

• Work-life balance

• End Game

Quote of the Episode:

“Three main rules: focus, focus, focus”.

The Greatest Piece of Advice:
Checkout the podcast’s back channel, The A-List where you can listen to exclusive audio clips containing the single greatest piece of advice our guests have ever learned!

Links & show notes from this episode:

• Atrium

• Peter’s Bio

• Founding Sales

• Connect with Peter on LinkedIn

• Connect with Peter on Twitter

• Finta

==========
Visit Ambition Today on the Web: ​www.siskar.co/ambitiontoday
Follow Kevin Siskar on Twitter: ​twitter.com/TheSiskar
Follow Kevin Siskar on Instagram: instagram.com/thesiskar
Follow Kevin Siskar on Facebook: facebook.com/kevin.siskar
Add Kevin Siskar on Snapchat: snapchat.com/add/krsiskar

Kevin Siskar brings you ambitious entrepreneurs inspired by Tim Ferriss Show, How I Built This with Guy Raz, Residual Income, Entrepreneur on Fire, NPR, HBR, TED Radio Hour, the StartUp podcast with Alex Blumberg by Gimlet Media, Pat Flynn, Tony Robbins, The Uncertain Hour, Bigger Pockets, Art of Charm, Dave Ramsey, Planet Money, Jocko Podcast, EntreLeadership, Zigler, APM Marketplace, This Week In Startups with Jason Calacanis, Mixergy, Seth Godin, Joe Rogan Experience, GaryVee, James Altucher, Monocle 24, How to Start a Startup, Crooked Media, and The $100 MBA Show with Omar Zenhom, and Casey Neistat.

Be sure to listen and subscribe to Ambition Today in the iTunes Store for iOS (apple.co/1NRRPzL), on Google Play Music (goo.gl/LmmciJ), or on Stitcher for Android (bit.ly/1Rn01dy).

From growing up on a dairy farm, to a successful entrepreneur with hundreds of employees, meet our next guest, Jack Greco. Greco co-founded ACV Auctions, an online auction dealer platform, which was last valued at $1.5B. He never thought that he would be the person to co-found Buffalo’s first unicorn startup in 2014. The great part is the story behind his success. He later reveals to Kevin that he has been fired from every job before he became a founder, and what kicked him in gear, was learning that he had a baby on the way. Every success story is different, and I think this is great for our audience to hear, and prove to you, never give up, or think that you are not worth something because you got fired! Pick your feet up and move on!

As of 2018, Greco left ACV Auctions and is now an angel investor. To date, he has invested in over 50 companies and is trying his hardest to maintain a quality work-life balance for his son.

Topics Discussed:

• A little background on Jack Greco

• Unicorn Start-Up

• Angel investing in 50 companies

• Working with others

• Covid effects on the world

• Work-life balance

• Mental Health

• Having a coach is so important

• Buffalo Bridge

Quote of the Episode:

“This [ACV Auctions] is a great learning experience, and it will shape who I am going to be as an investor, a mentor, executive, father, for the rest of my life.” - Jack Greco

The Greatest Piece of Advice:
Checkout the podcast’s back channel, The A-List where you can listen to exclusive audio clips containing the single greatest piece of advice our guests have ever learned!

Links & show notes from this episode:

• ACV Auctions

• Connect with Jack on LinkedIn

• Connect with Jack on Twitter

• Buffalo Bridge

• Finta

==========
Visit Ambition Today on the Web: ​www.siskar.co/ambitiontoday
Follow Kevin Siskar on Twitter: ​twitter.com/TheSiskar
Follow Kevin Siskar on Instagram: instagram.com/thesiskar
Follow Kevin Siskar on Facebook: facebook.com/kevin.siskar
Add Kevin Siskar on Snapchat: snapchat.com/add/krsiskar

Kevin Siskar brings you ambitious entrepreneurs inspired by Tim Ferriss Show, How I Built This with Guy Raz, Residual Income, Entrepreneur on Fire, NPR, HBR, TED Radio Hour, the StartUp podcast with Alex Blumberg by Gimlet Media, Pat Flynn, Tony Robbins, The Uncertain Hour, Bigger Pockets, Art of Charm, Dave Ramsey, Planet Money, Jocko Podcast, EntreLeadership, Zigler, APM Marketplace, This Week In Startups with Jason Calacanis, Mixergy, Seth Godin, Joe Rogan Experience, GaryVee, James Altucher, Monocle 24, How to Start a Startup, Crooked Media, and The $100 MBA Show with Omar Zenhom, and Casey Neistat.

Be sure to listen and subscribe to Ambition Today in the iTunes Store for iOS (apple.co/1NRRPzL), on Google Play Music (goo.gl/LmmciJ), or on Stitcher for Android (bit.ly/1Rn01dy).

Kevin Siskar and Tim Shisler are at it again, discussing the current news in our world today. Each person brings one topic to the table and they talk about them both.

Kevin’s Topic: The Future of American Cities. Kevin starts by discussing how he lived in NYC for a full decade and how he has seen the cost of living has increased significantly, but at the same time, the storefronts are leaving! This is due to the commercial investors also increasing their rent too much where small shops are no longer able to handle the cost. Kevin found a statistic: 50% of all restaurants in NYC are going to close due to COVID 19, currently being 12,000 being closed already. So many people think the city and other big cities are dying, but looking at the next few years, will the economy be able to come back?

Tim’s Topic: Working from home, the rise of remote work! Tim talks about how it was hard to transition for him to remote work once COVID-19 forced a lot of our workforce to remote. It is a lot about having a plan and being diligent about time and how you carve it out. Routine is key. There is a fine line between work life and home life, the separation needs to be balanced. Should you be working at 8pm when you have a significant other? When working in an office, the commute is there to help you shift out of work mode, what do you do when you are working from home. This is also the time where it really shines on the people that really care about their work, vs. the people that were just working to have a job. This is a big topic right now, because working from home is definitely not for everyone.

Tune in to hear what Tim and Kevin have to say about this week’s topics!

==========
Visit Ambition Today on the Web: ​www.siskar.co/ambitiontoday
Follow Kevin Siskar on Twitter: ​twitter.com/TheSiskar
Follow Kevin Siskar on Instagram: instagram.com/thesiskar
Follow Kevin Siskar on Facebook: facebook.com/kevin.siskar
Add Kevin Siskar on Snapchat: snapchat.com/add/krsiskar

Kevin Siskar brings you ambitious entrepreneurs inspired by Tim Ferriss Show, How I Built This with Guy Raz, Residual Income, Entrepreneur on Fire, NPR, HBR, TED Radio Hour, the StartUp podcast with Alex Blumberg by Gimlet Media, Pat Flynn, Tony Robbins, The Uncertain Hour, Bigger Pockets, Art of Charm, Dave Ramsey, Planet Money, Jocko Podcast, EntreLeadership, Zigler, APM Marketplace, This Week In Startups with Jason Calacanis, Mixergy, Seth Godin, Joe Rogan Experience, GaryVee, James Altucher, Monocle 24, How to Start a Startup, Crooked Media, and The $100 MBA Show with Omar Zenhom, and Casey Neistat.

Be sure to listen and subscribe to Ambition Today in the iTunes Store for iOS (apple.co/1NRRPzL), on Google Play Music (goo.gl/LmmciJ), or on Stitcher for Android (bit.ly/1Rn01dy).

Our next guest is so amazing, we had to interview him a second time! He was on nearly 5 years ago on Episode 8! Jeff Wald is an entrepreneur who has started three technology companies, with his latest company, WorkMarket, being sold to ADP. Monday was officially his last day. He is a Board Member on the following boards: Steel Connect, Costar Technologies, TransfrVR, Peerless Systems, and Register.com. But the true reason we brought him on the podcast today was to talk about his book, “The Rise of On-Demand Workers and Agile Corporations”. Tune in to hear all about his book as well as statistics regarding the workforce in 2020:

Topics Discussed:

• What is it like to sell a company?

• Remote working

• Social Squads

• The goal of the meeting

• Mechanization

• Electrification

• Computerization

• Abusing Powers

Quote of the Episode:

“Every time {we revolutionize} we ended up with more jobs, at a higher standard of living, with working fewer hours, that is definitively clear through history.”

The Greatest Piece of Advice:
Join the podcast’s backchannel, The A-List where members can listen to exclusive A-list bonus clips and get the single greatest piece of advice our guests have ever learned!

Links & show notes from this episode:

• The End of Jobs Book on Amazon

• Jeff on LinkedIn

• Jeff on Twitter

• WorkMarket

In this new episode, Kevin Siskar and Tim Shisler discuss the current news in our world today. Each week, each person brings one topic to the table.

This week Tim chose to talk about the sad passing of former Associate Judge, Ruth Bader Ginsburg on September 18, 2020. She passed away after complications of metastatic pancreatic cancer.

And brought Facebook to the table. There are real issues with Facebook. Everything from the false advertising that Facebook is not taking responsibility for, mental health issues stemming from addiction to Facebook, and now election interference! On September, 3rd Facebook came out with their plan on tackling the Election campaigns on their platform.

Tune in to hear what Tim and Kevin have to say about this week’s topics!

==========
Ambition Today Is Proudly Independent & Supported By:

Finta - A secure, deal room platform for early-stage companies. Quickly set up your company and you’ve got a blazing fast tool for organizing your fundraise and securing your sensitive company information. House your pitch deck, secure your legal documents, organize your cap table, notify target investors, and close deals faster! Finta allows you to raise more, save time, and increase your efficiency.

The A-List - Join the podcast’s backchannel for exclusive access to learn the single greatest piece of advice each guest has ever learned! Plus additional Ambition Today content, deeper guest insights, a community of fellow fans, and much more.

==========
Visit Ambition Today on the Web: ​www.siskar.co/ambitiontoday
Follow Kevin Siskar on Twitter: ​twitter.com/TheSiskar
Follow Kevin Siskar on Instagram: instagram.com/thesiskar
Follow Kevin Siskar on Facebook: facebook.com/kevin.siskar
Add Kevin Siskar on Snapchat: snapchat.com/add/krsiskar

Kevin Siskar brings you ambitious entrepreneurs inspired by Tim Ferriss Show, How I Built This with Guy Raz, Residual Income, Entrepreneur on Fire, NPR, HBR, TED Radio Hour, the StartUp podcast with Alex Blumberg by Gimlet Media, Pat Flynn, Tony Robbins, The Uncertain Hour, Bigger Pockets, Art of Charm, Dave Ramsey, Planet Money, Jocko Podcast, EntreLeadership, Zigler, APM Marketplace, This Week In Startups with Jason Calacanis, Mixergy, Seth Godin, Joe Rogan Experience, GaryVee, James Altucher, Monocle 24, How to Start a Startup, Crooked Media, and The $100 MBA Show with Omar Zenhom, and Casey Neistat.

Be sure to listen and subscribe to Ambition Today in the iTunes Store for iOS (apple.co/1NRRPzL), on Google Play Music (goo.gl/LmmciJ), or on Stitcher for Android (bit.ly/1Rn01dy).

Our next guest on the show, is the amazing Harold Hughes. He is the founder of Bandwagon, which helps companies discover the identity of their fans in order to increase attendance, offer personalized services, and increase revenue.

Growing up, Harold made his first dollar selling AirHeads for cheaper than the school sold them at their cafeteria until he got caught! He went to Clemson University where he received a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science and Economics, before going back for his Masters's degree later. It was then, while he was taking his strategic management course that he realized it was a lot like being a fan at a sports event.

Harold loved playing sports when he grew up, and he loved that it didn’t matter your families financial status was or where you lived, you just loved to play the game. That is where Bandwagon all started. Now Harold has expanded Bandwagon from just preventing ticket fraud for fans, too also being a fan identity and data analytics company. Tune in to hear more about Harold’s story and experiences going through the ups and downs of being a CEO.

Quote of the Episode:
“Service to others is the rent for your time on earth”

Gauntlet:
Listen in for Harold’s amazing tips from his experience growing his business:

• Branding/Design

• Go-to-Market

• Product Development

• Hiring

• Revenue and Accounting

• Fundraising

The Greatest Piece of Advice:
Join the podcast’s backchannel, The A-List where members can listen to exclusive A-list bonus clips and get the single greatest piece of advice our guests have ever learned!

Links & show notes from this episode:

• Bandwagon

• Harold’s LinkedIn

• Harold’s Twitter

• Never Lost Again

• Equity Token

• Audible

==========

Proudly Independent & Supported By:

Finta- A secure online, cloud-based, operations center for your start-up. Quickly set up your company and you've got a blazing fast tool for raising capital and securing your sensitive company information. House your pitch deck, secure your legal documents, organize your cap table, notify target investors, and close deals faster! Finta allows you to raise more, save time, and increase your efficiency.

Audible - Visit www.audibletrial.com/AmbitionToday to download and keep any audiobook for free. Download your free book now!

The A-List - Join the podcast’s backchannel for exclusive access to additional Ambition Today content, deeper guest insights, a community of fellow fans, and much more. Plus, Learn the single greatest piece of advice each guest has ever learned! 

==========

Follow:

Visit Ambition Today on the Web:

• www.siskar.co/ambitiontoday 
  

Follow Kevin Siskar on:

• Twitter: twitter.com/TheSiskar
• Instagram: instagram.com/thesiskar
• Facebook: facebook.com/kevin.siskar
• Snapchat: snapchat.com/add/krsiskar

Be sure to listen and subscribe to Ambition Today in the iTunes Store for iOS (apple.co/1NRRPzL), on Google Play Music (goo.gl/LmmciJ), or on Stitcher for Android (bit.ly/1Rn01dy).

==========

About: 

Ambition Today is a podcast about entrepreneurs, creators, investors, and builders who ambitiously changed the world. Each episode explores the hardships and heroism of everyday life to reveal the key moments which leave behind a lasting legacy. Creating value in the world is hard, but you are not alone.

No matter where you are in the world Ambition Today, hosted by Kevin Siskar, is here to keep you company you as you create your own incredible story.

Kevin Siskar brings you ambitious entrepreneurs inspired by Tim Ferriss Show, How I Built This with Guy Raz, Residual Income, Entrepreneur on Fire, NPR, HBR, TED Radio Hour, the StartUp podcast with Alex Blumberg by Gimlet Media, Pat Flynn, The Uncertain Hour, Bigger Pockets, Art of Charm, Dave Ramsey, Planet Money, Jocko Podcast, EntreLeadership, Zigler, APM Marketplace, This Week In Startups with Jason Calacanis, Mixergy, Seth Godin, Joe Rogan Experience, GaryVee, James Altucher, Monocle 24, How to Start a Startup, Crooked Media, and The $100 MBA Show with Omar Zenhom, Casey Neistat, and Masters of Scale with Reid Hoffman. 

Imagine being on a cruise with friends and a good business idea comes to mind, then months later, your idea is now being distributed in Walmart’s around the world! Today’s guest, Alexis Beechen was enjoying her time partyin’ and thought, putting wine in a can would be much easier to casually drink. She got home and decided to research this idea and discovered that there would be a good market for it. She partnered with some amazing people and created her brand, The Drop, which is now at concert venues, small wine stores, and as of late last year, in Walmart’s all around.

An entrepreneur by heart, Alexis made her first dollar selling her mom’s gently used clothes when she could barely drive. She grew up with much support from both her parents who were lawyers. Her dad, an entrepreneur himself, had his own firm, and her mom was the first person that talked to her about branding yourself and establishing trust with people. She went to Georgetown for Marketing and eventually landed a job with Havas where she maintained Dos Equis account. Although she loved her job with Havas, she decided to go back to Columbia for business school.  During her schooling is when The Drop was born. Today, she is working on another business that she is passionate about, Hunterz.io which helps startups with connections they need to grow their business. Listen in to hear more in-depth about Alexis’ awesome story!

Quote of the Episode:
“You can only make as much money as the hours you build”

Gauntlet:
Listen in for the tips, tricks, and tools that Alexis used growing her business:

• Branding/Design - Fiverr

• Go-to-Market – Hunterz.io

• Product Development – feedback from customers

• Hiring - LinkedIn

• Revenue and Accounting - QuickBooks

• Fundraising - Carta

The Greatest Piece of Advice:
Join the podcast’s backchannel, The A-List where members can listen to exclusive A-list bonus clips and get the single greatest piece of advice our guests have ever learned!

Links & show notes from this episode:

• The Drop Website

• Alexis’ website

• Alexis’ Instagram

• Hunterz.io

• The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F

• Fiverr

• QuickBooks

• Carta

==========
Ambition Today Is Proudly Independent & Supported By:

Finta - A secure, deal room platform for early-stage companies. Quickly set up your company and you’ve got a blazing fast tool for organizing your fundraise and securing your sensitive company information. House your pitch deck, secure your legal documents, organize your cap table, notify target investors, and close deals faster! Finta allows you to raise more, save time, and increase your efficiency.

The A-List - Join the podcast’s backchannel for exclusive access to learn the single greatest piece of advice each guest has ever learned! Plus additional Ambition Today content, deeper guest insights, a community of fellow fans, and much more.

==========

Follow:

Visit Ambition Today on the Web:

• www.siskar.co/ambitiontoday 
  

Follow Kevin Siskar on:

• Twitter: twitter.com/TheSiskar
• Instagram: instagram.com/thesiskar
• Facebook: facebook.com/kevin.siskar
• Snapchat: snapchat.com/add/krsiskar

Be sure to listen and subscribe to Ambition Today in the iTunes Store for iOS (apple.co/1NRRPzL), on Google Play Music (goo.gl/LmmciJ), or on Stitcher for Android (bit.ly/1Rn01dy).

==========

About: 

Ambition Today is a podcast about entrepreneurs, creators, investors, and builders who ambitiously changed the world. Each episode explores the hardships and heroism of everyday life to reveal the key moments which leave behind a lasting legacy. Creating value in the world is hard, but you are not alone.

No matter where you are in the world Ambition Today, hosted by Kevin Siskar, is here to keep you company you as you create your own incredible story.

Kevin Siskar brings you ambitious entrepreneurs inspired by Tim Ferriss Show, How I Built This with Guy Raz, Residual Income, Entrepreneur on Fire, NPR, HBR, TED Radio Hour, the StartUp podcast with Alex Blumberg by Gimlet Media, Pat Flynn, The Uncertain Hour, Bigger Pockets, Art of Charm, Dave Ramsey, Planet Money, Jocko Podcast, EntreLeadership, Zigler, APM Marketplace, This Week In Startups with Jason Calacanis, Mixergy, Seth Godin, Joe Rogan Experience, GaryVee, James Altucher, Monocle 24, How to Start a Startup, Crooked Media, and The $100 MBA Show with Omar Zenhom, Casey Neistat, and Masters of Scale with Reid Hoffman.