Portland News

March 29, 2024
March 29, 2024

Joanna Danielle Olsen Talks How to Succeed in Business for Over 25 Years

Successful entrepreneurs not only realize their ambitions but those of others as well. The advantages of entrepreneurship go beyond the enterprises started by those who create them. They are able to connect their personality, abilities, and ingenuity with market possibilities and client demands. Entrepreneurs enhance people’s lives, communities, and the economy as a whole. They have played a significant role in promoting social change and improving people’s quality of life. Few entrepreneurs understand this better than Joanna Danielle Olsen, a businesswoman with over 25 years of experience in the industry best known as a franchise owner for Coyote Ugly Saloon.

Joanna’s interests include purchasing commercial and residential real estate, architecture, and giving back to her community. One skill she has developed over her long career is her ability to handle any unexpected circumstance—including operating a bar during a global pandemic.

After earning a bachelor’s degree in science from the University of Georgia, Joanna Danielle Olsen went on to work from 1997 to 1999 for Atlanta’s leading design company. She decided to launch her first business not long after with Paradox, where fashion, art, and music collide. In 2000, she received the Glamour Magazine Woman of the Year Award for the success of her business and admirable charitable work.

She moved onward on her entrepreneurial path by partnering up with businesswoman and NYU alum Liliana Lovell to create four Coyote Ugly Saloon locations in Tampa, Atlanta, and Panama City Beach.

In 2002, Joanna acquired a building in Tampa’s historic Ybor neighborhood, effectively becoming her own landlord. She moved Coyote Ugly Saloon-Tampa into this location, which is about to mark its 20th anniversary.

Asked about what her experience has been like as a leader, she said, “Through my life experience, resilience, and 25 years of being an entrepreneur, I have learned to never give up no matter what obstacles come my way. Each city has brought its individual challenges that I have had to overcome (weather, demographics and laws/permitting).”

The biggest challenges for Joanna recently have been what she calls “the unexpected acts of God” that she has bravely weathered. She has had to embrace her position as a leader through circumstances such as the COVID-19 pandemic and staff shortages.

“I have really established a great core management team that has grown with me since the beginning. They have been an integral part of my success. Navigating through obstacles of being an entrepreneur and business owner while staying relevant with the times along with staffing over 200 people jobs,” she said.

Beyond being an entrepreneur, Joanna prides herself on giving back, being a part of the community, and caring for her staff. When the pandemic hit, she had to close her bars for six months, which meant that her staff had to go without income. So she generously gave out Publix gift cards to each staff member.

“My mantra is to have empathy toward my staff and to give back to those who help contribute to my success. Being able to acknowledge my employees’ individual needs and unexpected life events by showing kindness and generosity has to the longevity of my business,” she said.

Despite having been in business for 25 years, Joanna Danielle Olsen is just getting started. Her current goals include expanding her enterprises globally, creating more jobs all over the world, and increasing the number of assets in her real estate portfolio. 

 

 

Byron Johnson: 5 Ways to Improve Investor Communication as an Entrepreneur

As Byron Johnson shares his experience as an entrepreneur, he says that it can be hard to keep investors up-to-date on your business. They’re busy people, and you’re busy raising money for your company. But investor communication is one of the most important parts of fundraising—for both sides—which means that it has to be done right in order to be effective. Here are five best practices given by Byron Johnson for improving communication with investor:

Build a Strong Relationship

When you build a strong relationship with your investors, they’ll be more likely to listen to and take your advice. Byron Johnson emphasizes the importance of keeping in touch with investors and making sure they are on the same page as you. You need to know what their goals are, what their concerns are, what their expectations are and what timeline they have set for themselves when it comes down to investing in an entrepreneurial venture like yours. The better you understand each other’s needs before anything else comes into play, the easier it will be for everyone involved at the end of the day when things start falling apart around us all too quickly for comfort.

Be Honest and Clear

Byron Johnson sheds light on how to be honest and clear through his personal experience: 

  • Be transparent about everything.
  • Don’t sugarcoat bad news.
  • Don’t try to hide bad news.
  • Don’t be afraid of bad news.
  • Don’t be afraid to admit mistakes or ask for help when you need it (or both!).

Don’t Hesitate to Share Bad News

Bad news is unavoidable, and there’s no point trying to hide it. In fact, Byron Johnson recommends being the one to share it first if you can be sure of what the issue is and what you’re doing about it.

Don’t try to hide bad news. I know this sounds counter-intuitive, but hear me out: if a key member of your team leaves or there’s an issue with your product development, don’t try to keep that information under wraps until everything has been resolved. You may think that will help things go smoothly or give you time to figure things out, but these are usually wrongheaded approaches that end up hurting investor relations in the long run.

Don’t get defensive when someone asks questions about something they see as negative—even if they don’t mean anything by it or aren’t trying to criticize your company or ideas at all! If an investor asks why sales were down last quarter—or whether there was a problem with inventory management—respond with honesty rather than defensiveness, and yes…you should probably ask yourself why those numbers were lower than expected.

“Someone who wants nothing more than positive answers from people who have nothing but positive intentions shouldn’t be given any reason not to trust them!” – Byron Johnson

Share Good News, too

Share good news, too. If you’re getting recognized for your work, or if you’ve made a major accomplishment, it’s important to share that good news with your investors. “It’s not just about building trust—it’s also about building relationships, reputations and even brands. And all these benefits will help you build your company!” – Byron Johnson

Remember there’s a Human being on the other Side of that Email/Phone Call/Conference Room Door/Etc

You may not remember it, but your investor does. Byron Johnson stresses on the point that they are not just an investor, they are your partner and want to help you succeed. Make sure that in all of your communications with them, you treat them with respect and as a peer—not just another number on your spreadsheet.

Keep an Open Line of Communication with your Investors

Communication is one of the most important aspects of running a business. It doesn’t matter if you run a multi-million dollar company or you have just started your first business, communication is crucial in any situation. Byron Johnson spotlights that you need to communicate with your customers and employees, but equally important is communicating with investors.

In the end, great investor communication is one of the keys to a successful venture. It’s not just good manners—it’s good business.


About Byron Johnson:

Byron Johnson is a founder, entrepreneur, and CEO known for founding several businesses, including an insurance agency, construction and remodeling company, and commercial real estate investment firm. Byron Johnson is an owner of 150+ units of commercial property located in the up-and-coming Seminole Heights area close to downtown Tampa. Additionally, Byron is a recognized WSOP Poker Player who won 1st place in the WSOP Poker series in Tampa, FL in 2020. 

For more information on Byron Johnson, visit ByronJohnson.com or visit his Cheap Car Insurance Guru YouTube Channel where he gives back by sharing free car insurance tips and valuable insurance info daily. 

Learn More About Byron Johnson:

Byron Johnson on Youtube

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Byron Johnson on INC

The 5 Things You Should Know Before Launching a Startup

Most entrepreneurs have experienced that lightbulb moment where they’re suddenly struck with a great business idea. Of course, the best part of any new venture is where motivation is high because of new ideas, and one is confident that grit and passion alone will carry them to success, but it’s a hard fact of life that 90% of startups fail for many reasons.

“If you look into the statistics on startup success, you will likely become disheartened from ever launching your own,” says serial entrepreneur Andrew Ryan. But Ryan, who has helped 2,500 plus startups raise more than $2.2B in venture capital over the last five years, says that being prepared for the reality of what launching a startup entails will help one avoid becoming part of the statistics. 

“Avoiding failure does not necessarily mean you succeed,” Ryan adds. “It might just mean that you survive.”

  1. Your Product Must Be Truly Great

It seems like an obvious consideration, but have you got a stellar idea? Are you ready to launch a startup on a knee-jerk reaction over a concept that fell from the sky, or have you given it long, complex consideration and asked if it holds any water? Moreover, is this an idea that would be useful to you but not to a large majority of potential buyers, clients, and investors? 

“If you are not building a product that users will [absolutely] love, why are you building it?” Ryan asks. “No founder can build a sustainable, successful business on a mediocre product.” 

To be in that small minority of startups that succeed, the startup needs to attract investors initially, and the product or service needs to attract customers later. So why are you pursuing it if you’re not excited to scream and shout to everyone you know about this idea?

  1. You will be the Public Voice of the Company

If you’re one to shy away from the spotlight, it’s essential to know that you will essentially become a public speaker when you start a business. So whether it’s giving presentations, leading a team, or speaking to the press, you need to become comfortable with people asking you questions and listening to what you have to say. 

“Public speaking is an essential business skill, especially for founders,” Ryan says. “Communicating well with — and to — people has the potential to turn a one-time encounter into a more meaningful, fruitful relationship. So if you plan to launch a successful startup, you must become a master of public speaking.”

  1. Data is Crucial

Spending can spiral widely in the early days of a new business, so it’s important not to skip the essential housekeeping. “Before you go live, it might seem like you don’t have much data to track,” Ryan explains, “but you need to identify some data metrics that give useful insight at all phases.” 

The metrics include KPIs and financial milestones; as Ryan explains, you could “end up going in circles and throwing away money.” So instead, get stuck into the dry stuff early on to save you from playing catch-up in a storm of numbers and finances later down the road.

  1. Money is Time

When starting, you might tell yourself that the stakes are lower, so the timeline doesn’t matter. However, the opposite is true when business people are used to hearing the phrase “time is money” when you are launching a startup. 

 “Money is always time,” says Ryan. “As you begin [the process of] connecting with investors, you must stick to a tight timeline to secure the funding necessary to cement the foundation of your business.” He says new startup founders should aim to raise a pre-seed round in under 90 days to give themselves a good shot at success. 

  1. A Mentor Will Be Invaluable

Pride is a terrible burden for any startup. In the early days, no one expects you to know it all, and trying to go it alone will inevitably lead you into all the common pitfalls. But finding a mentor who has done it all before — and crucially, who has already made the mistakes — can help you progress much faster. 

“Does it surprise you [to learn] that many of today’s most successful business leaders learned much from their mentors?” Ryan says. “For example, Steve Jobs mentored Mark Zuckerberg; Maya Angelou mentored Oprah Winfrey; Warren Buffett mentored Bill Gates; and Steven Spielberg mentored J.J. Abrams. Find someone farther down the road in their entrepreneurial career than you, and spend some time with them.” If you want to be in the small percentage of people who succeed, find and learn from those who have already done it. 

Several factors can contribute to startup failures: funding, insufficient market research, poor business planning, or bad partnerships. But even just being aware of the common problems can be the first step to avoiding them, Ryan says. 

“Once you recognize these things, you can steer clear of the dangers. Then, you’ll already be in a better position than most people who launch their startups.” Most importantly, he says: “If your goal is to beat the odds and become the one percent that succeeds, do not rely on a lucky break.”

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Youth Leadership Organization REAP Offering Multifaceted and Globally Innovative Programming to Young Leaders to Achieve Their Dreams

REAP has made headlines by becoming one of the most influential organizations working to help the next generation of leaders by creating a globally innovative leadership program. Their advocacy becomes even more pressing in the light of the challenges due to the global pandemic. 

Over the past few years, REAP has been focusing on school communities with significant numbers of families in challenging economic circumstances or non-English speaking. Children of these families face the most challenges in negotiating school and life. REAP’s program focuses on the areas of leadership, student voice, cooperative management (conflict resolution), and entrepreneurship.

The REAP solutions program is one of its kind, giving promising youth a chance to join a ten-month leadership curriculum open to students from all backgrounds and cultures. The curriculum provides interactive leadership modules focused on civics, education, health, business, and entrepreneurship. Program offerings make use of specialized, applied-to-learn approaches emphasizing writing, speaking, reading, and inquiry.

The co-founders, Levell Thomas and Mark Jackson, possess the knowledge and expertise on how to execute successful and effective programs as an organizational body for guiding and supporting the youth. In addition, the founders leverage their connections and networks in business, government, and the nonprofit sector in order to help contribute to the growth of young leaders and connect them to mentors and potential employers across communities and the state.

REAP stands out from other youth programs because they prioritize internal motivation over external achievement, foster collaboration, and help see adults as mentors and coaches in their multicultural youth leadership programs. Students participating in the Solutions program learn and demonstrate school and community leadership skills and develop and strengthen academic skills needed for school success, college readiness, and future careers. They also bolster positive behavior, relational communication, and problem-solving skills, such as negotiation and teamwork, and learn the value of serving and collaborating within their community. 

On top of REAP’s advocacies is also the vision to help males of color appreciate their individuality through its Renaissance program. “Our vision is to affirm the positive identity and self-worth of young males of the color of diverse backgrounds. REAP accomplishes this by promoting positive images of males, developing their leadership potential, and fostering their innovative abilities. Our young men model leadership through peer mentoring, civic engagement, business innovation, and public speaking,” says one of the co-founders. 

REAP’s Young Entrepreneurs Program (YEP) creates opportunities for students to unleash their innovation and explore ways to create their own wealth to become self-sufficient. In bringing to scale entrepreneurial opportunities for students between grades 6-12, students develop baseline skills in pursuing business ventures, strengthen public speaking skills, and foster networking skills to build relationships with community members, mentors, and potential business investors.

“We call REAP The United Nations of Youth Empowerment. We are at the leading edge of the demographic changes you can see all around us,” said REAP Founder Levell Thomas. As REAP desires to expand its programs and empower more students, they look forward to partnering and collaborating with philanthropists, CEOs, foundations, grantors, public officials, business owners and generous affluent people as they fulfill their mission. 

In the future, REAP envisions expanding to new districts and states and scaling our world-class eLearning and after-school programming. 

Now Answer Group: Offering Courses and Building Opportunities for Aspiring Entrepreneurs

Being an entrepreneur is complex, and more often than not, business ventures tend to fade in the background when not managed properly. But on the other hand, it can be a lucrative career brimming with innumerable opportunities when done right. Still, no matter the circumstances, the path towards success will always be plagued with challenges, intimidating even the most seasoned business people. 

Cue in Charity Brown, an entrepreneur in her own rights, she has come a long way after decades of experience running numerous personal and professional ventures that include accounting, consulting, bar and restaurant management, e-commerce, real estate, and several non-profit ones, eventually honing her skills in the field. Now, the flourishing businesswoman is utilizing years of unparalleled expertise to arm and equip CEOs or “Chief Everything Officers” with high-tech media and financial tools to help them increase sales and profit margins.

As a business coach, Charity pushes her clients to think outside the box and broaden their ambitions. Furthermore, she believes that having someone who has been down the same path before is crucial, especially when it comes to pointing out the flaws and the things that need to be improved. True enough, coaches and mentors can always assist in developing management and leadership skills, assist in piloting difficult company challenges and judgments, and set the stage for necessary solutions to weather some of the inevitable management fiascos that lie ahead.

As she spearheads the NOW Answer Group, Charity is continuously aiding numerous business owners to make a name for themselves while establishing their authority in the enterprise they are in sans the unnecessary hassle. But of course, her triumph in the field would not be entirely possible without her extensive educational and entrepreneurial background. With a triple degree in Business, Accounting, and New Media from the Oregon State University and over twenty-five years of diverse experience in the business industry, it is no wonder that her business coaching venture is nothing short of successful. As a result, Kevin Harrington has endorsed her, an American entrepreneur and business executive, best known for being a panel member in the hit television series Shark Tank.

The NOW Answer Group is currently introducing two courses that will guide business owners and keep them on target. One of the courses is The Happy CEO- Advanced Tools for Business Owners Making 6 & 7 Figures, an eight-week immersion to become an accomplished entrepreneur while continually being perceptive of numbers and scaling their brand. Moreover, takers of the course will have an advanced level of training in all business areas. The second course is the 5 Star Business Accelerator, a program that introduces five transformational tools to help build, scale, and transform any business, also referred to as the ultimate entrepreneurial toolbox to annihilate the competition anytime.

Charity hopes to expand her brand and continue helping a diverse band of entrepreneurs and business owners by streamlining their financial and media operations in the coming years. She’s also keen on launching a seven-figure eLearning hybrid global consulting and coaching business that offers retreats, live events, and the best mindset and business tools available on the market.

Thank you for reading this article about NOW Answer Group LLC, please click this link here to leave an honest review about NOW Answer Group LLC.

Jaime Manteiga: How He Grew His TapTok Technology Exponentially

Image commercially licensed from: Unsplash

When it comes to introducing something new in the tech industry, entrepreneur Jaime Manteiga makes sure that it is something that will greatly simplify the lives of users — simple, easy to navigate, and will benefit numerous people long-term. By making sure that his latest product, the TapTok card, possesses all these attributes, he has added fuel to the fire that boosted the exponential growth of his new venture. 

The 30-year-old founder of TapTok Inc. and Venkon Corp. recently launched the TapTok card, smart technology that gets rid of the traditional business cards. With the use of a simple card made of eco-friendly materials, the user simply needs to tap it on modern devices, and contact details are immediately transferred to the recipient. At a time when health protocols prohibit touching surfaces and items that may be contaminated with COVID-19, this touchless development by Jaime Manteiga is revolutionizing the way people do their business and build their network.

Unlike business cards that can no longer be revised once printed, the contents of a TapTok card can be easily changed by simply going to the dashboard and making the necessary revisions. Additionally, the card adds to one’s profile, allowing users to see how others are reacting to it. When it comes to water resistance, the TapTok card will beat the traditional business card any day, as this is one of Jaime Manteiga’s biggest objectives. 

Just in case the card is lost, there is no need for owners to worry about their details falling into the wrong hands. The TapTok card comes with a built-in bank-level security standard and includes a loss/stolen protection. This means that card owners can lock it anytime, and no one else will be able to access its contents. What is even more interesting is that while the TapTok card is essentially electronic by nature, it does not require any battery at all. With these impressive features available, it is no wonder why Jaime Manteiga and his team are consistently reaping the six-figure revenue the product is bringing in. 

Jaime Manteiga has lived up to what the industry expects from him: the best smart technology that makes things a lot easier. As a member of the International Forbes Technology Council and Young Entrepreneurs Council, his remarkable idea is leaving its mark in tech history. He stumbled upon the idea while he was reading the latest iOS updates in 2019. After realizing that Apple is no longer just using the NFC technology for wireless payments, he saw an opportunity to introduce a product that will change many things in the future. 

While Jaime Manteiga believes that educating people will take some time and will prove to be very challenging, it does not change the fact that there are already those who see its value at present and have decided to acquire a TapTok card. He looks forward to a day when all of the world recognizes the many benefits this technology offers. 

Learn more about TapTok Inc. and Jaime Manteiga by visiting this website. Follow the company’s Instagram and Facebook accounts for additional details.