Founder Views

I met Callum Webber on a mentor call on Growth Mentor (I'm a mentor on the platform, link is below for more details).On our call, we spoke about several business topics, including a program he is building out that helps men in their 20's live a freedom lifestyle, through health, wellness and productivity.For the last little while, I've been thinking more and more about ways to optimize my own self for maximize productivity and energy thought my days. So when I spoke to Callum, I thought I'd have him on the podcast to speak about this.Callum is one of those people with an amazing attitude, great energy, and a ton of passion in what he does, which is very inspiring.He provided some great practical tips about energy that anyone can implement in their lives right away. Some of which I will be trying as well.Check out Growth Mentor: https://www.growthmentor.com/?ref=kostaCallum's Podcast (Freedom Lifestyle): https://open.spotify.com/show/34iyUuLGk6Ms7uLLky1GMP?si=d4a566757e0543e0

Fr. Ted Paraskevopoulos is an Orthodox Priest in Toronto, Ontario Canada.Speaking with Fr Ted is always very insightful and grounding, to say the least. Given everything that’s  happening in the world right now, I felt a need to have a conversation with him.We spoke about a wide-range of topics, including:- Tools that people are missing in their lives to help with depression and every day stresses- How parents should instil the right values in their children - Why more couples are getting divorced, and how they can prevent that- The attack on religion in a growing secular societyI also wanted to hear Fr Ted’s views on several controversial bills and legislation currently in, or being proposed, in Canada:- Bill C-11 and how it could impact the church and religion- Bill 89 and the growing sexualization of children in society- The issues with Bill C-4 from a religious and moral context- MAID (medical assistance in dying) and the relation to hedonism

Genuine and authentic - these are two adjectives I would use to describe Julia Hanna, which seem to be pretty rare in politics nowadays.Julia Hanna is running for Mayor of Oakville, Ontario, one of the most prominent and sought-after cities in all of Canada.As a resident of Oakville, I was eager to have a conversation with (potentially) the future Mayor, to discuss many pressing issues, concerns and opportunities the city faces.In this very open and transparent conversation, we discussed:- Housing affordability in Oakville and wealth from real estate- What she would have done differently as Mayor during Covid- The impossible challenges of satisfying everyone- How she plans to earn the trust back from the people- The lack of accountability in government- The fiscal waste currently happening in Oakville Learn more about Julia Hanna: https://www.juliahanna.ca/

I've been on the hunt to learn as much about short-term rentals and Airbnb investing as possible. After getting connected with Spencer and Ashley, I immediately knew there were no better people to learn from.Since 2018, they have accumulated 6 Airbnb properties, both in the Niagara region and in the US. They also manage over 60 properties for other Airbnb investors across the country.Their top grossing property in Niagara does $180-$200k per year, which nets them about $60k per year.I tried to get into their detailed processes and criteria from evaluating properties to purchase, and everything in between to get them listed.We discuss many topics, including:- The specific criteria they look for in properties- How they differentiate their properties- The importance of focusing on top-notch guest experience- By-laws in Niagara that investors should be mindful of- The costs involved to furnish an Airbnb property- How much profit they make on their properties- What's required to purchase properties in the USFollow

This is a conversation I was very excited to have, and more importantly, share with everyone. Andrew Lawton is a well-respected Journalist and Broadcaster in Canada. I caught notice of Andrew's work during the freedom convoy protests in Ottawa. He was one of my main sources of accurate information about what was going on, and have been following his work ever since.I was eager to speak to Andrew about:- The bias in media that people are consuming, and how it affects his work- How journalists and people can be more objective- The impacts of private and government censorship- The potential consequences of new bills proposed in Canada, including controversial bill C-11- The future of Canada- Alternative views and differences of opinion in society- Andrew's list of favourite and most objective journalistsFollow Andrew on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AndrewLawtonAndrew on Substack: https://andrewlawton.substack.com/True North: https://tnc.news/

One of the real estate investment strategies that has captured my interest as of late, is short-term Airbnb rentals. The idea of very high cash flow potential in high-demand areas is something I wanted to dive into further.I spoke with Matthew Campoli, a real estate investor and realtor in the Toronto area. Besides helping clients purchase Airbnb rentals and other investments, he also owns rental properties himself.One of his Airbnb rentals in Toronto is on track to cash flow about $40k (that is net profit after all expenses)! We dived into this in detail, of course.Matt also has an Airbnb property he recently purchased in Miami, which he projects will gross $100k in revenue. We discussed how Canadians can invest in Airbnb properties in the US.We covered quite a bit of very useful information about Airbnb rentals, including:- Reasons why airbnb rentals are advantageous compared to other real estate investments- How to consider choosing locations for your airbnb rental- Specific Airbnb regulations in the city

My oldest child is starting kindergarten, and the thoughts of alternative schooling options have been on my mind. I've been questioning the concept of traditional school system for quite a while, and have been on an exploration to determine what type of schooling is best for my kids.Hannah Frankman is the founder of rebelEducator. She grew up homeschooled, skipped college to cut her teeth in the startup world, and has been living and breathing alternative education ever since. She’s a regular writer, speaker, and commentator on education innovation.Most people grow up in societies and communities where traditional schools is all they ever know. Discussing some of the alternative schooling options and breaking down the issues with traditional schools, definitely requires recalibrating the way you think. If you can accomplish that, you'll see a whole different side to how kids can learn, and hopefully decide which option is best for your kids.This was a very insightful and encouraging episode about the many opt

Due to popular demand and several questions about the Infinite Banking Concept, I thought I’d speak to another specialist on the subject. Nate Dean is the co-founder of Unlimited Life Concepts, a company that educates people on Infinite Banking and helps them implement the concept in their lives. I tried to steer the conversation in ways that addressed real practical ways people can implement the Infinite Banking Concept in every day life.We covered several topics, including:- Common misconceptions about Infinite Banking- Ways people are managing their money incorrectly - Using Infinite Banking to pay off debt- How to use Infinite Banking for common expenses- Infinite Banking as a cash flow strategy - How to operate your finances like banks doBecoming Your Own Banker, by Nelson Nash: https://a.co/d/161TeUnLearn more about Unlimited Life Concepts: https://www.unlimitedlifeconcepts.com/Follow Nate on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ChroniclesNate

Jas Takhar is the founder of REC Canada, one of the top real estate teams in the country.As an active real estate investor, and a very prominent voice in the real estate community, I was excited to speak with Jas hear his insights and thoughts around the current market conditions, and how to navigate these times of high inflation and increasing interest rates.I always enjoy speaking to Jas, because he’s one of the few people who looks at real estate investing with a long-term horizon, which really helps think through all the noise in media.We discuss many important topics in this conversation for those thinking about real estate investing, including:- Thoughts on when interest rates will come down again- Why pre-construction is a great investing strategy- Why real estate investing is the easiest way to generate wealth for most people- Population growth and lack of housing supply in the Golden Horseshoe Region- The 4 questions every investor should askMore about Jas Takhar here: https://jastakhar.ca/

This conversation includes Clara Medalie, Director of Research at Kaiko. Clara is a very prominent voice in the crypto space, and is often featured on major financial new outlets, such as CNBC and CoinDesk. Kaiko is cryptocurrency market data provider that analyzes data from over 100 centralized and decentralized crypto exchanges around the globe.My hope on this episode was to better understand the driving forces that have caused the downturn in crypto markets over the last several months, and get a feel for where cryptocurrencies are heading into the future.We covered quite a few topics in this discussion, including:- The reasons for the crypto collapse- Why bitcoin and cryptos have been directly correlated to equity markets- The market correlations between crypto prices and quantitative easing/tightening- How institutional investors are allocating bitcoin in their portfolios- What has to happen for bitcoin to reach $60k again- If bitcoin can be a global currency in the future- Which alt-coins to keep an eye

This was a fascinating chat with Paco de la India, who is travelling to 40 countries in 400 days, using nothing but bitcoin.I caught up with him while he was in Zambia, the 15th country on his journey. I was eager to speak with Paco so I can understand the practicality of using bitcoin in day-to-day life.His first-hand experiences were very insightful. We spoke about his journey thus far, and:- How he uses bitcoin to get around- The best countries to use bitcoin- The worst countries to use bitcoin- His biggest surprises along the way- His experience with the global bitcoin community- How people around the world perceive bitcoin- Inflation and the debasement of currencies and USD- How African countries with high inflation are adopting bitcoin- Tips on the best wallets and apps to use to get aroundFollow and learn about Paco's journey: https://runwithbitcoin.com/Follow Paco on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/runeverycity/Paco's YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/PacoDeLaIndia

Adam O'Brien is a bitcoin entrepreneur and the CEO of Bitcoin Well, the first publicly traded bitcoin company in the world that allows customers to self-custody their bitcoin. Bitcoin Well also operates over 250+ bitcoin ATM's across Canada.Adam's startup story is very inspiring. He bootstrapped his company from one bitcoin ATM in Edmonton, to over 250 ATM's across the country, listing his company on the TSX, and doing ~$100M in annual revenue.Apart from learning about his incredible business, and what it takes to operate a publicly traded bitcoin company, we also touched on several important macroeconomic topics in this episode, including:- The position of bitcoin in today's rollercoaster economy- How over-reaching governments help bitcoin- The importance of self-custody wallets- Handling banks and regulations with a bitcoin company- The emergence of Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDC) around the world, and how that impacts bitcoin- Best place in the world to be for bitcoin investors and entrepreneursThis

I'm speaking with Scott Cordier, a certified financial planner for the past 28 years, and Certified Infinite Banking Practitioner.I randomly stumbled on the Infinite Banking Concept several months back, and have never looked back since. Infinite Banking is a financial strategy that has been used by the wealthiest people in the world for generations, which is also available to anyone. To fully grasp and understand the concept requires you to re-wire the way you think about money and finance. Once you do, you'll truly understand the power it holds and opportunities it opens up. Not to mention the legacy it can leave your family.My hope in this episode is to help scratch the surface, and get as many people interested as possible so they can start their own research.Some of the topics we discuss:

This episode includes Bitcoin OG Brad Mills, and entrepreneur and Bitcoin investor" Jimmy Toussaint, also known as "The Prettiest Boy in Bitcoin". With all of the chaos in the markets, I thought it was important to speak to people who are deep into Bitcoin, and get their perspectives on what is happening, and where things are going.As an investor in Bitcoin, and someone with a high-level understanding of what Bitcoin is, what it does, and why I think it's valuable, I was hoping to break things down in a simplified way that most people in a similar category would understand. We discuss many topics including:

I'm currently exploring some real estate investment opportunities, and so I wanted to chat with an expert. Daniel Foch is a highly regarded real estate broker, investor and market analyst.In the conversation, we explore many topics that could impact the real estate market in Toronto, as well as the economy as a whole:

Derek Steer, Co-founder and CEO of Mode Analytics.Mode helps entrepreneurs grow their businesses faster through data-driven decision making.  The Mode platform combines the best elements of Business Intelligence (ABI), Data Science (DS) and Machine Learning (ML) to empower data teams to answer impactful questions and collaborate on analysis across a range of business functions.In 2019, Mode added a number of premiere enterprise companies to its customer base, which now includes Anheuser Busch, Zillow, Lyft, Bloomberg, Capital One, VMWare, and Conde Nast, among others.In 2020, Mode was the recipient of four G2 Awards, including Best Estimated ROI, Fastest Implementation, Highest Performer, and Overall Leader. At this point, 52% of the Forbes 500 have signed up for Mode.Mode is currently being used by marquee companies such as Lyft, Zillow, Unbounce, Doordash, Everlane and Meredith publishing for product, financial and marketing analytics.  Mode goes beyond traditional business intelligence by speeding up answe

Sagi Eliyahu is the CEO & Co-Founder of Tonkean, the no-code, automation platform that helps companies like Salesforce, Microsoft, and TripActions to solve their operational inefficiencies and business problems.Tonkean recently raised their $24M Series A led by Lightspeed Venture Partners, bringing the company’s total fundraising to $33M.Prior to Tonkean, Sagi held executive engineering roles at Jive Software. He also served for four years in Unit 8200, the Israeli Defense Force’s elite intelligence agency, and applies much of what he learned from developing data and information systems for the agency to his work at Tonkean.Sagi believes operations is a vastly underappreciated function within companies, and that we must empower operations teams to help design a better future of work — a future that’s more adaptive, efficient, and appreciative of the importance of people, as opposed to technology or data.

Nicolas started selling newspapers in the streets of Paris in high school, studied Math at Ecole Polytechnique then Business at Stanford GSB, and started and sold 3 tech companies with up to 65 employees and $11M in revenues.He is now the co-founder and CEO of Chili Piper - the System of Action for revenue teams - and of KosmoTime - the first Focused Productivity Assistant.

Ondrej Sedlacek is the CEO and founder of SatisMeter. SatisMeter helps companies measure and improve customer satisfaction through NPS (Net Promoter Score) surveys.If you're in SaaS, then you've heard about the importance of NPS. If this is a topic you've been interested in learning more about, there's no one better to learn about it than Ondrej.We talk about how SatisMeter got started, and how they've  grown to help over 400 companies, why everyone should use NPS, and how it reduces churn.Enjoy the conversation!

Rytis Lauris is the CEO of Omnisend, a marketing automation SaaS that helps e-commerce companies.Omnisend is bootstrapped, employees +70 people, and has grown past +$11M ARR in only 6 years!Rytis talks about his founding story, specific marketing strategies that helped Omnisend gain traction early, understanding monetization strategies, leveraging integration partnerships, how he manages a growing team all over the world, and much much more.Learn how this bootstrapped SaaS is on route to Unicorn status!