In today’s first episode back into the new year, Amy Selbach has invited her good friend, Brandon Blum! Brandon is one of the best storytellers and is someone who has had a lot of success very early on in life.

When Brandon was 19 years old, he dropped out of school to start his own mortgage and real estate business. By 23, he had made his first million by hiring other college students to help him sell loans and by buying, selling, and developing mini dorms to the San Diego State housing market. But in 2015, he found himself at a crossroads with his business and began googling ‘top growing industries.’ From there, he ended up launching and developing one of California’s first one-stop-shop legal cannabis campuses having had zero background and zero knowledge of the cannabis industry! And, in this episode, he shares the exact steps on how he did that!

So, if you have a business idea but you’re like, ‘Where would I even start?!’ you’ve got to tune in to today’s episode! Brandon is giving you the template for exactly what he did and how he did it — which can be applied to any business in any industry. He shares his four-step strategy for how to start any business, his personal script on how to talk to anybody to find out what you need to know, and his tips and strategies on how to overcome fears and anxiety regarding taking action as a new entrepreneur. He also addresses the controversial statement, ‘Fake it ‘till you make it,’ and explains why every entrepreneur needs to do it at some point.

Key Takeaways

[:49] About today’s episode and incredible guest!

[3:08] Amy welcomes Brandon to the podcast.

[3:22] Brandon tells the story of his launch into entrepreneurship, detailing all the steps he took when starting up his own mortgage and real estate business!

[13:18] Brandon outlines how he continued to build his businesses up to generate real money.

[15:54] What Brandon has learned through his businesses that can be applied to any business in any industry.

[16:40] Did Brandon have any fears while starting up his first businesses? How did he overcome them?

[17:45] Brandon speaks about the initial research he started doing as he considered starting up a business in the cannabis industry.

[21:26] Who Brandon initially spoke to when conducting his market research for the cannabis industry.

[23:40] Amy summarizes Brandon’s key steps during his market research phase.

[24:24] Brandon continues the story of his research process into the cannabis industry.

[26:07] Brandon speaks about the next steps he took after his market research and what the end product was after he launched his business.

[27:38] Brandon speaks about some of the moments that took courage during the process of building his business.

[30:52] The key difference between those who are successful in entrepreneurship and those who are not.

[32:26] How Brandon has been so successful in getting information out of others during his market research phases for his businesses.

[33:48] Brandon addresses the expression, ‘Fake it ‘till you make it!’

[35:56] What Brandon has learned over the years about taking action.

[36:57] Is there anything that provokes fear or anxiety for Brandon nowadays in his business?

[37:58] Brandon speaks about the scariest moment he’s been through regarding building his first cannabis campus.

[39:22] Brandon’s advice to first-time entrepreneurs who are taking their first steps.

[43:35] What Brandon wishes that his 19 or 20-year-old-self would’ve known when he was just getting started.

[46:50] Amy thanks Brandon for joining the podcast!

Key Highlights:

• Brandon shares his template for success and what he has learned over the years about taking action
• How to truly ‘fail forward’ for success
• The key attributes of a successful entrepreneur
• Brandon’s four-step strategy for getting started in any business in any industry

Hey listeners! Do you want to get your story out into the world in a really big way?

Visit AmySelbach.com/BrandStory to access my free, one-hour brand story planner! In under an hour, you can have a beautifully crafted brand story to use everywhere! Your brand story should be on your website, your packaging, and at the beginning of any presentation you give. A brand story is crucial for pitches to the media, brand deals, podcasts, and investor decks. Not only that, this formula can be used for brand case studies, testimonials, and ad copy.

Follow-up with Me!

If you want to get more resources on marketing, branding, content strategy and building a business, you can follow me over on Instagram @AmySelbach or at AmySelbach.com!

For more episodes, visit our Libsyn page or listen on iTunes!