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Ep. 170 – Climbing mountains and entrepreneurial success – The 4th and newest part – Some of the most amazing mountains’ stories you heard

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My dear Reachers.

Last year we started a new amazing series of the Reach Or Miss mountains project;

 

Listen to these incredible mountain stories I heard from the successful entrepreneurs I interviewed on my podcast.

You can then listen to the full interview with each of them and hear about the visions, the struggles, and how these entrepreneurs reached their success.

 

From the entrepreneur that climb the Everest base camp, but the toughest mountain for me was Mount Kilimanjaro

To the entrepreneur that reminds us that the sweeter fruits, the animals, the trees, the water – are all down in the valley. Not on the top.

To climbing the Pyrenees, and thinking that mountains are like their vision: “it’s my North Star. I know I will never reach it but it will always guide me. The vision is the top of the mountain.”

To the fantastic entrepreneur that one of her favorite songs has to do with mountains. It’s called “The Climb” or ‘There will always be another mountain by Miley Cyrus,

To laying in a frizzing lake on top of the glacier, and feel: “It’s moments like this that you believe that God exists.” It’s the happiest, purest, and most rejuvenating moment in the world.

 

Many successful entrepreneurs climb mountains, while others use mountains as a metaphor to describe what is necessary to conquer the peak – including the fatiguing yet rewarding journey to the top. Still other entrepreneurs use mountains as an analogy for a significant goal they wish to achieve – such as becoming a billion-dollar-market-cap company. (See Mellissah Smith’s mountain story.)

For many years, I’ve compared the act of taking possession of your potential customers’ minds and of building awareness, likeability, and trust of a leading brand to the act of climbing the highest mountains.

You climb step by step to the peak, reach your position as a market leader and a leading brand, and then start climbing a new mountain with a new product line or another brand.

The idea of mountains as representations of a strong position in the market is mentioned by Al Ries and Jack Trout in the excellent book, Marketing Warfare.

“In military warfare, mountains and higher altitude areas represent strong positions and often are used to present a strong defense. In marketing warfare, the question is one of who holds the mountains in the consumer’s mind.”

 

So, at some point after the launch of my podcast for entrepreneurs, I started to ask the successful entrepreneurs I interviewed about their habits or dreams of climbing one of the highest mountains in the world.

Listen to these new inspiring mountains’ stories, find which entrepreneurs and stories you identify with most, and review your entrepreneurial objectives, market overview, and plan. By making your business as strong as possible, you will be able to quickly and easily achieve entrepreneurial success.

 

Bill Cates Headshot Bill Cates: “For me, success means abundance in my life. Money is OK, as long as it doesn’t own you – as long as you own it!”

Bill, is an internationally recognized client-acquisition expert, author, and speaker who motivates others to take action with proven strategies.

 

Bill’s Mountain

  • I’ve been to the Everest base camp, but the toughest mountain for me was Mount Kilimanjaro. It’s 19,200 feet. It’s not a technical climb; it’s just a really hard walk. It took me six-and-a-half days to get to the top and one-and-a-half days to get down. It was a great experience, a very tough experience, but I loved it and I would do it again.
Bill Cates mount Kilimanjaro W-Summit

Bill Cates mount Kilimanjaro W-Summit

 

Bill Cates - Above the Clouds

 

You can listen to the full episode with Bill Cates here:

Bill Cates: “For me, success means abundance in my life. Money is OK, as long as it doesn’t own you – as long as you own it!”

 

 

Christina Rowe Headshot Christina Rowe the founder and manager behind Facebook’s 390,000 women entrepreneurs’ group.

Christina is also the founder of Stand Out Media Group, as well as the creator of the Stand Out Online Membership program; the first “All in One” membership program designed to getting massive exposure for women entrepreneurs and their businesses through Influencer Marketing.

Christina’s Mountain

  • That’s interesting because almost a year ago, I moved to Scottsdale, Arizona and we have mountains here. I have a lot of mountains around me. I’m not a huge mountain climber, though I did climb Bell Rock in Sedona. I believe you can call that a mountain.
Christina at Bell Rock - Mountain Photo

Christina at bell rock

 

  • However, I love the metaphor of a mountain. One of my favorite songs is by Miley Cyrus: “The Climb.” And for a business, that makes so much sense. I think the biggest problem most entrepreneurs have is wanting things very fast, and then being disappointed when it doesn’t happen right away.
  • It is a climb! It is like a mountain. I was working on this journey in 2006, but I kept climbing. I didn’t go back down the mountain; I just figured out a new road. It can take years to get there and I see the misconceptions out there.
  • So, prepare to climb the mountain and just keep going until things click. They will, if you stay on the mountain. If you get off, game over! But you will get there!

You can listen to the full episode with Christina Rowe here:

Christina Rowe The women behind Facebook’s 322,000 women entrepreneurs’ group

 

 

David Meerman Scott Headshot David Meerman Scott “I think I’m successful because I have the ability to see patterns in the universe before other people see them.“

David spotted the real-time marketing revolution in its infancy and wrote five books about it including The New Rules of Marketing and PR, with more than 400,000 copies sold in English and available in 29 languages from Albanian to Vietnamese.

Now David says the pendulum has swung too far in the direction of superficial online communications. Tech-weary and bot-wary people are hungry for true human connection. Organizations have learned to win by developing what David calls a “Fanocracy” — tapping into the mindset that relationships with customers are more important than the products they sell to them.

He is a massive live music fan, having been to 790 live shows since he was 15 years old, is passionate about the Apollo lunar program, and he loves to surf but isn’t very good at it.

 

David’s Mountain

  • I have a very important relationship with some mountains. I’m part-owner of a 12,000-acre nature preserve in one of the most important areas of ecology in the world.
  • It’s at the narrowest point between North and South America, and at the narrowest point between the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean. Because of that, it’s important for animal migration and bird migration.
  • This particular area of Panama was in danger of being taken over by cattle ranching. I got together with some friends and we bought 12,000 acres. It’s also important to offset the carbon footprint.
Isthmus of Panama

Isthmus of Panama

You can listen to the full episode with David Meerman Scott here:

David Meerman Scott “I think I’m successful because I have the ability to see patterns in the universe before other people see them“

 

 

Katherine Parker-Magyar Headshot Katherine Parker Magyar is a travel writer entrepreneur who traveled to 6 continents, 63 countries, and all 50 states in pursuit of a good story.

Katherine is a travel columnist for Forbes, and TripSavvy; and her work has appeared in many publications like Architectural Digest, The Week, The Daily Beast, and Business Insider, and more.

Katherine’s Mountain

  • Growing up, we used to go camping in the Grand Tetons in Wyoming. On top of the glacier, there was a frizzing lake that was zero degrees. My mom just took off her clothes, went into the water with her swimming suit, and then called me. She said, “Kathi, come to the water. You don’t want to be the girl who doesn’t get into the water.” (I keep thinking about this sentence every time I need to overcome some physical challenges.)
  • My mom and I lay in the lake, with the mountains above us, and my mom said, “It’s moments like this that you believe that God exists.” And I have never forgotten that—that sense of childlike wonder and joy. I think it’s the happiest, purest, and most rejuvenating moment in the world. 

Nepal - Himalayas

Nepal – Himalayas

Peru - Ausangate Trek

Peru – Ausangate Trek

Jackson Hole - Horseback Riding with parents

Jackson Hole – Horseback Riding with parents

  You can listen to the full episode with Katherine Parker Magyar here:

Katherine Parker Magyar is a travel writer entrepreneur who traveled to 6 continents, 63 countries, and all 50 states in pursuit of a good story

 

 

Justin Goodbread Headshot Justin Goodbread: I had so many people tell me ‘No… But whenever I hear the word NO it fuels my success!

The owner of FinanciallySimple.com, Justin is a nationally recognized financial planner, financial educator, wealth manager, the author of The Ultimate Sale, speaker, and entrepreneur. 

Justin’s Mountain

  • We live in the Smoky Mountains of East Tennessee, on top of a mountain that overlooks the Tennessee River. I can see a mountain range outside of my house. It’s beautiful. And blessed.
  • Two years ago, I went to do some hunting with friends and a guide in the Rocky Mountains in Idaho. We rode horses while climbing the mountains. It was amazing to see the creation out there. Then the guide said that we had to reach the TOP. It seemed like a not-very-high 600-foot elevation. It took us eight hours. We were exhausted and sweating, all our muscles hurt, but we reached the top and stayed there for a week.
  • We reached the top at sunset and it was amazing. But! I have to tell you, there was not much up there. There weren’t trees or rocks or water; most of that stuff was down in the valley. It’s beautiful to be on the mountain top, but the mountain top is so narrow and small. And it’s very lonely up there.
  • So, its fun climbing mountains and I have plans to do it again, but the sweeter fruits—the animals, the trees, the water—are all down in the valley.
Rocky Mountains

Rocky Mountains

You can listen to the full episode with Justin Goodbread here:

Justin Goodbread: I had so many people tell me ‘No… But whenever I hear the word NO it fuels my success!

 

 

Deborah Levine

Deborah Levine: “I try to feel at home with history as well as be part of the future, of making a difference.”

Deborah Levine is the award-winning author of 14 books and the founder/editor of the American Diversity Report.

Deborah’s Mountain

  • As a child I lived in Bermuda, where we have only the ocean, not mountains. I remember that when I first saw a mountain, I was terrified. I didn’t believe that mountains actually existed outside of movies.
  • And up we went, up we went to the mountain, and there was something so amazing about it.
  • Today, my husband and I climb the mountains around us. There is a sense of timelessness and of being a part of history, a sense of the role of nature, as well as being a part of times when there were many conflicts. For me, that works very well because that hasn’t changed much.
  • I try to feel at home with history as well as be part of the future, of making a difference.
Smoky Mountains

Smoky Mountains

You can listen to the full episode with Deborah Levine here:

Deborah Levine: I try to feel at home with the history as well as being part of the future, of making a difference

 

 

Nicolas Babin Headshot Nicolas Babin: “I have a daily mantra (from Japanese) : Fall down 7 times but stand up 8 – this is the key for all success in entrepreneurship” Nicolas’s Mountain

  • I have a very strong relationship with mountains in both senses: real mountains and also mountains in the spiritual sense. I climb mountains in the Pyrenees between France and Spain. I love these mountains. They are special places for me.
  • Another mountain that has always fascinated me is Kilimanjaro because it’s the highest mountain in Africa. You have snow in the land of desert and heat and sand. And this mountain, you know, it’s reachable. You need to train, obviously, but it’s reachable.
  • I think that in terms of spirituality, Kilimanjaro is something special because Africa is the place from which humanity originated. And, apparently, the view from Kilimanjaro is just superb.
  • With people I work with, my vision is the top of the mountain. This is what I like about my vision: it’s my North Star. I know I will never reach it but it will always guide me. The vision is the top of the mountain.

Pyrenees Mountains

Pyrenees Mountains

Mount Kilimanjaro

Mount Kilimanjaro

You can listen to the full episode with Nicolas Babin here:

Nicolas Babin “I have a daily mantra (from Japanese) : Fall down 7 times but stand up 8 – this is the key for all success in entrepreneurship”

 

 

Nick Loper Headshot Nick Loper helps people earn money outside of their day job. He’s an author, online entrepreneur, and host of the award winning Side Hustle Show podcast Nick’s mountain

  • I did climb a few mountains, especially back in the Pacific Northwest. I climbed Washington volcanos and Mount Hood in Oregon. So, I’ve done a little bit of climbing in the literal sense.

Nick Loper and his brother mountain pic

Nick Loper and his brother mountain pic; at the top of Mt. Baker in Washington state, a 10,700 ft peak

Mt. Baker in Washington

Mt. Baker in Washington

You can listen to the full episode with Nick Loper here:

Nick Loper, host of the Side Hustle podcast, helps thousands of people earn extra money outside of their day job

 

 

“Epilog…”

I hope you enjoined this 4th part of my ‘Mountains’ episodes.

If you didn’t listen to the previous “Mountain Episodes” you can find them here

  1. Climbing mountains and entrepreneurial success – A few of the most amazing mountains’ stories you heard
  2. Climbing mountains and entrepreneurial success – The 2nd part – Listen to a few more of the most amazing mountains’ stories you heard
  3. Climbing mountains and entrepreneurial success – The 3rd and last part – Some of the most amazing mountains’ stories you heard

 

Now you can choose whether and what you would like to do next as a reaction to this episode.

As I see it you have 4 options.

 

First, you can of course do nothing that has to do with this show, go to do whatever you want or planned or just switch to the next podcast.

Second, you can enjoy the stories, be inspired and take the courage and massive strength needed to take your entrepreneurship to a much higher level than you did in the last few months.

Third, you can choose one or more of the inspiring successful interviewees, their stories you love best, or choose me, to connect, ask questions, find what else you can learn from them (they all have plenty of free very professional content on their sites) or even find out if they can be your mentor if they give that service.

And last, but not least, you can download my free guide for the 7 elements of Entrepreneurial Business Success that will help you make the best plan for the coming months and reach your goals of 2020.

 

Until next time… Bye, Bye.

 

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