Ryan Begelman, Summit Series // Holistic Entrepreneurship, Philosophy + Buying A Mountain

Creator Lab - interviews with entrepreneurs and startup founders

Who Is Ryan?

Ryan Begelman co-founded Summit Series, described as “TED meets Burning Man” & “The Davos of Gen Y” by Forbes They’ve become known for hosting incredible events with thousands of leading creators like Richard Branson, Jeff Bezos & Jessica Alba. Summit acquired Powder Mountain, America’s largest ski resort after pre-selling the opportunity to their community. Ryan also bought into Bisnow Media, became CEO & sold for a reported $50mil+, all without venture capital.

What You’ll Learn Part 1: Business Frameworks + Backstory

• Framework For Business Ideas – a technique to generate ideas: marketing, monetization + markets
• Bootstrapping + Buying A Mountain – how they pre-sold an idea to their community to buy a mountain for $50mil + why you should consider bootstrapping too
• Joint Venture Waterfalls – applying a concept from private equity to real estate + businesses
• Dealflow – four ways to think about generating deal flow: hunting, trapping, farming, trading
• Replacing Yourself – how to find, hire & train someone to replace you

Part 2: Holistic Entrepreneurship, Philosophy + Mental Fitness

• Redefining Wealthy + Holistic Entrepreneurship – creating a well-rounded, fun & meaningful life through entrepreneurship
• “Software For The Brain” – train your brain for mental fitness, developing awareness + neuroplasticity
• Practical Philosophy – concepts from greek philosophy, Buddhism & stoicism to help you be less reactive + less annoyed
• The Story of the Chinese Farmer – a parable about nature + grounding yourself in truth
• Ego – is wanting to leave an indelible mark on humanity a form of ego or something to strive for?

Time Stamps (YouTube)

• 00:00:00 Preview
• 00:01:54 Welcome
• 00:04:16 Summit Series
• 00:10:12 Buying A Mountain
• 00:12:18 Revenue & Size of Summit & Bisnow Sale
• 00:15:28 Holistic Entrepreneurship: The Trap of Venture Capital
• 00:22:43 Life Cycle of Real Estate Investing
• 00:25:34 Joint Venture Waterfalls
• 00:31:22 Business Idea Framework
• 00:34:42 Pickleball Example
• 00:41:01 Finding Trends
• 00:42:39 Dealflow: Hunting, Trapping, Farming, Trading
• 00:47:20 Hiring Someone to Replace You
• 00:50:43 Part 2: Mental Fitness, Philosophy & Holistic Entrepreneurship
• 00:58:16 Mindfulness
• 01:05:53 Developing Awareness
• 01:08:30 The Story of the Chinese Farmer
• 01:11:14 “Don’t Be the Tree Limbs, Be the Trunk”
• 01:14:12 Assumptions and Biases
• 01:17:02 Dropping Your Concept of Right and Wrong
• 01:18:48 Appeal of Stoicism: Controlling What You Can Control
• 01:22:56 Training Your Brain
• 01:24:36 Getting Out Of The Worst Phase Of Your Life
• 01:28:37 Relationships Aren’t for Happiness
• 01:32:11 Dealing with Ego
• 01:34:00 Training Himself To Complain Less
• 01:35:40 Is Making An Impact On The World Driven By Ego?
• 01:37:30 Avoiding Unsolicited Feedback
• 01:38:22 Alternative To Jumping To The Solve
• 01:39:13 Wrap-Up

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