Blaze Your Own Trail - Episode 15: From Lemonade Stands to The Lemonade Life With Zack Friedman

Episode Date: March 20, 2020

In this episode we talk about: Where Zack grew up. What High School was like. Where he went to Colllege. Zack's entrepreneurial  spirit And much more!! His book, The Lemonade Life. Available here:  https://www.amazon.com/dp/140021159X/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_U_zs2CEbZZ4FFK5 Connect with Zack: Website: https://www.makelemonade.co/ Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zackfriedman/ Thanks so much for listening! Make sure to follow us on Instagram for sneak peeks and other podcast content: https://www.instagram.com/jordanjmendoza/ Installing strategic sales systems & processes will stop the constant revenue rollercoaster you might be facing which is attainable through our 6 Week Blazing Business Revenue Coaching ProgramBook a discovery call with Jordan now to learn more! Are you an entrepreneur?Join my FREE Group Coaching Community where we have live calls, Q&A and more! Our Trailblazer Ecosystem also enables you to network with other entrepreneurs and creator hub eliminates multiple subscriptions and logins creating a one stop shop to take action!Use code: FOUNDING100 for 12 months access FREE and Founding pricing for life! (While Supplies Last)Join now! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In this episode, you'll learn about Zach's journey and how he had a entrepreneurial spirit from being a kid. It all started with lemonade stands, and then he eventually started a company called Make Lemonade, and last year released a book called The Lemonade Life. So there's tons of valuable nuggets in this episode. So I hope you enjoy, and I'll chat with you right after. Hello, everyone, and welcome to the Blaze Your Own Trail Podcast. I'm your host, Jordan Mendoza. and I've got a very special guest with me tonight.

His name is Zach Friedman. And Zach, won't you go ahead and tell the audience a little bit about yourself? Jordan, it's great to be with you. Thanks so much for having me on the podcast. I'm Zach Friedman. I am the founder and CEO of a company called Make Lemonade. It's an online comparison personal finance website.

And we basically compare, much like you'd see a travel website like Expedia comparing lots of hotels and travel, opportunities. We do the same thing with financial services. So everything from student loans to student loan refinancing personal loans and credit cards and make it very, very simple for folks to compare all the details and it's put in a very simple comparison charts and calculators and it's all at makelemonade.co. I'm also a columnist at Forbes. I'm very grateful for that platform and I've had over 25 million readers on Forbes. I've done three million readers this month alone.

and very grateful for the folks I get to impact in 125 different countries through forums, which is great. And then also, I know we'll talk about it today, but I have a best-selling book out called The Lemonade Life, which I'm very excited about. And for folks who have read it, I hope it's inspired you and create a lot of impact in your life. And for those who haven't, looking forward to you reading it and seeing some great stories of inspiration and motivation, not only in business, but in life.

and that's available now and everywhere. So excited to delve into that as well. And it's great to be with you, Jordan. Awesome, awesome. Well, appreciate you sharing that. And so I want to really kind of dive into Zach a little bit and find out, you know, before you've gotten to this point, you know, how your journey was.

And so let's go back to when you were a kid, like elementary years, you know, what were your thoughts on where you saw yourself one day? day. You know, going back in the day, back to elementary school, so I grew up in the great state of California and I grew up in Los Angeles and, you know, I grew up around Hollywood and entertainment industry. And when I was younger, you know, I wanted to do a lot of things. I knew I wanted to create impact in some way. So, you know, when I was really young, I probably want to be a doctor like my dad, wanted to go into public service and run for office and be able to impact people that way. And also was always interested in business and starting a company, being a,

entrepreneur. Those are things I wanted to do when I was elementary school. I didn't really understand what it all meant. But those were things that I had an interest in, you know, ways that I could be creative and create value in some way, although I probably didn't understand what that meant. So those are the types of things I wanted to do. I knew I wanted to give back in some way. We're very interested in business and was always trying to come up with creative ways to, you know, try to start a business or, you know, whether it was, you know, selling, you know, things at a garage sale or a lemonade stand or things like that. You know, working jobs and I was younger and those were the things that interested me the most back then back in

the day. Okay. So you just referenced a lemonade stand and you have a book called The Lemonade Life and a company called Make Lemonade. So where did all of that start out? Like what was it? Was it a person? Was it a love for the delicious drink that we would all see and stop to buy during the summertime? time, like, what was it that got you to choose, you know, that name? That's a good question. It'd be funny if I said I didn't like lemonade, but that's not true. I do like lemonade. Yeah, I think it's what you just said, Jordan.

You know, people have this connotation of lemonade as being something that's very sweet. It's refreshing. You think about a summer day. And I think lemonade is just a powerful universal message that everyone can relate to, right? It kind of makes you feel good. It's kind of the sweet life. Things are better when you have a glass of lemonade with you, right? And so that's what really got me going.

And of course, you know, there's that proverbial line of, you know, when life gives you lemons, make lemonade. And so I think it has a lot of different commentations. You know, the lemonade life is my book. And that's a better aspirational life that we can all work to achieve. And make lemonade, the company is really about putting your best foot forward, no matter your circumstance, and doing the actual work to give yourself the best financial life possible. So I think for me it started just when I was young age enjoying lemonade and, you know,

had a couple of lemonade stands with my brother. back in the day, you know, that put a few dollars in the pocket when I was probably in elementary school. But that was kind of the start of it. And it's grown from there. That's awesome. And so let's talk about high school at all. So when you're in high school, did you, were you active in sports, things like that? Or, you know, was the academic side more of your focus? Yeah, no, definitely active in sports. I played all kinds of sports. I spent most of my time playing on the soccer team, I was captain of the soccer team for several years.

And outside of official high school sports, played basketball all the time on the weekends. And, you know, always been a sports fan. I grew up being a Laker fan in L.A. Still am, of course. And, yeah, did other things in high school, too, everything from speech and debate.

I was the editor-in-chief of the high school newspaper and a whole bunch of other activities as well. But those are some of the things I focused on in high school. Okay, awesome. And so are you a fan of All-Star Weekend and all those festivities surrounding it? Absolutely. Yeah, it's been amazing. Seeing some of the slam dunk contests, too, was pretty outstanding.

Absolutely. And did you get a chance to see? So I'm from Portland, Oregon and massive Trailblazers fan. Yeah. Lakers have definitely broken our hearts over the years. I know, I know. As I've been a fan since the 80s. Yeah, Clyde Drexler and John Kersey.

and back of the day, right? Kevin Duckworth, Buck Williams. It's a bonus. You know, there's some really, really good squads for Portland, but it's just like ever since 77, we just haven't been able to quite get over that hump. But, I mean, I like our team this year. And I think with, you know, we've got some guys down, but they're going to be coming back soon, like Nirkich and, you know, Zach Collins.

So I think we can make a run after All-Star weekend. Portland's always been a great team, man. Like, you know, as you said, back in the day in the eight, 80s, the Lakers and the Trailblazers used to go at it. But, you know, that Western conference is tough, you know. I always thought it was just a really tough, you know, we used to be the Lakers and the jazz and Portland and, you know, it was always, always gave us a run for our money, Phoenix in different years as well.

That's it. And so after high school, where did, where did you, was your first stop? I know that, uh, you went to a number of colleges. So what was your first stop after high school? So after high school, I went to Johns Hopkins for college. And, you know, I finished school in about three years. So I was able to graduate early. I spent some time working at the White House in the West Wing.

So that was a tremendous experience. And then after that, I went to work on Wall Street working in finance. So really working with a lot of companies and advising them, management teams and boards of directors on everything from capital raising to mergers and acquisitions, got a real understanding of the, finance world and I've always been passionate about that I've spent my career working in finance and then after that had opportunities to go to grab some graduate degrees business degree, a law degree and master's degree as well so all right so for the audience that doesn't know where where were the next few stops uh in terms of the schools yeah so after after um uh working investment banking i was a degree from Harvard and and warren business school and and Columbia law school as well uh and then

worked as an investor, effectively at a hedge fund and before that a little time at Blackstone, also working in finance as well, looking at M&A and private equity. Then I was a CFO of an international energy company and then started my company as a CEO and a founder and entrepreneur, Make Lemonade. Okay, and what year was that? What year did you? Yeah, so the company started about three years ago. And, you know, for me it really was, I, you know, I gained all this wonderful experience and interacting with, you know, a lot of different CEOs and CFOs and investors and entrepreneurs.

I always knew I wanted to start my own business, my own platform and just finding the right time to do that, having the right idea, being able to execute on it. You know, a lot of people have, you know, we all have ideas, right, of things we'd like to do. And a lot of times for one reason or another, it's not the right time or, you know, we're not sure if the idea will work or, you know, we think we need capital for it. And for me, you know, the right time to do it was when I started my business and, you know, I haven't looked back. But, you know, I was fortunate to gain a lot of insights and skills and, you know, being an executive, running a large company, you know, learning about investing, executing on deals, seeing how different CEOs and CFOs operated, seeing how boards of directors operate. to have been able to sit on several boards of directors. And so all of that knowledge and toolkit put together has helped me tremendously and start my own business.

That's awesome. And so you were essentially, you know, you're on the training grounds, right? You know, getting all this experience at multiple levels in different organizations and in the West Wing as well, right? That's right. So tell me, you might get asked this question a lot or maybe not at all, but I'm just curious, you know, because you see in a lot of movies and stuff like that, all of the, amazing paintings that are in there.

But how is it when you're actually back there and you're walking through? Is it? In the West Wing? Yeah. Do you just kind of stop and like really? Because obviously you're there so you can see a lot more details than just regular people like me who are looking at it, you know, looking at it in an interview or something. Yeah, it's a great question.

It's awe-inspiring, right? I mean, to be there in the West Wing and to be there in the White House, to see the president, to see the vice president, and to see all the great. people that make the American government operate and function smoothly is it's an honor. And it is awe-inspiring. Everything from the paintings, as you mentioned, just seeing how hard people work on so many different issues and whether they're issues of national crisis or international crisis or they're just day-to-day ways that they can impact and help people is truly tremendous.

So it was an amazing experience on all levels. And the White House is a special place. And so what would you say, you know, having that experience has done for your business, right? And I don't even know how many, if you were there for months or if it was years, but like, was there, is there something that you can easily pinpoint that you picked up on that journey, right, where you're like, man, that was foundational in helping me today? I think there were a ton of lessons that I learned, but I think one in particular is just this idea, which I talked about earlier that I had gained when I was even much younger,

and it was just reinforced at the White House, which is this idea of giving back and creating impact. And I think people who work in public service, they obviously don't earn the largest paychecks, but they really are passionate in making a difference. And you can create an impact in so many different ways. I talk about this in the lemonade life, whether it's a financial impact or it's a societal impact,

where you change the life of one student if you're a teacher, I think that that is really special to me. And I knew when I wanted to create a business, you know, it's all about how can you create impact for other people no matter what you do, right? And, you know, at Make Lemonade, we create the impact for people

by helping them live a better financial life. So we help them in various areas where they can either get savings or they understand fine print that didn't quite understand before or you help them with calculators and make their life simpler and eliminate headaches,

help their investments grow. I mean, different ways you can create impact and value. for a end customer is an important lesson I picked up at the White House and other other experiences as well. But that's something that's always stuck with me. And when I think about businesses and great businesses, how they're created, if they're for profit, if they're nonprofit or just any organization, is what can you get back to someone else?

And that to me has always been something that's stuck with me ever since that experience. Awesome. And I'm sure, you know, somebody like you that I look at you, like you, like you're probably a lifelong learner, right? So over the years, I'm sure you've had a number of mentors. So can you tell the audience, you know, who would you say is probably your biggest mentor? And why did you choose this person? I know it might be hard because you probably have several, but if you could just pick one. Yeah, you know, I won't give out the name, but I will say that, you know, when I've chosen mentors over the years, I think mentors are incredibly important.

I look for people that I, number one can learn from me. I mean, that's, that's obvious. And they don't, you know, importantly, I don't think they have to be in your field per se. You know, a lot of people say, you know, I work in real estate, therefore I need to find a real estate operator, a real estate developer. I think you want to go to people who will do a couple things. Number one, they've obviously accomplished a lot and they've been through a lot. They don't have to be the most successful or the wealthiest person in the world. I think you want someone who's been tried and tested.

So they've kind of seen the ups and downs and they can, they have a good, purview. They have a good perspective that they can offer you. Number two, I think they understand the shoes that you're the seat that you sit in. So they, you know, they can relate to you in some way. Again, even if you're not in the same industry, even if they're a lot more advanced in their career than you are, they can remember or they can at least put themselves, you know, through empathy and through other ways to understand your perspective, I think is really, really important. Number three, I think people who listen, right, I think anytime you have a mentor, there's some mentors who will just say, hey, here's my advice and go take it or not take it. And I think a mentor is

willing to invest the time and the energy to sit with you and really listen to your situation and then give targeted advice based on that situation is been incredibly helpful. So I can think of one mentor going back to your question in particular, who's kind of fit all of those checks on the checklist. And that's the type of mentor that I look for. Someone who listens, someone who understands my perspective. They don't have to be in my industry per se. But I've been able to help them as much as they've been able to help me. I'd say that's another important point as well. You know, mentorship is a, it's a two-way streak. A lot of people think it's a top-down experience. But I've been able to add value to many mentors over the years who have helped me, not because

they've helped me, but because I've wanted to help them. And I've been able to share my perspectives, even if they're older than me or they've done more things and seen more than I've seen, I've been able to give back to them, at least in a small way. And that's been rewarding for me as well. that's awesome yeah and i'm i'm a big believer in you know reciprocity and you know giving giving to other people without expectation right just because you you want to help you know because of course i work with people all the time and you know they're like hey like thank you for helping me i'm like you know you shouldn't have to thank me i'm literally like you need this information i have this

information right and i get the ability to have to see somebody have that aha moment and say, wow, like, and to me it may not be that big of a deal, but for the recipient, it could mean the world, you know? Absolutely. That's exactly right. So what are some things when it relates to finance? So I know you've got calculators, you've got, you know, all these different tools that are available. What do you think has made the biggest impact on your customer base? Is it the content that you have or is it a lot of your values and messaging? What has been the biggest thing? Because I'm sure you definitely look at different data and metrics as it relates to customer

experience and reviews and ratings. Absolutely. So I think it's three things that differentiates us. First are our comparison tables. So I can't tell you how many times, even someone who has a financial background, just trying to get information on just a basic financial product, it's not as easy as you would think, right? I mean, the internet has so many different sources,

but just seeing everything in one place where you can compare rates and loan terms and, you know, states of residence eligibility and, you know, the number of years that it would take for you to pay back a loan, for example, you'd be surprised, but you can't really find all that information in one place. So we wanted to create very simple comparison tables

where you can see a snapshot on your phone or on your desktop or laptop or tablet, it very, very simply and then make your own determination. So we pack in a lot of what I would call find print that would be hard to find or you have to look in multiple places and make it very simple in one place. I think that's a huge value add for customers that have used Make Lemonade. Secondly, I think our content is not as you would find other content. So most content in financial services, it's very descriptive.

Here's what a loan is. Here's how it works. But it's not as proactive. or like, here are the steps you need to take. And so we spend a lot of time very carefully with Make Lemonade to be very, very proactive. And like, here are the clear steps that you need to take if you want to get from point A to point B.

I think that's helpful because, you know, not everyone has financial expertise. And again, sometimes these things are very hard to understand even if you have financial expertise. And so, you know, if you're refinancing student loans, for example, you know, it's complex, right? It's actually a complex process if you don't know it. And so we try to break it down.

Like, here are the 10 steps you need to do literally. the website you go to, here's the page you click on. After you do that, you have to call this person or call that person or fill out this form. So we try to almost hold the hand of the consumer to make sure they can get through it. So they're not spending time kind of spinning their wheels to get through some things that can be complex. We try to make it easy. And then finally, our calculators and our tools. So, you know, we spent a lot of time trying to make very simple calculators that can do complex transactions, so to speak, in a very, you know, easy amount of time within seconds. And we think that's a huge value at. I mean, we, I would argue, have the best calculators

for student loans, certainly, and other products as well. But certainly for student loan refinancing and paying off for student loans and income-driven repayment plans. Again, those are, you know, typically they're either not really available or they're too simplistic or they don't really tell you the right information you need very succinctly. So I think that's an area we really spent a lot of time and resources on. I think those three areas, content calculators, and then also focusing on our comparison tables that have really differentiated to make lemonade. That's awesome. And so, you know, you're very active on LinkedIn, right?

You're posting, you're creating different content, you videos, things like that. So what has really kind of drawn you into that platform? And for somebody maybe that's listening that isn't very active on LinkedIn, Maybe they're, you know, they're like me like last April where I thought it was just a place to go update my, you know, if I got a new job or to tell somebody happy birthday or, you know, something like that. So what would you tell the audience that maybe could add some value if they're thinking about wanting to get more active and start to build that brand there? LinkedIn is a phenomenal platform. I'm a big fan of the platform. You know, I'm a big fan of multiple social media platforms.

I think it's important if you're a creator or an entrepreneur or an author or whatever you're trying to do in life. I think it's so important to connect with other people. And definitely face-to-face interaction is number one. But, you know, social media tools like LinkedIn are so powerful to create and share your content. I spent a lot of time sharing content, creating fresh content, you know, every day. And LinkedIn, you're right, Jordan, it's not just a place to post your resume. I mean, you're also very big on LinkedIn. and I think the more you can share messages, whether it's about your business or it's about your ideas,

content you create, whether it's video or it's just messages, really that you can resonate with people. It's a really powerful platform where you're trying to generate business or sales or connect with people or build an audience. There's so many different ways that you can leverage the power of LinkedIn. And so anyone who's out there is listen to the podcast and maybe you don't use LinkedIn or use it for some of the things. traditionally people think about like posting your resume or wishing someone happy birthday or getting job updates or searching for jobs. It's a lot more than that. And you can really use it to build an audience, as I said, you know, connect with really

smart people like yourself who are doing wonderful things in life. And it really get to know a lot of people that can turn into really strong relationships that are not just, you know, a one time like on a post. But, you know, you really get to know them and you end up respecting them and learning from them. You know, I learn so much. I'm a big content creator, but I love learning. You brought up being a lifetime learner.

I love to learn from everybody. I really love to learn from everybody, whether they have a social media following or not. So I spent a lot of time listening to people more than I talk, or at least I try to. And, you know, if I can gain something that I view it as a win. So for me, LinkedIn has been phenomenal along with great other platforms too. Yeah. And I think you brought up some really great points. And, you know, I think as well for if you're an entrepreneur,

or maybe you're not, maybe you're an employee for a company, but you're passionate about that company. You know, it's super important that you're, you know, you express that now. You've got to be self-aware of what you're good at as far as, you know, if you're better on video or if you're better at static text or short form article or a long-form article, right? You should definitely know what your strengths are, but also don't be afraid to test. You know, I remember literally, and I posted my first video, and it was so awkward because I, you know, whenever you start anything in life, whether that's tying your shoe or riding a bike or dribbling a basketball, it's weird. You know, it's super weird.

And it was the same thing for me on LinkedIn on video is like I was holding my phone and I was on the screen. And it just was just weird, right? if you've never done that before. But, you know, I got a lot of encouragement, and that's like you mentioned consuming content. Well, I came across a guy named Brian Shulman, who is, you know, known as the godfather of video on LinkedIn. The guy's been on it every day for 16 years, you know, every year for 16 years. So, but he posted a lot of positive things and it encouraged me to do that, right?

And so, you know, you learn from other people or you see somebody and you're like, man, like, Why can I, why can't I do that? Now I have the courage to be able to do it, you know? And you're great at what you do. You have great content. Appreciate that. Yeah, absolutely, man. So, LinkedIn has been great, right?

So has it actually impacted your business? So I guess this would be a great question for, again, entrepreneurs that are thinking about, like, should I invest time into LinkedIn? because I think, you know, you don't really have to use ads. I don't know many companies. I mean, you definitely see them on LinkedIn, but I don't think if you're a company that you have to really have any ad spend, it's more of a, like how many hours can you invest,

creating, curating the content, and then also engaging with the audience, right? So would you say that through you posting content, you've actually generated, whether it's a book sale or maybe traffic to your website, Like, have you actually seen, you know, positivity as far as business is concerned? Absolutely. I mean, I, we generate business every day on multiple different things that I do from from make lemonade in my business to book sales or folks who have read the book.

You know, it's a chance for me to connect with them to people reading my Forbes column. People inviting me to speak. I speak quite a bit. And so, yeah, I'm on a daily basis. You know, I receive, you know, direct messages all the time across all. of those areas. And then, of course, you get, you know, as you probably do as well, you know, a million different pitches to do, you know, to get every single sales pitch under the sun to sign up for a product you probably don't need. But yeah, absolutely. I would encourage anyone

who is an entrepreneur or even if you're not an entrepreneur, whether you're an author or you work for a company and you just want to get more involved. I think it's, again, a phenomenal platform. Again, you don't want to be, and I think a lot of people make this mistake of just, you know, selling their product, right, to someone who doesn't need it. I like to just give away a lot of content. Like I don't charge for content. You can buy my book obviously, but 99% of my content is totally free,

whether it's on Instagram or Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, et cetera. And I love just sharing, you know, motivational messages, inspirational messages, business advice, or other things I think that can help people in some way. And I think people who do that who are authentic on LinkedIn, like you, Jordan, and others, I think those are the people that resonate most because people don't really want like a sales pitch on a daily basis.

I don't think that's what people come on the platform for. I think it's to meet people. I think it's to learn. I think it's to create value, create impact, and I grow their network in meaningful ways. And so I think the people that understand that, the people who are thinking about getting on the platform, that's where they should really be focusing is giving away content that can touch people in some way. Because I think that's how you make that meaningful connection. Absolutely.

Yeah. And that's really, that's my goal. I want to create content that either inspires, you know, educates or entertains, right? I mean, those are kind of the three buckets that you want to use. And when you do it from a value add perspective, meaning I want somebody to actually, you know, listen to this and then do something, like some type of action and then get some type of result. Like you said, like that feels fantastic that you're able to impact, you know, because just imagine if you impacted one person a day, it's 360.

five people a year, right? I mean, and when you're creating content at scale, you actually have the opportunity to impact so many more people than that. Absolutely. Absolutely. But not how far it travels.

And if you're hosting a podcast, right? I mean, you know, this episode that we do today, Jordan, will be on LinkedIn. And folks can listen to it and get educated and learn something, maybe they'll have a reaction to it.

Maybe they'll follow up questions, maybe able to give them an idea to go start a business or get more active on LinkedIn. And that's really creating real value for people, right? To see us come together and talk and share insights, that's big progress for a lot of people that can benefit from it. And, you know, that's why you started a podcast and I'm ramping it up, right?

And doing so well with it. Yeah. Yeah, it was about, you know, sharing other people's stories and journeys with the world, right? because, and not just the success because, like, you know, everybody is, it's very easy on the surface to see the success, but, you know, no one really knows bottom level what someone has actually gone through to get to where they are. And so that brings me to my next question. So what roadblock have you ran into? I guess, I guess maybe like your top two roadblocks on your journey, right? And I know you're the type of person where you know, know you're still on your journey, you still have more people to impact. But what two roadblocks, you know, specifically can you remember that you like came across and you were like,

man, how am I going to go, you know, around or through? How am I going to get through this? I could probably give you more than two. But, you know, I talk about roadblocks a lot in my book, The Lemonade Life. And there's a, there's a couple characters that you meet. And one of them was called an eternal excuser. And that's the person that kind of makes all these excuses all the time. Like, you know, I can never do this. It's too hard. It's too much money. I'm too old.

You know, my time has passed. I think a lot of us have either excuses that we tell ourselves, kind of have debates with ourselves, right? Like, should we do this? Should we not do it? Should I start a business? Should I start a business?

And, you know, again, I can name, you know, several times I failed or faced roadblocks. But, you know, I think some of them, just to highlight a few, it's just deciding, number one, is start a business, right? You know, I probably want to start a business from the time I was going back to that question earlier about elementary school. but, you know, finding the right time to do that, right?

And so I think we kind of have these internal debates, wow, do you know, do I leave what I'm doing and I'm on a certain path because I want to start something and, you know, what is if it fails or it doesn't go the right way or, wow, I got to raise all this capital or, you know, what will other people think or, you know, that kind of thing. I don't think like that anymore, but, you know, certain times, I mean, those are all just natural things that people think about and whether it's going to make sense for them. You know, it's the same thing, same thing with writing. So, you know, you asked me earlier, what did you do in high school? You know, I was editor-in-chief of my high school newspaper. It was a weekly newspaper. You know, I love to write. But, you know, I didn't become a writer full-time, right?

I didn't graduate college and say, I'm going to write full-time. So, you know, I did other things. And I came back to it. And I had the opportunity, you know, finally after, you know, years later to start a column at Forbes. And, you know, fortunately, you know, it took off and, you know, was grown tremendously. you know, again, almost 30 million readers in 125 countries. So, you know, should I have started it, you know, 20 years ago and kind of focus on a writing career in addition to my business career.

You know, who knows? It's hard to look back. But, you know, obviously there was something that I chose not to do that, right? And did it make sense to focus on that? So I think one of the lessons from this is a lot of people create roadblocks from themselves, right? It becomes a mental roadblock. and they're not sure whether they should do it or they should. I think for being an entrepreneur, a lot of people don't tell you this.

Everyone's like, just jump in, just do it, to start your business. You know, escape the nine to five. I talk about this in the lemonade life. You know, not everyone needs to be an entrepreneur, right? Like, it's okay. You know, we have this world today where it's like, you got to escape the nine to five. The nine to five is horrible. You don't want to work for someone else.

You want to work for yourself. You want to create your own destiny. And that's true, you know, in entrepreneurship. but, you know, 99% of businesses or something like that or fail, right? Like, they just don't work out. Like, you see a couple of few successful ones on, you know, whether it's LinkedIn or, you know, other platforms for folks who have done well. But, you know, I can tell you so many people, so many smart people that had great ideas.

And they just, the businesses didn't work out. And that's most businesses. And so, you know, I don't think people should put this pressure on themselves to, like, leave their job. You can have a very successful and rewarding career working for other people. If it's the right environment, you enjoy. what you do, you wake up every morning and you're really passionate about it. So I would tell people who who are experiencing roadblocks or they're unsure of themselves, you know, definitely don't

worry about other people, what they think, what they're doing. You can have five friends who are trying to be entrepreneurs and they're like, look at me, this is great. You know, I sleep in when I want. I have my own hours, you know, I set my own schedule. I don't have to answer to anybody. But it might not be right for you. And so if you're deciding whether to do something or not do something, you know, don't have that internal debate with yourself. Like, you know, if you feel you're ready to do it, great. If you feel like you need two more years to do it, great. Like, you have time.

I think that's another important thing. People think there's like, I don't have time. You know, I'm 25 years old. I got to get going or I'm 30 or I'm 40. And it's like you have time. You know, like businesses sometimes you need to spend five years trying to figure it out. Other businesses you can start today. And a lot of people spend too much time planning.

That's another big pitfall, right? They're like, oh, I got to plan this and I got to make sure this is right. And I got to think about my market strategy and my customer strategy and all these different strategies when you could just write a business plan and kind of go with that. And so I think it's different for everybody, but, you know, don't have that internal debate because you can create these unnecessary roadblocks. That would be my bottom line advice. Awesome, awesome advice. And, you know, I definitely can relate to that because, you know, I wanted to start this podcast. And, you know, once I actually said at launch date, it became super real.

You know, like once I started, you know, saying it to either not just, you know, people directly in my life, but like out on social media, you know, and then I was like, oh, okay, like, this is actually cool. So now, now I've got to really do this, right? I've got to start this show and I've got to figure out like, you know, who's going to come on the show and, you know, get these first few episodes under under my belt. And, you know, I didn't. I definitely didn't know all of the actual work that. would be going in because, you know, I am the host. I'm the producer. I'm the editor. I am you're the marketer, right? Like, you're really doing it all. But I love, I love this journey. I love this process. And, you know, I feel like every, every day that I do some part of the business, whether it's, you know, creating the audiogram with captions for marketing pieces. and, you know, just knowing that at the end of the day, like, this is mine. You know, like, it's such a great feeling. And I've just had these incredible opportunities to interview people that I,

if you had asked me a year ago, I'd be like, yeah, not me. There's no way I would interview. You know, I'd be associated with somebody like that. And it's just amazing what can happen when you just say, you know what? Like, why not me? Like, why can't I do this? That's a great, that is a great line. Why not me?

I love that. Why not me? I mean, more people have more power than they realize, right? They have, you know, if you want to become someone like, if you work at it, right, and you have a great idea and you can execute on it, you can really accomplish anything. I mean, it sounds cheesy. It sounds trite, but it really is true. And it's like entrepreneurship I talk about in the lemonade life.

It's really the greatest form of meritocracy because, again, like, if you have a great idea, it doesn't matter how much money you have or like who's behind you, you have a great idea and you can execute on it. You can beat out everybody else, right? Same with a podcast, right? And if you start a podcast or you write a book or you're trying to start a company, countless people will tell you, oh, but come on, there's like 10 million podcasts. How are you ever going to differentiate yourself?

Or you want to start a company? Come on. You know, you know many company? You don't many financial companies there are? Like, are you really going to do that? You're going to write a book? There's like 100 billion books, you know? Why would anyone read your book?

Not that you're bad or not a good writer, but like, come on, look at all the competition. I think people who listen to that kind of thing, you know, sometimes, you know, those are fair comments, right but again if you have something that's different and it's unique and you can differentiate yourself some way it doesn't matter how many numbers are behind that right as long as you like can execute on that uh you know you can make a difference you can stand out you can you can beat those odds and so i think that's it's important for people to realize and as you said when you take that first step right and you're more specific you know i talk about setting goals in a lemonade life and and you know one of the methodologies is you make goals specific and non-negotiable right like once you said i'm

you put on social media, I'm starting a podcast, right? Well, there's no turning back, right? You're not going to tell people I'm starting a podcast and then you don't show up. Like, you have to get the guests, right? And then you got to start editing it. You've got to start finding, you know, interviews to do and doing the research. And, you know, and then once you've done it, we've done that first interview, it becomes more comfortable, right?

The second interview and the third interview, you know, and the next thing you know, you have 50 people you're talking to. So it's just, it's kind of taking that first step and the second step and the third step and it becomes easier over time. Same thing with entrepreneurship. Same thing with writing a book. Same thing with, you know, creating impact somewhere. It's like so many people, they worry, well, should I do it?

Should I do it? But like, once you actually do it, whether it works at or not, I mean, you may fail nine out of ten times. But if you can actually get there and get over that first hump, you know, you really can get going on your journey. That's it. Yeah. And it's been one of those crazy things because, yeah, like you said, originally, I'm like,

you know, I have to reach out to people and say, hey, you know, I would love, you know, love to learn more about your story and your journey and see if you align. to come on the show. And then, you know, after I think the first few episodes were out, it was just this amazing thing to start happening where I just kept getting messages from people that were saying, how can I get on the show? And I was like, you're me.

Like, I was just that person. You know, I was just that person just like a couple, a couple weeks ago, you know. So, but that's a cool part of the journey when, you know, and I actually enjoy that process. I don't mind reaching out. I'm not, I could care less if somebody tells me no. When I was 14, I started doing door-to-door cells, signing people up for the newspaper. So, you know, at 14, I heard 100 people tell me no every single day, you know.

So I just, you know, you start to develop that tough skin and I just looked at it like, let me go find the noes. And if the yeses come, they're just a bonus. You know, that's such an important lesson. You learn that at a young age. And again, if you want to start something, if you want to become extremely, ordinary, you're going to hear no so many times. I think for a lot of people, I think their first thing is like, well, that's really going to kill

my self-esteem, right? Like, I don't want to hear no all day. I can't tell you no matter how successful you get, people are going to tell you no all the time, all the time. The biggest entrepreneurs in the world, the biggest companies in the world, you know, again, people just read the headlines and they see like, you know, the dollar signs. But behind that, so many knows, so many knows. I talk about in the book, a lot of people, people who are billionaires today, how many times

they were told no, right? You wouldn't believe it how many times they were told no. But eventually they get a yes and they might get a hundred more noes and they get another yes. And it's like, you know, things happen slowly. They don't happen as fast as most people believe. That's exactly it. And I think, you know, mindset is like whether it's sports, whether it's life, whether it's business, it really is everything, right? And the more, you know, positive that you can be, the better because like positivity is contagious just like negativity is and if you can be like just have that positive attitude with people like people naturally want to be around that right and and I think you know for people that are in sales you know whenever I teach a sales class I'm like listen

it's about smile eye contact enthusiasm right being able to actually read people's body language because you can easily tell if somebody's interested or not. You know, all those fundamental things that a lot of, a lot of people, and, you know, it's this 2020, you walk into businesses and people are just looking at their phone. They don't greet you. They don't stand up to greet you. And it's like, you know, why would I, why would I want to frequent this business?

Because I don't feel valued as a customer, right? So, you know, going back to the basics, I think, is huge in a lot of ways. and some people that are starting out, they actually don't have that grasp yet. They don't, and you're right. You see it more often than you think, and everybody knows those basic things, right? If you ask anyone, what makes you go to the salesperson?

They tell you, exactly, you shake hands, you show interest, you listen, but a lot of people don't do that, right? They don't do basic concepts, and you see it on LinkedIn too, right? People just send you, I get this literally daily, multiple times a day I will get messages like, Hey, do you want to buy some like computer security software? Like, I've never met you before.

Like, I don't, I don't even know who you are. Like, at least say hello, you know, try to, try to connect on some personal level. I think people just forget these basic things. And it, you know, it kind of screams, you know, inauthentic. And if you don't have that authenticity, it's hard to connect with people, I think, in addition to being a good listener and shaking hands and making eye contact. Yeah. And, you know, and another one, you probably get this all the time as well.

I get it. constantly it's I've literally just connected with somebody and then they send me the first thing that literally first piece of communication is is a long page please write me a recommendation and like like wait a second we just literally connected I have zero context about who you are as a human being right there's no how could I possibly write you a recommendation I basically you basically are asking me to lie right I mean that's that's what it is And so, you know, I'm just a type of person where I'm like, hey, listen, I appreciate the message. If, you know, hi, I'm Jordan, you know, what line of work?

What you do? Let's start here. You know, let me check out your content for, you know, around six months or so, kind of build a contextual relationship. And then, then, maybe then, maybe I'll think about, you know, writing your recommendation. But if I did it today, it wouldn't even make any sense because I don't know who you are. Yeah. And I think that's a, that's a huge pitfall, obviously, on social media. And again, you know, if you're looking to get involved in LinkedIn or a similar platform,

like you have to be authentic, right? Like, just think about real life. You know, you wouldn't go up to someone in real life and be like, hey, how you doing? I'm Zach. Like, and then 10 seconds later, ask for, as you said, like a recommendation or something like that. And so, again, the people who who are really successful on social media and LinkedIn in particular are just people who are authentic, right? and they're not asking for things.

They're more giving, right? And it's not tied to it. It's just, hey, I have content I want to share and I want to create and I want to impact and motivate and inspire people. And I think those are the people who have longevity like yourself on LinkedIn and on social. Yeah. And really, like you said, the authenticity piece is huge. And, you know, you wouldn't, if you go to dinner, you don't typically start with dessert, right? You usually have an appetizer, right?

And then maybe an entree before you. And those are people. They literally just immediately start to pitch you. And listen, like, I know they're hustling and I know that there are going to be people that buy their product or their service or whatever using that tactic. But like you said, if you want to establish like long-term relationships with another human being, you're not going to do it through those tactics. right so you have to actually be more cordial and be more personable and introduce yourself and literally try to get to know other people like a human like real humans right because those relationships are just very transactional like quick relationships i'm getting here to try to get

this sale and then i'm going to the next inbox right and so there's there is no there's no sustained relationship in that instance that's right It's transactional, right? It's not building a relationship. That's it. So let me ask you this. If people want to get in touch with you, right? After the show, they've listened.

I mean, you've definitely dropped some value in this episode. So if they wanted to get in touch with you, where is the best place to reach Zach Friedman? Several different places. You can reach me. Certainly, we talked about LinkedIn, so all over social, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, all at Zach A. Friedman, Z-A-C-K-A-F-R-I-E-D-M-A-F-R-I-D-M-A-N on LinkedIn. My website is

ZackFreedman.com. You can pick up a copy of LemonadeLife Life Life Life. Everywhere, books are sold. It's in hardcover, audio book, e-book. Audio book was named by Apple as a must listen and one of the biggest books of fall. It's also been a bestseller. You can grab it at LemonadeLifeLifebook.com, as well as every major retailer, every target to Walmart, Amazon, Barnes & Noble. and your local bookstores and airports. And I love interacting with folks. I love interacting on social media.

You can reach out to me anytime. I respond personally to everybody. And I love to hear what inspires you and what you're doing in your life, whether you're starting a business or creating something or just have questions or just need advice. Love to hear feedback and love to talk with people and interact for sure. So I try to make myself very accessible to everybody. So please reach out anytime.

Absolutely. I'm definitely going to make sure all that info is down in the show notes. And so one final question for you. So what is next on the list for Zach Friedman? Just continue to do what I do, man. You know, working hard. We're, you know, talking with folks all over the world about the book. It's going to be translated into several different languages.

Lemonade Life paperback comes out this August. So very excited about that. And just hearing from readers on a daily basis. around the world is very humbling to me. Continuing to grow, make lemonade and my Forbes column, you know, love connecting with readers and impacting people and giving back as well. So continue to work harder in those things and trying to balance them all. And, you know, love to connect with people like you, Jordan, who are making a difference

and, you know, being leaders in business and on social as well. So I really appreciate you having me on the podcast. It's been a great honor. And I'm wishing you a ton of success with this podcast. great platform. And I think a lot of people are going to blaze their own trail for sure after listening to you and particularly this episode, but also to you for the long term. Yeah, I appreciate that, my friend. Ladies and gentlemen, that was Zach Friedman on the Blaze Your Own Trail podcast. I will talk to you on the next episode.

Thank you so much for listening to that episode with Zach Friedman. Wow, does the guy have a lot of energy and there was so much value dropped. Listen, if you're not subscribed yet to the podcast, please subscribe and also tell your friends about it if you enjoy it. In addition to that, if you have not rated and reviewed, please, please, please rate and review the podcast if you enjoy it. That feedback will tremendously help us be able to reach as many people around the world as possible. So thank you all for your support and I can't wait to chat with you on the next episode.