#52 Becoming your own boss with Chris Folayan | The Change Lead Podcast

Speaker A: So there are three kinds of people. Um, there are three kinds of entrepreneurs. There's innovator, um, um, and then there's an executor, and then there's a do it all dominator. So let's talk about the innovator. The innovator is, uh, one who innovates ideas left, right and center. They can't stop thinking of ideas. You know them, the people who are listening on your amazing podcast, they know them. That some of the people who are listening might be them. It's just ideas come, you know, everywhere. They're just coming in. So there are those people, um, so let's put that in one bucket. I'll come back to them. And then, so they're the innovators and they're the executors. The people who have maybe one, two ideas every thousand years. But those ideas are fantastic. And they know how to execute. They know how to get that business growing big. Welcome to the Change Lead the podcast providing leaders with the insight needed to get things done in a rapidly changing and complex world. Subscribe to this podcast so you don't miss an episode. Connect with our community of like minded leaders on our website, TheChangeLead.com welcome to the Change Lead with your host, Babatope Epiyomi.

Speaker B: Today's episode is centered around a question, or you could say a desire many people have becoming your own boss. Many leaders and even aspiring leaders have this desire, the desire to become their own boss. This may even be you. Perhaps you have a desire or even a plan to become your own boss. Well, discussing this with me today is Chris Bolayan. Chris is a serial entrepreneur with four successful exits. Chris is also an author, mentor, podcaster and keynote speaker. In this episode we delve into the topic of becoming your own boss. So stay tuned. I'm sure you'll find this valuable. Hi Chris, thanks for joining me today. Really looking forward to today's conversation and welcome to the show.

Speaker A: Thanks for having me. Appreciate it.

Speaker B: Nice one. So today we'll be talking about becoming your own boss. I think that's something a lot of people can identify with more because it's very aspirational and you've done it multiple times. You've got four exits to your name,

Speaker A: which I think is, is brilliant.

Speaker B: Um, I think to start, I, I want to start with what people, what I'll call misconceptions people have about being a founder. I think probably a good place to, to start. Um, so some people come in looking at the founder or the entrepreneur's Journey with rose tinted glasses like oh, it must be, everything must be so good.

Speaker A: Yeah.

Speaker B: Others may look at it as one big gamble they don't want to go near. Um, it be good to get your take on, um, what are the myths that need to be busted about being your own boss?

Speaker A: Yeah, no, it's a good, it's a good question and one people really need to think about before they take the leap of faith. And I think that's the very first part. So let me start with the leap of faith. So being your own boss means you're taking a big leap, a big gamble into the unknown because you're not sure where things are going to go. Um, separation. If you're your own boss, when you're sleeping you're not making money. You're only making money when you're awake. When you're sick, you're not making money. You know, all the times that you take off, holidays, all that stuff. The, the business, in the beginning the business isn't doing anything because you are the business. In most, most times when people start with a startup, they are the business. So that's the very first thing you need to know is the comfort level that comes from knowing you have sick leave, sick days and holidays and all that stuff and you're still getting a paycheck, those go away or uh, that goes away and then let's talk about the paycheck. So the paycheck is not normal, it's not consistent like you normally have it. Right now you're getting paid every two weeks and all that stuff when you're your own boss again, when you're not working, you're not making any money. So that consistency with finances, um, coming into your bank account every week or every two weeks, every month, that goes away also because it's now whenever you work that money is coming in and sometimes if things are not going well in a specific month, there's just no money. So you have to be ready to understand that, you know, there are going to be a lot of ups and downs, you know it's going to be bumpy and you have to just mentally prepare yourself for that. So save money, all of that stuff and ah, know that you're going to be working night and day. You are the operator, you're the email guy, you're the owner of the company, you're head of marketing, you're hr, you're the janitor. You know, you're everything that you can think of because you're basically starting a company and you can't rely on anybody else to do that. And that's. Now let's talk on about reliance. When you're your own boss, you have nobody you can point to. It's you. You can't say, oh, my sales team. The sales team is not doing well. You hired the sales team, you know, you hired a marketing person or you are in charge of marketing. Even better yet. So if sales are not going well, um, things are not progressing as you want them to. Guess whose fault that is. Look in the mirror and you'll see exactly whose fault that is. So these are the things that people don't really think about. They think it's more glamour. Oh, I get to do my own thing, I get to do my own hours and all that stuff. Yeah, that's true. But realize that without self motivation and determination, um, pushed by yourself, you are not going to succeed. And you're better off, you know, staying at a cushy job. So it's not for everyone. But if you get it right, it's absolutely fantastic.

Speaker B: Yeah, I think the way you described it, I could say it sounds very daunting with the words you've chosen, but you've been very deliberate and very honest about it. But if you. My interpretation is actually, if you peel behind the layers, it's actually comforting to know that if you're disciplined and there are principles behind it, so it's not a gamble. If you work hard at it and it's for you and you've got the grit and the determination to go ahead, then you can definitely succeed in that venture. That's what I'm is in the peel behind the layers.

Speaker A: Absolutely. I mean, I was giving you. I was giving you the side that most people don't think about, you know, um, but there is the other side. The other. You know, if you go through the layers of the onion, there's a side that's also fantastic. Where is you can make more money than you've ever thought about making, you know, because guess who's in control? You're in control. And guess who gets 100 commission? You do. You don't have to split the commission or do this with the company and all that stuff. And guess who makes the hours? You make the hours. Guess who makes the rates? You make the rates, you know, so you have all these benefits too that come with it. So it's not all, you know, gloom and it's not all bad. There's the fantastic side, but without self motivation, reliance and knowing yourself and doing something that you love without that taking place, then it could be a very hard road. But the, the quickest way, if you're the quickest way to happiness and financial success to me, is being an entrepreneur. Because you, again, you set your rates and you can make as much. There's no max to how much you can make, unlike a company where, you know, these are. Things are set and leveled, so there's no max to how much you can make. And, you know, you can literally expand and grow your company as you want based on your interest, not based on the interest of a boss you have and somebody, a colleague that's working with you. This is all based on your interest and you doing what you truly love. So there's also a fantastic, um, part of the whole journey.

Speaker B: Nice one. Nice. Um, it'll be good to touch on something that a lot of people from outside the world of entrepreneurship we look at is around fundraising, investment investors. So I recall a colleague of mine who he set up a business with his brother, and I remember when he was talking about the venture, his business, the only thing I remember him saying was how he managed, how they raised money. I don't recall actually operating the business. The conversation was all. Everything he told me was, this is how we package it. This was this business plan. This is where we got funding. This is how we funded it. This is how much we raised. So it's probably the wrong perspective that's been given, but it is still a very big deal when it comes to being your own boss that you will have to work with, you have to fundraise, you have to work with investors, and you have to manage investments. It'd be good to get your take, given the experience you had on, on that side of the business of raising funds and putting it in perspective as well. Because I think the person I was speaking to, I think it was not the right perspective I got. It'd be good to get your perspective of where it fits and how you balance it. So it's balanced.

Speaker A: Yeah, it's a good question. Um, so raising funds is a touchy one for me. Um, it's. So there's. You don't always have to raise funds. Let me just put that out there. Right? There is a world where you can do things on your own, you know, consult first and then grow your brand and then keep on growing. So you don't necessarily have to raise funds for every business. Now, most people do have to raise funds, to your point. Most people will raise funds, and there's absolutely nothing wrong with it. But here are the things you need to know about raising funds. One is you're giving away part of your child. That is the truth. Because your business is your child. Your business is you're nurturing your business. You're putting your life into your business. You're feeding your business. Everything you do to a child is what you do with your business. You discipline your business by cutting cost and all that stuff. So everything you do to a child, you do to your business. So note that now when you're raising funds, you are bringing somebody into the family that's going to tell you how to raise your child. Potentially, most cases, they will tell you how to raise your child because they are giving you money because you feel you need more money to raise your child to be a bigger, better child that can do all that you want your child to do. We all want our children to be successful again. In this scenario, our child is our company. So now a new person has come into the frame and said, yeah, here's some money so we can raise our child. First of all, you might get offended. Like, wait, when did it become our child? It became our child as soon as you signed that contract saying, you know, give me some money. So now it's not your child, it is our child. What does that mean? It means they can, the investors can tell you a few things about how to raise your child. And that could be very interesting dynamics. Very, very interesting dynamics. Because, like, I've raised my child for the past six years, and you're coming in and all of a sudden you're telling me how to raise my child. You don't know about my child. You don't know about my company. Like, I know about my company. I know the ins and outs. I know everything about my company. Um, but they gave you money. You asked for money, so you gave them part of your business or parts of your child, be it 10, 15, whatever it is, now they have a say. That contract that you signed, the term sheet that you signed with them tells, tells them that, you know, they do have a say at the table. Uh, and they do have a seat at the table. So they can. So you need to, you need to be one careful who you raise money from. Not all money investor money is good money. Um, you know, they interview your investors, make sure it's somebody that you're willing to be in a relationship with. Business relationship, obviously with. And, and be very careful. I've, I've seen many scenarios and situations where people have signed contracts with the wrong investor. They just didn't match. You know, it was a bad relationship. Just like most people have been on bad dates, you know, um, it was a bad relationship. Um, but they saw the money and they thought it was good and they just went with it. So, you know, definitely look at that. But again, there's the fantastic side where the investors could open many doors for you. They've given you money to do things that you were not able to do with your own finances. So, you know, you need to ask the investor questions about, are you willing to open doors for me? Who are the people, you know, how much do you know about my business, about my industry? Because they're going to be providing you with advice, trust me. So you want to make sure that is good advice. So make sure they have skin in the game, in the industry, and it's, you know, and they have doors they can open for you. So they're not just a person, uh, at the table telling you what to do, but they're a person at the table who has wisdom, experience, knowledge, connections, partnerships that they can actually put in place to help you grow your business. So that money they've invested in you actually, actually goes somewhere. So it's, It's a good experience. Um, and I know you haven't asked me this yet, but, yeah, I've received. I've raised tons of money for different businesses of mine. So I have a lot of experience here. And I would say, because many people miss this part, if you can wait, the valuation of your business grows as your business grows. So the valuation of your business is basically the value that an investor or someone assigns to your business. So let's say your business is worth $1 million, and you have, for easy math, you have 1,000 customers. So 1,000 customers for this easy math equals to 1 million users. Now, that means if you wait a bit and you have 2,000 customers before you get an investment, now, your company is worth $2 million. So the longer you wait, the more, and as long as your business is growing, the more the value of your company is worth. So now if they buy 10% of your company, you know, they're buying. Instead of 10% being 100,000, 10% is now 200,000 because you waited just a little bit. So there is a strategy in timing of when you want to get an investor based on the valuation you want to get, um, because you give away less, um, as your company grows for, you know, more money. So it's, it's something to consider.

Speaker B: Yeah, it's good. You touch on it. It's actually what I want to Ask next. Um, I like the analogy you use about a business being your child and an investor coming in, effectively raising your child with you as. Ah, you're saying that it reminded me of a venture capitalist I've heard speaking. And he was saying when you're raising money, it's almost like treat as marriage because you're going to be in that business relationship day in, day out. Uh, you're going to work the hours and the venture capitalists, it might not be a venture capitalist, but that investor will be really in your business looking for a return and to your point, advising and sometimes staring the business to their own agenda. So you have to make sure you, you pick the right one. It can work brilliantly for both parties as an investor as well as a, uh, as an entrepreneur. It can work, but it has to be the right fit. So I think goes back to principles. Um, it's not a gamble phone you're talking about here.

Speaker A: It's.

Speaker B: There are principles to. This is hard work. It's doing the hard work to make sure you get the right relationship. Um, is there a time in the business cycle or economic cycle that is ideal or not ideal for raising funds? For example, if there's a recession, is it. I don't know if there's, I don't know if you've got any thoughts on that.

Speaker A: Um, yeah, I, I would say you need to raise funds when you're running out, uh, close to when you're running out of money. So there, there are a few rules, right? You raise funds if you're trying to grow and you don't have the funds internally and you're trying to grow at a rate where you're funding or the amount of money you have cannot get you to where you want to be or where you want to grow in a certain amount of time that you have specified. So people have milestones that they've put in place for their growth metrics. If these are growth metrics, milestones that you know you can't achieve with the finances that you have in the bank or finances coming in, your, your flow, your money flow, then that's, that's a time to raise funds. Um, and if you're running out of money and you want to keep your business growing or going, then that's another time to raise funds. I don't, I don't look at the economy and all that as, as markers. I mean, yes, if you're in a recession, it's harder to raise funds. So those things count. But recession or not, companies still run out of money. And companies still have these goal matrix that they're trying to hit whether there's a recession or not. So um, everybody's still trying to raise funds over and over and over again. I would say six, um, it takes about six to eight months to raise funds. Um, things have been getting tighter. So now I'm hearing more about nine to 12 months in, in raising funds. So if you're a Runway, which means the amount of money that you have left before you actually have to shut your doors, if your Runway is between six to nine months, you should start raising money, which means six months, be six to nine months before you run out of money based on your growth and your metrics, that's when you need to start raising money. Um, because the closer you get to your Runway ending, meaning to you going belly up or bankrupt, the value of your company sinks because you're becoming more desperate. You know, you'll, you start selling your child for almost nothing at this point because you only have two more months and then you have to shut the door. So you definitely make sure there's a gap. That way you don't seem desperate in front of investors. Investors can smell, can smell desperation. It's part of their job to smell it because they know they can get a better deal from you. So um, so just make sure you, you leave enough of a gap is what is the advice I would, I would give for when is the best time to get them?

Speaker B: I think very good advice actually. Um, good to talk about the journey of an entrepreneur. So most entrepreneurs, they found a business. I, ah, like the way you explained at the beginning, they're everything at that point. They're the sales, they're actually doing the work. They're the janitor in your words. Um, I recall uh, a previous guest, he was just talking about the journey of leadership. Most starters, artisans, master artisan, they're literally doing everything hands on. And at some point if you have a large organization, you've got teams, they need to transition from being an artisan to being a leader, uh, to being able to direct, to being able to inspire, to be able to manage as well. Um, it would good to get your, your take on that journey. How can, how can founders go on that journey to start off as these master artisans, master of everything, doing everything themselves. And at some point they need to become leaders, they need to redefine themselves. How does that happen?

Speaker A: Yeah, so it happens by hiring the right people, to be honest with you, because that transition means you're hiring the transition. You're talking about means that new people are coming into the organization. So you're growing. And as you grow, you need to hire the right people. And hiring the right people is a skill and an art form in itself. You will 100% make mistakes. Don't beat yourself over, over it. Um, hire fast, fire quick. You know, that's, that's. It might sound archaic in a way, but it's true. Because you don't want to keep somebody in your company that doesn't blend with the culture, um, for too long because, one, they're slowing you down and you're building your company so you don't have time for that. So you just make sure you try your very best to interview people the right way, make sure they fit within your culture, and try and ensure that they are trainable and that you actually work very well with them. I, uh, always recommend that you hire people that are, are smarter than you if you can afford it, because not only can you learn from them, they are probably good learners themselves. Um, so hiring very smart people to help your company grow is super key and super important. And if you find it to be a financially tough task to hire people, um, that are better than you, give them shares in your company because the value of your company will only go up by hiring good people, because those good people are definitely going to help you grow. So, um, between hiring right people, ensuring that they're good for culture, um, they're good learners and listeners. I think, you know, if you check those boxes, you can do pretty well in creating a culture and an environment where, you know, you're a good leader and people see you as a good leader and you're growing the right way. I've, I have found that to be the most successful way to grow, uh, a startup and get it going without too many.

Speaker B: Yeah, I think, I think it's a fair point. Just build the right team around you, hire the right people. I like the point you made up about you can't get it perfect, so you will make mistakes, I think. And that's, that's true in everything. It's about learning, adapting, and making the, the objective and right decisions based on the data in front of you. Um, I've got a tangential question. I don't know how this will flow. So most founders, I use the term artisans. They are artisans. They're doers. When they start, do you see founders who are less, uh, artisans, more. Maybe their focus, their strength is sales or their strength is building relationships. Not really. They're not artisans. If, if Someone is in. In that line of work, whether they're, maybe they're an expert salesperson right now, and they're trying to become a founder. Uh, they're trying to become an entrepreneur. But their strength is more around process, around principles, around sales, build relationships, less about doing. Is there a natural route for those kind of people into entrepreneurship? Yes.

Speaker A: So there are three kinds of people. Um, there are three kinds of entrepreneurs. There's, um, innovator, um, and then there's an executor, and then there's a Do It All Dominator. Okay, so let's talk about the innovator. The innovator is, uh, one who innovates ideas left, right, and center. They can't stop thinking of ideas. You. You know them, the people who are listening on your amazing podcast, they know them. That some of the people who are listening might be them. It's just ideas come, you know, everywhere. They're just coming in. So they're those people. Um, so let's put that in one bucket. I'll come back to them. And then. So they're the innovators, and they're the executors. The people who have maybe one or two ideas every thousand years, but those ideas are fantastic. And they know how to execute. They know how to get that business growing big. Do they come up with ideas all the time? Absolutely not. But that one idea, they have run with it. They know how to execute it flawlessly and grow that business. And then there's the Do It All Dominator. The Do It All Dominator has both the innovator and. And the executor in them. They come up with ideas on a daily basis, and they know how to execute those ideas. Very few people fall in that line. Depending on who you are, if you are an innovator, you need an executor. If you're an executor, you need an innovator. If you're a Do It All Dominator, guess what? You need mentors to keep you in check and, uh, keep you aligned, because you are. You can go crazy. So you need mentors and a good, strong board to keep you in line. So for your audience, depending on where they see themselves, those are the kinds of people they need. Um, many entrepreneurs are innovative and come up with ideas, but executing on those ideas is super tough because as they're building that one idea, they've come up with something else. So now they're going on this pivot, right? And they're just going left, right. Center's like, dude, Focus, man. Are we going to ever launch one product? Because that one product has now turned into 17 and we haven't even launched that first product and we already have 17 ideas building on this one product. We haven't even done an MVP yet. You need an executor to come and just, you know, keep you focused so we can execute that one project. And then for the executor, then, you know, you're just focused on this one tunnel. But there might have been a few pivots you could have made or could have thought about along the way. And that's why you need an innovator working next to you side by side saying, hey, you know, I love this idea, we're building boxes, but if we add this as we keep on going, I think this could really help add, you know, a new revenue stream to our platform, so on and so forth. So hopefully I answered your question, but those are.

Speaker B: Yeah, you did, you did. I think, I think I like that. As in. And the Do It All Dominator, I think sounds very appealing but quite dangerous as well.

Speaker A: It's dangerous and they're very. But there are very few people. And uh, to, to your audience who's listening, you only qualify if you have many ideas and execute on them all really well. Elon Musk is an example. He has the boring company, he has SpaceX, he has Tesla, he has the satellite company, you know, all of them. And he's doing really well in all of them, you know, so that is an example of a Do It All Dominator. Steve Jobs was another one with Apple, iPhones and ipods and everything else. He had, you know, brilliant, brilliant mind. So they're not that many of them, but um, it's one of those awesome things to have if you have one.

Speaker B: Yeah, interesting. Um, you've had multiple exits. It'd be good to talk through what, what the transition is like. Um, because once again, it's another form of transformation. It's another form of transition. You're going from one, one journey to another where you, you have your baby, you have your business and you exit. And then how is it starting afresh going from exiting one business, becoming a founder or another business. It would be good to talk through that transition, what it's like, what's that journey like? Because it is the hope of mo, of every entrepreneur or most entrepreneurs at some point have an exit. But it would be good to see what does that end look like from the beginning so you can be very clear, wide eyed before you even going on the journey. What does that look like? Going through an exit, start another business, another exit.

Speaker A: Yeah. So exits, every exit is different. Um, it's just like giving away your baby. So you're giving away different children. Um, as, as a company it's different with, with everyone because no child and no company is the same. Right. Everybody who has children they know doesn't matter, even if they're twins, they are not the same. So giving away, so every exit is different. Um, exit comes with terms, conditions and all that for whoever is acquiring the company. So you may not be able to talk about it, you may not be able to, you know, compete in that industry for X number of years. Um, you may not be able to reach out to the employees that you had to move to your new company. So it's, it's very different with each one, but there are parameters within each exits that make them uh, relatively unique and in some cases binding because you might, again, you might not be able to. And in most cases you're not able to be in that same industry for a period of time. Could be one or two or three years. Um, so exits are interesting but the good thing about, about it and for entrepreneurs is we see, we see new lights after each door closes, mostly with an exit because you have uh, you know, hopefully with your exit you have some big payday and you can use that big payday to do now something different. Because before you have an exit, you've definitely been in that industry for a long time and maybe you want to try and change and improve yourself and you now have the financial wear it all and ability to do something different. So you know, you can also say that yes, an exit, you're giving up something, but you're also gaining, uh, because now you have the financial ability to do something you love and try something different. So for example, I've just started a brand new company called Founder Centered and with Founder Centered, it's. I've never done anything like this before. You know my, I've been in E commerce, I've done gaming, I've done music industry. I've done tons of, tons of stuff, um, built apps for Fortune 500 companies all over the world. I've never been in a platform of connectivity like, like the one I'm doing now. So I'm learning something new, pushing myself and you know, trying hard to ensure that this is another successful company. So it's, it's a transition, but this transition is going to push me farther outside my comfort zone more than I've ever been. And that in Itself, to me is a lovely thing because as entrepreneurs, we learn more when we're put outside our comfort zone. That's where all the education happens.

Speaker B: Yeah, I like that. So you learn more when you're outside that comfort zone. Indeed. Um, stay on the top the, that theme of being outside your comfort zone. Um, right now, when I look at the world, when I'm talking globally now, I see lots of changes going on as we see the world changing, the dynamics of the world changing, the balance of power changing. Is there any specific advice for founders in that context? Um, who are you dealing with A lot of changes? Because I think if you listen or watch business news. Loved one of the mantras being that, um, repeated a lot. There's business leaders don't like unstability, they don't like uncertainty. If there's uncertainty, the market just go down. But we're going to have uncertainty for a couple of years. We can see that. Just looking around the dynamics globally, is there any specific advice or even if it's thematic advice for founders, for entrepreneurs who are building their businesses or starting businesses in the context of a lot of change coming in globally, be it in the markets, being the fact that we no longer have a dominant power, uh, um, political power, or even if it's. If you look at, um, the trans energy transition, there are so many dynamics in the world that will fundamentally change the fabric of economies.

Speaker A: Yeah. So I think founders should focus on. I have this acronym and you mentioned it, um, called pink. Pink, which is passion, innovation, networking and knowledge. I think if you focus on those three four things, if you focus on those four things, you will find that it doesn't really matter. There's always going to be a winner and that winner could be you. It doesn't matter if it's, uh, there's a recession happening or anything like that. If you're doing something you're passionate about. So using the first letter in the acronym pink, if you find something you're passionate about, it doesn't matter what the economy is doing, as long as you're passionate and you're happy, that's what matters. And when you're passionate about something, something, I truly in my core believe that that passion and love and desire you have for doing stuff that people are paying you for, but you would have done for free anyway, you will, you will ride the storm. You'll get through, through to the end and you'll make it. So it's, to me, it's not about going after the next big thing, it's about Going after what you're passionate about and ensure that whatever you're passionate about to the next acronym letter I, it's innovative. And then find a way to monetize it and, um, just stick with it. You will, you will succeed. So don't, don't chase the, the golden carrots if that's not something you want or if that's not something that you truly desire. Chase your ambition. Chase something that you love. And trust me, it works out. It just really, really does. Um, I know quite a few people who have tried chasing that golden carrot, even though they didn't know too much about it. So AI is the big thing now. They're jumping into AI and saying, yeah, I'm going to create some generative AI this or that. But they don't really have the passion for it. It's just, that's where everybody is going, you know, and that's where a lot of funding is going. So they feel I need to go there because I don't want to lose out. Yeah, you get there, but you're not happy. You don't know that m much and you're not happy. And what is that? You know, please go. Go after something you're passionate about and you're happy about and whatever industry it is, I'm sure you'll succeed. Just, um, stay positive.

Speaker B: Nice one. Nice one. I like, I like that. Um, just in closing, we good for our audience to get to know a little bit more about you. Um, so I know we went straight into questions, but we're good to say, who is, who is Chris? What do you do? What keeps you interested? What are you passionate about right now?

Speaker A: Thanks for asking. Um, very few people ask that question. Who is Chris? I am Chris. It is me. Um, I, uh, I am, um, uh, man, now I feel like I'm going to be talking about myself in a weird way. So first, first and foremost, I'm a serial entrepreneur. I love businesses and I love entrepreneurship. I love helping entrepreneurs, talking, mentoring, um, entrepreneurs. I'm also an investor. Um, I'm blessed to be an investor in several companies, companies and startups. And I'm on the board of several startups. I've also written, um, a few books. In fact, this is one of them. And what some of what we've been talking about is in this book, it's called From Pitch to Close. And it basically gives, um, it gives founders the stepping stones in which they need before they go meet an investor. Because you just don't come up with an idea and say, hey, I'M going to go meet that investor. Man, that is the worst thing you can ever do. There are things you need to do before you go meet with that investor. So my book from Pitch to Close, which has won several awards, is, um, is. Is a good. It's a good book for that. And no, I'm not using your, your podcast to sell products. You just asked me a question, so I'm not. I'm not.

Speaker B: That's all right.

Speaker A: But, no, but it's true. I'm just. These are the things I'm passionate about. So I'm passionate about sharing my knowledge. Knowledge, which is what the book is about. And I also created this card game, which is called Ready, Set CEO. Um, and this card game basically is a bunch of questions that people can, um. It's. It's literally a game for founders, and it has questions that you need to ask yourself before you jump in and start your own company or if you own your own company. These are questions that you are going to face while you own your company. So might as well, in a fun, friendly manner, go through these cards with people around you or people at work or by yourself and start trying to see how you answer the question. So, example, one of the questions is, if your company is not doing well, would you rather reduce your salary or lay somebody off? I'm going to step back and I'm not going to answer that question for you, but it's a good question. And it will probably happen that you, at some point in time, money is not coming in and you're going to have to decide, do I reduce my salary or do I let somebody go? That's one of the questions in this game. Uh, so it's good to start thinking about it right now and all of that stuff. And, um, now I'm. Now I've started my new company, Founder Centered, which is focused on helping founders connect with the right people for them to grow. Because it's not what you know, it's who you know. Your idea may be brilliant. You may have come up with the next best thing since sliced bread or since the light bulb. The next best thing is yours. But if you don't know anybody or you don't know that many people, that idea could just stay stuck in a tiny town in Kwara State, Nigeria, called Ilori, and you're just stuck there and you're like, uh, this. This idea is good for the world. But tiny town, nobody ever hears about you and nobody ever knows your product. So, uh, Founder Centered is about getting founders connected with resources and with individuals called connectors that can help them grow their business. So that's who Chris is.

Speaker B: Nice one. Thank you. It's been been ah a phenomenal conversation. Thank you so much for your time. Um, I'll put links to I think your LinkedIn, I think your website as well in the show notes and description so you can get a hold of Chris. Chris, thank you for your time. It's been brilliant. Thank you.

Speaker A: Thank you so much.

Speaker B: Thanks for tuning in to my conversation with Chris Folaya. If you like to connect with Chris you can find details in the show notes. If this episode was of value to you, please consider leaving a review wherever you get your podcast. Now let's continue the conversation. Please connect with me on LinkedIn and you can find links to my LinkedIn profile in the show notes. Thank you so much for tuning in. Have a great rest of your day and see you next time.