The Entrepreneur Experiment

<p class="" data-pm-slice="1 3 []">Most people take home some terrible souvenirs from their holidays. When he was just 22 years old, traveling around Thailand, Caolan Cullen discovered the idea that would become his future business.</p> <p class="">Caolan is the founder of Arctic Stone Ice Cream, who were the first people in Ireland to make hand-rolled ice cream that is completely customizable. Named as one of the best young entrepreneurs in Ireland in 2019, he is creating his own ice cream empire here in Ireland.</p> <p class="">He is a modern-day Willy Wonka, capable of making ice cream to any flavour you can dream of.</p> <p class="">In this episode we discover:</p> <ul data-rte-list="default"> <li> <p class="">How you can find business ideas in the most unlikely of places</p> </li> <li> <p class="">The steps to taking action once you discover your idea</p> </li> <li> <p class="">The secrets to making ice cream in every possible flavour</p> </li> <li> <p class="">How Caolan bootstrapped and crowdfunded his early venture.</p> </li> <li> <p class="">The brand deals that are driving a huge part of his business</p> </li> <li> <p class="">His effort to set a Guinness world record</p> </li> </ul>

<p>Why do so many professional sports stars become entrepreneurs?</p> <p>In today's episode, we chat with former Leinster, Munster and Ireland rugby player, Shane Monahan, who brings us on his journey from sports star to entrepreneur.</p> <p>We discover the mindset required to become successful at both sports and business.</p> <p> </p> <p>We chat about</p> <p>- How goal setting shaped Shane's career</p> <p>- Playing for Leinster, Munster, and Ireland</p> <p>- How you are ever only one bad game away from a bad season</p> <p>- Why so many rugby players become successful entrepreneurs</p> <p>- How voice will shape so many industries in the next 5-10 years.</p>

<p>This week, I share with you my goal of becoming the number 1 business podcast in Ireland in 2019. </p> <p><br /> If your goals don't scare you, they aren't' ambitious enough! I break down the huge success we've had in June and the structure I'm building to help me achieve this.<br /> <br /> It's a packed episode as I reveal how new Airbnb regulations mean a huge change for my other business and I also share exclusive discounts for the new podcast studio.</p> <p> </p> <p> </p>

<p>Launched in January 2017, on the week of blue Monday, GymPlusCoffee began life in the toughest way possible after missing out on lucrative Christmas sales.</p> <p>Undeterred, the 3 founders have turned their business into one of Ireland’s leading names in the athleisure space in just 2 years!</p> <p>Loved by sports stars such as Brian O’Driscoll and Joe Wicks, they have managed to launch their brand into the mainstream thanks to a loyal community and clever marketing.</p> <p> </p>

<p class="" data-pm-slice="1 1 []">How do you go from working in finance to living in Bali running a successful business from your laptop?</p> <p class="">Siobhan O'Hagan is one of Ireland's best known online fitness coaches and in today’s episode breaks down how she quit her 9-5 job to become a personal trainer and fitness entrepreneur.</p> <p class="">With over 115k followers on Instagram, Siobhan now travels the world, working from locations such as Bali, Thailand, and Australia while managing her online coaching business.</p> <p class="">With a degree in maths, Siobhan is a highly systems and process driven entrepreneur. She takes us back to how her story began in fitness and how her own personal journey led to growing a thriving online community.</p> <p class=""> </p> <p class="" data-pm-slice="1 1 []"><strong>We chat about</strong></p> <p class="">How to transition from a 9-5 job to running your own business.</p> <p class="">How to work out how much money you actually need?</p> <p class="">Partnering up with someone who can help scale your business.</p> <p class="">Turning down thousands of euro from potential sponsors.</p> <p class="">Building a personal brand.</p> <p class="">Selling while not selling out.</p> <p class="">How to deal with online trolls.</p> <p class="">Pressure of living your life on social media.</p> <p class="">Having a business versus having a following.</p>

<p>In this episode, I reveal how I built a podcast studio in 24 hours and reveal what the first business idea for The Entrepreneur Experiment will be.</p> <p>I also discover 1000 listeners that I never knew existed after doing a deep dive into how my podcast actually works!</p> <p><br /> If you are curious about starting your own podcast, this episode will give you some great insights.</p> <p> </p>

<p>As CEO and co-founder of Buymie, Devan runs a company that is hotly tipped to be one of Ireland's biggest success stories.</p> <p>In just 3 years, he has assembled a heavy-hitting investor panel and a number of high profile board members.</p> <p>Devan is without a doubt, the most methodical entrepreneur that I have met so far on this journey. His analysis and insights into the on-demand economy such as Deliveroo and Uber are incredibly revealing from someone so immersed in the industry.</p> <p> </p> <p> </p> <p> </p>

<p>In this episode, I reveal how I'm trying to increase my productivity and overcome self-doubt by adopting a new system of working.</p> <p>Missed deadlines and juggling too many tasks lead me to redesign my entire way of working.</p> <p>I am also hiring two new people to help me and I reveal the results from April of The Entrepreneur Experiment. </p>

<p>At just 23 years old, Karl O'Brien has built his social media company into a global brand employing 8 people.</p> <p>Karl shares his views on selecting your clients, not letting your clients choose you.</p> <p>As a young entrepreneur, Karl started his first venture in his bedroom before using his college years to rapidly grow his business.</p> <p>We chat about habits that help him perform at the highest level and how he seeks mentors to avoid repeating their mistakes.</p> <p> </p> <p> </p>

<p>I've been neglecting myself and this week, I took action to change that.<br /> <br /> I invested in attending a mindset seminar by Brian Keane, a fitness entrepreneur, and mindset specialist.<br /> <br /> In this episode, I share all the lessons I've learned and reveal the changes I'm making to my daily life. </p> <p>We cover a huge amount of content, so if you are looking to improve your goal setting and mindset, you'll benefit from this week's show. </p>

<p data-pm-slice="1 1 []">Welcome to episode 9 of The Entrepreneur Experiment podcast where I chat with James Murphy, founder of Zest Fitness and BeatBox Gym.</p> <p>Founded 6 years ago in the height of the last economic recession, James has built a business that now earns over 6 figures per year. Despite this, he’s willing to risk it all and start again with his latest venture.</p> <p><br /> James is the epitome of a calculated risk-taking entrepreneur. When we spoke, James was in the middle of a complete renovation of his second gym to convert it into a boxing experience gym.</p> <p>James doesn’t mince his words and speaks extremely openly on the successes he’s had but also the pressure faced by entrepreneurs to keep improving and beating the competition.</p> <p>I hope you enjoy the episode and if you want to chance to win the book recommended by James, simply leave a review on <a href= "https://itunes.apple.com/ie/podcast/the-entrepreneur-experiment/id1455026112?mt=2" target="_blank" rel="noopener">iTunes</a> or share this episode on social media and tag us!</p>

<p>Each month, I am going to share a very honest summary of how The Entrepreneur Experiment project is progressing. I will reveal all the exact stats behind all the content I am producing and also hopefully as the project progress, the businesses that I am working on.</p> <p>This is a snapshot of how many people are consuming my content, the lesson’s I’ve learned and improvements that I’m making for next month, April 2019.</p>

<p>From humble origins as a one-page website with a Paypal button, Funky Christmas Jumpers is now 11 years old and one of Ireland’s most famous e-commerce stories.</p> <p>Fabio is extremely open with his story and reveals how he turned his back on the lucrative world of software engineering to set up his own company.</p> <p>We learn what it takes to start and grow one of Ireland’s most recognisable e-commerce brands. With his window to make sales only running for a few months, Fabio lets us in on the secrets he uses to scale up a business rapidly in a short space of time.</p> <p>From physical threats to having cups of tea with Niall Horan, Fabio lets us in on the secrets to the ultra-competitive Christmas jumper world!</p> <p>Prior to chatting with Fabio, I had no idea he appeared on the UK version of Dragons Den. He reveals the truth behind Dragons Den and what really goes on behind the scenes.</p> <p>He also outlines the tools required to start and scale a successful e-commerce store.</p>

<p>In this week's diary episode, I reveal why I'm forcing myself to fail. To fail and keep failing so that it becomes nothing to fear.</p> <p> </p> <p>Fear of failure is the number one reason why a fantastic idea never leaves the entrepreneurs brain or notebook.</p> <p><br /> This week I break down the fear of failure and share how I battle to overcome that fear on a daily basis.</p> <p><br /> The Entrepreneur Experiment is almost a month old, and I break down what's been working so far (LinkedIn is awesome) and what I want to achieve in the coming days. It's a packed episode so I hope you enjoy. </p>

<p>In this week's diary episode, I reveal how the workload from The Entrepreneur Experiment combined with my regular job is pushing me to the limit.</p> <p><br /> I explore new ways of working and plan how to completely overhaul how I approach my work after reading Cal Newport's book, Deep Work.</p> <p><br /> Quitting social media is the hot topic as high profile figures such as Casey Neistat are quitting or reducing their usage, I examine if I should quit altogether? </p>

<p data-pm-slice="1 1 []">Ideas! Everyone has them but few make the leap to make them a reality.</p> <p>In this week’s episode with maker/entrepreneur David Delahunty, we delve deep into the idea generation process.</p> <p>In 2017, David set himself the challenge of coming up with 5 ideas every single day for a year! He shared his journey on social media and the project became a <a href= "https://www.fiveideasaday.com/" target="_blank" rel= "noopener">smash hit ebook</a>, and landed on the top page of Product Hunt.</p> <p><br /> If you are seeking your million dollar business idea, you'll learn the secrets of idea generation at scale.</p>

<p>In this week's diary episode, I reveal how the official launch of The Entrepreneur Experiment went.</p> <p><br /> We learn how to start a podcast from scratch when you have no idea what you are doing. My official YouTube channel also launched this week and I give you a behind the scenes insight into how to shoot a YouTube video.</p> <p><br /> In my other business, we are subjected to threats and deal with a client who refuses to pay his bill.</p> <p>It's a very real and honest episode and I hope you enjoy it.</p>

<p>Episode 2 is an in-depth interview with Tommy Courtney. Tommy is the CEO and founder of <a href="http://www.prelo.io/" target= "_blank" rel="noopener">Prelo,</a> a corporate relocation services platform. A B2B service, Tom’s company helps companies relocate employee’s to new cities around the globe.</p> <p>Every single time that I meet Tommy, I learn something new and his no-nonsense approach is what more startup founders need to adopt.</p> <p>In this episode, we discuss starting on your own versus finding a team, and advice, when to take it and when to ignore it! He reveals how he manages his mental health when juggling the demands of being a startup founder and discusses strategies he uses to stay healthy.</p> <p>We also explore how to keep a perspective in business and Tommy shares a very personal story.</p>

<p>I'm starting a new business. This business has no name, no product and no business plan!</p> <p>Over the next 12 months, I will generate ideas for 5 companies, test the ideas, and then launch the business or businesses that show the most promise.</p>