EL 016: Finding Your Way: Why Passion is a Key Factor in Entrepreneurship, with Damon D’Amore, CEO of WayFounder
To subscribe to the podcast, please use the links below:
If you have a chance, I would really appreciate your feedback on iTunes by clicking here. It will help the show and its ranking on iTunes greatly! Meanwhile, enjoy the show!
“I always hear from the people ‘I don’t have the money to do a start-up or build something’. It’s always the 1% that’s true for; but 99% of people make a conscious choice everyday not to follow their dreams.” – Damon D’Amore
From a college drop-out to a VP on Wall Street, to producing hit TV shows, to rocking the start-up world, it’s his relentlessness, commitment, and most importantly passion that got him to where he is today. Damon D’Amore would knock on 20 patent lawyers’ doors until he finds one that will patent his product, because he won’t take disbelief as an answer.
To learn more about Damon D’Amore, go to www.wayfounder.com.
You could be comfortable now, gathering wealth in your current position but D’Amore reminds those, who are unsure whether or not they are pursing their dreams, that it is okay to “give up” on the great progress you have made so far in your field and explore a whole new identity. His wisdom and stories will stop your hesitation of whether or not you should be chasing after your dream, as well as give you that much needed push towards making things happen.
I like how D’Amore started his introduction with how he “overstayed his welcome” at a community college because his grades suffered; he worked on Wall Street while still going to school at night. He dropped out of college when he figured that it wasn’t the best way for him to learn. It’s a fair representation of lots of students’ lives in America.
“The hardest negative feedback to ignore is from your friends and family..it comes from these stories they hear about entrepreneurs and the real horrible things they endure,” D’Amore continues to say, “You gotta ignore the people that you love as much as the people who respect you at the top of their game.”
In this interview you’ll learn:
- 00’45” Damon D’Amore’s background and how he developed WayFounder
- 09’01” Visualization of goals
- 10’50” What helps with the execution of ideas
- 18’47” The future of the tech world from D’Amore’s perspective
- 25’21” D’Amore’s producing experience on The Apprentice and Undercover Boss
- 37’19” A book recommendation – “Atlas Shrugged“
- 39’57” Mentorship
If you prefer to watch the discussion in action, here is my recorded interview with Damon D’Amore (please refresh your browser a few times if it isn’t loaded properly the first time):
Finding Your Way with Entrepreneurial Passion, with Damon D’Amore, former Producer of The Apprentice from jacob sapochnick on Vimeo.
Can you relate to D’Amore’s story in any way? Please leave me a comment below or send me your thoughts at jacob@enchantinglawyer.com. I would really appreciate your feedback and your suggestion on future guests!