Jason Schappert

And I've always used this phrase as we are looking for scrappy people. By scrappy, I mean, this is the kind of person that is willing to take out the trash, is willing to work the long hours, is willing to, you know, put in the effort to make it happen. We've always hired for culture, fit, and personality. And when I broke those rules, it always ended up hurting us.

And I've always used this phrase as we are looking for scrappy people. By scrappy, I mean, this is the kind of person that is willing to take out the trash, is willing to work the long hours, is willing to, you know, put in the effort to make it happen. We've always hired for culture, fit, and personality. And when I broke those rules, it always ended up hurting us.

You know, another rule I often broke, I'd try to help somebody out, a buddy that needed a job or whatever it was. And that's breaking my rules. They may not have been a personality fit or a culture fit. They were a friend. And I always ended up losing that friendship over my silly mistake trying to help somebody out, you know, ironically.

You know, another rule I often broke, I'd try to help somebody out, a buddy that needed a job or whatever it was. And that's breaking my rules. They may not have been a personality fit or a culture fit. They were a friend. And I always ended up losing that friendship over my silly mistake trying to help somebody out, you know, ironically.

So we always look for that culture and that personality fit. You have to think, especially in the tech space, in the world of agile project management, which we use, we see everything in sprints. We're in a sprint right now. And I just had a meeting with the team like, unfortunately, we're working this Saturday and Sunday as much as I want to be off with the family and everything else.

So we always look for that culture and that personality fit. You have to think, especially in the tech space, in the world of agile project management, which we use, we see everything in sprints. We're in a sprint right now. And I just had a meeting with the team like, unfortunately, we're working this Saturday and Sunday as much as I want to be off with the family and everything else.

But there's going to be time for that. There'll be plenty of weekends off coming up. But sometimes we're in that sprint season. You need the team that's not going to be grumbling when it's sprint season, when it's time to get that MVP to market, when you're missing that last little bit of code or whatever it is that needs to get in there and push it to test flight for beta testing, whatever it is.

But there's going to be time for that. There'll be plenty of weekends off coming up. But sometimes we're in that sprint season. You need the team that's not going to be grumbling when it's sprint season, when it's time to get that MVP to market, when you're missing that last little bit of code or whatever it is that needs to get in there and push it to test flight for beta testing, whatever it is.

You need the team that's going to be willing to roll up their sleeves and get dirty. And you as the leader need to be right there with them, showing them that you're putting in the same amount of effort.

You need the team that's going to be willing to roll up their sleeves and get dirty. And you as the leader need to be right there with them, showing them that you're putting in the same amount of effort.

Scale, at the end of the day, all comes down to leverage. To go back to these revenue levers. Which revenue lever can I develop that enables that scalability? And our willingness to scale as well. Are we pushing even the right metrics?

Scale, at the end of the day, all comes down to leverage. To go back to these revenue levers. Which revenue lever can I develop that enables that scalability? And our willingness to scale as well. Are we pushing even the right metrics?

I was talking to some young tech entrepreneurs the other day, and their first thing they wanted to share is, look how many followers I have, look how many views I'm getting, look at this, this is clearly a good idea. We are scaling our social media marketing. I thought, okay, I respect that. You know, that's, you know, not easy in today's, you've got to pay for everything society, basically.

I was talking to some young tech entrepreneurs the other day, and their first thing they wanted to share is, look how many followers I have, look how many views I'm getting, look at this, this is clearly a good idea. We are scaling our social media marketing. I thought, okay, I respect that. You know, that's, you know, not easy in today's, you've got to pay for everything society, basically.

It's much harder to go viral today than it was in the past due to all the congestion. However, I would argue they're scaling vanity metrics. Scaling is a challenge no matter what, whether you're trying to scale your vanity metrics or where you're trying to scale user growth or assets under stewardship or whatever it actually is. You have to first off make sure you are scaling the right metrics.

It's much harder to go viral today than it was in the past due to all the congestion. However, I would argue they're scaling vanity metrics. Scaling is a challenge no matter what, whether you're trying to scale your vanity metrics or where you're trying to scale user growth or assets under stewardship or whatever it actually is. You have to first off make sure you are scaling the right metrics.

thing because it takes so much effort and so much focus. And by the way, I'm not against vanity metrics by any means. But again, let's just make sure we're scaling the thing that's going to make the biggest difference. I'll use Moolah as an example again. You know, what good is it to me if I came to you, Noah, and I said, guess what, Noah? I added 100,000 users this past month.

thing because it takes so much effort and so much focus. And by the way, I'm not against vanity metrics by any means. But again, let's just make sure we're scaling the thing that's going to make the biggest difference. I'll use Moolah as an example again. You know, what good is it to me if I came to you, Noah, and I said, guess what, Noah? I added 100,000 users this past month.

But if they only contributed $5 into their Moolah account, believe it or not, I'd be losing money on that deal. But you added 100,000 users, Jason. Yes, but I didn't add 100,000 of the right users because they're just adding $5 to their account. And between my KYC bills, my AWS bills, everything else, I am losing money on that customer onboarding and going to continue to each and every month.

But if they only contributed $5 into their Moolah account, believe it or not, I'd be losing money on that deal. But you added 100,000 users, Jason. Yes, but I didn't add 100,000 of the right users because they're just adding $5 to their account. And between my KYC bills, my AWS bills, everything else, I am losing money on that customer onboarding and going to continue to each and every month.

So scaling for the sake of scaling is incorrect. We have to make sure we're first scaling the right metrics and attracting the right customers from that standpoint.

So scaling for the sake of scaling is incorrect. We have to make sure we're first scaling the right metrics and attracting the right customers from that standpoint.

We in both businesses have found our purpose in unlikely places. I'm sure everybody listening has read the famous book, Start With Why, and it's a great title and it sounds good, but it's very hard to start with a why when you haven't even met your first customer or don't know, you're just building an avatar and it's a hypothetical person. I'll give an example of each.

We in both businesses have found our purpose in unlikely places. I'm sure everybody listening has read the famous book, Start With Why, and it's a great title and it sounds good, but it's very hard to start with a why when you haven't even met your first customer or don't know, you're just building an avatar and it's a hypothetical person. I'll give an example of each.

In our aviation business at this point, we're already say five, six years into the business. We're getting by. We've only got three or four employees. I'm occasionally paying myself and we're just trying to grow this thing. And again, the business was flight training. We were one of the largest online ground schools.

In our aviation business at this point, we're already say five, six years into the business. We're getting by. We've only got three or four employees. I'm occasionally paying myself and we're just trying to grow this thing. And again, the business was flight training. We were one of the largest online ground schools.

So you would watch our videos, all online courses for becoming a pilot to put it in plain English. And one day we got a support ticket that came in. And we only had one support team member. They said, Jason, I think you need to see this. And they occasionally brought me some tickets and stuff of an angry customer or an opportunity or something like that. And I remember reading the support ticket.

So you would watch our videos, all online courses for becoming a pilot to put it in plain English. And one day we got a support ticket that came in. And we only had one support team member. They said, Jason, I think you need to see this. And they occasionally brought me some tickets and stuff of an angry customer or an opportunity or something like that. And I remember reading the support ticket.

And I still am friends with this person to this day. He said, Jason, yesterday I was in my little airplane. It was a Cessna 172, which is a small four-seat training aircraft. He said, I got to about 400 feet and my engine quit. A total, total failure. He said, there was no runway in front of me. There was no runway beneath me. And all I heard, Jason, was your voice. Push the nose forward.

And I still am friends with this person to this day. He said, Jason, yesterday I was in my little airplane. It was a Cessna 172, which is a small four-seat training aircraft. He said, I got to about 400 feet and my engine quit. A total, total failure. He said, there was no runway in front of me. There was no runway beneath me. And all I heard, Jason, was your voice. Push the nose forward.

Manage your airspeed. Don't overbend. All these things that I would teach in our in-flight emergencies curriculum. He said, it was your voice that guided me all the way down into this farmer's field where I landed the airplane perfectly. I didn't hurt the farmer's field. I didn't hurt the airplane. In fact, they fixed the airplane up and towed it right out of there.

Manage your airspeed. Don't overbend. All these things that I would teach in our in-flight emergencies curriculum. He said, it was your voice that guided me all the way down into this farmer's field where I landed the airplane perfectly. I didn't hurt the farmer's field. I didn't hurt the airplane. In fact, they fixed the airplane up and towed it right out of there.

And he ended the email by saying, and I'm alive today because of you. And I thought, whoa, all this time, I thought I was just helping people pass their test. I thought I was helping them go get a job at Delta or JetBlue or name the airline of your choice. But that day, and I got the whole team together, and I said, we have thought we are in a different business.

And he ended the email by saying, and I'm alive today because of you. And I thought, whoa, all this time, I thought I was just helping people pass their test. I thought I was helping them go get a job at Delta or JetBlue or name the airline of your choice. But that day, and I got the whole team together, and I said, we have thought we are in a different business.

We thought we were in the test prep business. But read this email. We are in the business of saving people's lives. Because at the end of the day, whether they're flying with their spouse, or they have that dream job where there's 300 paying passengers sitting behind them, they are in the business of getting these people safely from point A to point B. That's now the business we're in.

We thought we were in the test prep business. But read this email. We are in the business of saving people's lives. Because at the end of the day, whether they're flying with their spouse, or they have that dream job where there's 300 paying passengers sitting behind them, they are in the business of getting these people safely from point A to point B. That's now the business we're in.

the business changed that day when we rallied the team around this idea of i'm not just helping you get a good score on your tests i'm genuinely making you a safer smarter pilot and maybe one day saving your life when that happened the team all came together talk about scaling the team all had that clear vision finally and and the same thing has happened on the moolah side of things

the business changed that day when we rallied the team around this idea of i'm not just helping you get a good score on your tests i'm genuinely making you a safer smarter pilot and maybe one day saving your life when that happened the team all came together talk about scaling the team all had that clear vision finally and and the same thing has happened on the moolah side of things

We had someone reach out to us. And, you know, when we think about wealth so often, we think about making more money and having nice cars and having nice things. And someone reached out and sent an email and said, thank you for the technology you have built. You've given me more time with my family. My son used to come to me and say, Dad, can we throw the football? I'd say, no, I have to work.

We had someone reach out to us. And, you know, when we think about wealth so often, we think about making more money and having nice cars and having nice things. And someone reached out and sent an email and said, thank you for the technology you have built. You've given me more time with my family. My son used to come to me and say, Dad, can we throw the football? I'd say, no, I have to work.

I got to pay the bills. I got to do this. Now my son comes to me and says, hey, dad, can we throw the football? He says, now I have less pressure. I can stop what I'm doing and go throw the football with my son. At the end of the day, wealth is being able to do what I want, when I want, with whom I want. So when we change, we're not just trying to grow people's bank accounts. That's great.

I got to pay the bills. I got to do this. Now my son comes to me and says, hey, dad, can we throw the football? He says, now I have less pressure. I can stop what I'm doing and go throw the football with my son. At the end of the day, wealth is being able to do what I want, when I want, with whom I want. So when we change, we're not just trying to grow people's bank accounts. That's great.

And that's a byproduct of what we do and help you steward your finances appropriately. I want to give you more time with your family. I want you to say yes to more throwing the football or watching your daughter do a ballet performance in the living room. That's what we're really in the business of. And when you can focus around that, it can really change your business.

And that's a byproduct of what we do and help you steward your finances appropriately. I want to give you more time with your family. I want you to say yes to more throwing the football or watching your daughter do a ballet performance in the living room. That's what we're really in the business of. And when you can focus around that, it can really change your business.

going from the aviation industry into a fintech, there were so many unknowns. I made some assumptions. And unfortunately, sometimes when you come off of a success, you believe that you'll be successful in all things. There was actually a time when we were trying to build the banking side first. And I knew I wanted the investing component. I knew I wanted the banking component as well.

going from the aviation industry into a fintech, there were so many unknowns. I made some assumptions. And unfortunately, sometimes when you come off of a success, you believe that you'll be successful in all things. There was actually a time when we were trying to build the banking side first. And I knew I wanted the investing component. I knew I wanted the banking component as well.

And I wanted it all. And I wanted it all at the same time, right? I broke the rule I just explained to you, have the MVP and feature lock it. And I was trying to do everything. In reality, we're a very small, scrappy team to use that word. And I was pulling our developers all over the place.

And I wanted it all. And I wanted it all at the same time, right? I broke the rule I just explained to you, have the MVP and feature lock it. And I was trying to do everything. In reality, we're a very small, scrappy team to use that word. And I was pulling our developers all over the place.

I was upsetting vendors because we were missing some deadlines and missing some security checks and all these different factors. And finally, it was my genius wife that came to me and said, Jason, focus on one thing and roll with it. This is where we decided, hey, the banking can come in version 1.1. We're going to go the investing side. We're going to be all in on this.

I was upsetting vendors because we were missing some deadlines and missing some security checks and all these different factors. And finally, it was my genius wife that came to me and said, Jason, focus on one thing and roll with it. This is where we decided, hey, the banking can come in version 1.1. We're going to go the investing side. We're going to be all in on this.

But my idea was, well, I want it all now, so I'll hire more. I'll do this. I'll throw more warm bodies at it. And that is not how you scale. You don't throw payroll dollars at a problem. For those of us listening to this, you are these scrappy entrepreneurs that we're talking about. Not everybody has the luxury to throw payroll dollars at a problem. And I was trying to do that.

But my idea was, well, I want it all now, so I'll hire more. I'll do this. I'll throw more warm bodies at it. And that is not how you scale. You don't throw payroll dollars at a problem. For those of us listening to this, you are these scrappy entrepreneurs that we're talking about. Not everybody has the luxury to throw payroll dollars at a problem. And I was trying to do that.

And in reality, we burned more cash, our hard-earned cash from the previous exit than we probably should have because I was chasing something that should have just gotten the time out six months ago and rolled with the investing side first. Now, again, everything worked out great and everything has been a subsequent successful launch, but... Think of the blow to morale.

And in reality, we burned more cash, our hard-earned cash from the previous exit than we probably should have because I was chasing something that should have just gotten the time out six months ago and rolled with the investing side first. Now, again, everything worked out great and everything has been a subsequent successful launch, but... Think of the blow to morale.

By the way, my wife and I do this business together, just like we did our aviation business. Think about us butting heads on this idea. We both are very strong, very opinionated individuals. We wouldn't be entrepreneurs if we weren't, right? It caused us to butt heads with that. In reality, I have learned that my wife often has the vision And it's my job to go out and execute on that vision.

By the way, my wife and I do this business together, just like we did our aviation business. Think about us butting heads on this idea. We both are very strong, very opinionated individuals. We wouldn't be entrepreneurs if we weren't, right? It caused us to butt heads with that. In reality, I have learned that my wife often has the vision And it's my job to go out and execute on that vision.

And when we can fit and operate within our roles, I'm not saying we're not going to make mistakes, but we're certainly less likely to make those mistakes.

And when we can fit and operate within our roles, I'm not saying we're not going to make mistakes, but we're certainly less likely to make those mistakes.

the team is still remaining that scrappy bunch. We did make one additional hire here, but I made a mistake early on of over hiring back to what I shared you in the aviation business, throwing people at problems. And that's not always the right way to go about it. So we've got a roadmap actually mapped out for the next two years.

the team is still remaining that scrappy bunch. We did make one additional hire here, but I made a mistake early on of over hiring back to what I shared you in the aviation business, throwing people at problems. And that's not always the right way to go about it. So we've got a roadmap actually mapped out for the next two years.

And it's within the wheelhouse and capabilities of the current team as we grow. Now, support team is going to continue to grow. Marketing team is going to continue to grow. But from a dev standpoint, We've got a really, really solid team and we've got a really great cadence and speed that we're operating within.

And it's within the wheelhouse and capabilities of the current team as we grow. Now, support team is going to continue to grow. Marketing team is going to continue to grow. But from a dev standpoint, We've got a really, really solid team and we've got a really great cadence and speed that we're operating within.

You know, that's one thing that's so important is not living your life just sprint to sprint, but taking the time to share the vision with the team and say, this is where we're going. I've got the team, we haven't launched it yet, but we're moving towards robo-trading and robo-advising. We've got the algorithms and the language models to show, right? How do we actually edge out the S&P 500?

You know, that's one thing that's so important is not living your life just sprint to sprint, but taking the time to share the vision with the team and say, this is where we're going. I've got the team, we haven't launched it yet, but we're moving towards robo-trading and robo-advising. We've got the algorithms and the language models to show, right? How do we actually edge out the S&P 500?

There's 30 years worth of data. Let's test against this data and see what algorithm comes out on top. I've got the team becoming literally quants and data scientists, and they just enjoy the math and the numbers and the algorithmic nature of everything to keep them engaged and within their wheelhouse of what they're excited about as well.

There's 30 years worth of data. Let's test against this data and see what algorithm comes out on top. I've got the team becoming literally quants and data scientists, and they just enjoy the math and the numbers and the algorithmic nature of everything to keep them engaged and within their wheelhouse of what they're excited about as well.

Obviously, on the banking side, there's so many neat opportunities. And I'm sorry to say AI. I know every episode someone brings up artificial intelligence. And unfortunately, it's like I'm kind of getting tired of it. Not artificial intelligence. I'm getting tired of the use of it because you experience this a lot. No, someone says AI and you go, yeah, that's not really AI.

Obviously, on the banking side, there's so many neat opportunities. And I'm sorry to say AI. I know every episode someone brings up artificial intelligence. And unfortunately, it's like I'm kind of getting tired of it. Not artificial intelligence. I'm getting tired of the use of it because you experience this a lot. No, someone says AI and you go, yeah, that's not really AI.

But OK, you know, it just is such a buzzword. It's becoming cliche now. Where we're actually going with this is through a large language model. I know that Jason, my client, lives in Naples, Florida. Now I'm Jason's bank. So I know that Jason rents his home. I see the rent go out. I did the know your customer process. So I actually know the address.

But OK, you know, it just is such a buzzword. It's becoming cliche now. Where we're actually going with this is through a large language model. I know that Jason, my client, lives in Naples, Florida. Now I'm Jason's bank. So I know that Jason rents his home. I see the rent go out. I did the know your customer process. So I actually know the address.

I can pull up the estimate on Zillow and everything else and pull in some API data to know exactly where Jason is. I can then use that language model to search the market and say, Jason, you're paying $1,500 a month for your two-bedroom apartment or whatever it is. The average rent in Naples is actually $500 less per month. However, let's finish our algorithm here. What is the cost of moving?

I can pull up the estimate on Zillow and everything else and pull in some API data to know exactly where Jason is. I can then use that language model to search the market and say, Jason, you're paying $1,500 a month for your two-bedroom apartment or whatever it is. The average rent in Naples is actually $500 less per month. However, let's finish our algorithm here. What is the cost of moving?

Well, the cost of moving is this. So I can create an opportunity cost analysis for Jason in Naples to save 500 bucks a month. But is he really saving 500 bucks a month based on it's now a longer commute to work? It costs X amount to actually move. There's this deposit at this apartment, whatever it is. I can run through all the various scenarios.

Well, the cost of moving is this. So I can create an opportunity cost analysis for Jason in Naples to save 500 bucks a month. But is he really saving 500 bucks a month based on it's now a longer commute to work? It costs X amount to actually move. There's this deposit at this apartment, whatever it is. I can run through all the various scenarios.

I know Jason has Verizon, but I also am smart enough to know that AT&T has a deal right now if you sign for two years, and this could save you this. But what is that opportunity cost? That is where we're taking our language models to get that granular and that involved in your financial situation to help you make informed decisions.

I know Jason has Verizon, but I also am smart enough to know that AT&T has a deal right now if you sign for two years, and this could save you this. But what is that opportunity cost? That is where we're taking our language models to get that granular and that involved in your financial situation to help you make informed decisions.

One of the most popular things we get asked on the banking side is, well, do I buy a car? Do I lease a car? Do I get a used car? And you know what? Every situation is different. The problem is there are so many, we'll call them investment advisors and wealth managers. They will just give blanket advice for everybody. But you know what? My needs are different than Noah's needs.

One of the most popular things we get asked on the banking side is, well, do I buy a car? Do I lease a car? Do I get a used car? And you know what? Every situation is different. The problem is there are so many, we'll call them investment advisors and wealth managers. They will just give blanket advice for everybody. But you know what? My needs are different than Noah's needs.

They're different than some other listener's needs. Based on our age, how many children we have, where we live, we have different goals, we have different lifestyles, etc., etc. The level of advice for your finances needs to be tailored to Jason. It needs to be tailored to Noah. And that is why even here today in the Moolah apps,

They're different than some other listener's needs. Based on our age, how many children we have, where we live, we have different goals, we have different lifestyles, etc., etc. The level of advice for your finances needs to be tailored to Jason. It needs to be tailored to Noah. And that is why even here today in the Moolah apps,

Stocks that are recommended to me would not be recommended to you, Noah, because we're just in different seasons of life. We have different risk tolerances, all these things. And we're continuing to add to the personalization of that. The future of finance is personalization. And it's not just finance, by the way.

Stocks that are recommended to me would not be recommended to you, Noah, because we're just in different seasons of life. We have different risk tolerances, all these things. And we're continuing to add to the personalization of that. The future of finance is personalization. And it's not just finance, by the way.

If you are listening to this and building something else out in ed tech and sure tech, I don't add that whatever tech it is. Personalization is going to be the key. It doesn't need to exist for your MVP, but you need to be thinking in that direction. How can I make this ultra personalized to my members, to my users?

If you are listening to this and building something else out in ed tech and sure tech, I don't add that whatever tech it is. Personalization is going to be the key. It doesn't need to exist for your MVP, but you need to be thinking in that direction. How can I make this ultra personalized to my members, to my users?

My parents, for starters, both my wife and I grew up with our parents working together. My mom and dad had the pest control business. My wife's mom and dad worked together in a construction business. And to us, that was just totally normal.

My parents, for starters, both my wife and I grew up with our parents working together. My mom and dad had the pest control business. My wife's mom and dad worked together in a construction business. And to us, that was just totally normal.

So it only made sense that when we were dating, we were already talking about what business we're going to start together, what we're going to do together and everything else. So my parents play a pivotal role in that and in that upbringing. There's also many, we'll say, deceased voices that still ring so true today.

So it only made sense that when we were dating, we were already talking about what business we're going to start together, what we're going to do together and everything else. So my parents play a pivotal role in that and in that upbringing. There's also many, we'll say, deceased voices that still ring so true today.

Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill, written in 1937, still just as relevant today. You can read that book, even though it was written in 1937, and go, whoa, this is impactful. One thing Napoleon Hill says in there, in every adversity, there's the seed of a greater advantage. And every time I hit a struggle, that quote just sits with me. And I say, okay, there's the seed of an advantage here.

Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill, written in 1937, still just as relevant today. You can read that book, even though it was written in 1937, and go, whoa, this is impactful. One thing Napoleon Hill says in there, in every adversity, there's the seed of a greater advantage. And every time I hit a struggle, that quote just sits with me. And I say, okay, there's the seed of an advantage here.

And it's my job to find it, right? If I truly believe in every adversity, there's the seed of a greater advantage. It becomes my job to, you know, make lemonade out of lemons. I try to always be learning. I've always kind of been a little bit of a different kid, like back to being, you know, 12 years old, killing bugs with dad. I'd be mowing the lawn or whatever it is.

And it's my job to find it, right? If I truly believe in every adversity, there's the seed of a greater advantage. It becomes my job to, you know, make lemonade out of lemons. I try to always be learning. I've always kind of been a little bit of a different kid, like back to being, you know, 12 years old, killing bugs with dad. I'd be mowing the lawn or whatever it is.

And I'd be listening to like Tony Robbins on cassette tape or Zig Ziglar, Jim Rohn or whomever else that may be. Like I've always been so big into learning. personal growth and self-development. And even to this day, I was at the gym yesterday listening to Audible and some people look at me and go, how can you listen to an audio book and work out?

And I'd be listening to like Tony Robbins on cassette tape or Zig Ziglar, Jim Rohn or whomever else that may be. Like I've always been so big into learning. personal growth and self-development. And even to this day, I was at the gym yesterday listening to Audible and some people look at me and go, how can you listen to an audio book and work out?

I'm like, for me, that is just the time to learn and grow. If you are going to be expanding your business, you need to be expanding yourself and mindful of what you feed your mind and who you feed your mind with. And honestly, even the people you allow into your life to influence what you're doing, you can't make room in your life for the naysayers. You're starting something great.

I'm like, for me, that is just the time to learn and grow. If you are going to be expanding your business, you need to be expanding yourself and mindful of what you feed your mind and who you feed your mind with. And honestly, even the people you allow into your life to influence what you're doing, you can't make room in your life for the naysayers. You're starting something great.

And if you believe you're going to win and someone else doesn't believe you're going to win and they're going to nag you and challenge you, there's nothing wrong if they want to give you a little friction to try to make your idea better. But if they're a true Debbie Downer and believe every day is a rainy day, there's no room for those people in your life.

And if you believe you're going to win and someone else doesn't believe you're going to win and they're going to nag you and challenge you, there's nothing wrong if they want to give you a little friction to try to make your idea better. But if they're a true Debbie Downer and believe every day is a rainy day, there's no room for those people in your life.

And you make sure you surround yourself around people who have been there and done that. And if you don't have those people in your life, you need to start consuming the books and the podcasts like this that are going to lift you up and be those voices until you reach a level where you attract those people into your life.

And you make sure you surround yourself around people who have been there and done that. And if you don't have those people in your life, you need to start consuming the books and the podcasts like this that are going to lift you up and be those voices until you reach a level where you attract those people into your life.

There's a few avenues to go, right? Assuming they haven't launched, it goes back to the advice of you don't have to get it right. You just have to get it going. But I'll take it a step further. So often in entrepreneurship, everyone is looking for home runs. Everyone is expecting home runs. Yet you, as a baseball dad, know this best.

There's a few avenues to go, right? Assuming they haven't launched, it goes back to the advice of you don't have to get it right. You just have to get it going. But I'll take it a step further. So often in entrepreneurship, everyone is looking for home runs. Everyone is expecting home runs. Yet you, as a baseball dad, know this best.

The game of baseball is won, just like business, in a series of base hits. I know that entrepreneur that I'm talking to is looking for that home run. But trust me, hit the ball and play. Get to first base, let's recalibrate and let's go do it again and get to second base and get to third base and just put one foot in front of the other and begin as Jim Collins says, your 20 mile march.

The game of baseball is won, just like business, in a series of base hits. I know that entrepreneur that I'm talking to is looking for that home run. But trust me, hit the ball and play. Get to first base, let's recalibrate and let's go do it again and get to second base and get to third base and just put one foot in front of the other and begin as Jim Collins says, your 20 mile march.

Stop trying to run to the top of Everest. Stop trying to look for the home runs. Stop looking on Instagram because all you're seeing is what happens on stage. Behind the stage is messy and no one ever wants to show you what happens behind the stage. And to this entrepreneur, they may not have a backstage just yet, but it's going to be messy.

Stop trying to run to the top of Everest. Stop trying to look for the home runs. Stop looking on Instagram because all you're seeing is what happens on stage. Behind the stage is messy and no one ever wants to show you what happens behind the stage. And to this entrepreneur, they may not have a backstage just yet, but it's going to be messy.

Embrace the chaos, embrace the mess, and just put one foot in front of the other, put the ball in play, and let's play again tomorrow. And that is what entrepreneurship really is. It's a 20-mile march. It's not a sprint.

Embrace the chaos, embrace the mess, and just put one foot in front of the other, put the ball in play, and let's play again tomorrow. And that is what entrepreneurship really is. It's a 20-mile march. It's not a sprint.

Thanks, Noah.

Thanks, Noah.

We built one of the largest aviation businesses in the business of FAA test preparation. We produced the books, the curriculums, everything for pilots. We made an eight-figure exit to private equity, all great. However, what I'm telling you is just what you see on stage. Behind the scenes, we nearly went broke twice.

We built one of the largest aviation businesses in the business of FAA test preparation. We produced the books, the curriculums, everything for pilots. We made an eight-figure exit to private equity, all great. However, what I'm telling you is just what you see on stage. Behind the scenes, we nearly went broke twice.

We couldn't manage our personal finances, which means we couldn't manage our business finances. We almost lost that business on several occasions. And Moolah, oddly enough, was really built out of that. When my wife and I sold that business and we looked at each other and said, well, we're too young to retire.

We couldn't manage our personal finances, which means we couldn't manage our business finances. We almost lost that business on several occasions. And Moolah, oddly enough, was really built out of that. When my wife and I sold that business and we looked at each other and said, well, we're too young to retire.

And we believe that when you have a skill set, you are called to use it and bring that to the marketplace and whatever that may be. So we relaxed for about two days and we said, what's the next thing we're going to do? My wife said, think of what you've done for our personal finances.

And we believe that when you have a skill set, you are called to use it and bring that to the marketplace and whatever that may be. So we relaxed for about two days and we said, what's the next thing we're going to do? My wife said, think of what you've done for our personal finances.

When we knew nothing, when we were making money, you know, in one hand and it was flying out the other hand, right? Like when we had to get a grip on our own finances and we had no clue what we're doing, you built the spreadsheets, you built the algorithms, you built the budgeting system.

When we knew nothing, when we were making money, you know, in one hand and it was flying out the other hand, right? Like when we had to get a grip on our own finances and we had no clue what we're doing, you built the spreadsheets, you built the algorithms, you built the budgeting system.

It is time to add the technology around that and help other people to steward their finances, their investments in the same way you pulled this family and you pulled this business back from the ropes of defeat, essentially. And that was her little pep talk she gave me. It was taking the system that we know works and applying it to the masses.

It is time to add the technology around that and help other people to steward their finances, their investments in the same way you pulled this family and you pulled this business back from the ropes of defeat, essentially. And that was her little pep talk she gave me. It was taking the system that we know works and applying it to the masses.

Because sometimes, you know, I'm a three-time college dropout. I have just school hard knocks, you know, in everything. I learned the hard way, like so many great entrepreneurs like yourself. And sometimes that is the best education because, you know, what happens in a book and what happens in the real world are often two different things. And that's really what we set out to do at Moolah.

Because sometimes, you know, I'm a three-time college dropout. I have just school hard knocks, you know, in everything. I learned the hard way, like so many great entrepreneurs like yourself. And sometimes that is the best education because, you know, what happens in a book and what happens in the real world are often two different things. And that's really what we set out to do at Moolah.

It was nine months in the making. So we call it our little baby, literally. And it's so funny taking the skills that we learned in the last business, what took us two or three years to come to market. Now, 16 years later, using the same totally different niche, right? From aviation to personal finance and investing. But business is business through and through.

It was nine months in the making. So we call it our little baby, literally. And it's so funny taking the skills that we learned in the last business, what took us two or three years to come to market. Now, 16 years later, using the same totally different niche, right? From aviation to personal finance and investing. But business is business through and through.

So using that skill set to get us to MVP and using the same philosophy that someone told me 16 years ago with my aviation business. You don't have to get it right. You just have to get it going. And that sounds crazy when you talk about teaching people to fly. It sounds even crazier when you say, Jason, you're dealing people some money in personal finance. And I get it.

So using that skill set to get us to MVP and using the same philosophy that someone told me 16 years ago with my aviation business. You don't have to get it right. You just have to get it going. And that sounds crazy when you talk about teaching people to fly. It sounds even crazier when you say, Jason, you're dealing people some money in personal finance. And I get it.

There's a perfectionist in all of us that we have to defeat sometimes and remind ourselves that you don't have to get it right. You just have to get it going. So for our MVP, did I want to launch the full banking platform with debit cards and secure credit and business accounts and family accounts? Of course, I wanted to do that. But that wasn't feasible given the budget.

There's a perfectionist in all of us that we have to defeat sometimes and remind ourselves that you don't have to get it right. You just have to get it going. So for our MVP, did I want to launch the full banking platform with debit cards and secure credit and business accounts and family accounts? Of course, I wanted to do that. But that wasn't feasible given the budget.

We're entirely self-funded, by the way, from our exit of our last business to what were we going to bring to market? Because it is all about getting to market quickly and testing these iterations. So we launched just the investing side. And we rolled out investing based on what we call the Moolah meter, which is it's more machine learning than it is artificial intelligence.

We're entirely self-funded, by the way, from our exit of our last business to what were we going to bring to market? Because it is all about getting to market quickly and testing these iterations. So we launched just the investing side. And we rolled out investing based on what we call the Moolah meter, which is it's more machine learning than it is artificial intelligence.

But there is a large language model in there as well, as well as IRAs, right? Individual individual retirement accounts and setting these sort of things up to set the next generation up for success. Because people are trying to time the market and buy at the right time. In reality, it's time in the market that does so well. So we wanted to get people in and get them in there quickly.

But there is a large language model in there as well, as well as IRAs, right? Individual individual retirement accounts and setting these sort of things up to set the next generation up for success. Because people are trying to time the market and buy at the right time. In reality, it's time in the market that does so well. So we wanted to get people in and get them in there quickly.

Let's prove our concept here first. And then we roll out the other features. So that's really how we determined our MVP. And that's so tricky as someone in technology to know. When do I feature lock? When do I say enough is enough? When do I stop giving the dev team tickets and bugs and everything else and say, hey, this is it. This is what we're going to market with.

Let's prove our concept here first. And then we roll out the other features. So that's really how we determined our MVP. And that's so tricky as someone in technology to know. When do I feature lock? When do I say enough is enough? When do I stop giving the dev team tickets and bugs and everything else and say, hey, this is it. This is what we're going to market with.

You can make an argument for either side of it. Look at the recent news of what happened to the CEO of Sonos. Released a buggy app and look what happened. Versus the person who never releases the app because they're pursuing to squash every bug. Where is the balance between the Sonos failure and the perfectionist that never launches? You have to meet in the middle on those two things.

You can make an argument for either side of it. Look at the recent news of what happened to the CEO of Sonos. Released a buggy app and look what happened. Versus the person who never releases the app because they're pursuing to squash every bug. Where is the balance between the Sonos failure and the perfectionist that never launches? You have to meet in the middle on those two things.

And that's what's so critical with an MVP.

And that's what's so critical with an MVP.

We built one of the largest aviation businesses in the business of FAA test preparation. We produced the books, the curriculums, everything for pilots. We made an eight-figure exit to private equity. All great. However, what I'm telling you is just what you see on stage. Behind the scenes, we nearly went broke twice.

We built one of the largest aviation businesses in the business of FAA test preparation. We produced the books, the curriculums, everything for pilots. We made an eight-figure exit to private equity. All great. However, what I'm telling you is just what you see on stage. Behind the scenes, we nearly went broke twice.

I look at every decision as levers. Does this give me an additional revenue lever to make additional money by delivering additional value to the same customer? In the FinTech space, the customer acquisition cost is off the charts, as you can imagine. It is a very long onboarding process.

I look at every decision as levers. Does this give me an additional revenue lever to make additional money by delivering additional value to the same customer? In the FinTech space, the customer acquisition cost is off the charts, as you can imagine. It is a very long onboarding process.

If you looked at my Figma screens, you would go, oh my goodness, you know, what is your drop-off percentage on the onboarding, like the abandonment? Because I don't get to pick all these. The SEC has the requirements. FDIC has the requirements. FINRA has the requirements. All these different screens, all these different disclosures.

If you looked at my Figma screens, you would go, oh my goodness, you know, what is your drop-off percentage on the onboarding, like the abandonment? Because I don't get to pick all these. The SEC has the requirements. FDIC has the requirements. FINRA has the requirements. All these different screens, all these different disclosures.

So when I get somebody and they go through that entire long onboarding process, That customer is so valuable to me. So how do I deliver more value to them by delivering more revenue levers to pull?

So when I get somebody and they go through that entire long onboarding process, That customer is so valuable to me. So how do I deliver more value to them by delivering more revenue levers to pull?

So when I'm looking for the next thing, which in our case is the banking side of things, delivering a debit card, envelope style budgeting, which we call pockets, high yield savings accounts in addition to your investing accounts. HSAs, 529 college savings plans. How do I take the same customer and help them build their roadmap?

So when I'm looking for the next thing, which in our case is the banking side of things, delivering a debit card, envelope style budgeting, which we call pockets, high yield savings accounts in addition to your investing accounts. HSAs, 529 college savings plans. How do I take the same customer and help them build their roadmap?

If you start with the customer and then build your roadmap off of their financial dreams, off of their financial roadmap, this is how you create success. Now, this is not 100% democracy because we all have heard the analogy, you know, Henry Ford goes to the people, they say they want a faster horse. Like it can't be a perfect democracy where you only let the people decide.

If you start with the customer and then build your roadmap off of their financial dreams, off of their financial roadmap, this is how you create success. Now, this is not 100% democracy because we all have heard the analogy, you know, Henry Ford goes to the people, they say they want a faster horse. Like it can't be a perfect democracy where you only let the people decide.

You have to know your customer avatar well enough to know what they need that they're not even telling you. I mean, think back to Steve Jobs. I know he didn't invent the MP3 player, but I remember having one of the original MP3 players that only held eight songs. he comes out and says, you know, a thousand songs in your pocket.

You have to know your customer avatar well enough to know what they need that they're not even telling you. I mean, think back to Steve Jobs. I know he didn't invent the MP3 player, but I remember having one of the original MP3 players that only held eight songs. he comes out and says, you know, a thousand songs in your pocket.

The way that you have to think things through on this technology, you have to be thinking even ahead and beyond of what your customer avatar really wants, and more importantly, what they need, and then educate them to do all that.

The way that you have to think things through on this technology, you have to be thinking even ahead and beyond of what your customer avatar really wants, and more importantly, what they need, and then educate them to do all that.

We couldn't manage our personal finances, which means we couldn't manage our business finances. We almost lost that business on several occasions. And Moolah, oddly enough, was really built out of that. I'm Jason Schappert, and I'm the founder of Moolah.

We couldn't manage our personal finances, which means we couldn't manage our business finances. We almost lost that business on several occasions. And Moolah, oddly enough, was really built out of that. I'm Jason Schappert, and I'm the founder of Moolah.

First off, we hire, and we did this in our aviation business, and I just, I did it by accident, honestly. We've always hired for culture fit and for personality.

First off, we hire, and we did this in our aviation business, and I just, I did it by accident, honestly. We've always hired for culture fit and for personality.

Now, there are some rare exceptions where, yes, I need you to have that college degree, especially when dealing, when we dealt with the aviation space and everything else, the FAA was very particular on who held certain licensure and everything else. Gosh, looking at a resume never really told me that much. I always wanted to sit down with the person.

Now, there are some rare exceptions where, yes, I need you to have that college degree, especially when dealing, when we dealt with the aviation space and everything else, the FAA was very particular on who held certain licensure and everything else. Gosh, looking at a resume never really told me that much. I always wanted to sit down with the person.

And I've always used this phrase as we are looking for scrappy people. By scrappy, I mean, this is the kind of person that is willing to take out the trash, is willing to work the long hours, is willing to, you know, put in the effort to make it happen. We've always hired for culture, fit, and personality. And when I broke those rules, it always ended up hurting us.

You know, another rule I often broke, I'd try to help somebody out, a buddy that needed a job or whatever it was. And that's breaking my rules. They may not have been a personality fit or a culture fit. They were a friend. And I always ended up losing that friendship over my silly mistake trying to help somebody out, you know, ironically.

So we always look for that culture and that personality fit. You have to think, especially in the tech space, in the world of agile project management, which we use, we see everything in sprints. We're in a sprint right now. And I just had a meeting with the team like, unfortunately, we're working this Saturday and Sunday as much as I want to be off with the family and everything else.

But there's going to be time for that. There'll be plenty of weekends off coming up. But sometimes we're in that sprint season. You need the team that's not going to be grumbling when it's sprint season, when it's time to get that MVP to market, when you're missing that last little bit of code or whatever it is that needs to get in there and push it to test flight for beta testing, whatever it is.

You need the team that's going to be willing to roll up their sleeves and get dirty. And you as the leader need to be right there with them, showing them that you're putting in the same amount of effort.

Scale, at the end of the day, all comes down to leverage. To go back to these revenue levers. Which revenue lever can I develop that enables that scalability? And our willingness to scale as well. Are we pushing even the right metrics?

I was talking to some young tech entrepreneurs the other day, and their first thing they wanted to share is, look how many followers I have, look how many views I'm getting, look at this, this is clearly a good idea. We are scaling our social media marketing. I thought, okay, I respect that. You know, that's, you know, not easy in today's, you've got to pay for everything society, basically.

It's much harder to go viral today than it was in the past due to all the congestion. However, I would argue they're scaling vanity metrics. Scaling is a challenge no matter what, whether you're trying to scale your vanity metrics or where you're trying to scale user growth or assets under stewardship or whatever it actually is. You have to first off make sure you are scaling the right metrics.

thing because it takes so much effort and so much focus. And by the way, I'm not against vanity metrics by any means. But again, let's just make sure we're scaling the thing that's going to make the biggest difference. I'll use Moolah as an example again. You know, what good is it to me if I came to you, Noah, and I said, guess what, Noah? I added 100,000 users this past month.

But if they only contributed $5 into their Moolah account, believe it or not, I'd be losing money on that deal. But you added 100,000 users, Jason. Yes, but I didn't add 100,000 of the right users because they're just adding $5 to their account. And between my KYC bills, my AWS bills, everything else, I am losing money on that customer onboarding and going to continue to each and every month.

So scaling for the sake of scaling is incorrect. We have to make sure we're first scaling the right metrics and attracting the right customers from that standpoint.

We in both businesses have found our purpose in unlikely places. I'm sure everybody listening has read the famous book, Start With Why, and it's a great title and it sounds good, but it's very hard to start with a why when you haven't even met your first customer or don't know, you're just building an avatar and it's a hypothetical person. I'll give an example of each.

In our aviation business at this point, we're already say five, six years into the business. We're getting by. We've only got three or four employees. I'm occasionally paying myself and we're just trying to grow this thing. And again, the business was flight training. We were one of the largest online ground schools.

So you would watch our videos, all online courses for becoming a pilot to put it in plain English. And one day we got a support ticket that came in. And we only had one support team member. They said, Jason, I think you need to see this. And they occasionally brought me some tickets and stuff of an angry customer or an opportunity or something like that. And I remember reading the support ticket.

And I still am friends with this person to this day. He said, Jason, yesterday I was in my little airplane. It was a Cessna 172, which is a small four-seat training aircraft. He said, I got to about 400 feet and my engine quit. A total, total failure. He said, there was no runway in front of me. There was no runway beneath me. And all I heard, Jason, was your voice. Push the nose forward.

Manage your airspeed. Don't overbend. All these things that I would teach in our in-flight emergencies curriculum. He said, it was your voice that guided me all the way down into this farmer's field where I landed the airplane perfectly. I didn't hurt the farmer's field. I didn't hurt the airplane. In fact, they fixed the airplane up and towed it right out of there.

And he ended the email by saying, and I'm alive today because of you. And I thought, whoa, all this time, I thought I was just helping people pass their test. I thought I was helping them go get a job at Delta or JetBlue or name the airline of your choice. But that day, and I got the whole team together, and I said, we have thought we are in a different business.

We thought we were in the test prep business. But read this email. We are in the business of saving people's lives. Because at the end of the day, whether they're flying with their spouse, or they have that dream job where there's 300 paying passengers sitting behind them, they are in the business of getting these people safely from point A to point B. That's now the business we're in.

the business changed that day when we rallied the team around this idea of i'm not just helping you get a good score on your tests i'm genuinely making you a safer smarter pilot and maybe one day saving your life when that happened the team all came together talk about scaling the team all had that clear vision finally and and the same thing has happened on the moolah side of things

We had someone reach out to us. And, you know, when we think about wealth so often, we think about making more money and having nice cars and having nice things. And someone reached out and sent an email and said, thank you for the technology you have built. You've given me more time with my family. My son used to come to me and say, Dad, can we throw the football? I'd say, no, I have to work.

I got to pay the bills. I got to do this. Now my son comes to me and says, hey, dad, can we throw the football? He says, now I have less pressure. I can stop what I'm doing and go throw the football with my son. At the end of the day, wealth is being able to do what I want, when I want, with whom I want. So when we change, we're not just trying to grow people's bank accounts. That's great.

And that's a byproduct of what we do and help you steward your finances appropriately. I want to give you more time with your family. I want you to say yes to more throwing the football or watching your daughter do a ballet performance in the living room. That's what we're really in the business of. And when you can focus around that, it can really change your business.

going from the aviation industry into a fintech, there were so many unknowns. I made some assumptions. And unfortunately, sometimes when you come off of a success, you believe that you'll be successful in all things. There was actually a time when we were trying to build the banking side first. And I knew I wanted the investing component. I knew I wanted the banking component as well.

And I wanted it all. And I wanted it all at the same time, right? I broke the rule I just explained to you, have the MVP and feature lock it. And I was trying to do everything. In reality, we're a very small, scrappy team to use that word. And I was pulling our developers all over the place.

I was upsetting vendors because we were missing some deadlines and missing some security checks and all these different factors. And finally, it was my genius wife that came to me and said, Jason, focus on one thing and roll with it. This is where we decided, hey, the banking can come in version 1.1. We're going to go the investing side. We're going to be all in on this.

But my idea was, well, I want it all now, so I'll hire more. I'll do this. I'll throw more warm bodies at it. And that is not how you scale. You don't throw payroll dollars at a problem. For those of us listening to this, you are these scrappy entrepreneurs that we're talking about. Not everybody has the luxury to throw payroll dollars at a problem. And I was trying to do that.

And in reality, we burned more cash, our hard-earned cash from the previous exit than we probably should have because I was chasing something that should have just gotten the time out six months ago and rolled with the investing side first. Now, again, everything worked out great and everything has been a subsequent successful launch, but... Think of the blow to morale.

By the way, my wife and I do this business together, just like we did our aviation business. Think about us butting heads on this idea. We both are very strong, very opinionated individuals. We wouldn't be entrepreneurs if we weren't, right? It caused us to butt heads with that. In reality, I have learned that my wife often has the vision And it's my job to go out and execute on that vision.

And when we can fit and operate within our roles, I'm not saying we're not going to make mistakes, but we're certainly less likely to make those mistakes.

the team is still remaining that scrappy bunch. We did make one additional hire here, but I made a mistake early on of over hiring back to what I shared you in the aviation business, throwing people at problems. And that's not always the right way to go about it. So we've got a roadmap actually mapped out for the next two years.

And it's within the wheelhouse and capabilities of the current team as we grow. Now, support team is going to continue to grow. Marketing team is going to continue to grow. But from a dev standpoint, We've got a really, really solid team and we've got a really great cadence and speed that we're operating within.

You know, that's one thing that's so important is not living your life just sprint to sprint, but taking the time to share the vision with the team and say, this is where we're going. I've got the team, we haven't launched it yet, but we're moving towards robo-trading and robo-advising. We've got the algorithms and the language models to show, right? How do we actually edge out the S&P 500?

There's 30 years worth of data. Let's test against this data and see what algorithm comes out on top. I've got the team becoming literally quants and data scientists, and they just enjoy the math and the numbers and the algorithmic nature of everything to keep them engaged and within their wheelhouse of what they're excited about as well.

Obviously, on the banking side, there's so many neat opportunities. And I'm sorry to say AI. I know every episode someone brings up artificial intelligence. And unfortunately, it's like I'm kind of getting tired of it. Not artificial intelligence. I'm getting tired of the use of it because you experience this a lot. No, someone says AI and you go, yeah, that's not really AI.

But OK, you know, it just is such a buzzword. It's becoming cliche now. Where we're actually going with this is through a large language model. I know that Jason, my client, lives in Naples, Florida. Now I'm Jason's bank. So I know that Jason rents his home. I see the rent go out. I did the know your customer process. So I actually know the address.

I can pull up the estimate on Zillow and everything else and pull in some API data to know exactly where Jason is. I can then use that language model to search the market and say, Jason, you're paying $1,500 a month for your two-bedroom apartment or whatever it is. The average rent in Naples is actually $500 less per month. However, let's finish our algorithm here. What is the cost of moving?

Well, the cost of moving is this. So I can create an opportunity cost analysis for Jason in Naples to save 500 bucks a month. But is he really saving 500 bucks a month based on it's now a longer commute to work? It costs X amount to actually move. There's this deposit at this apartment, whatever it is. I can run through all the various scenarios.

I know Jason has Verizon, but I also am smart enough to know that AT&T has a deal right now if you sign for two years, and this could save you this. But what is that opportunity cost? That is where we're taking our language models to get that granular and that involved in your financial situation to help you make informed decisions.

One of the most popular things we get asked on the banking side is, well, do I buy a car? Do I lease a car? Do I get a used car? And you know what? Every situation is different. The problem is there are so many, we'll call them investment advisors and wealth managers. They will just give blanket advice for everybody. But you know what? My needs are different than Noah's needs.

They're different than some other listener's needs. Based on our age, how many children we have, where we live, we have different goals, we have different lifestyles, etc., etc. The level of advice for your finances needs to be tailored to Jason. It needs to be tailored to Noah. And that is why even here today in the Moolah apps,

Stocks that are recommended to me would not be recommended to you, Noah, because we're just in different seasons of life. We have different risk tolerances, all these things. And we're continuing to add to the personalization of that. The future of finance is personalization. And it's not just finance, by the way.

If you are listening to this and building something else out in ed tech and sure tech, I don't add that whatever tech it is. Personalization is going to be the key. It doesn't need to exist for your MVP, but you need to be thinking in that direction. How can I make this ultra personalized to my members, to my users?

My parents, for starters, both my wife and I grew up with our parents working together. My mom and dad had the pest control business. My wife's mom and dad worked together in a construction business. And to us, that was just totally normal.

So it only made sense that when we were dating, we were already talking about what business we're going to start together, what we're going to do together and everything else. So my parents play a pivotal role in that and in that upbringing. There's also many, we'll say, deceased voices that still ring so true today.

Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill, written in 1937, still just as relevant today. You can read that book, even though it was written in 1937, and go, whoa, this is impactful. One thing Napoleon Hill says in there, in every adversity, there's the seed of a greater advantage. And every time I hit a struggle, that quote just sits with me. And I say, okay, there's the seed of an advantage here.

And it's my job to find it, right? If I truly believe in every adversity, there's the seed of a greater advantage. It becomes my job to, you know, make lemonade out of lemons. I try to always be learning. I've always kind of been a little bit of a different kid, like back to being, you know, 12 years old, killing bugs with dad. I'd be mowing the lawn or whatever it is.

And I'd be listening to like Tony Robbins on cassette tape or Zig Ziglar, Jim Rohn or whomever else that may be. Like I've always been so big into learning. personal growth and self-development. And even to this day, I was at the gym yesterday listening to Audible and some people look at me and go, how can you listen to an audio book and work out?

I'm like, for me, that is just the time to learn and grow. If you are going to be expanding your business, you need to be expanding yourself and mindful of what you feed your mind and who you feed your mind with. And honestly, even the people you allow into your life to influence what you're doing, you can't make room in your life for the naysayers. You're starting something great.

And if you believe you're going to win and someone else doesn't believe you're going to win and they're going to nag you and challenge you, there's nothing wrong if they want to give you a little friction to try to make your idea better. But if they're a true Debbie Downer and believe every day is a rainy day, there's no room for those people in your life.

And you make sure you surround yourself around people who have been there and done that. And if you don't have those people in your life, you need to start consuming the books and the podcasts like this that are going to lift you up and be those voices until you reach a level where you attract those people into your life.

There's a few avenues to go, right? Assuming they haven't launched, it goes back to the advice of you don't have to get it right. You just have to get it going. But I'll take it a step further. So often in entrepreneurship, everyone is looking for home runs. Everyone is expecting home runs. Yet you, as a baseball dad, know this best.

The game of baseball is won, just like business, in a series of base hits. I know that entrepreneur that I'm talking to is looking for that home run. But trust me, hit the ball and play. Get to first base, let's recalibrate and let's go do it again and get to second base and get to third base and just put one foot in front of the other and begin as Jim Collins says, your 20 mile march.

Stop trying to run to the top of Everest. Stop trying to look for the home runs. Stop looking on Instagram because all you're seeing is what happens on stage. Behind the stage is messy and no one ever wants to show you what happens behind the stage. And to this entrepreneur, they may not have a backstage just yet, but it's going to be messy.

Embrace the chaos, embrace the mess, and just put one foot in front of the other, put the ball in play, and let's play again tomorrow. And that is what entrepreneurship really is. It's a 20-mile march. It's not a sprint.

Thanks, Noah.

We built one of the largest aviation businesses in the business of FAA test preparation. We produced the books, the curriculums, everything for pilots. We made an eight-figure exit to private equity, all great. However, what I'm telling you is just what you see on stage. Behind the scenes, we nearly went broke twice.

We couldn't manage our personal finances, which means we couldn't manage our business finances. We almost lost that business on several occasions. And Moolah, oddly enough, was really built out of that. When my wife and I sold that business and we looked at each other and said, well, we're too young to retire.

And we believe that when you have a skill set, you are called to use it and bring that to the marketplace and whatever that may be. So we relaxed for about two days and we said, what's the next thing we're going to do? My wife said, think of what you've done for our personal finances.

When we knew nothing, when we were making money, you know, in one hand and it was flying out the other hand, right? Like when we had to get a grip on our own finances and we had no clue what we're doing, you built the spreadsheets, you built the algorithms, you built the budgeting system.

It is time to add the technology around that and help other people to steward their finances, their investments in the same way you pulled this family and you pulled this business back from the ropes of defeat, essentially. And that was her little pep talk she gave me. It was taking the system that we know works and applying it to the masses.

Because sometimes, you know, I'm a three-time college dropout. I have just school hard knocks, you know, in everything. I learned the hard way, like so many great entrepreneurs like yourself. And sometimes that is the best education because, you know, what happens in a book and what happens in the real world are often two different things. And that's really what we set out to do at Moolah.

It was nine months in the making. So we call it our little baby, literally. And it's so funny taking the skills that we learned in the last business, what took us two or three years to come to market. Now, 16 years later, using the same totally different niche, right? From aviation to personal finance and investing. But business is business through and through.

So using that skill set to get us to MVP and using the same philosophy that someone told me 16 years ago with my aviation business. You don't have to get it right. You just have to get it going. And that sounds crazy when you talk about teaching people to fly. It sounds even crazier when you say, Jason, you're dealing people some money in personal finance. And I get it.

There's a perfectionist in all of us that we have to defeat sometimes and remind ourselves that you don't have to get it right. You just have to get it going. So for our MVP, did I want to launch the full banking platform with debit cards and secure credit and business accounts and family accounts? Of course, I wanted to do that. But that wasn't feasible given the budget.

We're entirely self-funded, by the way, from our exit of our last business to what were we going to bring to market? Because it is all about getting to market quickly and testing these iterations. So we launched just the investing side. And we rolled out investing based on what we call the Moolah meter, which is it's more machine learning than it is artificial intelligence.

But there is a large language model in there as well, as well as IRAs, right? Individual individual retirement accounts and setting these sort of things up to set the next generation up for success. Because people are trying to time the market and buy at the right time. In reality, it's time in the market that does so well. So we wanted to get people in and get them in there quickly.

Let's prove our concept here first. And then we roll out the other features. So that's really how we determined our MVP. And that's so tricky as someone in technology to know. When do I feature lock? When do I say enough is enough? When do I stop giving the dev team tickets and bugs and everything else and say, hey, this is it. This is what we're going to market with.

You can make an argument for either side of it. Look at the recent news of what happened to the CEO of Sonos. Released a buggy app and look what happened. Versus the person who never releases the app because they're pursuing to squash every bug. Where is the balance between the Sonos failure and the perfectionist that never launches? You have to meet in the middle on those two things.

And that's what's so critical with an MVP.

We built one of the largest aviation businesses in the business of FAA test preparation. We produced the books, the curriculums, everything for pilots. We made an eight-figure exit to private equity. All great. However, what I'm telling you is just what you see on stage. Behind the scenes, we nearly went broke twice.

I look at every decision as levers. Does this give me an additional revenue lever to make additional money by delivering additional value to the same customer? In the FinTech space, the customer acquisition cost is off the charts, as you can imagine. It is a very long onboarding process.

If you looked at my Figma screens, you would go, oh my goodness, you know, what is your drop-off percentage on the onboarding, like the abandonment? Because I don't get to pick all these. The SEC has the requirements. FDIC has the requirements. FINRA has the requirements. All these different screens, all these different disclosures.

So when I get somebody and they go through that entire long onboarding process, That customer is so valuable to me. So how do I deliver more value to them by delivering more revenue levers to pull?

So when I'm looking for the next thing, which in our case is the banking side of things, delivering a debit card, envelope style budgeting, which we call pockets, high yield savings accounts in addition to your investing accounts. HSAs, 529 college savings plans. How do I take the same customer and help them build their roadmap?

If you start with the customer and then build your roadmap off of their financial dreams, off of their financial roadmap, this is how you create success. Now, this is not 100% democracy because we all have heard the analogy, you know, Henry Ford goes to the people, they say they want a faster horse. Like it can't be a perfect democracy where you only let the people decide.

You have to know your customer avatar well enough to know what they need that they're not even telling you. I mean, think back to Steve Jobs. I know he didn't invent the MP3 player, but I remember having one of the original MP3 players that only held eight songs. he comes out and says, you know, a thousand songs in your pocket.

The way that you have to think things through on this technology, you have to be thinking even ahead and beyond of what your customer avatar really wants, and more importantly, what they need, and then educate them to do all that.

We couldn't manage our personal finances, which means we couldn't manage our business finances. We almost lost that business on several occasions. And Moolah, oddly enough, was really built out of that. I'm Jason Schappert, and I'm the founder of Moolah.

First off, we hire, and we did this in our aviation business, and I just, I did it by accident, honestly. We've always hired for culture fit and for personality.

Now, there are some rare exceptions where, yes, I need you to have that college degree, especially when dealing, when we dealt with the aviation space and everything else, the FAA was very particular on who held certain licensure and everything else. Gosh, looking at a resume never really told me that much. I always wanted to sit down with the person.