2 Trends Hidden in Plain Sight (+ $1M ideas)

Shaan (@ShaanVP) and Sam (@TheSamParr) talk with seed VC Mike Maples (@m2jr). Mike is a co-founding Partner at Floodgate. He has been on the Forbes Midas List eight times in the last decade due to notable investments like Twitter, Twitch, Lyft, and Okta. In this episode he talks about the four big trends he is excited about, the types of companies he likes to invest in, and why a startup isn’t a company. He shares a few of the mental models he uses at Floodgate to evaluate startups and shares the thoughts behind some of his unique turns of phrase. --------- * Want to be featured in a future episode? Drop your question/comment/criticism/love here: https://www.mfmpod.com/p/hotline/ * Support the pod by spreading the word, become a referrer here: https://refer.fm/million * Have you joined our private Facebook group yet? Go to https://www.facebook.com/groups/ourfirstmillion and join thousands of other entrepreneurs and founders scheming up ideas. --------- Show notes: * (1:02) – Debrief of the episode * (6:37) - Intro to Mike Maples * (9:02) - How Mike thinks about the next big thing * (11:00) – The 4 inflections Mike is excited about * (13:51) – Cloud Offices * (19:33) – A brief history of centralization & decentralization * (22:48) – Examples of software defined companies * (26:14) – A practical way to prepare for the future * (30:23) – How Mike thinks about investing in startups * (33:07) – Startup investing mental models * (37:39) – Mike’s take on "1 to n" businesses * (42:36) – Mike on Balaji * (47:11) – Mike on media companies  * (49:49) – Force a choice, not a comparison * (54:46) – Mike’s information diet * (57:40) – Contact info & future topics

16 Juni 20211h 5min

We're trying a new format. Sam (@theSamParr) adds his commentary throughout the episode this week. Let him know on Twitter what you think of the change. Brian Scudamore (@BrianScudamore) is North America’s Junk Man. He turned a $700 pickup truck into one of the world's most successful franchises. Hear how he got started, got on Oprah, stumbled and almost killed his business, and the philosophies he uses to run his multimillion dollar junk empire! --------- * Want to be featured in a future episode? Drop your question/comment/criticism/love here: https://www.mfmpod.com/p/hotline/ * Support the pod by spreading the word, become a referrer here: https://refer.fm/million * Have you joined our private Facebook group yet? Go to https://www.facebook.com/groups/ourfirstmillion and join thousands of other entrepreneurs and founders scheming up ideas. --------- Show notes: * (3:41) Intro by Shaan to original episode * (5:22) How Brian got his story out there * (8:42) The origin story of 1-800-Got-Junk * (19:28) How Brian got the 1-800-Got-Junk number * (24:18) The vision board and getting on Oprah * (34:07) How Brian tore everything down to rebuild even better * (38:56) What Brian focuses on when hiring * (47:07) Why business went down $40M and how Brian responded * (51:58) Q1: What does Brian see as their breakthrough moment? * (53:14) Q2: How does Brian get liquidity & think about money? * (56:44) Q3: What would Brian do if he was 21 again? * (57:58) Getting in touch with Brian Sam's commentary: * (1:02) Sam's intro commentary * (4:42) Sam commentary 2 * (10:41) Sam commentary 3 * (12:46) Sam commentary 4 * (14:45) Sam commentary 5 * (15:23) Sam commentary 6 * (20:45) Sam commentary 7 * (31:16) Sam commentary 8 * (39:46) Sam commentary 9 * (41:33) Sam commentary 10 * (54:44) Sam commentary 11 * (59:33) Sam final commentary

14 Juni 20211h 1min

Shaan (@ShaanVP) used to be super shy. Now he is known for his confidence. Talking on stage in front of thousands or starting new business takes confidence. In this 10 minute mini episode he talks about what the turning point was for him, and his unusual hack for building confidence. Like Shaan’s stories? Subscribe to his newsletter to get 1-2 stories like this a week at www.shaanpuri.com --------- * Want to be featured in a future episode? Drop your question/comment/criticism/love here: https://www.mfmpod.com/p/hotline/ * Support the pod by spreading the word, become a referrer here: https://refer.fm/million * Have you joined our private Facebook group yet? Go to https://www.facebook.com/groups/ourfirstmillion and join thousands of other entrepreneurs and founders scheming up ideas.

13 Juni 202111min

WeWork isn’t the only game in coworking. In this episode, Shaan (@ShaanVP) and Sam (@theSamParr) break down the multi-billion dollar coworking industry and identify what you need to succeed. Shaan shares an awesome story about Steve Jobs and the guys talk about the future of sports recovery and where money is to be made with athletic endorsements. --------- * Want to be featured in a future episode? Drop your question/comment/criticism/love here: https://www.mfmpod.com/p/hotline/ * Support the pod by spreading the word, become a referrer here: https://refer.fm/million * Have you joined our private Facebook group yet? Go to https://www.facebook.com/groups/ourfirstmillion and join thousands of other entrepreneurs and founders scheming up ideas. --------- Show notes: * (1:24) - Episode Intro * (3:18) - Opportunities in coworking * (11:56) - The MFM co-working space? * (15:27) - The mystique of Adam Neumann * (19:34) - The duality of extreme confidence * (30:40) - You can't say no to Steve Jobs * (36:39) - Shaan's dream exercise for new hires * (38:47) - The Nike of sports recovery * (47:29) - Cryotherapy in a barrel * (51:13) - Saunas and sensory deprivation * (52:57) - Leveraging opportunities around pro athletes * (58:07) - Outro

11 Juni 202159min

Sam (@theSamParr) & Shaan (@ShaanVP) discuss second-hand e-commerce, door-to-door sales, and business poised to bounce back after COVID in this episode. They start off the episode recapping the live shows in Miami and Austin which leads them into personal travel and other slingshot business set to rebound after a COVID slump. The guys transition to the Mayweather Paul fight, the infamous Charizard necklace, and to some exciting things happening in the NFT space. They close it out with Shaan sharing ideas on litigation finance, second-hand e-commerce, and a fantastic story on door-to-door sales. --------- * Want to be featured in a future episode? Drop your question/comment/criticism/love here: https://www.mfmpod.com/p/hotline/ * Support the pod by spreading the word, become a referrer here: https://refer.fm/million * Have you joined our private Facebook group yet? Go to https://www.facebook.com/groups/ourfirstmillion and join thousands of other entrepreneurs and founders scheming up ideas. --------- Show notes: * (1:16) - Episode Overview * (2:31) - Intro * (5:44) - Recap of Live Shows * (6:55) - Personal travel is crazy right now * (10:10) - Sam & Shaan on slingshot startups * (20:26) - How sports are innovating * (23:09) - Floyd Mayweather vs. Logan Paul * (25:27) - The Charizard Necklace * (27:18) - LaMelo Ball’s NFT collection * (33:55) - What is Ether.Cards * (41:52) - Peter Thiel and litigation finance * (50:22) - Second-hand e-commerce * (1:00:42) - Mega-segment on door-to-door sales * (1:20:11) - Outro

9 Juni 20211h 21min

Sam (@theSamParr) & Shaan (@ShaanVP) do a little Q&A in this episode. They talk about their financial goals, their romantic relationships, and what they would do if they were 21 again. They finish off the episode talking about the podcast growth, live events, and brainstorm a few ideas around community and sports you can do as you get older. --------- * Want to be featured in a future episode? Drop your question/comment/criticism/love here: https://www.mfmpod.com/p/hotline/ * Support the pod by spreading the word, become a referrer here: https://refer.fm/million * Have you joined our private Facebook group yet? Go to https://www.facebook.com/groups/ourfirstmillion and join thousands of other entrepreneurs and founders scheming up ideas. --------- Show notes: * (1:19) - Intro * (4:00) - The Twitter bio paradox * (6:15) - Intro to Q&A * (6:30) - Q1 - What's it like to be rich? * (11:51) - Q2 - What do you read/research outside business? * (14:03) - Q3 - How did success influence your romantic relationships? * (20:34) - Q4 - What pandemic behavior do you want to keep? * (22:00) - Q5 - If you were 21 again, what would you be doing? * (25:44) - Q6 - What's your best purchase over $2K & best under $100? * (27:52) - Podcast growth update * (29:55) - On growth plateaus * (32:47) - Live event update * (34:53) - Community around the "neighborhood 7/11" * (44:25) - The new golf * (53:53) - Outro

4 Juni 202156min

Sam (@theSamParr) gets real in this episode. He talks about his struggles with alcohol and the reasons why he is now sober. He shares 8 lessons he learned from his experiences. He ends the episode by answering questions he received on Twitter. --------- * Want to be featured in a future episode? Drop your question/comment/criticism/love here: https://www.mfmpod.com/p/hotline/ * Support the pod by spreading the word, become a referrer here: https://refer.fm/million * Have you joined our private Facebook group yet? Go to https://www.facebook.com/groups/ourfirstmillion and join thousands of other entrepreneurs and founders scheming up ideas. --------- Show notes: * (0:00) - Intro * (3:56) - How it started - Sam's background with alcohol * (11:24) - The first turning point [oasis] * (13:36) - Asking for help [university clinic] * (14:49) - Going to California * (17:41) - The second turning point [Joe Garvin] * (20:07) - Getting help [SF Clinic] * (23:13) - Coping while sober [eating sugar] * (24:39) - What Sam has learned * (25:46) - Lesson 1 - The inner game * (27:26) - Lesson 2 - Being open * (29:33) - Lesson 3 - Booze messes up your body * (31:16) - Lesson 4 - Sober Sam = Attractive Sam * (33:04) - Lesson 5 - Having fun while sober * (35:14) - Lesson 6 - Intense realism * (36:57) - Lesson 7 - Control your emotions, control your reality * (37:17) - Lesson 8 - Saving $$$ * (37:58) - Q&A

2 Juni 202146min

Jack Smith (@_jacksmith) is the most clever entrepreneur I know. He’s cofounded multiple startups: Vungle, Coin, Shyp. With Vungle recently selling for $750M, we talk about his early businesses as a kid, selling prank itching powder on the playground - all the way to his infamous “LinkedIn Hack” that got him his first $120k investment check. --------- * Want to be featured in a future episode? Drop your question/comment/criticism/love here: https://www.mfmpod.com/p/hotline/ * Support the pod by spreading the word, become a referrer here: https://refer.fm/million * Have you joined our private Facebook group yet? Go to https://www.facebook.com/groups/ourfirstmillion and join thousands of other entrepreneurs and founders scheming up ideas. --------- Show notes: * (1:05) Episode Intro by Sam * (4:10) Who is Jack Smith? * (9:30) How Jack hustled as a 12-year-old * (13:55) Jack on productivity and procrastination * (21:26) How Jack raised for Vungle * (31:13) How Shaan got his in at Monkey Inferno * (35:16) The early iterations of Vungle * (41:37) How Jack leveraged his beginner's mindset * (45:19) Jack on VC norms & selling his stock * (49:44) What Jack would do if he was 20 again

1 Juni 202155min