Podcast.

Today, we kick off our first episode with a reverse-host situation. Jim Barnish takes a turn in the hot seat as his own first guest so viewers can get to know his origin story and why he really does what he does–transparently. Tune in to this inaugural episode and find out how this entrepreneur had his first experience at age three, why it’s important to get deep into the “dirty side of things,” and how ending two startup companies led him to run Orchid Black, the booming business that he leads today.

3 Key Takeaways

• Avoid the BS in personal and business relationships (We all have it, but you need to be transparent about it.)
• Why people try a lot of things and end up doing nothing: Find. Your. Niche.
• Be honest about your failures--they are the foundation for your successes

‍Show Notes

[0:16] The real host introduces himself

• Getting to the “dirty side of things”
• Orchid Black is all about building a strong foundation
• Let’s dive deep into this three-part video!

[1:16] When Jim first became an entrepreneur

• The middle school inventor stereotype
• Jim's experience when his parents got divorced at age THREE
• Skipping school to pursue his innovative journey

[3:37] Jim starts a consulting business

• This startup led him to Orchid Black
• “Being an entrepreneur is that grit, sweat, and heartache: the dirt that you have on your own.” -Jim Barnish
• Be honest about the failures along the way

[4:30] It’s not about how many businesses you started. It’s about the creative juice you used along the way

[5:00] The defining moments in Jim’s life

• Navigating his parents’ divorce
• “There’s so much BS out there in personal and business relationships due to not being transparent about the dirt in our lives.” -Jim Barnish
• Learning to accept his own dirt

[7:00] Why Jim landed in consulting

• “There’s a reason why people try a lot of things and end up doing nothing. It’s because they haven’t carved out their niche.” -Jim Barnish
• “Accepting my dirt and learning from where I had grown transformed me into a better leader and relationship person all around...that is the crux of what entrepreneurship is.” -Jim Barnish
• Ask yourself: “What am I great at?”
• “Founders get stuck working in the business and not on the business.” -Jim Barnish

[10:00] Creating Orchid Black to help businesses start and exit in healthier, creative ways

• “We believe so much in what we do that we take a large percentage of our fees as performance-based compensation.” -Jim Barnish
• The best way he can serve the most founders is by helping them to grow their business their confidence; Orchid Black is about growth, not just about consultation

[12:02] Where Jim and Orchid Black is now

• Growing by more than 300% revenue in a year
• Building great teams that create a lot of value for clients
• Fostering coachable founders who are growing themselves
• Jim’s example of exiting a client in 7 months with a 55% value increase and a $36 million personal exit

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