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#203 Courtney Zaugg: Resilience and Entrepreneurship Wisdom
Ever wondered how life’s unexpected twists can shape a prosperous entrepreneurial journey? Join us for an inspiring conversation with Courtney Zaugg, whose path from international economic development in Brussels to starting a business in the U.S. is nothing short of remarkable. From meeting her husband Nathan, a former Marine, to navigating financial struggles and career sacrifices, Courtney’s story is a powerful testament to resilience, balance, and collaboration. Discover how these experiences have profoundly influenced her entrepreneurial endeavors and the importance of adaptability in navigating major life transitions.
Starting a business isn’t just about financial risks—it’s an emotional rollercoaster too. Hear Courtney discuss the psychological challenges of entrepreneurship, including the fear and hesitation of taking the plunge, and the resilience needed to weather external crises like the pandemic. Learn from her personal anecdotes on how daily wins and maintaining perspective can transform fear into a powerful motivator. Courtney’s insights will remind you that the entrepreneurial journey is about continuous growth and celebrating small victories along the way.
For those navigating entrepreneurship with a veteran background, this episode is a treasure trove of valuable resources. Courtney highlights support systems like VentureVets and the Bunker community, emphasizing the critical role of financial planning and spousal support. Hear her advice on the importance of virtual coffee meetings for networking and seeking guidance. As we wrap up, Courtney teases her upcoming return to discuss her ongoing work with veterans, leaving listeners with a sense of collective support and resilience. Don't miss out on this enriching episode filled with practical advice and personal stories aimed at fostering entrepreneurial success.
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Speaker 2:Let's go with an expert in guerrilla warfare, with a man who's the best with guns, with knives, with his bare hands, a man who's been trained to ignore, ignore weather, to live off the land.
Speaker 1:Job was disposed of enemy personnel to kill period you know, when you're an entrepreneur and you're busy doing so much it's it's easy to get overwhelmed and default to. You know the status quo and that's how you get an HP laptop from $19.99 to still be your go-to laptop 2020, sir Courtney Zogg welcome to Security Out Podcast.
Speaker 1:This episode has been one in the making for a while. You should have been on season three or four, but I am grateful that we finally got a time to sit down and connect. You're amazing and such a wonderful, warm person. We met at MIC years ago and you're somebody that's genuinely always rooting for everybody that's trying to chart a course into the unknown. You are an entrepreneur true to the core, founder of Plaka Associates, venturebets, and you're a Bunker Labs ambassador. We're going to touch on all those things, but the number one thing that I want to touch on today is how are you doing? How are you maintaining life, trying to do everything you?
Speaker 2:know life is good. Life is good, I would say, trying to maintain everything you know there's balance. Some things fall into the cracks, like I need a new computer? Apparently no, but things are actually really really good right now. I would say Summertime, school is out, we're enjoying some time as a family, we have some pretty interesting projects in the works and, yeah, life's good. I feel lucky.
Speaker 1:That's awesome, and now we're going to have to take it all the way back to the very beginning, before the well-established life, because your origin story, as I like to call it, is something that so many of us can relate to. You get out of the military or your career field that you were going to school for. You were planning on doing this one thing forever, and then life happens.
Speaker 2:Courtney, take us through how you found yourself into this space how you found yourself into the space, yeah well definitely wasn't linear, not even a little bit. So my educational background is international economic development. So I went overseas on my own dime, went into a lot of debt to go overseas for school, which at the time I'm like this is a good idea, and I don't. I don't it was worth it, but having that much debt for school I don't think was a good choice. The experience was a good choice, but the debt certainly wasn't. And I ran out of money of my own money when I was finishing grad school in Brussels and so, thankfully, I was able to come back home, work and still finish my dissertation. But a month after I got back I met Nathan, my husband, and he had been out of the Marine Corps at that point, I think, two years and was using the GI Bill to go to school. My plan was like I'm just going to make some money, finish my dissertation and then get the heck out of India again. But there he was and he was also finishing school. So the short story is that I kept applying for jobs overseas, thinking, yeah, maybe I can do six-month contracts and then come back and we can do a long-distance relationship, blah, blah, blah.
Speaker 2:And I applied for some jobs in Afghanistan and I remember we had been dating just a few months at that point and I remember coming back like, hey, I applied for these jobs, what do you think? And just straight face, he's like I think that I'll give you a flak jacket and a pistol and tell you good luck. And it's like, oh, okay, what am I gonna do now? What's? What's the choice? You know he was, he didn't want to go back to a war zone, um, and he was finishing his school, you know, finishing his degrees. At that point he was um, his plans was where to go into federal law enforcement, I think, like a lot of um folks transitioning out, right and um. So we spun our wheels for a while. I clearly stayed in Indy. We got married, um, and then he decided that he didn't want to do federal law enforcement, um, which was a, frankly, a huge shock to the system because, um, I put my career on hold for him.
Speaker 2:Right, and as a, I would say I call myself a pretty strong female. The last thing I want to do is tell people that I put my career on hold for a guy, Um, and then for him to tell me that his plans change like it was. It was rough, and for him to tell me that his plans changed. It was rough, but what we did know is that whatever we wanted to do in the future, we wanted to do together, and that meant we both frankly gave up our career dreams to build a new one together, and there's no regrets with that.
Speaker 1:That's a beautiful thing that a lot of us need to understand. Like I know, coming from a special operations background, it's like your career first, always your career first, and then the spouse is just tagging along and then transition happens and then it's a. It's a rude awakening for the guys because they have to come to terms with the understanding that maybe maybe now they have to come to terms, the understanding that maybe maybe now they have to take a back seat, or maybe now they have to finally come to realize that it should have been a little bit more collaborative and appreciative, because now they're facing this giant change and oftentimes it's the wife's a spouse that's like, hey, I'm gonna rescue us, don't worry, I've had all this time I've been going to school, I'm becoming a nurse, I've been doing this, even doctors doing all this work and it's like now it's my turn. But the more often, the more successful couples are the ones that have this collaborative, joint effort in planning, even during that military career, knowing that like, hey, at this year you're going to transition out, so by this year I'll be going to this school and they'll be perfect for our move.
Speaker 1:When you were first coming to terms with this and it is hard for women these days. Right, you are supposed you're growing up and being told by everybody like, hey, you have to be strong, you have to be the alpha, you have to be able to chart your course, no matter what Stick to your guns. And it's like wait, I'm actually in a marriage, I'm actually in a relationship with somebody. How did you come to terms with the clashing of ideologies of like, wait, this is what the culture is telling me, but this is what I think is going to benefit us.
Speaker 2:You fit Nathan, he, but this is what I think is going to benefit us you fit Nathan, he's amazing. He's amazing. Yeah, I think that's a really tough question. I don't know what it was, besides knowing that I had a partner who truly was a partner and who had my back, and also that his both his personality and, I think, his experience in war meant that nothing bothered him.
Speaker 2:Right, I think it's something that I love about him and something's something that's really frustrating is that nothing bothers him, and I really wanted that in a partner, and I wanted a partner that would go toe-to-toe with me but also support me when I needed it. And I think he's just. He's just different, and that sounds really mushy, but he is, and I so I think it was the decision of um. I wanted someone that I could truly be a good partner and a teammate too, and he was that. He is that, um, which then translates into us being business owners together. It's the only way. I think it's the only way is that if you have a good partner, you can do business together.
Speaker 1:You can't be scared of it, but at the same time, now diving into the waters of being an entrepreneur. How much different was that? Because I mean like a lot, lot of times, even in my own experience, kind of fall into it. We kind of I'm going to try doing this, it'll be a hobby, I'll make some side money. Next, you know like you're scaling. Next, you know you're hiring somebody on 1099. Before you know it. It's like shit, I'm an entrepreneur. Yeah, yes.
Speaker 2:Yes, that's exactly. I think very rarely people are like yes, this is what I'm going to do. I think it's just, it, just you just evolved from it?
Speaker 2:Well, I think so. That is our story, where he, you know, he framed houses before before going into the Marine Corps, and when we were both kind of spinning our wheels trying to figure out what are we going to do for our career together, um, he started remodeling, doing remodeling jobs in the side, and he would come home happy, so happy, and um, I was like you're really happy doing this, we should make this a thing. But he, it's scary, right, and I came from a line of um like great-grandparents who were food entrepreneurs, but then, you know, generations passed down. My parents had restaurants that failed, and so it was frankly like they lost family money and the shame and the financial challenges and then, um, the strain on on all of the family because of that. I the last thing I wanted to do was be an entrepreneur, like no, that's painful and expensive and you could lose everything, which we did, um, but I don't know.
Speaker 2:There was something. There was something in the creating this dream together, together, that we almost felt like we had no choice but to be entrepreneurs, which sounds really dramatic. But you ask him, he's not dramatic and he would agree. And he would agree. It was like, either we're going to do this or I don't know, we'll just, you know, wait tables the rest of our lives, which was fine, which also would have been fine because we were building a life together, right. But it worked out. And then, yeah, slowly things were like well, let's hire a couple 1099s? And eventually he had several people in payroll and right before the pandemic he hired a dozen people and had different work crews.
Speaker 2:And now we're at a point where I think, when you see your hard work even if you're not, most entrepreneurs never become millionaires or multimillionaires but I think when you work so hard and you see the fruit of all that work, you start seeing things as just opportunities. And that's what happened with us, the construction company. Then came real estate development and then came well, we need folks to help manage the properties. We need to start a property management company With VentureVets. We need to start a property management company With VentureVets helping other veteran and spouse entrepreneurs. It's always been just a passion and a side project, but now it's at a point where it's like, well, let's formalize this, see if we can add some infrastructure and make it more of a sustainable thing. So I think you just begin to see different scary things as opportunities.
Speaker 1:And the more you do it, the less fear you have. I think that the other thing that I've realized is there are so many great programs out there, but I've met more people that didn't use the programs to then become advocates for the programs. When you were finally getting the wheels going, what were some of the first things that you started leaning to? Did you take any extra courses or just consume content from anybody specific in order to get a better, broader understanding of what it means to be a business owner? So I think that's some of the things that people are always looking for. There's so many books and so many podcasts now. It's just saturated. But what are some of the things that you leaned on for that? Maybe just that little bit of positivity in the entrepreneurial space?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I wish I had a better answer for that, like I really followed alex, you know, um, but no, we truly what we did try to do is ask other people in the industry for guidance, and some people say, I, I think you'd be surprised when you're a new entrepreneur and, denny, I don't know if this is your experience too, but we would just ask like, hey, we could really use some help. We don't know what we're doing, we don't know what we don't know, and people typically say yes. When you ask people for advice and for help, they will typically say yes, and so we've been very lucky to have folks say well, here's what we've used and here's a template. Or here's our banker, you know, call them. Or here's the type of insurance you need, or so it's been local, it's definitely been a relationship type of approach, locally to help guide us.
Speaker 2:So, no, I don't follow any gurus uh, for the, for the most part, I think I, I, but I also think as an entrepreneur, you're not going to be successful, successful if you're not trying to constantly learn and read and listen and talk like you have to evolve or the business dies. So, um, there's not one direction, I think, for us, but we're constantly asking for, still, and we'll continue for advice and help and and surrounding yourself with, with, I think the maybe that's the other thing surrounding and trying to get to an echelon of folks that have been very successful, that can open doors and truly pour the sidewalk to make it easier for you to walk in that direction. That's important. It's always important to getting to the next level.
Speaker 1:Yeah, content's great, books are great, but I think it only gets you so far, because at the end of the day, then you're just stuck with your own ideas and you're still not making forward progress. Really, there's a couple of things you can take away maybe implement some tools, get resources, but it's that human connection, being able to sit down across from somebody with a cup of coffee and say, hey, this is where I'm at, and I'm not asking for a handout, but I am asking for some knowledge from your experience. You've gotten over this obstacle, like what were some resources you use, what were some tactics you use? And I think veterans aren't shy.
Speaker 1:You do it in the military, you do it when you're in uniform, but for some reason, magically, when you transition, your ability to talk and engage with people just goes away. It just diminishes. Right, and that's something that I talk with people a lot. It's like, hey, you don't need to go through a transition course like the Honor Program, you don't need to go through a transition course like the Honor Program. It helps, it's great, it's amazing resources, but you'll be surprised what you get if you just go on LinkedIn and talk with people and reach out. That's right.
Speaker 1:It's such a valuable tool that you can't forget At some point. You were doing that as an NCO, you were doing it as a private, you were asking questions sitting down. For God's sakes, ladies and gentlemen, don't forget that. It's vital. I mean, it's easy to look back and see that experience is still relatable when you get on the outside. Don't forget that. You have to move forward with that. When you started seeing that forward progress, what was that like? Like having that proof. All right, like this is working. This is like I'm we're putting money into this and it's actually making progress what was that like?
Speaker 2:I think um. So Nathan would have a different answer, of course, than I, than I have. When he started, I guess we in the first couple of years, the construction it's, you know, it's, it's he's the expert. He was, you know, very he was, we'll just say, scared, we'll just use the word scared. He would deny that word, but we'll use the word scared and I'm like no, this is fine. I had the. I had the full-time job at the. At the time, we did have an infant, um, and so I could understand why he was a little, a little hesitant, but we were good and I think, um. The next big hurdle was, um. I saw I went off on my own. So two years after the construction business now we became an entire household of no constant city income and I was scared to death and he wasn't. He was more of like no, it's fine, like I did that two years ago, it's going to be fine. And then so that was 2019.
Speaker 1:And then the pandemic hit and then shit got real, you know, you were yeah, that's like, what did we do?
Speaker 2:what did we do? But in the end it actually man, we were, we were lucky and and, frankly, you know, nathan probably slept four hours a night that entire year, but he, the business, thrived and I think that was another um one of many levels of like oh, we made it through, that, we can do anything, and I so I don't. Maybe it's also my personality of like I don't know if I'm ever going to be like we made it right, maybe, like you know, half a billion dollars. Okay, we made it, we're good, let's take it Adjusted for inflation, of course.
Speaker 2:That's right, but I think I don't know. I think we still see opportunities, we're still, we're still growing, um, we still um don't have it all figured out. And so maybe that's the answer of like, what does it feel? Like it feels like this is just the journey, maybe there isn, you know, it's not about the destination, which sounds really oh, it's the truth, it's the checkpoints, it's the journey.
Speaker 1:Checkpoints along the way, and it's about having daily reminders that you're doing good, even if that just means you checked all your emails and got every reply, that's right. I I can't tell you how often I look for that, that daily win, and I think that's something that like and it's you feel like you're flying in the blind, but understanding that, hey, even pilots fly by instruments like, even pilots get in yeah in situations where it's like, all right, I got a trust instrument.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it feels great when you get that new client, when you see that invoice got paid out.
Speaker 1:But it's okay to live in that understanding that fear is normal, understanding that fear is a powerful motivator and a great friend. It doesn't have to paralyze you, and that's something that I've been able to see from having in there. You know, discussions with people like yourself that have done this, like, yeah, you're not going to be without fear, you can't. You can't do this without fear. If you're doing it without fear, that means that you have, like just amazing benefactors and a great family that's just funding everything, and I would I would beg to say that maybe you're not an entrepreneur as much as you are just a benefactor. You're just Right.
Speaker 1:Right.
Speaker 2:That's so true. That's so true. Yeah, I think that's. I think you're right on. I think there's also it's never as bad as what what seems um, and here's a.
Speaker 2:Here's a pretty, pretty good example during the pandemic right, um, and clearly my experience not being in the military and Nathan's it's black and white, very, very contrasted pandemic lockdown, our daughter was three. I still had all of my contracts. Thankfully no one had canceled. But I'm like how am I going to get this work done with a three-year-old at home? And thankfully, at that time he had work, he was able to construction was they were able to go out and work, which was again we were very lucky. And I remember the neighbors across the fence from us who are elderly came out and they're like how are you guys doing? And Nathan's like, oh, we're fine, we are. So we're fine, we have. You know we're working. And I'm like how are you saying we're fine? You know I'm crying every day and on the kitchen floor with a three-year-old trying to figure out how to do all this, we're fine.
Speaker 2:And his response is like we're not getting shot at. I'm like, oh right, right. So I think the perspective about when you talk about fear and about what's the worst case scenario like. The worst case is never an entrepreneurship. It's not death right, it's not. Even if you lost it all, you can still rebuild. You can still figure out ways to have a life and support your family. It's never as bad as what you think it is at times, and so his perspective about that. Again, it's something like. I love that. I was really frustrated about that response in the moment, but it's true, he's right, you know, it's just never.
Speaker 1:It's never as bad as what, unless you owe money to very shady organizations, uh, you're gonna be okay and it it's one of those things. Where then I? If you're following your passion, if you're following like what you're excited about, and nobody can do that for you, nobody can figure that out for you. You have to figure that out. And, and I understand, I talk to a lot of people and like, hey, you know, your passion isn't always gonna have to be tied to your job, but it can be and I'd rather do that.
Speaker 1:I don't that I don't want to do anything just for money, and I get it. It could be making Denny could be making a lot more money doing something else, but that something else isn't why I wake up at 3am to go over and check an audio file or go over a strategy for a customer's content. That's not what I'm doing it. Life is so short, we don't live infinitely. It ends, it comes to an end and I would rather go into this next chapter and I think this is the same for a lot of veterans going to this next chapter doing something that is completely authentically you. I don't want to waste any more time. I'd rather stumble and fall down and trying to figure this out and get to where I want to go on my own dime and with my own ambition, knowing that I'm doing something that's uniquely, authentically, like, true to who I am and and I think that's something that all of us that are doing this can identify with Like it just doesn't feel right doing something else Like it doesn't. And there is those moments of trepidation at first where it's like, oh shit, like I could be making a lot more money.
Speaker 1:But the best people have said get rid of plan B. Get rid of plan B, get rid of the idea that there's an alternate course of action, because if you have that in your mind already, you're going to bail, you're going to bail, you're going to bail. You're going to bail when you look at what you've built. What are some of the things that you leaned on to ensure that your plan was your plan as a couple? What are some things that you always look to Like, hey, we might be in the red here, but this is our plan? What are some things you guys look towards in each other in order to remain strong?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think the deal that we made with each other right when we started the construction business was that if it ever interfered with our marriage, we would quit, like we would go get jobs, and we've held true to that. You know, we've had conversations when, let's say, like we would go get jobs, and we've held true to that. You know, we've had conversations when, when, let's say, cash flow is tight too and it's like we need, we need to adjust or we need to, we do need to figure out a plan B, because we don't, we don't have a plan B, um, and we've. We've just held true to that. Like our, our relationship and our family is more important than than the business, than any of the businesses, and I also think that our relationship, the businesses, will fail if our family is not secure and in a good place. You know, do we argue? Yes, do we always see eye to eye?
Speaker 2:No, we don't. But I think the other part of that is we've really identified what our roles and responsibilities are. As you do in a relationship, it's the same for the businesses. We have different skill sets and different interests and because of that, we trust each other to stay in our own lanes right and do the things that we do best and play it within our strengths. That works out. That works well out in our marriage and it works out well in our businesses too.
Speaker 2:So I think, defining that in the beginning, I guess our plan B probably is the real estate side. If I'm honest with you, it's not the best way for anyone to build wealth and generational wealth is through real estate, and so, while there's a lot of scams out there that I would advise against, I think for us it was like it is a plan, it is a plan B, it's a. If this doesn't work out, we still have that that we could sell and rely on, and so I do think some type of financial backup, even if it's small, even if it's a, that's fine. I'm just, you know, I'm not going to go into debt this much, or I'm not going to take on, you know, venture capital, um, because I know I'll be able to do this. I think that's helpful. You know you don't want to put it is. It is risky to be an entrepreneur, but you certainly want to. Don't want to do it at at the cost of um like never getting out of it.
Speaker 2:You know, if things fail, fail you can fail and then be able to move on. But if you're getting it to the point where you're digging a hole and you can't get out of it, yeah don't do that, you know, but talk to other entrepreneurs who can help you not make those same mistakes and and to get so yeah, I think one of the biggest things is that initial funding source.
Speaker 1:How are you going to get this thing off the ground? And if you're not engaging and reaching out and talking, figuring out grants, you're going to feel like the only way you can do it is through credit cards or going into debt. That's why it's so important to connect and find resources, because there is a lot of money out there, especially if you're a veteran. There is so many.
Speaker 1:I mean from pitch competitions to grants there is an abundance of things that you can apply for, but you don't see any of it if you stay. Stay in your little ecosystem, in your own little bubble, thinking that you have to do it alone. And that's something that I realized when you just sit down in front of Google and just put in the words grants for veteran entrepreneurs.
Speaker 2:It's that simple.
Speaker 1:And then you're going to be inundated with the amount of things that come out and it's like holy shit. Oh, you qualify Female veteran, minority veteran groups, all these different resources, all these different things that can help you on your journey. You don't have to bootstrap on your own. You really don't. And it's really dangerous to say to you, especially right now, with credit card rates, it's not ideal and you don't have to do it. You absolutely have so many different options. I mean, I want to ask you now about Bunker Labs, which is something that is out there, it's in your face. If you're on LinkedIn, it will, literally, if you're a veteran, it'll pop up. What is Bunker Labs all about and how is it helping veterans become entrepreneurs?
Speaker 2:Yeah Well, I will also say that I'm no longer an ambassador, but I am an advocate for Bunker Labs, and now it's been acquired by IVMF and organizations like it. You have Warrior Rising. That's also another entrepreneur. There's several different organizations that are helping, including ours, venturevets, helping veteran and spouse entrepreneurs, the programming. So there's lots of opportunities for, especially if you're just starting to get connected to others that are just like you.
Speaker 2:The programs are free. They're typically online. They're typically recorded, so you do have access at your fingertips nine o'clock at night when you're like, if you're working a day job and you're like I need to know about this and it's accessible. It's really accessible. There's a great community associated with those organizations too. We've benefited from it. They've also helped market our businesses. We've been very lucky and appreciative of all the things that the Bunker community has given us and, frankly, just lifelong friends.
Speaker 2:I've often said the special sauce of any of this work is not necessarily the curriculum and the programs, it's the community, it's people that you walk into a room and there's this automatic level of trust that's been given because of the shared experience in some form and working in economic development, community development. There are politicians and elected officials and, and you know community members that are trying to to manufacture that and it's just there in the veteran in the military community. Um, it's really special, and so those programs are great and I highly recommend them. Um, the other thing I'm kind of for a minute if you don't mind.
Speaker 2:The other thing that I think is really, really important, that and that is about that's your finances. So one thing that we didn't know, like we didn't, of course, like I said, we didn't send out to be business owners entrepreneurs but when we started out our life together, we bought a really cheap house. Nathan has the skills to fix it up, so there's that benefit. But we designed our life in a way that if something were to happen financially, we could take a hit. We could take a hit that if we only had one income, we would be fine, We'd never lose the house. Right, Our cars are paid off, and I think that allowed us to take the risk.
Speaker 2:I think that was the thing for Nathan, especially in the beginning, when he's like, okay, we're in a position where we could take a hit If something happens, we'd not, we would not lose the house, we would be fine. And I think when you're an entrepreneur, there's this tendency and I fall into it too where it's like you have to show off your shiny stuff Like look at, look at all the things that I'm doing, or the places I'm going, or and um.
Speaker 2:You have to promote yourself, but I think realistically, if you are able to understand your finances and look at the ugly and and get it in a position where you're like I can do this, that then you can take more risks than you can possibly even imagine because your finances are.
Speaker 1:That is such an amazing thing that you brought up, and I want to again highlight the importance of working with your spouse. Arguably there are so many of you listening right now say, oh yeah, I'm a solo entrepreneur. It's like, no, you're not, you're married.
Speaker 1:Your spouse has a say in it and I'll tell you, I'll give you this um, I am not good with finances, but my wife is a fucking guru with math and numbers and the way that she is able to track expenses for I mean for a year out, like, hey, this is no bullshit what you're allocated for the business, this is no bullshit what we have to take in. And this is at the end of the day. When you have somebody that's that smart and savvy, she has an Excel spreadsheet tool that is just unbelievable. All the codes, everything you put the numbers in and it just that's awesome. Wow, chef's kiss. It's amazing.
Speaker 2:Will she share with me?
Speaker 1:Yeah, she sends it out so many times because people are like, when she breaks it down for people, she'll show them how they can be debt free in X amount of years if they contribute X amount of money on a monthly or weekly basis, even like as little as $5 a year, and I show you how it it snowballs into this debt and this debt. And it started all the way back before I even left the military, like, hey, let's pay off the cars, let's pay this off. And you're right, when you don't have those monthly expenditures, when you don't have that debt that's staring at you every single night, you feel a little more reassured that your plan of action is going to succeed, because you're like, hey, at the end of the day, I just have to worry about X, y and Z and I don't have to worry about this major loan because I got resources and I got grants and I got funded for X amount of years. And I hate to make it sound so simple and reduce it down to like, oh, you just got to plan it out. But in reality, yeah, you do just have to plan it out and reach out for resources and for help and they're there. It's just like anything else, like mental health, like there are tools out there.
Speaker 1:Now more than ever, we need to be able to stand up and just be willing to present ourselves in front of others that are following their own path, in their own journey to be entrepreneur, and say, hey, I want to be where you're at, how did you get there? And after you, get some forward momentum now you can turn around and help the next set of people going through. Because, look, at the end of the day, I don't think it's everybody's dream to get out of the military and work for somebody, be in medical sales Not that there's anything wrong with that but I think we're more suited to go out there and create these new awesome, exciting endeavors and be our own boss. Like why?
Speaker 2:not, I agree, I totally agree, yes, 100%.
Speaker 1:Well, Courtney, before I let you go, I want to reach into your kit bag of success and tools.
Speaker 2:I want to just ask you to share with us some of the things that you have found to be extremely helpful, or maybe some things to avoid as a new entrepreneur. Things to avoid, um. Well, maybe I'll start with the the going back to your community. I think, um, connecting with others that have been doing this is just critically important, because entrepreneurship, like many other things, is lonely Um and um, I would say people who aren't business owners don't understand all the things that go into it and all of the stresses and fears. Right, and so find others, um, that you can walk along this journey with you. I think is is it's just so important.
Speaker 2:Um, I think the other thing is, um, you really have to know yourself well and you have to know what your strengths are and what your weaknesses are, and if you don't, or if your ego is too big, um, it will, it'll hurt you, you won't be successful.
Speaker 2:I think you know talking about staring into the ugly of your finances, you really have to understand the points where you're just not very good, and you got to find other people that can help you with that, like my partner, like your partner, like your spouse.
Speaker 2:But I think this, this career and entrepreneurship as a career, it hits you in the face so many times. I mean there can be one day it's like this career and entrepreneurship as a career, it hits you in the face so many times. I mean there can be one day it's like this is amazing, and then the next day you get sucker punched and just from knowing that you still have good things to give back and add value. But leaning on folks like your, like your partners and other folks in the community that can help you on the areas that you're not very good at, is important. So I guess asking for help is probably the simple way to say that. But that requires knowing yourself and if you don't know yourself, work on that, like knowing what your strengths are. Because if you again, if you're not healthy, if your partnership is not healthy, in whatever partnership marriage, business, partnership the businesses are not going to work.
Speaker 2:It's not going to work.
Speaker 1:That is so true, the importance of knowing who you are. Because I'm not going to worry about finances, I'm going to just shove that right into my wife's lap and let her deal with the spreadsheet. I just got to make sure that I stay on budget and that I don't blow all of our allocated funds on new audio or video equipment.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Yep, good plan. What's on deck for you guys? What is, uh? What's on the horizon?
Speaker 2:yeah. So a couple things. One is that I am actively entering back into zinc contractors and working more closely with nathan. It's going to be a little bit of a process, but you know, it was kind of it was he and I for the first two years and then I stepped out of it, um, but also recognizing that we are a really good team, um, so I'm I'm stepping back into zinc and trying to elevate that from a um, broader state perspective, but also different, like government contracting and seeing what opportunities exist. So that's one thing, um, and the other thing is with venture vets is that we will be running construction specific cohorts for the for the yeah, yeah, so that's.
Speaker 2:that's pretty exciting. More news on that to come this fall. Um, but leaning into, I guess, the construction industry in general and and seeing how we can can grow, but how we can help other groups.
Speaker 1:That's awesome. I've got some 18 Charlies that need to get involved with VentureVets then, because that's right up their alley. Awesome. Courtney, thank you so much for being here with us and for sharing your passion. You are constantly cheering us on here at Security Hall and I can't thank you enough for being an awesome advocate for us and for every veteran out there that has questions. Do you mind if we plug your LinkedIn so people can flood your inbox?
Speaker 2:Of course, that would be great. We would be happy to Awesome Well go to the episode description.
Speaker 1:You'll see Courtney's LinkedIn. Hit her up and ask her every question. Just ask her for a virtual coffee and bug her about how to be a good, successful entrepreneur. Thank you again, courtney, for being here and I can't wait to have you back on the show to talk about what's going on with your vets in the fall that'd be great awesome.
Speaker 2:Thanks, eddie, take care everybody we'll.
Speaker 1:Take care everybody. We'll see you all next time. If you like what we're doing and you're enjoying the show, don't forget to share us. Like us, subscribe and head on over to our Patreon, where you can be part of our community and get access to all of our episodes as soon as they drop. And remember we get through this together. Take care.
