Jameson Rodgers built a company that will bring in $15+ million in revenues after only two years. He shares his strategy with listeners of the Earning Freedom podcast.
I reached out to Jameson with hopes that he would provide us with his secret to success. Turns out there isn’t any secret. The recipe for building a great business is the same recipe for building a great life. First, an individual must define success. That definition leads to crystalizing a vision. The vision lead the individual to create a plan. Then, day after day, the individual executes the plan that leads to the vision.
Jameson had a vision for building an e-cigarette company. The origins of his vision began because he wanted to lessen his mother’s addiction to nicotine. She had been a smoker for Jameson’s entire life. Despite his pleas with her to stop smoking, she couldn’t quit. When he saw e-cigarettes on shelves at a convenience store, he purchased some for his mom. He had read that the e-cigarettes were less harmful to health than ordinary cigarettes. His mom liked the new products. That simple market research encouraged Jameson to learn more.
During our Earning Freedom podcast episode, Jameson Rodgers told me that he studied to learn more about e-cigarettes. Through his online research, Jameson learned that a major tobacco company had purchased an e-cigarette company for more than $100 million. The company was only two years old and had 8,000 different retail accounts.
That information gave birth to a vision for Jameson. If he could persuade 8,000 stores to carry his line of e-cigarettes, he reasoned, he would have a business that others would value at $100 milion.
Jameson next created a plan. His research led him to learn that e-cigarettes were manufactured in China. After finding numerous suppliers, he flew to China. After a few days in China, he secured a deal with a supplier. Jameson returned to the United States and further detailed his plan. He presented his plan to investors and they agreed to fund him with $100,000 in startup capital. That capital allowed Jameson to purchase 8,000 products. He didn’t have one customer, but with his plan in place, he knew that he could persevere.
Jameson tells the Earning Freedom podcast audience how he grew. Although he began without a single customer, through relentless execution of his plan, in less than three full years he has built a national distribution system with more than 15,000 stores selling his products. He is an inspiration to anyone who chooses to create something magnificent out of nothing more than sheer determination.
If you’re interested in learning more about how you can deploy this strategy of Visualize, Plan, Execute to reach your highest potential, then join the Earning Freedom Mastermind Course and Crush It!
In today’s podcast on the Earning Freedom network, I respond to a university students questions about prison. Kristin Wilson, a student from City University in New York, reached out through MichaelSantos.com. Instead of responding to her questions through writing, I invited Kristin onto the Earning Freedom podcast and suggested that she could ask me anything about my prison experience. I pledged to answer openly and honestly.
I enrolled in a workshop with Podcaster’s Paradise to learn the best-practice techniques for launching a podcast. The networking group pairs us with other podcasters under the theory that we can help each other grow. Today I participated in a session with Erica. We began at the same time, but she has yet to launch her podcast. In today’s episode of Earning Freedom, I offered to show her the techniques I used to launch the Earning Freedom podcast. As the Nike slogan says, “Just Do It!” We conducted an impromptu episode and she told me that the exercise brought her a new level of comfort in moving forward. Listeners who have a tendency to procrastinate may find some value in the episode.
Today the Earning Freedom podcast features Chris Samples, a military officer who has devoted his career to protecting America. I met Chris online, through the Podcaster’s Paradise community. Chris is CEO of Journey of Success, a podcast that inspires others to work toward reaching their highest potential. He interviews leaders, he provides guidance, and he holds question and answer sessions to provide fuel that will help his listeners sustain a high level of energy as they pursue success.
Chris’s personal story shows the embodiment of contribution and leadership. He enlisted in the military 24 years ago, just as CNN was broadcasting the start of Desert Storm. He enlisted with a four-year commitment, wanting to contribute to the cause of liberty. I remember watching those same episodes on CNN while I was beginning my term in prison at the United States Penitentiary in Atlanta. As a young man, I wanted to do something for our country, but the bad decisions I made during my early 20s had consequences. In my case, those consequences meant decades in prison.
I admire Chris for his passion to build a stronger America. Following his four-year commitment, Chris worked to advance his education. After earning his undergraduate degree, he resumed his military career as an officer. Simultaneously, he earned two master’s degrees. Chris has lived abroad for seven years and he is currently stationed in Germany.
Chris will soon retire and return to the United States to begin a new career in contribution. He has been building a social media presence on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. His podcast, The Journey of Success, is the #1 ranked show on several channels in the iTunes network. Through all of his work, Chris reminds us that success comes with a price, and the rent is due every day. I’m so grateful that Chris chose to share his inspiring message of self-empowerment with the Earning Freedom nation.
I encourage you to follow and subscribe to Chris’s work:
When I met Thad Roberts in federal prison, he told me that people called him Moon Rock. I’d been incarcerated for nearly 20 years at the time that I met Thad. By then I’d heard a lot of nicknames. As in the books I wrote describing prison life, common nicknames included “Crip Tank, Red, Joker, Satyr, and Wolf.” I’d never heard the name Moon Rock before and I asked Thad the origins of that moniker. He told me the story.
In his early 20s, Thad worked as a scientist at NASA. As a promising young physicist, Thad could access materials that astronauts retrieved from earlier excursions to the moon.
That was in love with a young woman. To express his devotion, he promised her the moon. Then he delivered.
Thad stole moon rocks from NASA, samples that had been scientifically tested and examines, and labeled “trash” by NASA. He gave the moon to his beloved and attempted to sell the rest, at which point a series of mishaps followed. In a sting operation the FBI swarmed around Thad and prosecutors charged him with crimes that resulted in his being sentenced to a federal prison term for 100 months.
While incarcerated at the federal prison camp in Florence, Colorado, Thad created meaning in his life by teaching, exercising, and further educating himself through independent study. He sought books that would further his education. He bypassed the stacks of novels by authors like James Patterson and Danielle Steele that filled prison bookshelves. Instead, he relied upon a growing support network to find books on physics, astronomy, advanced math, and space exploration. Without a doubt, we had a genius in our midst at the Florence Federal Prison Camp.
In an effort to inspire more people in prison to prepare for law-abiding, contributing lives, I’ve launched the Earning Freedom podcast on iTunes. Through that podcast, I share strategies that empowered me through the 26 years that I served in prison. But I also interview influential business leaders and former prisoners who returned to society successfully. From those interviews, I show patterns for a pursuit of excellence and success. This innovative project empowers us to live as the change we want to see in the world. Since authorities released Thad from federal prison in 2008, I reached out to see how his adjustment through the 100-month sentence influenced his return to society.
In our podcast episode, Thad described challenges he faced upon his return to society after the prison sentence. Despite minimal financial resources, he described a life of riches and wonderment. He found love. He traveled the world. And Ben Mezrich, author of Accidental Billionaires, published ‘Sex on the Moon’ that he based on Thad’s escapades. Further, Thad wrote his own book, ‘Einstein’s Intuition: Visualizing Nature in Eleven Dimensions’ that comes out this April and expounds upon Einstein’s theories. A billionaire investor became aware of Thad and hired him to run a research laboratory that would test his theories.
Thad’s amazing story of crime and redemption validates something that all leaders know. Namely, a combination of the right attitude and tenacity can elevate individuals from lives of despair to lives of meaning and relevance. That’s the secret to earning freedom, and it’s what I strive to show on the Earning Freedom podcast.
Thad's Contact Information:
ei@EinsteinsIntuition.com
Ken Denman is a CEO who has led numerous world-class technology companies. He tells his story to the Earning Freedom network, inspiring anyone who chooses to listen. Reared in a family of modest means, Ken tells how he educated himself, developing strong communication skills along the way. The more he invested in self, the stronger he became. He describes pitching a well-known Silicon Valley venture fund in an effort to raise $10 million to fund his company. Ken’s awesome presentation resulted in his walking out with a commitment for $15 million to launch his first company, AuraServ. Success begot more success. Following a successful exit from AuraServ, capitalists recruited him to lead iPass, then OpenWave as CEO. Both companies were traded on the Nasdaq, with billion dollar valuations. Ken now is CEO of Emotient, a facial-recognition software company.
Listen closely to Ken’s story and you’ll hear the same message of Earning Freedom’s recipe for success:
Sign up for our mastermind course to learn how you can use these techniques to enrich your life, your career, and your relationships.
Mani Dabiri shares his journey with the Earning Freedom network today. He is a graduate of UCLA and USC Law School. After law school, Mani began his career as an associate for the mega law firm O’Melveny & Myers, rated as one of the top 100 law firms in the Unite States. After a few years, he secured a position as an Assistant United States Attorney, advancing his experience and credentials. Mani prosecuted all types of federal crimes and developed an enormous amount of insight into how government prosecutions operate. That experience serves him well now that he represents defendants. Mani’s practice focuses primarily on federal white-collar crime, but he defends all individuals who seek his guidance and expertise as an experienced defense attorney.
The Earning Freedom Network may contact Mani Attorney at the following locations:
1 Park Plaza
Suite 600
Irvine, CA 92614
714-673-6798
MD@ManiDabiri.com
Twitter: @ManiDabiri
In episode two Reverend Jeff Grant’s story, he discusses his ministry of providing spiritual guidance and counseling for people who’ve been charged or convicted of crimes. His ministry specializes in working with white collar offenders, helping those who’ve lost enormous amounts recalibrate their lives so that they can resume lives of meaning and distinction.
After graduating from law school, Jeff Grant launched his career in Manhattan. He rose to the top of his profession, leading a firm that specialized in real estate law. In the first of a two-part episode on the Earning Freedom podcast, Jeff tells the story of how an addiction to pain killer medications led to his making a series of bad decisions, some of them criminal. He pleaded guilty to a conviction for fraud and served 18 months in the low-security federal prison at Allenwood, Pennsylvania. He talks about his experiences and how he began to restore his strength.
Carlos Fletes, a teacher at Aspire Public Schools asked that I send a message to his 10th grade students. The students read a story that a newspaper published about my 26-year journey through prison and they found inspiration in the message. Work responsibilities precluded me from taking time off to visit the students, but I happily recorded an episode especially for them through the Earning Freedom podcast. It shares a message of how they can use strategies that empowered me to empower thmselves.
Justin Paperny served a year in prison for violating securities laws. While inside, he learned lessons that would allow him to reboot his life. In this episode of the Earning Freedom podcast, Justin talks about deliberate steps he takes to improve outcomes of our nation’s criminal justice system. Through a nonprofit organization that he leads, he has opened employment opportunities for more than 50 people who’ve emerged from the prison system. Justin talks about steps he is taking now to expand his project with the Michael G. Santos Foundation.
In this episode, Carole, my wife, describes how she made a commitment to return to school and pursue a career in nursing while we climbed through our final ten years of my prison term. The disciplined approach set her on a path to experience every level of the nursing profession. First, she became a Certified Nurse's Aid (CNA). While working in that entry level position of nursing, Carole studied to earn her prerequisites. Then she embarked upon a course that would lead to her Licensed Vocational Nursing degree (LVN). After practicing for a year, Carole returned to school to complete studies that would lead to her becoming a Registerd Nurse (RN). Then, as I was about to return to society, Carole enrolled in the University of San Francisco to work toward her Master's in Nursing Science. She will graduate with her MSN during the spring of 2015.
My wife, Carole, has been on this journey with me since 2002. For the first time I'm introducing Carole through a podcast. She also will share exciting news about the new domain we registered for the NurseCarole podcast. We will begin producing this show as soon as she graduates from the Unviersity of San Francsico with her master's degree in nursing. I'm incredibly proud of Carole and so grateful to share every day of my life with her.
When you're facing struggle or challenge, what strategies empower you to overcome?
If you're looking for a new strategy, you may consider the Staight-A Guide. This strategy can lead you to achieve your highest potential, just as the Straight-A Guide empowered me to sustain a high level of energy and discipline through each of the 9,500 days that I lived as a prisoner.
In this second edition of the Earning Freedom podcast, I provide an introduction to the Straight-A Guide. Listeners who want to achieve better levels of fitness, to develop their career, to live as better citizens, or who want to restore confidence, relevance, and meaning may find value in this strategy that empowered me.
Please review the Earning Freedom Podcast With Michael Santos on the iTunes network. I will publish daily episodes that inspire you to achieve your highest potential. Join my tribe by visiting MichaelSantos.com and learn strategoes to live your best life now.
"Stone walls do not a prison make, nor iron bars a cage" is the line I remember from the immortal poem. I found that line to be as true today as when written by Richard Lovelace, nearly 400 years ago. With the Earning Freedom podcast, you'll learn lessons to empower you through challenging times or struggle.
Despite Judge Jack Tanner sentencing me to serve a 45-year term in federal prison, lessons that Socrates taught empowered me. They can empower anyone who chooses to apply them.
As human beings, we all face struggle in our life at one time or another. Through the Earning Freedom podcast, I'll describe strategies that empowered me as the days turned into weeks, the weeks turned into months, the months turned into years, and the years turned into decades. This initial episode of the Earning Freedom podcast describes how I felt to embark upon a 45-year sentence, back in 1987, when I was 23 years old.
Please review the Earning Freedom Podcast With Michael Santos on the iTunes network. I will publish daily episodes that inspire you to achieve your highest potential. Join my tribe by visiting MichaelSantos.com and learn strategoes to live your best life now.
"Stone walls do not a prison make, nor iron bars a cage" is the line I remember from the immortal poem. I found that line to be as true today as when written by Richard Lovelace, nearly 400 years ago. With the Earning Freedom podcast, you'll learn lessons to empower you through challenging times or struggle.
If you're a prison administrator interested in an innovative program to inspire the inmates in your institutution, then visit MichaelSantos.com. Sign up for our newsletter to learn how your institution can receive free daily podcasts that inspire and motivate people in custody to prepare for law-abiding, contributing lives. Our free daily podcasts will feature interviews with people who've succeeded after a term in prison. We also will interview successful business leaders and entrepreneurs. Through our daily podcasts, interview guests will provide actional advice for people in prison who want to prepare for success. Are you interested in cultivating an environment that inspires people to succeed? Then let's change the world. Visit us at MichaelSantos.com today. Or conctact me at Michael@MichaelSantos.com.
I'm introducing myself to men who are confined inside of the San Francisco Jail. It's my hope to inspire those men to begin a deliberate path to prepare for success through the incarceration experience. More importantly, I'm hopeful this podcast leaves the men with confidence that they can emerge from confinement as law-abiding, contributing citizens that lead rich and meanignful lives.
Shon Hopwood, author of Law Man: My Story of Robbing Banks, Winning Supreme Court Cases, and Finding Redemption is the embodiment of Earning Freedom. I’m proud to call him a friend.
While confined inside the Taft Federal Prison Camp, I received a manuscript from Shon’s editor at Random House. The editor asked whether I would write an endorsement for Law Man. Although I’d never endorsed a prison book before, I happily wrote a blurb for Shon because his inspiring story impressed me like no other. In today’s Earning Freedom episode, Shon and I had a conversation about steps necessary to emerge strong after a decade in prison.
As a young man, Shon made some bad decisions. He used drugs and robbed banks. While incarcerated, he taught himself the law through independent study. Each day he read books that were available in the federal prison’s law library. Other prisoners approached Shon and asked for his help. One friend requested assistance in filing a Writ of Certiorari to the United States Supreme Court. The Supreme Court agrees to hear only a fraction of cases each year from the thousands of white-glove law firms requesting review. In 2010, only 1.8% of all cases that applied for Supreme Court review received a hearing, according to Supreme Court Press.
Against all odds, the highest Court in the nation agreed to listen to the eloquent, but novel argument that Shon articulated in his brief.
Needing a lawyer to represent the case at the U.S. Supreme Court, Shon reached out to Seth Waxman, the former U.S. Solicitor General and current partner at the elite WilmerHale law firm.
Mr. Waxman agreed to represent the case—without charge—that Shon initiated. Then Mr. Waxman became a friend and mentor to Shon during the remaining years that he had to serve in federal prison.
Upon Shon’s release, blessings continued to flow his way. He earned his undergraduate degree. Then Adam Liptak of the New York Times published an article on Shon’s story, bringing more attention to his amazing journey.
Shon later lectured at Harvard. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation gave Shon a full scholarship to the University of Washington Law School. And Random House issued him an opportunity to publish his story in a book.
Shown graduated last spring from the UW Law School and he now works as a clerk for the DC Circuit Court, the second highest court in the United States—arguably the second highest court in the world.
Shon continues his amazing journey, as he is about to begin two-year fellowship at Georgetown Law School. When he concludes, he will have earned his LLM degree, opening further opportunities for him to contribute . He plans on continuing his journey of servant leadership, working to represent the indigent and building a better judicial system.
I’m incredibly proud to share the amazing store of Shon Hopwood’s redemption with the Earning Freedom network. I encourage you to subscribe to our program on iTunes so that we can inspire more people to pursue excellence and earn freedom.