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Hello everyone and welcome to the Within Range Coaching podcast. I'm Ranger, certified holistic

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success coach, and in this podcast, I'm bringing down the journey that entrepreneurs face as

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they start their organization, find solutions to the roadblocks in their way, and create

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an impact that lasts. So if you're an entrepreneur, nonprofit leader, or purpose driven community

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member that wants to learn how to grow your impact and develop yourself as the person

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behind the mission, then this podcast is for you. I know you're just as eager to get started

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as I am. So let's jump right in. Good morning, good afternoon and good evening,

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everyone. And welcome to today's episode of the Within Range Coaching podcast. I am currently

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sitting on the outskirts of Arkansas near Oklahoma border. And one of the episodes that

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we just recorded was with the Firehouse Hostel in Little Rock in Arkansas. And while I was

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there, while I was chatting with different people, meeting with the different board members,

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I was asking around for other nonprofits or other organizations that would be a good fit

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for the podcast that I should, you know, go meet in person, shake hands with and just

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kind of learn again, learn from highlight and work with people in the country that are

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making a difference. And one of the groups that I was put in contact with is called the

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Venture Center, which is and she'll correct me if I'm wrong in downtown Little Rock.

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Okay, perfect. So yes, the Venture Center, it's essentially well, I'll let Ashley talk

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about it. But I'll go ahead and introduce her now. I am sitting here on zoom with Miss

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Ashley Jones. Ashley, how are you doing today? I'm great. And thanks for having me today.

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Happy to share about the Venture Center and our sort of serendipitous meeting that took

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place last week. So the Venture Center is a nonprofit entrepreneurial support organization.

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We've been around for a little over 10 years. And our goal and mission is really simple.

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It's to support entrepreneurs, whether you're someone with an idea on a napkin, all the

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way to someone with a larger business looking for seed investment, and everyone in between

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whether you're tech, small business, Main Street, we want to be supportive of that.

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So that's really our mission is to help people find success in this in this entrepreneurial

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space. Yeah, that's amazing. I really love the idea. I mean, the Wander Project, one

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of the organizations that I'm working with for raising funds and collecting donations,

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that it sounds very in line with that, because they're a nonprofit that supports other nonprofits.

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And you guys are a nonprofit that supports entrepreneurship and getting these businesses.

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I just love the idea of the back of napkin, all the way up to several million dollars

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in revenue, like everyone and everyone, anyone and everyone is welcome at the Venture Center,

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which I thought was really unique and interesting when I went to visit with you guys.

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Yeah. And that's right. And entrepreneurs have various different needs. To your point,

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the entrepreneur with an idea on a napkin has different needs than the, you know, five

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years into it entrepreneur that's, you know, raising a series B. That sounds like a lot

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of lofty jargon that people may not know about. But truly, we're here to support everyone

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at those locations and in between. And so our programs and events are designed specifically

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for those different types of entrepreneurs. And then everything is built on on mentorship

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as well. That's a foundational piece of success when it comes to entrepreneurship. And so

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everything is built off of mentorship. Yeah, I really love the collaboration aspect

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that you guys have there. But let's let's back up for just one second. And let's hear

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a little bit about you. How did you get involved with the Venture Center? Actually, let's talk

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about your intention for today. I always I always jump past the intention. But what would

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you say your intention for today's episode would be?

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I think my intention is reflective of the organization, right? So going back to the

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mission of the Venture Center, really intentional work that we do here at the Venture Center,

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specific to startup tech innovators, those really revolutionary folks with ideas that

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are disruptive to your to your main street business owner that's looking to support their

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family, maybe bring on one or two employees, as well as corporate partners and sponsors

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that are looking to support those entrepreneurs who are always seeking sponsors that have

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missions in line with ours and want to support this entrepreneurial space. And so I think

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that that would be my intention is to reach out to anybody that may be interested in this

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space, they're an entrepreneur themselves, that they're interested in, in the work that

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we do to to reach out to us. And there's various ways to get a hold of us. Our website is venturecenter.co.

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And there are several other opportunities on social media as well. But we can get into

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that a little bit later. But yeah, if you're curious about the startup world or entrepreneurship,

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reach out.

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Yeah, I think that's fantastic that there are because I know that a lot of people that

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are either you know, that have that that napkin, they have no idea what to do with it. Like,

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it's just this idea. It's this commitment that they're looking to make. But how do you

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even go from idea to implementation? So it sounds like that's really your guys's wheelhouse.

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And again, we'll get into that in just a second. But I'm curious, like, how did you get involved

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with the venture center? Because I know we've talked about it before, but you aren't an

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entrepreneur, you're not a business owner, but you still have, I guess, dedicated, like,

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I don't know, at least eight hours a day, right? To supporting entrepreneurs and being

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a resource and helping them. So how did that kind of fall into your lap?

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Yeah, eight hours a day for the last over eight years, this has been my world. And so

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really, I didn't know it. And I think I told you the story early on, I didn't know that

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I was working for a startup prior to coming to the venture center. I was fresh out of

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college and looking for to be gainfully employed, if you will. And so I took a job for a company

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that was based here in Little Rock, that I later learned was a startup. They were in

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the tech space, it was mobile ultrasound, x ray, echocardiogram, servicing home health

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care, as well as nursing facilities. Working in that space, I learned a ton, you know,

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I was very much behind the scenes in the operational space, understanding how an organization like

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that runs and grows within five years of this organization being around, they were acquired.

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And so that was my introduction to the adult world and being, you know, part of this space.

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And so having that job, I was looking for something else after that, and learned about

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the venture center through my husband who had done some work. He said, there's this

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place that I think they help entrepreneurs, I'm not entirely sure what they do. But I

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know they're looking for someone, I know you're looking for something. So check it out. And

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that's really how it started. And so learned about the venture center, the role that they

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played in the local space specific to economic development and entrepreneurship. And I was

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extremely curious, I've always been a curious person, always looking to learn from other

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people. And so this this really interested me. So the role at the time was community

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champion. So I came on to the venture center, really overseeing driving membership and mentorship,

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training new mentors, always looking for people that could fit as a mentor, telling people

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about the venture center, almost being an evangelist of sorts for the venture center,

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sharing all the good that we were doing, and really the the driver of membership at that

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at that point. And that was really eye opening. I've met some fantastic people in that space,

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a lot of the mentors that came on board are still mentors and familiar and friends with

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the venture center. And it's just been a very fun, interesting whirlwind of a ride in this

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entrepreneurial space that I never thought I would have a part in.

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Yeah, well, I mean, just in the conversation that we had in person, and even right now,

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your passion for it definitely shines through and I can hear it in your voice, like just

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the way that you're interacting with it. Yeah. And that makes me care. Like what about working

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in this space is so exciting for you? Yeah, I think I'm laughing to myself because

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I'm thinking, you know, you're you're entrepreneurs, they're very, they're not afraid to take risks,

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right. And so I think that's what's extremely inspiring about entrepreneurs. I'm very, you

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know, risk averse, if you will. So I'm very inspired by people that are willing to just

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throw it all into the wind and say, here goes nothing, you know. And while that's not my

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personality or the way that I operate, it is inspiring to see people to do it. You see

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you see all ends, you know, you see people quit their day job to pursue the hobby that's

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really turned into the full time thing. You see people struggle, whether it's looking

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for a brick and mortar to move into full time or whatever the case may be. It's just it's

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just very inspiring. I think that's the word I like to use. It's a different type of person

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that I enjoy being a part of their success. But that's that's again, it's not me, but

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I can appreciate the drive. You know, I have heard that like a very similar sentiment from

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other people that I feel like social media very much glorifies entrepreneurship. And

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what is it like the E myth or something? There's some book about it that I should probably pick

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up and actually read. But it's basically that not everybody needs to be an entrepreneur,

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right? Like it's very much glorified. It's very much it's sold as something that it's

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not necessarily actually is. You know what I mean? So I think what's so interesting is

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that you found a way to still be involved in the entrepreneurship game, be involved

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in that risk, be involved in that community without, I don't know, like doing something

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you're not interested in. Right? Because there's nothing wrong with being risk adverse. It's

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being aware of what your risk tolerance is. And you're right, like entrepreneurs definitely

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have a higher one. Yeah. But that doesn't mean you need to have one or it's good or

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it's bad. Yeah. And yeah, I mean, we see a lot of times that entrepreneur, the the sexy

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side of it, you know, is making a lot of money, having freedom of time, being your own boss.

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There's lots of things that you hear. But there's a lot of tears and blood and sweat

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and all the stuff that goes along to it. It's behind the scenes that you often don't see.

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I've seen firsthand. I I find myself sometimes being a therapist to entrepreneurs. You ask

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how you're doing and the next thing you know, you know, you're crying with them because

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they're talking about their kids and how they've missed games because they're staying up at

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night working. And it's you know, there's a lot of empathy there. But yeah, there's

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a lot of behind the scenes that people forget about or don't see as much. All they see is

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the success stories, which is also why, you know, the venture center, even failure is

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seen as success because hopefully you're failing forward. Right. And so the idea is every failure,

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there's something to learn from it. And so you can either, you know, dust yourself off,

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move forward with it, scrap it, start something new. But there's always that notion that there's

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something to learn from failure. And that's in our eyes is still success because hopefully

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you've you've learned something from it. Yeah. And that reminds me of a concept I kind of

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heard of before. It's called like the the rocky cut scene. You know how they show like

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the two minutes of the super, you know, getting knocked down, getting back up, getting strong

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and this and that. And then they fight the bad guy and they win or whatever happens.

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Right. Yeah. And I feel like that's something that is like, again, the sexy side of entrepreneurship

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that's, you know, oh, look, despite all this, it happened. But in the movie, it only lasts

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two minutes or in real life, it lasts years in some cases. And I've noticed, too, you

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know, you talk to anybody because when you tell them you work for an entrepreneur support

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organization, they might joke and you say, well, I've got an idea. Everybody has an idea.

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You know, if you if you push and pry and think, you know, everybody's got an idea, but only

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those that are willing to risk some things are those that pursue it. And some get halfway

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down the road and realize, hey, this isn't for me. That's OK. At least you didn't spend

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too much money or get too heavily involved before you realize that. And that's what places

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like the venture center are there for. There are people in the space that have been there,

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done that. We help make those connections. We provide the programs. We provide the events

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to help make those connections, give you some mentorship along the way with the questions

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you're not sure of how to answer or spaces you're not sure how to navigate and really,

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you know, empower those that want to pursue entrepreneurship. Yeah. And it sounds like

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even just being a resource for them to make that intentional decision of no. Yeah, because

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I think that's the most powerful thing, right, because they could sit there for years and

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years and sit on this idea, sit on this thing that they want to do. And then if they never

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do anything with it, living with regret, not feeling fulfilled. But there's a different

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like like you said, like even through empowering to make that decision to stop doing it. Right.

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Yeah. And there's accountability in it, too. You know, at the end of the day, it's your

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business. It's your idea. We're not trying to take it and run with it by any means. But

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there is accountability. You know, you may meet with a mentor and mentor tells you, you

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know, go out and you know, you need to do some, you know, customer discovery before

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you know, really, before you put any money towards this. So go, go do some customer discovery,

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talk to a few people, see what they might be willing to pay. Do they actually have this

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problem? And so then there's an expectation that you should go ahead and talk to those

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10 people or however many people. And, you know, the goal is to hold some some entrepreneurs

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accountable. Right. So if you've been asked to do that, following through to make sure

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you've done it, if not, hey, have you have you done this, you know, in order to meet

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with the mentor, whoever again, they would like you to do this. Have you done that? No,

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I haven't done it yet, but I will. It's on my list. And then, you know, it might take

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them a few weeks. A lot of folks that we work with are gainfully employed. They've got full

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time jobs. They're they're exploring something on the side or they fully jumped into it.

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And it may take them some time to get there. And then so it's a matter of just following

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up, keeping in touch, seeing if they've made the progress and then seeing where we can

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help out and fill in some gaps.

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Gotcha. Yeah, no, I love that. And I mean, just on your website, what mentorship, education,

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collaboration like that, those are all things that are just I don't know, I've seen how

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impactful all those things are. And like, you know, in my business, in my life, even

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just on the personal level. And what I want to ask you is we're doing a lot of backing

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up. Let's I'm curious, how do you go from the back of napkin to, I don't know, like

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quitting your job? Like, what is the support you guys have there? And I guess like what

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like that zero to one. Right. Right. And the hardest the hardest part is committing to

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an idea that you have. And so the thing that we like to do, we start off with what we call

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an origin session. So if if you're not sure, a lot of times you you have an idea, then

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what? A lot of times people don't know that this whole ecosystem of entrepreneur support

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exists. The venture center is one of many not only in central Arkansas, but the state

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ESOs. If you Google entrepreneur support organizations, your brain may explode with the amount of

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support that's out there from entrepreneurs, but people don't realize that. So the first

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thing is truly just awareness and education, letting them know that places like the venture

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center and several of our other cohorts, you know, exist and can be supported. And so what

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we like to do is have an origin session. So there's a space on our website, or you can

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reach out to us at founders, venture center dot co. Let us know that you you're interested

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in being an entrepreneur, and we can set up some time with you. So our internal staff

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will sit down with you for about 30 minutes or so get an understanding of you, your your

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idea where you're at in the process, and your knowledge base as far as what is it to be

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an entrepreneur? Do you understand the landscape? What different resources are available? And

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it's it's truly just like I mentioned, the awareness piece of letting them know what's

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what's available. Beyond that, we love to start with the lean canvas. And a lot of times

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it's something that people have never heard of never seen. But the lean canvas was developed

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by a guy named Ash Maria, you can get on YouTube and actually find a video. There's books about

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it. But it's the lean canvas model. And it's the it's something that we subscribe to. It's

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really, it's sort of the Cliff Notes version of a business plan, if you think about it.

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So it's a one page document that helps you take what's in your brain and put it down

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on a single sheet of paper. So it starts with what's the problem? What are you trying to

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address? And then it gets into solution? Who's your target audience? What's your unique value

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proposition? What key metrics? What you know, will you measure to identify if you're successful

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or not? And so that really, that's the first thing that you know, we we tend to share with

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an entrepreneur coming into the space for the first time, because like I mentioned,

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that sometimes they've never seen it. So we give them some homework and say, look, here,

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here's this document, we want to be helpful. Here's some videos, support, reach out. But

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we want you to try to complete this for the most part as much as you can, because it does

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ask about revenue models and structures and some of the numbers and financials behind

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your endeavors. Well, and a lot of people may have not thought about that yet. So at

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least help us understand what the problem is, what your potential solution, the target,

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those sorts of things come back to us. And then we can have a deeper, further conversation

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about about what that is. So I'd say that is that is really the first step is taking

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what's in someone's head and getting it down on paper. And the Lean Canvas does a really

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great job of that. Yeah, I just pulled up the Lean Canvas right now to check it out

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for myself. And I mean, yeah, you just Google it and it's right there. So it's a wonderful

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place that Google that Google. Yeah, you find anything and everything there we and we help

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direct people to that information, too, because it's like I mentioned, it's a world that people

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are not familiar with. But once you're exposed to know, you know, there are resources and

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abundance of resources available for entrepreneurs. Yeah. And a lot of it is just even like you

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don't know what you don't know. And if you don't even know to Google ESO or what in California,

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I'm sure there are in other places, but small business development centers that the local

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one for me helped me out a ton. Yeah. And I was you know, it's I'm not sure how you

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guys do it exactly. I'm sure we'll get into that more so. But just like the access to

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free information out there that isn't just this generic, you know, wiki how of how to

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start a business, make a business plan, like register as a nonprofit or LLC or you know,

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it's it's very generic and basic, but there's access to people like you guys for all different

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budgets and this and that I'm sure so. Yes, absolutely. And that's that's the thing is,

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you know, entrepreneurs support organizations, we we refer and we talk to each other to see

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how we can best support the entrepreneur. And it's never the thought is never you can

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only go to one ESO. Please go to all of them. Your head may be spinning. But and but it's

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truly the exposure to the different ones. And then you can learn, you know, oh, this

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place does this really, really well, you know, when we think of the SP or ASB TDC that's

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here in Arkansas, it's at the university campus here in Little Rock. They are really great

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at market research. They provide actually thousands of dollars of free market research

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for free on the very front end. They have business consultants. And so that might be

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a great place to start. The Venture Center is really good at mentorship and connectivity.

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And that's that's what it really what we we prize ourselves on. And so we can provide

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those referrals as well. But we want to be part of that network because we have the exposure

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we've got the connections we can help really expedite the process right of being an entrepreneur.

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And so we have relationships with all the different ESOs here in the state. There's

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a monthly entrepreneur support organization call that takes place where all the ESOs come

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online. We learn about an entrepreneur that's up and coming. We share key information. And

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so there's there's truly a connectivity here in the state, which I learned is not the case

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in several other states. You don't have that level of sharing of information. We went to

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an ESO conference and that was something that was shared. So Arkansas is a great place for

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entrepreneurship and to be connected. The Venture Center is a great place to start.

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Yeah, that's amazing. I didn't I didn't realize that that I guess I didn't realize that level

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of collaboration between ESOs existed. And it makes sense. And then it's kind of interesting

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to hear that in other places. It's not so much the case. Like is it what makes them

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so hesitant to share? Is it just they are afraid of competition or what do you?

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I'm not entirely sure. I know, you know, in some instances, it may be going after the

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same funding dollars. Right. And so regardless of that, though, here in the state, it's a

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very collaborative space. We're working with all different ESOs. Arkansas is very small.

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It's connected. You've heard of, you know, six degrees of Kevin Bacon that is very much

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representative in the state of Arkansas. You talk to four people in different corners of

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Arkansas. They probably know each other for one. And if they don't, you can find six people

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between all and they wind up being connected. So it's a small state. You know, everybody

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is is connected. And so it's just the transfer of information is beautiful as an entrepreneur

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here because you can you can find the person to help you if you're stuck on something anywhere.

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So an entrepreneur comes in with a napkin or the idea. They haven't even written it

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down yet. You help them get it on paper, organize their thoughts, kind of explain what that

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would really look like. What would that entail? And it sounds like helping a lot with the

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business structure. Because I know that's something that people get scared about. You

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know, is this an LLC? Is it a sole proprietorship? Is it this? Is it is this a nonprofit?

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Yeah. And that's where our mentorship comes in. So assuming that the entrepreneur coming

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in has completed the Lean Canvas or most of what they can complete, it honestly helps

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our team understand what the gaps are for this entrepreneur. You know, they may complete

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a startup self-assessment that lets us know where they where they think they are or where

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they think their gaps are. And then through conversation, we can learn how to better help

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and support that entrepreneur. And that's really where our mentorship comes in. And

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so the Venture Center actually just launched our membership program. And so the thought

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there is, you know, pre pandemic, there was a very robust community of entrepreneurs here

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in central Arkansas, specifically because that's where we're located. And then obviously

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there was there was zoom. There were these things during the pandemic, but you lose a

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little bit of that connection. There are just some things that are better communicated in

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person. And so what we've done is bring back membership and mentorship to reinvigorate

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that that community of entrepreneurs and tech minded individuals and those that want to

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work at a startup and just really create this space where different minded people can come

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together and share information. And so the thought there is let's create a membership

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and have mentorship be a part of that. And so the thought there is you can you can sit

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down with a mentor. We have mentors with varying, you know, expertise. They've all gone through

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a mentor training so they understand how to ask the questions. So if you're an entrepreneur

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sitting on in on a session, it's very much if you've heard of the Socratic method, it

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very much sounds like a three year old toddler asking why, why, why trying to get to the

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root of what's going on because the mentors themselves are speaking from experience. Here's

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what I've gone through. Here's something that may assist you. It's never do this, do that,

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do that. It's not their business. And there's a little bit of accountability there to to

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encourage the entrepreneur to seek solutions themselves. But you're also there to hear

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from the knowledge of someone that's been there and done that. And so those entrepreneurs

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or those mentors are able to help you navigate that space. So our mentors range, you know,

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we've got intellectual property attorneys, we've got just general business, serial entrepreneurs

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that have built, raised, sold businesses, the investment community is heavily involved.

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We've got folks that know a lot about marketing and sales. And so it's it's really tactical

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expertise that can be extremely beneficial to the entrepreneur that maybe doesn't have

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those connections or isn't sure how to move the needle in their business. And so depending

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on where you are, that's why the lean canvas and the self assessment are so important,

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because that helps us identify who that entrepreneur should or could meet with next. Because our

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idea of mentorship probably looks a little bit different. You're not meeting with the

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same person over and over and over. We want to build community and give you exposure to

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different folks with different knowledge bases. And so, you know, if you need marketing help,

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you will obviously sit with someone with some marketing knowledge. But if you get beyond

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that, you can meet with somebody over intellectual property or or financials, like review your

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your pro forma or whatever the case may be. And so we've got lots of mentors with with

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lots of knowledge that are there to help.

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That's awesome. So when when these entrepreneurs come in and they felt these forms and get

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connected, I guess, generally speaking, what are some of the most common or the most common

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in the top two, the top whatever you want to take this question, I guess, issues or

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extra help that they need that people listening should they think about start should they

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are if they are thinking about starting a business should consider right now.

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Yeah. I mean, a lot of times we know social media is a beast of its own. People come in

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looking for marketing support. Maybe maybe they are a little bit older or less tech inclined

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and don't understand. They keep hearing this word algorithm. They don't know what that

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is, but they know they have to feed it. And so they just aren't sure how to go about social

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media. And so that may be a topic that gets brought up a lot. And so then we'll put them

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with someone that's got a marketing background, a mentor that can help in that space. That

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way, it helps them take little bites at a time. You don't want to overwhelm the entrepreneur.

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Well, you got to set up this account, you got to go do this. Then you have to make sure

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that you post three times a day and do that. It's nothing like that. It's you know, let's

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start with the basics and work our way through. I would say that's a big one. A lot of people

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just needing help with marketing, how to amplify their message, which social media platforms

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should they be spending the most time on? Should I go ahead and start that newsletter

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or should I just focus on social media? Those different aspects and many more when it comes

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to marketing. The other big one is money. And we talked about this too. We have several

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people come in thinking we just, you know, they share an idea for 15 minutes and then

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we hand over money. That's not how it works. It's really not Shark Tank. I think Shark

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Tank is sort of glorified what this world looks like as well, that you can come in and

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pitch and then be given thousands or millions of dollars. That's not how it works. So sometimes

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it's shocking for those that realize that's not how it is. But that's where we're there

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to show them and guide them through the process. And so, you know, we even host pitch events

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and opportunities where an early stage entrepreneur can get a little bit of seed capital or pitch

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money that they could use to in whatever way they need for marketing or paying a month's

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rent, whatever the case may be. But yeah, I would say those are the two big ones that

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we see a lot of. And the other thing is, and I appreciate this entrepreneur a lot, the

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one that comes in to your point and says, I don't know, help me. And so then that's

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where the lean canvas and the self-assessment comes into play because we can, they've clearly

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got an understanding of their limits and what they know and what they don't. And they need

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guidance on where to start before they, you know, go down a track that is incorrect or

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costly and they just want to raise their hand and say, help me. I'm at this point. What

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do I need to do next? And I can appreciate that entrepreneur asking for help and saying,

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I don't know.

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It sounds like the M&M is always the issue, the money, the marketing. And yeah, I think

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we even talked about a little bit before is that typically when people say, I guess this

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is more so like finance coaching experience, when they say they need more money, that's

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usually the easy thing to point at, right? Like it's the easy problem to say, oh, well,

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if I just had more money, all my problems would be solved. And it sounds like you guys

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really dive in there and say, okay, well, what's the root of the issue? What's going

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on here? Just like for a person, it could be their actual behavior. Like they're spending

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more than they're making. Right. Let's see if we can fix things around here. Let's see

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what's actually going on beneath the surface. And it sounds like you guys do take that holistic

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approach to, okay, fill out this form. We're still going to go through the process. We're

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not just going to let you throw more money at a problem because you might not even know

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what the problem is.

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Yeah, that's true. I think that's very fair. But yeah, those are the main ones that we

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see. You covered those for sure.

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Yeah. And marketing is just a whole monster in and of itself.

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It is. It's a moving target. It changes somewhat. Are you every day? It is its own beast. And

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a lot of times people throw their hands up and say, I don't know how to do this. And

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so that's where we're able to step in and support and say, have you considered or in

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my experience we've seen, you know, because all of this is based on experts experience.

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Yeah. And I know I asked you this when we were in person, but what has been, I guess,

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the local impact on economic development for Little Rock from the work that you guys have

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done?

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We're actually pulling together information right now for a local impact study. So I don't

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have the numbers right now. But I mean, if we look at economic development in Little

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Rock and the amount of money spent here for those going through our programs and things

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like that, we're talking millions of dollars in impact just in Little Rock. And that money

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flows through back to small businesses, companies that are here, leads to more jobs. I mean,

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it truly is sort of a circle of life. The world is built on entrepreneurship. You know,

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those employed people, those people spend money, that money goes into your local economy

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and supports additional jobs. And then the cycle continues. And so that's been something

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that's extremely rewarding to see, you know, a company start off with maybe one or two

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employees and then we hear that they've moved locations because the space that they were

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in isn't large enough to host the 20 or 30 that they're about to hire. And so then it's

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about scaling and they've got to bring in directors of operations and HR and salespeople.

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And then the next thing you know, they're speaking at an event that we had from the

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success. And that's really the beauty of it. We've had actually several employees of the

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venture center go on to start companies and be extremely successful. And so those are

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what we look at as a win as well. We're supporting not only people that work at the venture center,

396
00:33:52,080 --> 00:33:58,800
but we're supporting the entrepreneurs as well. And so that's been a fun little thing

397
00:33:58,800 --> 00:34:01,240
that we didn't expect to happen, but has.

398
00:34:01,240 --> 00:34:05,840
Yeah, no, that's amazing. And I'm sure do you know when the report would be finished

399
00:34:05,840 --> 00:34:08,800
or ready by or is it kind of just it's ready when it's ready?

400
00:34:08,800 --> 00:34:12,800
Yeah, I'm not sure of the timeline. Like we're pulling together all the information right

401
00:34:12,800 --> 00:34:17,840
now and it takes some time to go through all of that and contact everybody. But yeah, it's

402
00:34:17,840 --> 00:34:22,800
used every two years. And so we're pretty excited about that information being collected.

403
00:34:22,800 --> 00:34:26,160
I was going to say if it takes time to pull the information together, it sounds like it's

404
00:34:26,160 --> 00:34:29,760
going to be a pretty solid report. So that's that's exciting. And I'll be on the lookout

405
00:34:29,760 --> 00:34:33,760
for it and I'll be sure to share it on my socials for from those that listen to podcasts

406
00:34:33,760 --> 00:34:39,120
and everything. Because yeah, that'll be so cool to see. And yeah, with the work that

407
00:34:39,120 --> 00:34:46,280
you guys do, is it only for residents of Arkansas that can use your services or how does that

408
00:34:46,280 --> 00:34:49,480
who can use you guys or work with you guys?

409
00:34:49,480 --> 00:34:55,400
Yeah, honestly, it's it's open to to anyone we're willing to hear from anybody a lot of

410
00:34:55,400 --> 00:35:00,320
a lot of our work that we do is focused within the state of Arkansas, given our stakeholders

411
00:35:00,320 --> 00:35:05,120
and the folks we have to report to. And so it just depends some of our programs are very

412
00:35:05,120 --> 00:35:11,600
specific to central Arkansas. And so a spark program, for example, is is central Arkansas,

413
00:35:11,600 --> 00:35:16,520
there is a better known small business program is open to the state. And so that question's

414
00:35:16,520 --> 00:35:20,920
come up quite a bit. But if anybody is looking for support, we've got connections and we

415
00:35:20,920 --> 00:35:25,760
can obviously point people in the right direction. But most of our programs and events are focused

416
00:35:25,760 --> 00:35:27,360
within the state of Arkansas.

417
00:35:27,360 --> 00:35:31,920
Gotcha. So there's some room for outsiders, if that's what we believe I want to call them.

418
00:35:31,920 --> 00:35:36,420
But it sounds like I mean, of course, like we were saying earlier, there's ESOs all over

419
00:35:36,420 --> 00:35:44,320
the place. So I don't know if if you're looking for an ESO in in Arkansas, the venture center

420
00:35:44,320 --> 00:35:49,040
is your go to and it sounds like if you're not Arkansas, do some googling, find one that

421
00:35:49,040 --> 00:35:51,920
works for you. And I mean, worst case, it sounds like you guys would even be willing

422
00:35:51,920 --> 00:35:52,920
to have a conversation.

423
00:35:52,920 --> 00:36:00,760
Absolutely. Yes. And we've we've got connections with different ESOs around the country. We've

424
00:36:00,760 --> 00:36:04,640
actually traveled to a few of them and check them out and have relationships with those

425
00:36:04,640 --> 00:36:09,280
folks. And so if if you're looking for a place local to you, we're happy to help you find

426
00:36:09,280 --> 00:36:13,440
that. But if you are in Arkansas, you're more than welcome to start at the venture center.

427
00:36:13,440 --> 00:36:16,680
And then we can help connect you to folks that are even closer to you or whatever the

428
00:36:16,680 --> 00:36:21,960
case may be. But we're a great place to help you get connected for sure.

429
00:36:21,960 --> 00:36:29,840
Awesome. And kind of just going back to what your intention was of, I don't know, of just

430
00:36:29,840 --> 00:36:33,800
reaching out to those that are interested in working with supporting or being a part

431
00:36:33,800 --> 00:36:36,920
of the venture center. Is there anything else that you would want to say to someone that

432
00:36:36,920 --> 00:36:41,640
might be on the fence or I guess on the fence of starting their business or working with

433
00:36:41,640 --> 00:36:46,240
you guys or don't even know if they should reach out? Like, what would you say to them?

434
00:36:46,240 --> 00:36:50,680
That's the hardest part is is reaching out, you know, that zero to one. Is it something

435
00:36:50,680 --> 00:36:54,360
I don't know? I've heard some people say, I don't want to waste anyone's time. You're

436
00:36:54,360 --> 00:36:58,400
not wasting anyone's time. That's what we're here for. And so I think the biggest thing

437
00:36:58,400 --> 00:37:04,160
is just start making an attempt. Some of our some of my favorite entrepreneurs that we've

438
00:37:04,160 --> 00:37:08,480
worked with just they literally showed up and never went away. And so many opportunities

439
00:37:08,480 --> 00:37:12,960
have presented themselves because they just keep tending to show up. One entrepreneur

440
00:37:12,960 --> 00:37:17,760
that comes to mind is Chris Wright. He's actually in the building of the Tech Park. He would

441
00:37:17,760 --> 00:37:23,520
laugh if he if he saw this. But I remember meeting him probably six or seven years ago.

442
00:37:23,520 --> 00:37:29,200
He came into the Venture Center in our old space on Markham. And he said, I pass by here

443
00:37:29,200 --> 00:37:35,160
all the time. It looks interesting. What do you guys do? And that has led to a six year

444
00:37:35,160 --> 00:37:40,680
relationship with the Venture Center where he is now a mentor. He volunteers for one of

445
00:37:40,680 --> 00:37:46,640
the programs that we run is Jolt, which is a cybersecurity fund competition that takes

446
00:37:46,640 --> 00:37:52,400
place in October. He's one of the volunteers that puts that on. He's a fantastic resource.

447
00:37:52,400 --> 00:37:58,200
He mentors different different folks in the cyberspace and is really just an awesome friend

448
00:37:58,200 --> 00:38:02,720
of the Venture Center. It's just because he showed up one day and said, how can I help

449
00:38:02,720 --> 00:38:08,400
or where can I plug in? And so there's I hope that's what people know and learn about the

450
00:38:08,400 --> 00:38:12,760
Venture Center. It's a great place for you. If you're a startup curious, if you're an

451
00:38:12,760 --> 00:38:17,080
entrepreneur, business leader, business owner, whatever the case, it's a great place to plug

452
00:38:17,080 --> 00:38:22,120
in, get connected because you really never know who's going to be at the next event or

453
00:38:22,120 --> 00:38:29,360
pitch and pint or whatever program we're going to put on. We do have a two days to start

454
00:38:29,360 --> 00:38:34,840
up that we're about to be planning for. And it's anyone that's ever been curious about

455
00:38:34,840 --> 00:38:40,240
the world of startups. So whether you're the person with the idea or you're the designer

456
00:38:40,240 --> 00:38:45,720
that could use your skills to build out a website or you're an intellectual property

457
00:38:45,720 --> 00:38:50,460
attorney that may be able to provide some insight, it doesn't matter if you've ever

458
00:38:50,460 --> 00:38:54,920
been curious about startups, the Venture Center, there's a program or an event for you.

459
00:38:54,920 --> 00:39:04,040
I love it. I think that's also such great advice is if for some reason you're having

460
00:39:04,040 --> 00:39:10,120
a hard time going from zero to one, maybe even just asking where the starting line is

461
00:39:10,120 --> 00:39:14,880
can be the first step for you. Yeah. So I think that's the greatest part that there's

462
00:39:14,880 --> 00:39:17,840
people out there that want to support, that want to be a part of it and want to be a part

463
00:39:17,840 --> 00:39:23,160
of your story and your success. So if there are people in Arkansas or want to ask where

464
00:39:23,160 --> 00:39:27,960
the starting line is, what would be the best way for them to get in contact with you?

465
00:39:27,960 --> 00:39:33,080
The Venture Center, we've got our website, venturecenter.co. There's a contact page there

466
00:39:33,080 --> 00:39:39,000
or you can reach out directly to us at founders at venturecenter.co. No M on any of those.

467
00:39:39,000 --> 00:39:43,840
It can be a little confusing, but reach out. Our team member will connect and get an understanding

468
00:39:43,840 --> 00:39:48,640
of where you are and be able to plug you in. Perfect. Social media channels as well. We're

469
00:39:48,640 --> 00:39:53,400
on all the socials. Oh, perfect. So website, socials, all that's going to be down in the

470
00:39:53,400 --> 00:40:00,360
show notes. People will be able to find you down below on all the Facebooks and the Twitters

471
00:40:00,360 --> 00:40:04,680
and the Instas and whatever you guys are on. I'll figure it out and I'll put it down there.

472
00:40:04,680 --> 00:40:10,880
Awesome. Ashley, thank you so much for spending some time with us today. I appreciate it and

473
00:40:10,880 --> 00:40:15,480
yeah, wish you guys the best of luck and good luck with your community and member program.

474
00:40:15,480 --> 00:40:20,640
Absolutely. And thank you so much for enjoying good luck on on your travels as well. Yep.

475
00:40:20,640 --> 00:40:26,800
I appreciate it. Thank you. And once again, thank you everybody for taking time out of

476
00:40:26,800 --> 00:40:31,640
your day to listen to today's episode. I had a great time talking with Ashley and learning

477
00:40:31,640 --> 00:40:35,840
a little bit more about the Venture Center and the amazing work they do. Once again,

478
00:40:35,840 --> 00:40:39,960
all their information is going to be down in the show notes, the website, social media

479
00:40:39,960 --> 00:40:45,080
and information about their new membership program that they just rolled out. The day

480
00:40:45,080 --> 00:40:50,600
that I met with her in person was the day that they really started doing the membership

481
00:40:50,600 --> 00:40:56,240
program. So I got to hear firsthand about the great impact, possibility to connect,

482
00:40:56,240 --> 00:41:02,480
collaborate, elevate and innovate with people in the community that are really just making

483
00:41:02,480 --> 00:41:07,680
things happen and adding their own brand of magic to the world. So again, if you're interested

484
00:41:07,680 --> 00:41:11,160
in learning more about the Venture Center, please go ahead and give them a follow on

485
00:41:11,160 --> 00:41:16,280
social media, check out their website, reach out if you want to go from zero to one or

486
00:41:16,280 --> 00:41:22,240
if you want to go from one to 100 everywhere in between. The Venture Center has something

487
00:41:22,240 --> 00:41:28,320
for you. As always, please be sure to like, subscribe, rate and review the podcast. The

488
00:41:28,320 --> 00:41:34,240
more that we have in terms of I guess that social proof, the more it's going to push

489
00:41:34,240 --> 00:41:39,880
out our message to those that really need to hear it, those that this message and these

490
00:41:39,880 --> 00:41:44,040
episodes would really serve. So if you could just take a few seconds, leave a rating and

491
00:41:44,040 --> 00:41:48,040
whatever podcast app you're using and share the show. Share it with someone that might

492
00:41:48,040 --> 00:41:51,800
need it. Share it with your feed, with your audience, with the people that are close to

493
00:41:51,800 --> 00:41:58,120
you because again, you never really know who needs to hear what message and exactly when

494
00:41:58,120 --> 00:42:05,440
they need to hear it. So be a champion for change, share the show and as always, have

495
00:42:05,440 --> 00:42:12,080
fun, stay safe, be yourself, let's get out there and make something happen. See you guys

496
00:42:12,080 --> 00:42:28,080
next time.